Weekend Update 11/6/22

[Bob]

Since I have gotten back to modeling, I have completed the General Store (bottom right) and the Black Voices Museum (back left).  I've started assembling one of the most iconic structures in Harpers Ferry, a very large stone and brick complex of four buildings that share common party walls.  There is Harper House, which was begun in 1775 and completed in 1782.  Immediately adjacent to Harper House is Marmion Hall, which is built of brick that has been painted and so looks like concrete, and that was completed in 1833, and then to the right of this are two tenement buildings, one made of stone and the other largely of stone but with the top story being built of brick.  Marmion hall has this great three-tier porch overlooking the entire town above High Street. Because of the steep slope on which the group is built, the buildings have 4 stories facing the lower town, but only two stories facing Church Street (on the back side, looking up the hill towards St. Peter's Church.  Still much to do, but I have placed the buildings I have made thus far in their approximate locations, placing some on blocks to show approximate elevations.  I did the same for the roads.  I'll add a longer post with more details and photos in the CSX Cumberland Subdivision thread sometime this week.  I may not have room for Harper House, but you can see in the photo the beginnings of Marmion hall and the complete walls of the two tenement buildings.

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[keeper]

Working on my CB&Q Twin Cities Zephyr. Thanks to @skytop35 and his shells for the Dome Obs and Baggage Buffet Lounge I got a good step ahead.

First test fit of the dome glass inserts.



This is what I have so far.



With the unfinished shells.



The biggest challenge right now is finding the glass set for the CZ dome obs which is out of stock at Kato and it won't be re-stocked until the CZ might be re-released.
The other challenge is to find the diner. It is the same as for the CZ but again, all parts are sold out at Kato and no one seems to sell this car as a single and why would they. 

Thomas 

[TrainCat2]

@keeper, have you thought about make a two part squish mold of a CZ dome insert and cast it with Smooth On Clear Flex 95?

[keeper]

@keeper, have you thought about make a two part squish mold of a CZ dome insert and cast it with Smooth On Clear Flex 95?

I'm not sure I get this correctly, but I would need an original glass set to make the mold. No? I should have mentioned that the obs end is the problem. All other windows/dome can be done with other glass sets, eg. the dome coach inserts.

Thomas

[PJPickard]

OMG that bridge! You are back more than "sorta"!

[altohorn25]

I weathered up my set of Broadway Limited AT&SF F7's this morning so they'd be ready for Trainfest in Milwaukee next weekend.

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[SP-Wolf]

Good afternoon,

SD7's are now in service



Thanks,
Wolf

[bnsfdash8]

I found a bit of motivation to do some modeling this weekend.

This Pillsbury hopper has been waiting on awhile for some weathering so I decided to give it a go. I didn't find any prototype pictures of this one so I kind of winged it. I went a little heavier on it since it'll be a part of my potash fleet and they get roughed up quickly. I'm not 100% happy with the graffiti so I'll probably tone those down a smidge.

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In between waiting on things to dry on the hopper I got paint and decals on my bromine tanker that I started over the summer.

The body is printed with the railings and other parts coming from a Gold Medal Models tank car detailing set that were modified to work. It rides on MT 70T trucks with ESM 33" wheels and the couplers are MT Z scale 905s. I thought standard N couplers would have looked pretty bad with the car being so small, a hair over 2". The decals are a hodgepodge from what I had on hand so it is missing some small data that the prototype had.

The body was stuffed with as much lead as I could squeeze in and I got it pretty close the recommended NMRA weight. I believe it should track well but I'll have to follow how the prototypes were handled and keep it away from 80' long cars and probably not coupled to large 6 axle locos.

It still needs cut levers made and installed as well as getting the correct placards added.

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[Roger Holmes]

Working on my next Chicago landmark.  It won't be an exact replica but will evoke the structure that I am modelling.

I am using the new CMR City Hall to create a backdrop building that is twice the height of the kit.  That requires that every body panel be modified which results in very slow razor sawing through very thick and brittle acrylic parts.  I figure that the extra time involved gives me more bang for my modelling buck.

Hint: there will be an art deco statue on the top.

Here's where I am so far.

[Cajonpassfan]

I weathered up my set of Broadway Limited AT&SF F7's this morning so they'd be ready for Trainfest in Milwaukee next weekend.

(Attachment Link)

Catwhiskers RULE, NATO! Nice work!

I'm getting ready for an upcoming op session, after a loooong pause. Finding lots of things to fix. Pic of the First Street Yard (Los Angeles staging) below,  Catwhiskers included. Also my westbound Los Angeles Limited just above Cajon Station, with an annoying habit of derailing the MT Pullman (in use as a crew dormitory car on the head end). Anyone with ideas how and where to add weight?
Fun stuff,
Otto

[Cajonpassfan]

Good afternoon,

SD7's are now in service

Thanks,
Wolf

Wolf, that's sweet! So eSPee! Nice job...
Otto

[nkalanaga]

Cajonpassfan:  I assume that the dormitory car would have the window blinds drawn, as anybody in it would probably be trying to sleep.  If so, add the blinds, which will keep people from seeing the interior, then add as much weight as you like.   Stick-on auto wheel weights fit very nicely in N scale passenger cars, and as long as the car doesn't have an interior, it should hold several ounces.

[Jesse6669]

Was doing a lot of work for the Cincinnati RR Club in my spare time this week..I added a second YouTube live stream camera and doing some other enhancements.  Slowly but surely I'm getting to be an expert on this stuff.. 

I did manage some additional ballasting on the M-scale WP&Y.

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And a friend just turned 60 so for his birthday I made him a 1:900 scale model of the SSN-695 (USS Birmingham), a Los Angeles Class nuclear sub which he served on.

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[squirrelhunter]

A while back I designed a Stanray roof. The raised stamped part was more complex than I first thought, and it makes me wonder now how often in N scale Stanray roofs get fudged with just a straight top instead of the accurate three-level stamping. Some N scale boxcar roofs seem to look better than others. And some look too thick too.  Those raised panels aren't as tall as you might think.



But now that I had a roof, I needed a car! For starters, I decided on this MP express car just because those double doors are neat.  There were often MP baggage cars on the B&O National Limited so that's my excuse to build one.





Any Mopac fans have any comments?  All I had to go on was a few pictures and the (somewhat crude) RMC drawings so I could be missing something.  And I can't decide if the doors are too thick or not.

The car also needs Stanray ends and this was challenging to draw because the complex curves are difficult to portray on a flat drawing, especially the part that wraps around the corner posts.  I had to do some educated guessing here and there.  I feel like I got close enough, but I'm sure there's room for improvement in there somewhere.



I would love to show everyone the 3D printed ends, but while the paint was drying they blew away and since they're camo tan I can't find them in the grass.  I'll have to print another set.   

Now I need to figure out what to do about decals.  And were these in Jenks blue or Eagle blue?

I will get my reference books out tonight to confirm, but these cars are MP homebuilt storage mail cars done around 1962-64, and were always in Jenks Blue. The MPHS did a 3D printed kit in HO I think, so I'm pretty sure they have drawings. After the mail came off, they moved to hay and MOW service. More details tonight!

Your model looks good!

[Mike Madonna]

Good afternoon,

SD7's are now in service



Thanks,
Wolf

Wolf,
Nice, VERY nice!