Weekend Update 5/26/19

[fcnrwy23]

fcnrwy23:

That's a terrific finishing job on the P30CHM, especially since the shell is only available in "Smooth Fine Detail Plastic".  Care to share your finishing techniques?

A far as anything special.  NO,  I just gave the shell a good primer coat. (Tamiya "Fine" Prime).
Than a few light coats of FCN Blue.
My photos are a little dark, which maybe deceiving.  But, you can see the raster lines on the roof and on the sides on some spots..

NC 1300,  Left side


The lines are visible below the cab and at the top  side-edge of the roof.  The shell is very thin at less the .030 of an inch.

NC 1300,   Right side


You can  see the lines on the roof, just above the roof/side seam.. On most of the "Smooth" panels, you can see a "hatch" pattern in the material.  I think the Tamiya primer, did a lot of work filling things in....
 


Jerry G.

[fcnrwy23]

On a side note to the Northern Charters train.

I did not use the RPO (which was used as the core for my Dynamometer Car) nor did I use the Diner (I was asked if I would sell it, got $20 for the thing.  ).
I replaced those cars with a second Sleeper and Dormitory/Theater car.   The 6-car set did not come with a Dome car.  So, I swapped for a Undec smooth-side Dome. 
I wanted the Observation car on the train to be unique.  So I did my first "KATO" kit-bash by grafting the Dome's Roof on the Obs car's body....

NC Northern View


I salvaged the Now "Roof-less" exDome car, by constructing a NEW roof out of styrene.  Which than became my Dormitory/Theater Car...

NC Northern Club


Oh, And this is what happened to the RPO car...
FCN #100 Dyno Car



Jerry G.

[nickelplate759]

fcnrwy23:

OK, I do see the print artifacts now.  The fact remains that you did a terrific job in finishing your model.  Now I want to do an Amtrak P30CH ('cause I don't have NEARLY enough projects...).  An SDP40F (from Kato) has the right truck centers, and as you note Kato U30C has trucks that are about if not exactly right.  Does anyone know if the U30C trucks fit the SDP40F chassis?

[Dave V]

Moi aussi.

@Dave V, I wouldn't want to distract you from your plans in the slightest... but Lancaster is a comfortable drive for me, and I'd just love to meet up somewhere. But again, I wouldn't want you to go out of your way during what seems like a "compact" and carefully planned trip...

Ah, DKS, I would love to meet up too...but I’m on the ground for about 24 hours and it’s all for my mom.  After church and lunch tomorrow I have to head back to Harrisburg airport.  Next time I’m back for more than a day I’ll take you up on that!  I also need to get you out to the ‘Springs someday so you can op on the layout you so heavily influenced.

Hey, DKS, got a minute...?

I was going to ask if @Dave V had a family recipe to share since it sounds like it is a family reunion, also.

Indeed, I do have a family recipe for wet-bottom shoofly pie from my mom’s side.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Speaking of Pennsylvania: visiting Jim Thorpe with some non train friends. They humored men with a trip on the Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway.

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[Joetrain59]

JohnB, who makes the bell detail part on hood of that SP switcher?
 Thanks,
 Joe D

[nickelplate759]

Finally finished* my rebuild of a Rivarossi 2-8-4.



Frame replaced.  New Sagami motor, drivers turned down and regauged and all other wheels replaced so it runs on Atlas Code 55.  DCC added, with Keep-Alive, LEDs installed for working Mars light, headlight and backup light.  Much hair pulled out and many things learned!     Build thread is here: https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=44735.0

*finished is relative.  I haven't done any detailing, and I'm thinking about it.   It's my only S2 (the Life-Like and Bachmann models are an earlier class).

