Doing stuff again.

[Chris333]

I looked at my last uploaded photo and it was almost one year ago.  I was trying to print a Nn3 Climax in wax and have the print burned out into brass. I couldn't get the wax to print. Then when it did print I realized it was soft (because it is wax) so the usual ripping the supports off didn't work. Trimming them off was like trying to cut a perfect square into a marshmallow. I needed to give up on that so I switched to a brand new On30 loco I had bought. I fired it up for the first time and there was a big bind in the motion. Probably easy to fix, but right after the printing problems I just gave up.

Now flipping through a book on the Huntington & Broad Top Railroad I saw a pic of their Marklesburg depot:

Just thought it was a cool depot and wanted to model it. So I did, and a layout to go around it.



It is 24x48" with a 1x2 frame. Those black areas are Gatorboard for lower spots and water. Couldn't find any 1/4" hardboard for the backdrop so I glued two 1/8" sheets together. Did this because the backs are not smooth.

Once I figured out how to get a coal trestle in there I was all set 

The feed mill is anything else other than the Walthers model. It is based on this one.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Clear+Brook,+VA+22624/@39.256972,-78.0959516,3a,87.9y,277.91h,97.72t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1s3oNk-NQaVhyqksESwniqxw!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D-7.715842638382938%26panoid%3D3oNk-NQaVhyqksESwniqxw%26yaw%3D277.9140256538313!7i16384!8i8192!4m6!3m5!1s0x89b5fa6567d2d17b:0xea5f2410e6929168!8m2!3d39.2564912!4d-78.0961109!16zL20vMDgzOWZm!5m1!1e4?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI2MDcxNS4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D




Was going to just have a team track siding behind the depot. But wanted something there. Kept looking for old box factories or a carriage works. Was about to give up and found this building along with drawings.
https://www.loc.gov/item/pa2222/

Had to print it whole upside down and it barely fit the printer. It is a cool old building that has had the whole interior exactly how it was. And it turns out my buddy Rick even helped get some of the equipment working.

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As you can see the track doesn't even make a full loop yet so more progress as it happens... Not modeling the H&BT, but using their depot and 2-8-0. Will have some Ma&Pa in there too. Like a baggage, coach, and maybe doodlebug. Whatever it is will be set around 1940's.

[Scottl]

Wait, is this On30?

[Chris333]

It is Nn68.5   

[Chris333]

One thing that is very frustrating is finding old plans. I have a crap ton of MR and RMC's, but I cannot find any way to search for what is in them. The only mag index will search every ad for the search words.

I just tried, for the first time ever, chatgpt.

"Where can I find EMC doodlebug motor car Ma&Pa #62 scale plans?"

For the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad (Ma & Pa) No. 62, there unfortunately does not appear to be a commercially available dedicated scale plan. However, there are a few sources that are likely to have what you need.

The best places to check are:

Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society. They maintain extensive historical archives and photographs of Ma & Pa equipment, including No. 62. They are the most likely source for original drawings, blueprint copies, or dimensioned documentation.
Pennsylvania Railroad Technical & Historical Society and National Model Railroad Association libraries. Both have large collections of historical railroad drawings and magazine indexes.
Mainline Modeler magazine. While I couldn't verify an issue specifically covering Ma & Pa No. 62, Mainline Modeler published some of the finest prototype drawings of EMC gas-electric cars and is worth searching through used back issues.
Railroad Model Craftsman and Model Railroader back issues. Their prototype drawing sections occasionally featured EMC gas-electric cars that can serve as an excellent basis for modeling No. 62, since it was a standard EMC gas-electric.

One useful modern reference is the Bachmann model of Maryland & Pennsylvania #62. Bachmann's catalogs confirm they produced an N-scale model lettered specifically for Ma & Pa No. 62, indicating they worked from prototype information, although they do not publish the underlying drawings.

If your goal is an accurate scratchbuild, I would recommend contacting the Maryland & Pennsylvania Railroad Preservation Society first. Historical societies often have builder's drawings or measured dimensions that never appeared in magazines.

I can also help identify the exact magazine issue if it exists. I have indexes for many of the older model railroad publications and can search specifically for EMC gas-electric, Ma & Pa No. 62, or Maryland & Pennsylvania motor car articles.

The part in bold. If they knew that, why not just tell me? It is after all what I asked for.

[garethashenden]

Nice to see you modeling again!

[Chris333]

Made it around the bend to a low trestle. The bents are the same from the coal trestle since they have NBW detail on them. Though these will sit on concrete piers. The curve is 10"R so I made a little gauge out of black styrene to keep the radius smooth. I hate it when the pilot wheels of steam locomotives wiggle all over at these joints so kept it smooth as possible. The joiners are cut into about 1/8" long pieces so they stick out less.




And for a bonus here is a Ma & Pa trestle still (mostly) standing.

[OldEastRR]

Will we ever see a Mahoning Division-type layout from you again? I loved that layout.

[ronw1970]

I spent last winter going thru 40 plus years of Model Railroader and RMC  magazines cutting them up and putting the articles i wanted in file folders.. much easier to search and throwing away the stuff the stuff that was outdated

[Chris333]

When they offer code 55 turnouts that don't suck I might consider a bigger N scale layout.



Hope it works! Running on the combobulator now.

[robert3985]

After looking at my post again, I decided it was unnecessary, so I deleted it...

Cheerio!
Bob Gilmore

[Chris333]

First print had too small of supports and half ripped away. Second print is whole, but some parts are missing that look like it's from the FEP being damaged by the first print... Oh well out of resin anyways.

But at least I can see how the couplers and trucks fit.

[chessie system fan]

That gon looks great.  What is the prototype?

[garethashenden]

It looks like a PRR GRa.

[Chris333]

Yeah a GR, I read the stake pockets were removed later on. But I can easily add them.

[Chris333]

Question for the freight car people. Coming up from the truck is some sort of brake release valve thingy. You can see it clearer in this proto photo:
https://jbritton.pennsyrr.com/images/GR_gon/GR_Load.png

Would it be on both sides of the car or just this side by the brake wheel end?


Going crazy waiting for more resin to show up...