Thank you Jack.
Well I've been busier than a one-legged man at a butt kicking contest! Before I could even start on the Athearn loco this morning my father showed up. We needed to change out the front wheel bearings on the Peerless tractor. Naturally it became more than that. The left front bearing had gone dry and the spindle was badly worn, the part toward the outer end has a quarter inch deep, one and six tenths inches wide groove worn into it. No wonder the camber was out on that side! Only hard part was getting the tie rod end off. It didn't want to budge. I pulled so hard on it I almost pulled the tractor off the stands! That would've been nearly 3/4's of a ton of metal looking to use me as a landing spot. I had to lay back on my back and brace my foot against it and push it back so the stands were upright again. That resulted in the leg cramp from hell but it worked! I had no intention of getting that close a look at the underside of that monster. I changed my point of attack so I wasn't pulling sideways on the breaker bar but rather from front to back. I eventually loosened the bolt and the tie rod end dropped away easily after getting a good hard smack from the hammer. I'm glad the brakes are on the rear axle. At least I don't have the fight with them. We got the axle spindle off and took it to a welding shop to have it built back up and ground to the proper size. Maybe it'll last another 15 plus years. The welding shop will call when the part is ready. Then it'll be fun-fun-fun putting it all back together. The bearings are already packed and ready so it should be a simple matter of putting on the inner bearings then the wheels and outer bearings and tightening them down. Who knows, maybe I won't have to look at them again until I'm sixty-six.
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
What a weekend! Did too much. Are too much. Didn't get enough sleep.
Jeffrey........I hope this morning had you feeling better. Re your new responsibility with the FD, while one cannot "teach" experience, your service will continue to benefit every single person on the front lines who choose to listen and to accept your wisdom from your own years of experience. You will continue to protect your brothers in harms way. Very few of the rest of us can say that.. I salute you, not only for what you have done but for what you will continue to do.!!!
V8........first the flu and now a cold. Don't let this drag on before seeking a medical look see. That is what my buddy Frank did, let it drag on too long, and look where it got him.
Brutus........you have my continued prayers for Char's tests. It sounds like you have the drill down pat and have support forces marshalled to cover the "flanks."
Rich.......keep hammering!!!! And a heartfelt congratulations on the accoilades and acknowledgements you have been receiving from all sides, FD and here!!!!
The weekend plate was way overloaded as usual with too much to do and not enough time to do it. We were on the road in the snow up to Salisbury MA on Saturday morning and to Saco ME. early Sunday morning to help out at some events sponsored by two of our dog training clubs. My job is simple: jump in and do whatever is needed, like set up, break down, cleanup, just hold someone's dog's leash for them, take pictures, pick up pizzas, clean up "accidents," whatever. It is comforting to me that after all of the years of my wife's sacrifice, with working, making the house a home, the kids, and the now the grandkids, that my wife finally has had the time for a hobby for herself......training and competing with our dog!!!!
The AFC and NFC title games were ones for the ages. Both were nail biters to the very end. And this year it looks like there will be no clear favorites for the Super Bowl. Both the Patriots and the Giants escaped by the skin of their teeth. And the Ravens and Forty Niners should be proud despite the outcomes for them. Disappointing finish? Yes. Winnable? Yes.
The dog responsibilities in Saco yesterday morning and afternoon thankfully broke up arounf 2PM. Shortly thereafter the wifey, dog, and I were tooling South on a bone dry Route 95, headed back from ME and going to the daughter/SIL's place for the Patrioys football game, albeit too late to see the kickoff and the first quarter. It was like driving on the Autobahn with two of the four lanes Southbound travelling at about 85mph, presumably because they (as we) were running late to get to someone's place for football watching. En route, we picked up my buddy Frank.......he had cabin fever to the extreme extreme.
My buddy, Frank, a walking miracle, was released Friday from his inpatient physical, occupational, and speech therapy, just 15 days since his saga began.. Since I am the only game in town, I served as his limo driver and picked him up. Then spent rest of the afternoon dropping off/picking up prescriptions, eating, getting him home and settled, organizing his meds and med schedule, helping him do his laundry, and preparing for the visiting nurse visit Saturday. It would be nice if the prescriptions were labelled with both the general name of a drug AS WELL AS the brand name: i.e., warfarin is Coumadin. We had to do the translation between the Doctors' orders and the prescriptions, double check the dosages, and also the "schedule."
Later, gang.
Jack
IF IT WON'T COME LOOSE BY TAPPING ON IT, DON'T TRY TO FORCE IT. USE A BIGGER HAMMER.
Brrrr, 40's and rain.
John, Looks as though there is finally some movement by city hall.
Later all, need to rustle up some grub b4 pills.
