Weekend Update 7/18/2010

[conrail98]

Put up shelf standards and the brackets around the perimeter for the 2nd and 3rd levels. Started ripping plywood for the lower level benchwork,

Phil

[DKS]

I made this lighted, double-sided sign.
 


It will go on this building when it's done.
 

[MEC_FAN]

Got tired of messing with Model Power cast metal so switched to brass. This is an Athearn old time 2-8-0 chassis:

Chris, amazing work man WOW!!!!

[seusscaboose]

Hosted the local N-Trak (BANTRAK) meeting.  Had a good time seeing everyone and running some trains.  Getting realy close to finding all the electrical glitches.  Another few hours and i should have it ship shape.  In the meantime, trains are running.  Next step is more C55 to finish out the yard.

[John]

Went to Ohio yesterday, flew back today .. went to the BANKTRAK meeting, watched Eric (seuscaboose) trains run and ate a hotdog ..

[wm3798]

Remember this?

Now it looks like this...



I extended the Connellsville sub line under Cumberland, and installed the skyboard around the helix.  I couldn't believe how perfectly the 48" panel that Phil cut fit.  I trimmed the 45 about a half inch too short, but I'm not losing sleep over that.  It's just the right height, and I can easily reach over the top of it to get to any derailed cars that might accumulate on the safety net.

Okay, get out your mind's eye, and consider the following...

That's the Thomas Sub at the top of the helix.



The track in the back is the Thomas sub at the bottom of the helix.  Cumberland will wrap around the front of the skyboard, with Baltimore Ave. running more or less front to back.  In the Cumberland scene, this bit of the Thomas line can be staged with B&O equipment to look like that main on the east side of downtown.

I've got to get the basic scenery installed along that back edge of the layout so I can close up the hole with the main line through Cumberland.  The city will probably be constructed on a series of liftout panels that can be worked on at the bench.

Lee

[seusscaboose]

Went to Ohio yesterday, flew back today .. went to the BANKTRAK meeting, watched Eric (seuscaboose) trains run and ate a hotdog ..

and forgot your magazines

[John]

Went to Ohio yesterday, flew back today .. went to the BANKTRAK meeting, watched Eric (seuscaboose) trains run and ate a hotdog ..

and forgot your magazines

No .. i took the two I wanted

[seusscaboose]

Went to Ohio yesterday, flew back today .. went to the BANKTRAK meeting, watched Eric (seuscaboose) trains run and ate a hotdog ..

and forgot your magazines

No .. i took the two I wanted

that's good news... i thought you forgot them.  Thanks for slipping on by.

[Bob Bufkin]

Spent several hours this weekend trying to the the stack that comes with the Walthers Northern Light & Power to line up without the seams showing.  What a PITA and a lousy design.

[seusscaboose]

Spent several hours this weekend trying to the the stack that comes with the Walthers Northern Light & Power to line up without the seams showing.  What a PITA and a lousy design.

totally agree, i have spent time looking at that and ended up taking the easy way out
http://www.modeltrainstuff.com/Walthers_N_933_3289_1_Piece_Smokestack_2_pac_p/933-3289.htm

[Bob Bufkin]

Looks like a solution to me.  Thanks.  Still gonna work on the one I have just cause I'm a stubborn old SOB.

[BCRail_FSJ]

Finished up a rather tricky kitbash project to make a BC Rail 60ft combination door boxcar.  Time to start a production line I think.  My layout is going to need a few of these.

[Hyperion]

Haha, made it!  Barely.

Just finished this.  Been forever since I actually did some real modeling.  This was my my first brass kit and it was quite time consuming.  And probably only my 3rd contribution to the Weekend Update so I hope you guys think it's as neat as I always do looking at what you do.  Personally, I thikn it's a pretty damned cool kit and am extremely pleased with the results (there's a couple issues with the final build, but nothing I can't live with).

It's an Auto Carrier from TrainCat.  His kit is built with an old Athearn Mack (I think) truck in mind, but that seemed out of place on a modern layout, so I made it fit a GHQ Peterbilt 359 which really fits any era from about 1960 through today since even the successor the 379 made through the '90s looking extremely similar (particularly in 1:160).



You really have 2 options when using the GHQ Peterbilt 359.  Out of the box, it just doesn't work.  

1>  You can either remove the sleeper cab, turning it into a Day Cab model (GHQ's instructions say the Sleeper is separate, but it's not, so you've got to cut it off).  Doing this has the front supports extending exactly to the front bumper.  I didn't try this myself yet, but it appears that once you remove that sleeper everything will fit perfect.

2> Or you can do what I did and add about 8mm to the wheelbase turning it into an Extended model (I did 7mm, notice it's not quite centered over the tractor axles).  Doing this keeps the ramp from extending all the way to the front bumper, but this is often how Peterbilts are done since their front hoods are so long.  Normally the front support would be angled to just behind the front wheel, but rather than trying to modify the kit further and make new front supports that angled backwards, I just went ahead and tied it in to the front fender -- at this scale and even as close as the camera is here, it's not terribly noticeable that I took that shortcut.

Either way would be prototypical and I plan on building my other one with a Day Cab for some added variety and I'll be trying some other trucks too since I plan on having a few of these.  And both methods require the removal of the fifth wheel from the chassis for the rack to fit.

And a helpful hint to those who may build one of these -- do not put the "hydraulic cylinders" (or whatever they are) onto the horizontal 'driving' surface.  That seems like where you should put them, but if you do the tread pieces won't fit and you'll have to cut notches to fit around them.

[Dave Schneider]

Here is an in progress shot of a Schlitz beer car "stand-in". The real cars were RBLs numbered DSDX (Dairy Shippers Dispatch) 8000-8199. I am working on the artwork for some etched car sides, but until that happens I thought I could make some representative cars from the Walthers North American Smoothside RBLs. The sides have the wrong number of panels and the ladders are wrong, so I decided to give it a 9000 number series to represent a later car order. The color is a bit too orange, so maybe I will add some yellow next time. I made some decals for this using NY Central font (Grand Central) which is pretty close to the prototype. The nice things about the large reporting marks is that I can actually read the car number! I used Microscale decal paper, and the film seems a bit thick. Anyone else ever notice this?  It still needs weathering and wire steps. Maybe for next week.




Best wishes, Dave