The Carolina Sandhills Lines in HO Scale

[davefoxx]

An Amtrak consist for the mid-1970s in full Phase I livery:



Amtrak E8 No. 291 (ex-PC 4283, nee-PRR 5803A), which would be rebuilt and renumbered to AMTK 403:2 in November 1975.  It would be retired in July 1981 when the E-unit fleet was being purged from the fleet.

Amtrak Baggage-Buffet-Lounge car No. 1710 (ex-N&W [Wabash] 650), which would be retired in November 1977.

Amtrak Coach No. 4411 (ex-SP 2378 “Golden Sand”), which would be rebuilt to HEP in January 1981 as No. 4010:1 and sold in December 1995.

Amtrak 10RM-6BR Sleeper No. 2834 “Navajo Valley” (ex-PC-4282, nee-NYC 10102), which would be listed for sale and off the active roster in September 1991.

DFF

[davefoxx]

An Amtrak consist for the late 1970s to early 1980s in (almost) full Phase II livery:



Amtrak E8HEP No. 498 (renumbered from AMTK 315 [ex-PC 4309, nee-PRR 5809]).  This unit was converted to HEP in September 1974 by the PC shops in Altoona and was later sold to Conrail to become 4020.  Subsequently sold to Juniata Terminal, the E8 was restored to PRR livery as 5809.  I was a car host on two CRHS excursion trains in 2009 and 2012 that had 5809 and its sister, 5711, on the point.  What an interesting find when I researched the history of my model of AMTK 498.

Amtrak Baggage car No. 1221 (converted to HEP from steam-heat [formerly numbered as AMTK 1042] in March 1978, ex-ATSF 3526).  This car lasted on the active roster until September 2014 and was sold in 2019.

Amtrak Amfleet I Coach No. 21024 still in Phase I paint.  Built in August 1975, it was renumbered to 82012 in August 1999 and renumbered again to 82692 in November 2007.  This car was still on the roster as of 2023.

Amtrak Amfleet I Food Service Car No. 20000. Built in July 1975, it was renumbered to 20250 in July 2001, renumbered again to 28366 in November 2003, and renumbered a third time to 43349 in November 2011.  This car was still on the roster as of 2023.

DFF

[davefoxx]

An Amtrak train for the 1980s in full Phase III livery and second-generation Amfleet cars:



Amtrak F40PH No. 217. Built in April 1976 as part of Amtrak’s first order for F40s (Nos. 200-229), this locomotive’s fuel tank was aft of the battery boxes and air reservoirs. All later Amtrak orders put the fuel tank in front.  No. 217 lasted until retirement in May 2003.

Amtrak Amfleet II Coach No. 25016. Built in January 1982, this car was still on the roster in 2023.

Amtrak Amfleet II Coach No. 25072.  Built in September 1982, this car was wrecked in the accident at Cayce, S.C. in February 2018.  Presumably beyond repair, 25072 was retired from the roster in January 2019.

Amtrak Amfleet II Lounge car No. 28001.  Built in February 1981, it was converted to a Smoking Lounge in 1999 and received the name, “Atlanta Club.”  The name was likely removed in February 2008 when the car was converted to a Diner-Lite.  This car was still on the roster as of 2023.

DFF

[davefoxx]

Stepping further back in time, a Seaboard Air Line consist for the 1964-67 era:



SAL SDP35 No. 1114. As a result of mergers, it became SCL 1965, SBD 4595, and CSXT 4595.  This SDP35 has been cosmetically restored to its original appearance as SAL 1114 and is currently on static display in Hamlet, N.C.

SAL Baggage-Dorm No. 6052.  This car would be relettered/renumbered to SCL 5024 in 1967 due to the merger.  My Big Book of Amtrak indicates that this car should have become AMTK 1524, but the notes indicate that it was returned to the SCL due to wreck damage.  So, I am unsure whether it ever actually joined the Amtrak fleet.

SAL 4 Roomette-1 Compartment-5 Double Bedroom-4 Section Sleeper No. 51 “Southern Pines.”  Built by Budd in 1955, this car was relettered/renumbered to SCL 6407 in 1967 due to the merger, keeping its name.  This car did not go to Amtrak.

SAL 4 Roomette-1 Compartment-5 Double Bedroom-4 Section Sleeper No. 52 “Pinehurst.”  Built by Budd in 1955, this car was relettered/renumbered to SCL 6406 in 1967 due to the merger, keeping its name.  This car did not go to Amtrak.

DFF

[davefoxx]

More fun with AI:



DFF

[davefoxx]

I received a few new speakers from Scale Sound Systems yesterday, so I replaced the speaker in NS No. 2007.