Remember the Veterans. Past, present and future.
www.sd3r.org
Proud New Member Of The NRA
Laz, I spoke too soon. I got your pics on your last try. Thanks for the effort. Good looking units.
Ray
SPMan
KEV,
I've been collecting the Ol Mil cars for about 10 years now. The first one I bought I paid the most at $35.00. The rest I have gotten for $25 or under. Most of the were $20.00 or less. It pays to know a good hobby shop whose owner buys alot of collections.
laz57
Thank you, Kev.
fifedog Holy crap, the sun didn't come up today!
Holy crap, the sun didn't come up today!
fifedog,
Glad it came up over your layout pictures in the SPF. What a great looking layout you have there.
Kev.
Joined 1-21-2011 TCA 13-68614
Kev, From The North Bluff Above Marseilles IL.
Good morning all,
Windy today in SE Indiana with temps dropping from 50s to 30s during the day. Frustrating day at work as nothing is going the way I planned. I had bacon and biscuits on the dining car for breakfast before sending it on to "Points West" and "Points East". US women win again 13-0. By the way, those are soccer scores. Equivalent football score would 78or 91 to 0 depending on whether the extra point would be a "gimme". TBIL and I can drive again to make up for missed rotations. I hope everyone will have a good day.
Keep on training,
Mike C. from Indiana
Warm and foggy. Need some sun. SURPRISE!!! Heat pump guys showed up. On the run. Can't find remote to run it. SIL Was on kitchen counter the other day when whe packed things up.
Later.
God bless TCA 05-58541 Benefactor Member of the NRA, Member of the American Legion, Retired Boss Hog of Roseyville , KC&D Qualified
Good morning guys.
38 and the fog has blown off. Light rain turning to light snow with temps dropping all day.
Got to go to town for a few things.
The foot still is messing with me, a pain to walk and some kind of bruising on the top of it. I don’t know if I want to see a doctor yet. It is the New Year and I have to meet the deductible on my medical. So everything is out of pocket for the first $500. With this broken tooth thingy, stupid foot thingy, and several other unexpected thingys I am feeling financially impaled.
Not like the days when I was working and just wrote the check. I am too young to tap anything out of my 401K and I don’t want to anyhow.
Chief, Sounds like Roseyville survived its birthday party. John Deere has made a lot of improvements to their Compact Gator since I got mine, mostly in the suspension and exhaust systems. If you look at one don’t get a first year machine go 2006 or newer.
Chuck, It was good to see that picture from your layout on the SPF yesterday.
Laz, Do those Old Milwaukee card hold enough beer for you? I was looking at a Miller H.L. car and it went for $81.00 seems like a lot?
Brutus. For Char and you.
SJ, glad you are on the up.
Later guys,
Aloha . Kind of misty today but warm: 45! Rich, congrats on both your 20 years of service and your Major Award. Well said, SJ. The whole PSU saga makes me mad. Prayers for Char. Boy, I feel sorry for that 49er. He's Kenny William's (GM of my White Sox) son. Ran trains during the first game. Have to hold safety training again: another big pile up when 520's freight train sideswiped James and the Express. I know the problem is the track floats a bit when trains are run for a long time -especially since it is not nailed down atop the carpet. And in certain places, the clearances should be greater. But I like having a few places to stop and wait on another train to go through. Anyway Sir Topham Hatt is now on the scene and the Riot Act will be read. I also noticed Thomas seems to be 'slipping' again.
Doug Murphy 'We few, we happy few, we band of brothers...' Henry V.
Happy Monday CTT Fans!
Yep, the start of the w**k week is here again It's 28F and Sunny at 5280+
Darren (BLHS & CRRM Lifetime Member)
Delaware and Hudson Virtual Museum (DHVM), Railroad Adventures (RRAdventures)
My Blog
Good morning
45 degrees
I looked out this morning and all the sn-- was gone. Lots of rain overnight. Joe a drop of oil on those Postwar axles will have those cars running just fine. As for the president we decided on, only time will tell. Granny's fixing me an egg sandwich, tummy's still a little touchy about eating" heavy food"...JoePa, it's a shame he placed the school above morals. A great man/coach but his reputation will be forever tarnished by one poorly made decision....S.J.
"IT's GOOD TO BE THE KING",by Mel Brooks
Charter Member- Tardis Train Crew (TTC) - Detroit3railers- Detroit Historical society Glancy Modular trains- Charter member BTTS
Good morning. It's 60° and mostly cloudy. The high will be 69° and it will be partly cloudy.My plan today is to take the bottoms of the Athearn F7's trucks apart and give the contact surfaces of the trucks and bearings a good cleaning. Hopefully that should clear up the pickup problems. After that, well, we'll just see what happens.
Good Morning from Blueberryhill RR....
It is a rainy 44 degrees. Going up to 55 today with more rain. This weather is crazy.
