Weekend Update 4/29/12

[MichaelWinicki]

[M.C. Fujiwara]

[Just realized I had posted this in last week's update.  D'oh!]
[But they really are beginning to bleed together a bit  ]

This week I finished laying the staging and runaround tracks on the Silicon Valley Free-moN Staging Yard module:
 


I had gotten only the main and three other tracks done by the show a couple weeks ago, but now all 7 are installed, wired & ready to rock & roll.
 
Given that we just use butt joints & clamps (no alignment pins, dowels or bolts), and the fact that I had built the three sections in less than a week, I'm pretty amazed that all seven tracks line up pretty much spot-on both straight-section-to-straight-section as well as on both sides of the 2' insert.
 


So here's the staging yard in all it's partially-completed glory:
 


Also made a video on how to make beautiful butt joints:
 

[I resisted having a Sir Mix-a-lot soundtrack]
 "Beautiful butt joints" is almost as fun to say as "flush butt".
 
Next week will be fun: assembling 20 Bullfrog turnout controls to replace the temp groundthrows and installing them with control rods to each side of the module.
 Hope I don't croak.
 
Another great week of some fab modeling!
 Thanks for sharing: it's always inspirational.

[atsf_arizona]

Hi, all,

As we commemorate the Atlas Forum closing down on May 1, 2012....

I'd like to appreciate all of you for all the contributions on the various forums that all of you have made to
my modeling.

Because of your tips, inspiration, and friendly pushing me to push myself....

I went from this, my very first model railroad photograph back in 2003 sometime:



To this:





From this, in August 2002:




To this:




That's a smattering of how much all of you on the forums, including the Atlas Forum, have meant to me over the past decade. 

Thank you all for your contributions, thank you Atlas, and continue to see you here on The Railwire.

[flight2000]

I finished abusing a trio of gondolas this weekend.  After reading the rusting article in the MRH Feb(?) issue, I picked up some Sophisticated Finishes paint from Micheal's Craft Store.  I liked the results... 

Brian

[BCR 570]

Tim H .. can you show some pics of the sawmill compound in the background?

John:

Not immediately, I regret, as my home computer with those files is currently in the shop and I am limping along on an old laptop (Windows ME still works!).  However, my website has some pictures of the mill - to find them, go to the Structures page, click on Northwest Wood Preservers mill and scroll down.

I should caution you that it is simply a collection of crather crude ardboard mock-ups at this point, and was done prior to seeing any reference photographs of the actual mill.  The prototype was a stud mill with wood preservation and pressure treatment facilities for bridge members, ties, etc.  I have yet to determine if the blower pipe for the chips was above or below ground.  It will all come off the layout later this year once tracklaying enters the yard.


Tim

[Brakie]

I thought I would share a photo or two.

Here's my Southern collection.



And my Slate Creek Industrial track plan..

The layout is 1' x10'.

[jmlaboda - RIP]

"The poles are modified Atlas poles along with some scratchbuilt line poles and line carriers."

I was wondering myself... really nice overall... thanks for sharing the photo and the info, it will help me in doing some for my own modeling!!!

[up1950s]

Brian those gons are awesome .

[vt_railroad_guy]

My first weekend update...yay me!

Got a little time to work on the layout yesterday.  It's not much, but it's a start.  Also dug out my old hogger and it still works...kinda.  There is a delay of several seconds when you turn the throttle knob and it doesn't seem to handle slow speed very.  Otherwise, it's fine.







JDB

[Philip H]

JDB that looks like a good start.  remind me again - what line are your locos painter for?

[vt_railroad_guy]

Bangor and Aroostook.

[Scottl]

Not much modelling on my part- lots of travel these days.

I finally worked on my "noodle-swoosh" loco.  It's a foob, mostly because I had a spare dash-9 rather than a dash-8, but I like the looks of it and will keep it until I can find a cab to convert this to a proper CN cab.  I'll finish it with grabs, proper MU hoses and weathering to match one of the originals:

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=361518&nseq=10





Also have a 5-pack of Nscale kits well cars in the paint shop, nearing decals.  Hope to have my winter projects done by mid-May before I am away for the summer.

Scott

[CBQ Fan]

Not much modelling on my part- lots of travel these days.

I finally worked on my "noodle-swoosh" loco.  It's a foob, mostly because I had a spare dash-9 rather than a dash-8, but I like the looks of it and will keep it until I can find a cab to convert this to a proper CN cab.  I'll finish it with grabs, proper MU hoses and weathering to match one of the originals:

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=361518&nseq=10





Also have a 5-pack of Nscale kits well cars in the paint shop, nearing decals.  Hope to have my winter projects done by mid-May before I am away for the summer.

Scott

Is that a Chevy logo on the rear end between the number boards????

[jereising]

Endings...and beginnings.  The last post on SNFF, perhaps with a tear in the eye, and the first (of hopefully many) on The Railwire's Weekend Update.

I thought about a retrospective, all the way back to the original Sub, but figured why not stay true to the spirit one last time - so here's some RTTXs - yet another superb model from BLMA.



across the Bealville horsehoe:

[GaryHinshaw]

Jim, those flats look fantastic in that setting.    Can't wait to get mine through Canada Customs (...) and put some 28' pups on them.

Nice loco Scott, and I'm looking forward to seeing your N Scale Kits wells.   Speaking of NSK, I tried to look them up on Google a month ago and the site wasn't showing up.  I thought they had quietly disappeared, but happily it seems to be back now.  I'm hankering to build some more kits soon.

Nothing for me except a little layout room cleaning. Between work travel, proposals, and now my most complicated tax year ever (CA taxes due Apr. 30) I'm sidelined for another few days, except for surfing here.

-gfh