BEFORE:



AFTER:



What’s not obvious without looking close is that this required a complete gut job and removal of everything down to the Decoder Buddy’s mount over the motor.  Because this is a very old Atlas engine, I originally did a custom job to replace the “Atlas Master” DCC system installed from the factory.  The Scale Sound Systems speaker installs completely different from my mount, so out everything came.  All wires were disconnected, and because the Decoder Buddy had to be moved, several wires for the rear power leads and LED had to be extended.  The red electrical tape (I’m out of black) only serves as a light shield; kapton tape is used for insulation and securing any wires, where necessary.  I did do a better job of wire management this time, although, in full disclosure, I did kill the rear LED somehow and had to replace it.

The way the new speaker fits in is ingenious, and it took me a minute to figure out how it snuggled into the frame.  Not quite snapped into place, but a small piece of double-stick tape will keep it tied down.  Also clever are the wire chases down the sides of the speaker.

Now that it’s all back together, though, I wonder if the Kapton tape that I used on the sides of the speaker to hold those wires in place will acts as dampeners to the speaker. 🤔. Any thoughts before I have to tear this locomotive apart again to experiment?

DFF

[robert3985]

...Now that it’s all back together, though, I wonder if the Kapton tape that I used on the sides of the speaker to hold those wires in place will acts as dampeners to the speaker. 🤔. Any thoughts before I have to tear this locomotive apart again to experiment?

DFF

Nope. Not unless you stuck the tape directly to the speaker cone.    I seriously doubt that the enclosure's vibrations (or lack of them) are going to make the speaker dampened.  In fact using an airtight speaker enclosure is going to negate almost all of any dampening effect by eliminating almost all of the sound waves coming off the back of the speaker.  One thing to make sure to do is to check for any holes or loose fitment which will allow the rear sound waves to escape the enclosure.  A bit of silicone caulk to plug these holes will make a big difference in both volume and sound quality.  If the speaker wires in their chases are loose, you may hear rattling as the plastic enclosures walls vibrate against them, so I'd carefully caulk them too and then cover with Kapton tape while the caulk is still uncured inside the chases.

An ideal speaker enclosure is dense, made of thin lead sheet for example, which greatly minimizes any opposing sound wave transmission, which cancels sound waves being produced by the front of the speaker diaphragm. Ideally you want the enclosure to not vibrate at all, so a bit of Kapton tape stuck to the side isn't going to make any noticeable difference in sound quality, whereas plugging all the air leaks will.

At least that's my experience with N-scale sound installations.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[Point353]

An ideal speaker enclosure is dense, made of thin lead sheet for example, which greatly minimizes any opposing sound wave transmission, which cancels sound waves being produced by the front of the speaker diaphragm. Ideally you want the enclosure to not vibrate at all, so a bit of Kapton tape stuck to the side isn't going to make any noticeable difference in sound quality, whereas plugging all the air leaks will.

That is not what BBC research determined.

[Dave V]

That is not what BBC research determined.

Are you talking about the type of "BBC research" @Ed Kapuscinski enjoys?

[Point353]

Are you talking about the type of "BBC research" @Ed Kapuscinski enjoys?

BBC, as in British Broadcasting Corporation, not Ed K's Black Buick Car.

[robert3985]

That is not what BBC research determined.

Then maybe BBC can tell us how to best install model railroad speakers in our engines.  I'm going from my own experience, and there's a very obvious improvement in sound volume and quality when I use a dense material that's airtight enclosing the backside of my tiny N-scale speakers.

In any case, the Kapton tape on the exterior of the speaker enclosure isn't going to noticeably modify the sound...unless BBC has something to say about applying Kapton tape to an HO scale speaker enclosure.

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[davefoxx]

The SCL dropped this old MR&T caboose off in Aberdeen to go to its new home at the A&R.



The reality is that I received this ScaleTrains caboose kit within the last year from free credit to the Trains.com shop from MR’s publisher, Firecrown.  I started building the kit months ago but let it sit idle due to steps I was not in a hurry to do.  Fast forward to this evening, and I found that making Sergent Engineering couplers fit into the metal coupler pockets was not as bad as I feared.  So, I finished assembly and had it delivered to the A&R.

DFF

[John]

Congratulations Dave on getting your layout into Model Railroader April 2026.  Page 58.  Hail the kudzu

[davefoxx]

Congratulations Dave on getting your layout into Model Railroader April 2026.  Page 58.  Hail the kudzu

Haha!  Thanks, @John!

DFF

[Carolina Northern]

Darn, that means I've got to buy a copy.
Seriously, Congrats.

Don