Best Of Weekend Update 7/31/11

[bbussey]

I had every intention of working on painting the house today, but instead, installed 5 Tortoises on the west throat interlockings and approaches.  Well, four so far, but I'm on a roll...

I bet there's going to be a White Tower in downtown Cumberland...

Cool! 

[DKS]

Breathtaking work, David!  Are those handmade trees?

Ed

Thanks! The trees are all from JTT.

[Alwyn Cutmore]

Hi Doug,

I do like your layout. I reckon that Huntingdon is one of the better prototype site to model on the PRR. No electrics, 4 track main, plenty of action, picturesque area and wonderful buildings. You can also run just about anything there as it had to go through Huntingdon to get to Altoona. Well done but being a one eyed PRR modeller does make me a little biased.

Regards

Al Cutmore
If It Aint Pennsy It Aint Modelling

[dwyaneward]

After a 2 month hiatus from the layout this weekend I finished assembling the CV Bridge



Started Installation



Installed 45 pairs of track feeders

[Puddington]

After a 2 month hiatus from the layout this weekend I finished assembling the CV Bridge



Started Installation



Installed 45 pairs of track feeders

Looks very nice - I have one to make soon; do tell; how did you do your track ?

Thanks

[Puddington]

David: That work is beyond the ability of this author to adequately comment.....simply unbelieveable......what did you use to the bolt castings on the trestle......?

Congratulations on a landmark model railway achievement.

[conrail98]

Great work by everyone. If I didn't have a bathroom and a bedroom down to studs, I'd be motivated by everyone's posts to get back downstairs and get moving on the layout. Keep up the inspiration!

Phil

[Dave V]

Looks like I'm late to the party....!

I added a Trainphone antenna and weathering to an Atlas RS11.



Then I weathered up a Penn Central GP7.  I had just received a bunch of the new Hay Brothers Garage cab signal boxes, but further research shows that this series of non-dynamic-brake-equipped ex-NYC GP7s did not receive them.



Here's the proto photo:

http://rr-fallenflags.org/pc/pc5628ads.jpg

I also worked on the new Conrail patch-job NE6 from Atlas.  First, the proto:

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1892800

...and my version:

[DKS]

David: That work is beyond the ability of this author to adequately comment.....simply unbelieveable......what did you use to the bolt castings on the trestle......?

Congratulations on a landmark model railway achievement.

Pud, you're too kind. The wooden trestle details are the smallest NBW castings that Tichy makes. Here's the build: http://ganddinz.blogspot.com/2011/03/gift.html

[Sokramiketes]

Probably a  bit off topic for the WE Update, but since we're talking about subterrain, why aren't you guys just sanding and surfoaming the foam to final shape instead of relying on a hardshell type application on top?  I'll use a little lightweight spackle to fill in small gaps, but it's much better to shape the foam to 98% than to glob on a thick application of brittle hard shell that is going to chip away as the layout ages.

On top of the foam goes a layer of latex paint and the first application of WS fine foam. 

And it's much easier to plant trees and install telephone poles etc.   

[seusscaboose]

ran trains friday
saturday did some tweeking to the car card system and worked on the timetable.

Sunday I installed more manual throws in tucker and staging...  that is the last hurdle to put the lid on staging and start Sunnyside.  Also worked on scenery as well as reworked the west end of Bellevue for some class tracks.

tomorrow night they will be complete.

oh yeah...  there will definitely be a White Tower in Rocky River.

[Dave V]

A lot of great stuff posted this week, but wow, DKS...  It's not often I call Patricia over to my computer to show her something on the Railwire, but I had to show her your G&D.  That would be jaw-dropping in HO.  But it's Z...!  Cannot...  process...

[sirenwerks]

David,

I finished the building today and posted it to Shapeways moments ago, fully expecting it to be too expensive in FUD.  I'm stunned, it priced out under $20. I'll make it available through the ESM store on Shapeways once I make sure it's correct, so probably sometime in September based on their current backlog.  It's tiny, only about 1.5" x 0.7".  The building can be wired for interior LED lighting.

Thing of beauty! I want one!

[wm3798]

Amazing bridges, rolling stock, and of course, the G&DKS... Let me bring things back down to earth for a moment...

Here's the brewery warehouse that's now underway, shown in position.  You may recognize some of the components being resurrected from the junque box.


That cold storage warehouse hasn't been on a layout since maybe 1983.  It almost made it onto the 1991 Laurel Valley, but proved a little too bulky for the location I wanted it in.  So a little cut and paste with some DPM modulars will create a whole new building.  A few more views:





Note that the loading doors from the rear side of the cold storage have been cut out and relocated on the second level, bringing the truck warehouse closer to the grade of US 40 behind the building.  Here's the overview of the location with a sketch plan of the rest of the building:



You can see how the loading dock faces US 40.  This will be pretty much invisible from the aisle, but I plan to tease it out enough to drop the camera back there on occasion.  The main brew house will be a larger brick structure to the right of and attached to the warehouse.  It will include a switch and separate siding that will accommodate the requisite grain cars, and maybe a coal dock for power.  I've seen photos of the old Queen City brewery with a pile of coal on the side of the building, presumably to power the operation, but it appeared to be dumped from a truck.  So I'll bend light a little to create another destination for some Laurel Valley coal...

I also finished mechanically and electrically hooking up the interlockings at the west end of the yard, and ran the cable to wire the east end interlockings.  Just need to wire the frogs, and put in the machine for North Junction, and the main line will be fully functional.

Lee

[wcfn100]

Jason