The pot of coffee is always on [even after 2 years have passed]. Come on in. Sweet ice tea too.

[ChiefEagles]

Thanks for the picture Tom. Jon, know what you mean. I have been busy outside [pond, fishing, BPS & Cableas shows and garden] and let the room layout "fixing" go. Cold weather will bring that back to the top. Big storms and especially last night. Tornado warnings and wind damage 5 miles east of us. More rain tonight and tomorrrow AM. Off to VA mountains tomorrow AM. Back Sunday. Us retired folks need a vacation too. Got to run to town today and stand in line to get flue shot. Dr's orders [due to the peumonia I have been getting]. None available for her or other Dr's. Would you believe Kroger has a clinic. Have a good one and God bless.

[Anonymous]

Howdy every one!!! Chief; Tornados! dang, All we had here is rain, I guess it is supposed to get very windy later on this week.
Very nice in Indiana today.
OK Chief,,,,,What was it on the boat motor?

[ChiefEagles]

Well, got word that the restaurant in town next to us had flue shot clinic. Went over at 1:30 and got number. Went back at 5:30 and got shot at 6:30. Total wait time 1hour. Pretty good as some clinics in town have waiting periods of up to 3 hours after getting number. This is a racket. About as bad as the oil prices. Glad to get mine. They were for persons 65 and older or those with chronic health problems. Since pnewmonia loves me, I qualified. Sure is something that the Doctors in this country can not get the shots and have to refer us to these clinics. OH well. Think I'll decal and paint up a Flue Clinic car. Box car or passenger car???

[dougdagrump]

Watching the Astros & Cards game, bet they're selling more coffee than beer tonite ! [(-D]

[Anonymous]

Hi Guys. Welcome back Dr. John... I was thinking this morning on the way to work ( Chief.. look that word up in the dictionary) If you have to go to work you might as well enjoy the scenery. Here is my morning commute down the mountain and into Sandpoint, about 12 miles.Enjoy......Tim

[Anonymous]

Hi Guy's just got home from work and on my way to bed, Rained all night in Indiana.
See Ya later, God bless

[spankybird]

Good Morning All,

Finally Friday – TGIF

Another typical fall day, cool 55 deg with rain showers thru out the day.

Tim – Great pic of the day

Chief – you have been avoiding telling us what is going on with the boat motor. What’s up [?]

To the end of a good week

I smell the coffee!

tom

[Buckeye Riveter]

Tom, I heard that snow was being forcasted for NE Ohio. Put another log on the fire.

Tim, I sure beats looking at all the neon signs that I see going to work.

TGIF

[highrailjon]

Hello All!! It actually got into the 40's down here in Mississippi. It's a crisp clear morning on the layout as the Hudson fires up for it's first run of the day , and my aircrew prepares the Hellcat for a flight. Jon

[ChiefEagles]

Great scenery Tim. Great layout pictures guys. I love those. Off to VA mountains. See some history of the great leaders [Lee and Jackson] of the South during the War of Northern Aggression. Boat motor? Will take it to a dealer next week [if it stops raining]. Got a guy I'm suppose to call. Might need a shift cable adjustment or a clutchdog. Might be jumping out and right back in gear. Think I'll have it completely checked over. $$$$$ but might prevent from spending lots of $$$$$$$. Lower unit runs around 3K. Now I would wish you all would not use that 4 letter word on this forum. I can not even say W--K!!! God bless all.

[Anonymous]

I came across this in an email from a friend. Jeff Foxworthy on Minnesota. I know that personally I apply to, well more than half. And the ones that don't personally apply-I know at least 2 who do. No offense intended toward my fellow northerners. So for those of you not personally acquainted with a Minnesotan--this is what some of us are all about ......

• If you consider it a sport to gather your food by drilling through l8
  inches of ice and sitting there all day hoping that the food will swim by,
  you might live in Minnesota.



• If you're proud that your state makes the national news 96 nights each year
  because International Falls is the coldest spot in the nation, you might
  live in Minnesota.



• If you have ever refused to buy something because it's "too spendy", you
  might live in Minnesota.



• If your local Dairy Queen is closed from November through March, you might
  live in Minnesota.



• If someone in a store offers you assistance, and they don't work there,you
  might live in Minnesota.



• If your dad's suntan stops at a line curving around the middle of his
  forehead, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you have worn shorts and a parka at the same time, you might live in
  Minnesota.



• If your town has an equal number of bars and churches, you might live in
  Minnesota.



• If you know how to say Wayzata, Mahtomedi, Edina and Shakopee (and
  Bemidji), you might live in Minnesota.



• If you think that ketchup is a little too spicy, you might live in
  Minnesota.



• If "Vacation" means going up north past Brainerd for the weekend, you might
  live in Minnesota.{/*]
  
  
• If you measure distance in hours, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you know several people who have hit deer more than once, you might live
  in Minnesota.



• If you often switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day and back again,
  you might live in Minnesota.



