Weekend Update 5/11/14

[mark dance]

A beautiful job on the service station! 

Things have been slow progress-wise on the Columbia & Western...first pass backdrop behind Castlegar has been done and blended in with the lit photo backdrop behind the Celgar pulp mill.  I still need to add details to the backdrop along the transition point with the scenery.  And the scenery profile, ground cover and rocks are in between the tracks and backdrop and awaiting details and trees.







Have a great weekend

md

[Rest In Peace Paul Scoles]

[Wutter]

Is the lift automated ?  I recall seeing someone's gas station that had a small moter that would periodically raise and lower the lift .

The lift is just a static model thrown together from some scrap styrene. And yes Peteski, I used 1206's and a few 603's in the cabinet and vending machine but everything is tied into one 1/4 watt resistor and bridge rectifier under the base.

[Cajonpassfan]

Hello all...
a little soggier today in Coastal Alabama.....
Thanks for looking,
~Bruce

PS-Otto, I posted plenty of 'in progress' pics because I know how much you love working with foam!

Yea Bruce, right. NOT!
I'm sure it will look fabulous! Just don't breathe the stuff...
Otto K

[Dave V]

Progress continues on the Rio Grande Southern...



Here's a peek at what it will look like when operating!



The mainline is nearly complete. I still need to do final alignment and surfacing (ballast tamping and leveling) and I plan to solder some of the rail joints for electrical continuity. Some of the joints are screwed together with joiners that have expansion slots for when the weather changes. In the middle will be a long, curving mine spur.



Soon enough, there'll be some vegetation around the layout too!

[Puddington]

Well; I was holding down the fort at Rapido Galactic HQ while Jason and Dan were on station at the VIA Rail Toronto Maintenenace Center to bring LRC 6917 to life.... and they did....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9jyrirUT_8

Not too bad for an early 1980's MLW/Alco unti that hadn't seen life in years.... It's so rewarding to bring a vintage locomotive to life... have a look !

Ya baby !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[BCRail_FSJ]

Performed a re-do on the gravel road to give it a wear pattern of two way traffic which is more appropriate given its generous width.





This is the look I am aiming for....



Then I decided to have a go at standing water.   I want to incorporate rarely-modelled mud and standing pools of water when I get to Fort Nelson yard scenery.   I did this little test section to try it out.



 Basically I used some scrap thin clear plastic from packaging and painted the underside a muddy brown colour.  I then embedded it in foam core, build the landscape around it in Sculptamold and then applied the tile grout ground texture, being extra careful around the water edges.     I also created a rough road and ran it through a narrow point in the water to simulate a muddy crossing..





Nice advantage of using clear plastic is that the water is dead flat and does not creep up the sides of the scenery due to surface tension....

Biggest challenge seems to be keeping the plastic free from scratches,  but overall it is a neat effect and I may use it on the layout to represent large puddles in the yard

[jmlaboda]

Hey Puddy... should we mention to the "youngins" that its not a problem that is causing the LRC to smoke... that it is normal???

[Mark W]

Phone photo quality aside, there are 9 different CG N Scale items in this photo.

Can you spot them all?
Hint: Some have not yet been announced.

[C855B]

Our N scale club was invited to a National Train Day exhibition at St. Louis Union Station today. There were six layouts - 4 G scale and 2 N scale. First such event I've ever attended where there was no HO to be seen anywhere.

Guests viewing one end of our layout during the VIP presentation (photo courtesy of club member Bob Miano):



My smiling countenance reviewing my passing CoLA (also credit to Bob):



Robyn's smiling countenance in the driver's seat of UP 1988:

[nkalanaga]

I also have a Sinclair station, and like most models, it's missing one important detail.  Most of their stations, at least into the 70s, had a dinosaur statue somewhere on the lot.  So far I haven't found any in a suitable size.  The prototypes came in various sizes, but I need a small one.

[SkipGear]

I also have a Sinclair station, and like most models, it's missing one important detail.  Most of their stations, at least into the 70s, had a dinosaur statue somewhere on the lot.  So far I haven't found any in a suitable size.  The prototypes came in various sizes, but I need a small one.

I think I may have just what you need at the shop. I will check when I go in in the morning. I think you need a brachiosarus or whatever they have changed the name to now. I know we have a very small T-rex, I will check for other types.

As far as me, I started a project for a friend that has been setting on the bench for quite a while:

[S Class]

If I didn't know better I would say that I may be making progress towards having a layout.


20140511_165410 by MetricModels, on Flickr

[DKS]

I recall seeing someone's gas station that had a small moter that would periodically raise and lower the lift .

Not a valid vimeo URL

[primavw]

I started work on the Clymer Coal-veyor. I've completed the support truss, and have begun work on the main tower. My biggest hurdle so far has been trying to find quality pictures of the proto that I can study for the model. No pics of the model just yet, just about the best shot of the proto I have:

[Puddington]

Hey Puddy... should we mention to the "youngins" that its not a problem that is causing the LRC to smoke... that it is normal???

Well with an Alco prime mover she's born and bred to be a smoky joe! Add to that tons of new oil, WD40 to help uncease her pistons, ether to help her start up, she's bound to put on a show. But she's the only LRC in working condition and getting her started is a significant achievement on the way to seeing her grace the rails in excursion service.