[johnb]

JohnB, who makes the bell detail part on hood of that SP switcher?
 Thanks,
 Joe D

it is an Arnold SW1, stock bell...only painted in Pacific Electric tiger stripes

[BCR 570]

A couple of weeks ago, one of our Grade 9 students came into my office with an N Scale steam locomotive and asked if I could repair it for him.  I had never worked on a steam locomotive before, and well remember their complexity (I still have my Rivarossi Light Mikados stored away somewhere).  The engine was running erratically, sparks were coming from the front tender truck, and the tender was loose.  Upon opening up the locomotive, I discovered that the tender drawbar post was gone, the wire to the front tender truck was disconnected, and one of the tender axles was reversed.  It is all back together and working well thanks to some friendly advice from members of our Railwire community here:




Twenty new freight cars reached completion this week, many of them assembled from 3D printed kits.  First up is a pair of CN flat cars, including a 52'-6" car assembled from a Briggs Models kit, and an Intermountain RTR 60' car:




Also six BCR flatcars assembled from Briggs kits to go with the two finished earlier in PGE livery:




And six trailer flatcars (five in PGE and one in BCR) also assembled from Briggs kits:




And six PGE-BCR 62'-9" stake cars built from the old Kaslo Shops kits.  Log debris was added to the top surfaces:




The flatcars and trailer flatcars will replace older conversions from Con-Cor flatcars which have served me well for many years, but the new cars are significantly more accurate.


Thanks for looking,

Tim

[Bob]

Those logs look incredible, as do the other loads.  Really impressive!

[milw12]

Tim, I agree with Bob 100%. What did you use for the lumber loads? Looks good and I need a few myself.

Thanks,
Lucas

[Angus Shops]

Progress on the the new layout has progressed far enough that it was time to unbox all the rolling stock that was packed away more than two years ago in preparation for a move.

This, of coarse, led to bunch of issues and a lot of thinking.

Firstly, a lot of my rolling stock is still equipped with MT pizza cutters, which was fine on the older Micro Engineering C55, but not the new stuff. Fine, easy enough fix and a reason to run each car through a maintenance check. I've decided to stay with truck mounts and MT wheel sets (plastic).

Engines will require a lot more planning and decision making. The new layout will be DCC, and a fair portion of the fleet is not an easy conversion. My fleet of Canadian Pacific Intermountain FP 7's and F 7B's are pretty straightforward, but my Kato fleet is all old models, and a little tired to begin with. At this point I'm thinking most of this fleet will be retired. The FP units were built maybe 20 or 25 years ago by stretching a regular F7 mechanisms. They run well considering their age and the work done to them, but they're quite noisy, and I can't imagine the already compromised frame would survive the milling needed to install decoders. The bodies are good; two are heavily modified Arnold\Rapidos (all that was available at the time), one is a Kaslo kit and the last is kitbashd from Kato shells. Yesterday I purchased an Atlas DCC equipped GP 40 (correct truck spacing) to see how much work it would be to repower these units; couplers will be an issue, the headlight will need to be moved and a bunch work done to make the shell sit well on the mechanism. The biggest issue is that the mechanism only fits easily under the Kato shell, modestly well under the Rapido shells, and poorly under the Kaslo shell. After thinking about it I've decided to proceed with repowering the Kato shell only. I'll see if I can purchase 2 or 3 of the Kato Milwaukee Road FP's and see how they fit under the other bodies or more likely redetail and repaint them as CP units and retire the old ones. The B units will all be retired and replaced with new decoder equipped units (with details and paint).

The same thing applies to the GP 7/9 fleet. Some of these are also pretty old and have an early, inaccurate paint job. They all need detail work and decoders, some need new paint. I have 3 new decoder equipped units but these are in CP script and need to be repainted into CP block (and details, and I don't like the handrails on these new models).

Them there's all the other misc. units, Trainmasters, RS10's, C Liners...

Yikes, someone talk me of the ledge!
Geoff

[Jesse6669]

Two recent T-scale (1:450) projects, a CR patched FP7 and an Amtrak GG1.  The pantographs are etched, and I also made catenary and PRR signal bridge components on the same sheet but have not assembled yet.. that will be on the list.. Next project is attempting an ATSF warbonnet F7.. a very challenging paint scheme since I must paint/mask the red and yellow cigar band and stripes since I only have decals from an inkjet.  We'll see how it turns out. 

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[Iain]

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I did some painting.

[Jesse6669]

I'm getting closer and closer with the overpass.  This week I finished more scenery and 3D printed guard rails for the overpass approach.  Here they are painted up and fit in palace.  I think it's almost time for road stripes now!

Great modeling but my mind's eye is missing something.... oh yeah, all the soda cans, McDonalds bags, cigarette butts and other trash (many) Americans throw out their car windows.  And maybe a homeless person camping under the end of the bridge.  Unless this is Canada?