• If you can drive 65 mph through 2 feet of snow during a raging blizzard,
  without flinching, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you see people wearing
  hunting clothes at social events, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you install security lights on your house and garage and leave both
  unlocked, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you think of the major food groups as beer, fish, and venison, you might
  live in Minnesota.



• If you carry jumper cables in your car and your girlfriend knows how to use
  them, you might live in Minnesota.



• If there are 7 empty cars running in the parking lot at Mill's Fleet Farm
  at any given time, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit,
  you might live in Minnesota.



• If driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with
  snow, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you know all 4 seasons: almost winter, winter, still winter and road
  construction, you might live in Minnesota.



• If you can identify a southern or eastern accent, you might live in
  Minnesota.



• If you consider Minneapolis exotic, you might live in Minnesota.



• If your idea of creative landscaping is a statue of a deer next to your
  blue spruce, you might live in Minnesota.



• If Down South to you means Iowa, you might live in Minnesota..



• If a brat is something you eat, you might live in Minnesota..



• If you go out to a fish fry every Friday, you might live in Minnesota..



• If you find 0 degrees "a little chilly.", you might live in Minnesota..



• If you actually understand these jokes, and you forward them to all your.

Minnesota friends, you might live in Minnesota. .

[:D]

[Buckeye Riveter]

There are some similarities between Minnesota and Ohio, and some real differences too!!!

You know you are from Ohio if:
1. You don't think of Florida first when someone mentions Miami.
2. You snicker when someone's from Tiffin, because you think of the State Hospital.
3. Pro football teams are supposed to wear orange!
4. You've heard of 3.2% beer.
5. Schools close for the state wrestling tournament, at least in NE Ohio.
6. You're proud of your state fair, but would rather go to Cedar Point.
7. You know all the four seasons: Winter, Still Winter, Almost Winter, and Construction.
8. You live less than 30 miles from some college or university.
9. You know what a buckeye really is, and have a recipe for candy ones.
10. "Toward the lake" means "north" and "toward the river" means "south."
11. You've heard of the Great Nickel Beer Night Riot.
12. You know if other Ohioians are from southern or northern Ohio as soon as they open their mouths.
13. You root for OSU even though you've never taken a class there.
14. You can spell words like Cuyahoga, Olentangy, Bellefontaine, Tuscarawas, Wapakoneta, and you know which letter is doubled in Cincinnati.
15. You always visit more than two amusement parks in one summer.
16. You know that Serpent Mounds were not made by snakes.
17. You know what game their playing when the Mud Hens take on the Clippers.
18. "Vacation" means spending a day at Cedar Point or King's Island.
19. You measure distance in minutes.
20. Down south to you means Kentucky.
21. Your school classes were canceled because of cold.
22. Your school classes were canceled because of heat.
23. You've ridden the school bus for an hour each way.
24. You've ever had to switch from "heat" to "A/C" in the same day.
25. You know what's knee-high by the Fourth of July.
26. You end your sentences with an unnecessary preposition. Example: "Where's my coat at?"
27. You install security lights on your house and garage and leave both unlocked.
28. You think of the major four food groups as beef, pork, beer, and Jell-O (tm) salad with marshmallows.
29. You carry jumper cables in your car.
30. You know what pop is.
31. You design your kid's Halloween costume to fit over a snowsuit.
32. Driving is better in the winter because the potholes are filled with snow.
33. You think sexy lingerie is tube socks and a flannel nightie.
34. The local paper covers national and international headlines on one page, but requires six pages for sports. [:D]

[spankybird]

Good Morning all,

Cool and wet weekend in NE Ohio, temp at 45 deg. And so goes fall.

Big_Girl, Buckeye sent me his list a couple weeks ago, boy how true some of them are. Yes we do measure distance in time, towards the lake is north, switching for heat to A/C in the same day, and driving in the winter are my favorites. And yes I did send it to some of my friends.

Highrailjon, glad to see that you joined us.
Tim – great pic

This weekend we should be working on our Halloween display.

So full steam ahead


tom

[cnw1995]

These are really funny. I don't know any for Illinois - maybe that's symbolic. Cold and wet today - I'm supposed to take the older kids to a 'Trail of History' recreating 1850s Illinois -maybe I should go in this weather - but it's deep in a now-muddy hollow...Just realized I bought the wrong switch -it's facing the wrong way for what I want to do - oh well, it's an excuse to go back to the store. I'm surprised at how screwy my measurements turn out to be for track.

[Boxcar Bill]

Buckeye, You forget The Burning River

[spankybird]

Now Bill, that has been about 40 years ago. Most people don't remember that far back.

tom

[Anonymous]

Glad you guys got a chuckle out of the list. It was interesting to see the duplicates in the lists.

