Weekend Update 4/29/18

[Mark W]

Making Tiny T Gauge Turnout Ties is a Tedious Task.


https://i.imgur.com/tExcbgW.jpg

[narrowminded]

Finished planning the speaker box and started machining the parts tonight for a special speaker enclosure for an Atlas DCC ready RS-11 install using a Loksound Direct 73100.  This is my first sound install so I'm learning a lot.  So far it's going splendidly.

[Spades]

Attended the WPM 2018 in San Bernardino CA.  Met Cajonpass and Wutter. Wutter had some fantastic models on display as well as his signals.  This included his Shapeways Genset.

[chuck geiger]

Trying some new things. Bracketing in scenic divider and 2x2 foam squares from Home Depot here. This will be mountain scene, with only flat terrain where roadbed is on this side. One siding and spur. Two portals on each side. Scenery before railroad.



http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/data/630/BNSF_T27.jpg

[rochsub]

Yes, they ARE that good.

Are they $1000 good?

Daryl

[bbussey]

I had a couple of hours free this afternoon.  Setting the horizontal bracing that squares up the ends and sides and provides the platform to which the coupler box is mounted is proving to be the most difficult part of the build.  The part fits, I just need to think on a better assembly technique.

I also discovered I did not etch enough of the spacer parts that hold the hatch off the roof.     I suppose I'll include a fret in the next project.

You could use styrene of the needed thickness and a hole punch.  It's not surface detail so it won't affect the level of detail on the roof.  You can find hole punches of various diameters on the cheap from a stationary supply shop, online or elsewhere.

[mighalpern]

Narrowminded:

what a cool machine setup you got there.  Can you tell me more about the mill and the read outs, did it  come as a package or did you put it together ???
thanks
Miguel

[Mark W]

Finished this adorable little turnout.


https://i.imgur.com/fNN7fUD.jpg

[eric220]

@Mark W you sir, are a madman, in the best, most impressive sense.  Very nice!

My own weekend update is that we closed escrow on a new house today; I am once again a homeowner with space for a model railroad!  The previous owner is renting back until the 10th, but it is now a done deal.  It looks like the Transcontinental PRR Mk 2 will live in a garage bay.  The dimensions are approximately 11'x20'.  That's a lot less than the 12'x33' plus 6' deep, 8' wide alcove I had for Mk 1, but it's still a respectable size.  I've got some ideas, and I'll be starting a new build thread once we have full access to the space and I can do some additional measurements.

[narrowminded]

Narrowminded:

what a cool machine setup you got there.  Can you tell me more about the mill and the read outs, did it  come as a package or did you put it together ???
thanks
Miguel

Well thanks, @mighalpern .  That's a Proxxon MF-70 basic mill.  The rest is stuff I've done to it. 

The digitals I added are inexpensive battery operated pieces that sell for about $75 for all three.  They read out in half thousandths or metric, 2 places.  They are all cut from 6" travel scales as no axis on this machine travels greater than that and nothing less was available.  All of the brackets and such need to be made custom and it all JUST fits with the way I did it.  It was a little bit of work but is really a nice convenience and helps accuracy by virtue of direct reading the table travels, not the screw turns. 

The surround is made to knock down flat for easy storage and helps tremendously with keeping any mess contained.  It's just a piece of 1/8" hardboard base, square dowel glued in pairs on the perimeter to make a track for the acrylic sheet, a couple of pins from wood dowels to keep things in place, and the corner joining tracks are from household wall corner protectors glued one inside and one out, making the track for those corners. 

The vacuum adapter is fashioned from an ABS pipe coupler, a scrap piece of ABS sheet, assorted old vacuum hoses and pieces that I had laying around,  a couple of neoprene strips cut from sheet, super glued into bands that make for easy on/ off.  That is a must for running a machine like that in the house.  Get a powerful shop vacuum and it pulls virtually all chip right away, enough that you sometimes wonder if you're even cutting because the chip just disappears.

The small drill/ electric screwdriver laying there is a handheld piece set up with a variable speed controller and used as a power table feed, instead of cranking your little pinkies off.   Done with a socket head cap screw inserted into the handwheel center attachment and a ball end hex driver bit in the drill.  Low buck and it works like a charm.  That was one of those things that I figured would be helpful but worked out way better than expected.  It's so easy to use that I really wouldn't want anything else, for love nor money. 

And after all of that, here's a link to short demo video I did for somebody when I was putting this together.  It's better than just describing this stuff.   Hope that helps but if you're really curious send a PM and I'll try to help you out without clobbering up this thread.  Have fun!

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[SAH]

The spacers also have T shaped tabs to help simulate latch and hinge hardware.  Hard to see in this blow up.  Hard to see in person actually.  But you are correct, a styrene disk would probably do and no one (except me) would miss the rest.  I could use styrene bits to sub for the T shapes too.  I have enough brass parts to complete two cars.  We'll see when I get to that point.  I do have a number of other etching project in the planning stages.

[jereising]

Are they $1000 good? Daryl

Given the level of detail and DCC and sound I would say (and I DID say) yes.  (But of course I didn't PAY $1000...)

More importantly, everything works as it should.  They are great locos.

[JMaurer1]

If anyone is really interested in the Linde tank (box) cars, I have a ton of info. MT did do (for N Scale Enthusiast) the green cars (with roof walk) and the white cars (without roof walk)...they also ran them in Z scale (May 2017)! I provided a bunch more info to MT about the earlier dark green and BCR cars hoping that they would run them but so for, no joy (contact MT if you want to see them).

The first cars were built between 1939-1944 by Pressed Steel and General American. Before they stopped building them, there were 471 'box car' tank cars built. The cars survived until well into the '80s but were being replaced by high pressure tank cars at this point. Not sure when the last one 'left the building'.

NSE/MT cars:

LAPX 2023   Half green, half white (Early to mid 1970’s)
LAPX 2038   Green with white stripe (Late 1950’s into 1960’s)
LAPX 2047   All green (Mid 1970’s until 1979)
LAPX 2034   All white (1979 on)

There were two additional paint schemes that these cars wore before the late 1950's:

1939 until 1945      Dark green with white diamond and lettering
1945 until late 1950’s   Brown with white diamond and lettering

The photo has two different paint schemes showing up in it: the half green, half white (Early to mid 1970’s) and 2 green with white stripe (Late 1950’s into 1960’s). If you are still interested in more info, email me...

[mightypurdue22]

Found this beauty at the antique mall the other day, while looking for a new workbench desk.  No desk, but felt great about finding a fully built and painted water tower for $6.

Dave

[Philip H]

Found this beauty at an antique mall ... oh wait, that’s just @wm3798 sharing a sunset walk on the beach. We celebrated his natality yesterday with 25 pounds of boiled crawfish and celebrated mine today with coffee and eggs before he departed.