[cnw1995]

Top 'o the morning to you - a beautiful cold morning - most of the leaves are down, but I love the sun rather than yesterday's wind and sprinkles. I had the chance to stay up late last night (or early this morning I guess) to set up my now infamous inner oval - and after lots of frustration (boy, it's hard to join brand-new 027 track - and I kept guessing wrong about what goes where), I'm happy with it (for the moment). I'm stumbling over Chief's wiring diagram again - I just can't figure out how to wire this dang Atlas Connector - it didn't come with an directions nor could I find something on Atlas' website. I have a wiring article from CTT and it looks like only 1 wire should go into each isolated (with a plastic joiner in the middle rail) section' switch and the other wire from the lock-on going straight to the transformer. I'm going to try that tonight because it didn't work - I think I've been wiring it like it was DC... Does anyone know how to wire up the back of an R transformer - what all the letters mean?

[dougdagrump]

Finally ! We got some measurable rainfall early this morning, it's nice to sit and listen to the rain with coffee in one hand and typing with the other. [:)] It has only been six months since the last rain.[:(]

[Anonymous]

Good Morning All!

It's been a while since I posted on this thread. Nothing much has been happening lately. The collecting's going good and the layout is fine. What I thought you might be interested in is that it's snowing this morning! There's a lot of the white stuff and it's 30 degrees. If you would believe it, less than a week ago it was 80 degrees outside! There's a very good chance that the snow will end up going away and there's just as good of a chance that it will be a blizzard. This is what it's like to live in Saskatchewan!

[spankybird]

Well Sask,

I just got back from a trip to the store, it’s 38 deg here and some area of NE Ohio also had the S coating. Latter this week, it will be back into the 70’s. And so Autumn goes in the North.

tom

[Anonymous]

It's afternoon now and most of the snow is gone. But I'm sure that it will be back shortly. We often have snow here by Halloween.

[ChiefEagles]

And I quote Buckeye:
"There are some similarities between Minnesota and Ohio".....
Yes there are. Full of YANKEES!!!!!!!!! [:D] [:D][}:)] If you ever get near Roanoke VA, you will have to go to the O. Winston Link Museum. Outstanding photos and etc of N&W steam. Opened this past Janurary. Has outstanding 30 minute movie of his photos and movies with great steam sound [Tom, you would go crazy]. Great trip. Did see a 5 engine consist of NS pulling a long train west but was headed by a Union Pacific engine [needing a paint job bad]. Now that was interesting. Chicago bound??? Could not get a picture as a bunch of hoppers of another train waiting was blocking the view.

[ChiefEagles]

Hey gang. Prayers requested for Ronald Gay. Middle aged farmer in my Sunday School class. He has throat cancer [he did not smoke, chew or anything like that]. Looks real bad. His Dad just died a month ago with prostate cancer.

[Anonymous]

Doug, The back of an RW has 5 binding post. A-U and B-U are Variable track voltage.. Use either one as your loco needs.. The transformer dial indicates the voltage ranges of these 2 combinations. A-U supplies from 9-19 volts and B-U supplies 6-15 volts. Try the B-U combination first. If maximum train speed is not adequate then try the B-U. The U post goes to the center rail. The other post combinations are fixed voltage for accessories.( A-C 9V.)...(C-D 10V) (.B-D 15V.)..(.A-D 19V. ) I hope this helps...Tim

[ChiefEagles]

Tim, I think you will find the U post is ground and should be the outside rail. She'll run with the U on center rail but you might find the whisle will not blow or is weak with the ground on the center rail.

[spankybird]

Good Morning all,

NE Ohio has a very cool day today, temp in the low 30’s and only going to high 30’s today, with rain this afternoon.

Chief, sorry to hear about your friend, he is in our prays.

With the start of a new week,

We can head into it with a full head of steam


all be safe today

tom

[jonadel]

It was a busy weekend for us and thank goodness the boss stepped up to the plate while I was busy away from the home fronts. She almost finished the last part of the industrial area with ballast and then she ran out. I NEVER thought we we would use 50#'s of ballast but now we need just a little more, anyone out there need 48#'s of ballast? I'm sure we'll find a place for the extra as time goes by plus it's only $4.95 for the bag
Hope this worked, it's be a while since I posted a pic. Beginning tonight we will add the ground cover and then a built up area for the hobo camp. I also need to make a final decision on where to place the ice station. A bigger basement would sure be nicer, but like I always told our kids, be happy with what you have.

Have a Great Week.

Jon

[cnw1995]

Wow, Jon. Looks great. Tim and Chief - thanks for the tips - I have to look at the back of the transformer now and try your suggestions. I didn't know these were variable voltage. I have the main line, secondary loop, and four sidings. I going to keep the main line on one of the two throttles but for the second one, I want to connect the Atlas Connector the right way and then connect everything to the right lock-ons. I think following your suggestions, I'll run one wire from every section back to the transformer - and the second wire into the Connector.

[FJ and G]

Big girl,

Always wanted to live in the FAR FAR north. Cold weather is definitely COOL.

Jon, Jonadel,

Nice photos

Guys & gals,

Spent all weekend doing my layout; finished the backdrop (daughter will do touchups on it this weekend) as well as a complete mountain range. Started laying track. Very satisfying. Daughter got a new Sony digital camera; will try to take some pictures next week or week after