Today is a busy day. I have a project to work on and the usual chores. Wife is grocery shopping. I will be taking my nap later.
Dining car is here with Cheerios for breakfast.
Y'all have a great Monday.
Chuck
Morning all quick post before heading in. Glad to see the Giants win. I was a fan for many years, but now Sundays keep me busy with church and family, haven't seen a full game in years. I was able to hose the house off so the pine straw wouldn't be stuck to it, but will tackle the trees later in the week.
With any luck, I will get to place some of the figures on my layout and finish the buildings to put on later in the week. Have a committee meeting this afternoon and I think most of you know how much fun those are.
Chief, glad all went well with the birthday celebration.
God bless,
Dennis
TCA#09-63805
Hi GUYZ,
Misty here and I got a 2hr. delay. I'll take it. Not much else going on here. Have a great day.
Stay frosty,
Konnichiwa,
I ran out of time to post yesterday. We went to church in the morning and out for sushi afterwards. I had a quick nap in the afternoon and then wired the UTB RR. In the evening we relaxed and before I knew it, it was bed time.
The UTB RR is wired and has three separate blocks. The main loop is always powered but the two sidings have toggle switches to cut power on and off. I may hook up another transformer to the longer siding so I can possibly run a small switcher (Beep) or track mobile on it while a train is running on the main loop. I also ran those prewar cars I recently received. I used a twist tie to connect the first car to the modern era tender I used to pull them. They ran great and had minimal flicker which was probably due to the track needing some cleaning. I attempted to video it but I did not operate the wife's camera properly. I will try again this weekend. Either way, the trains have been running and we are able to conduct some small-scale switching operations as well. More importantly, all three kids have been enjoying the layout.
JoePa died. I hope he will be remembered for all the great things he accomplished and not only the current horrible debacle.
Brutus – I hope all goes well; I’ll be praying.
Laz – Thanks for sharing the photos. Those are very nice. The layout is looking great as well; I like seeing all that FasTrack.
Dougdagrump – You’re not kidding about the punt returner. Usually I don’t blame one guy for a loss, but this time may be an exception.
SJ - I hope you and the fellas elected a winner.
Sayonara,
Joe
Rolesville Birthday Party a success. Been reclinerizing. Kev, didn't know they had a Gator that size. I might like one of those. All we have around here are the big ones.
Jim, tell Char to get home and stay well or I'm coming to set her "Straight". Prayers as always.
LAZ, holding all $$$$$ to put on "Box" project. Am planning to add some to B unit as I have several MTH smoke units.
Temps are rising. Off to bed.
Hope the kick returner for the 49'rs wasn't planning on arbitration or free agency this off season.
AF53 traindaddy1 - anjdevil2 - Looks like we got some more football to play!! Ray
traindaddy1 - anjdevil2 - Looks like we got some more football to play!!
Yes, "we" do!!!!!!
Bayville, NJ
Life is what happens to youWhile you're busy making other plans - John Lennon
Jim, amazing what frozen water can do. Great looking pictures LAZ Brutus we will be praying for Char, check in when you can. Dennis sounds like you have your work cut out for you. Great games today for you easterners. Night guys, Kev.
Jim, amazing what frozen water can do.
Great looking pictures LAZ
Brutus we will be praying for Char, check in when you can.
Dennis sounds like you have your work cut out for you.
Great games today for you easterners.
Night guys,
Now, on to Indianapolis!
Good evening guys. Since my last post, we went to the Sunday School gathering, it was a lot of fun. My daughter was begging to ride a horse. I got on one and she climbed up in front of me. At first she loved it, but when the horse got to a nice gallup, she wanted off! I kept her on by taking it east and slowing up. The rest of the time there was great. We had shrimp and grits as well as quail and fixings. As darkness fell on the farm, we had a huge weather front come through. We jumped in the van and headed home. Rain was so heavy, couldn't see the road except where they had those reflective lane markers. It being dark, we could see some trees down on the road, but had no idea how bad things were. At first light, I saw that the whole house was coverred in Pine straw and tree bark. We had at least one tree down as well as some limbs. Cleanup will be fun.
Jeff, take care of yourself, can't have your glucose get that low, or even too high. Unconteolled diabetes can cause so many issues that are not good. If you don't already have one, a good endocrinologist is a must. There are so many pitfalls in diabetes, folks can get in a lot os physical problems without good direction for dealing with it. Some things as simple as a glass of orange juice can really hurt you.
Laz, those are so nice. That is a great find. Look forward to seeing some more photos of them ponies on your pike.
Well, I must get some sleep. God bless all of you and your families.
Time for me to call it a night. See y'all tomorrow.
Howdy guys - cold here in Saint Louis. Today was grocery shopping and laundry. Played some videogames with my son and did a little reading. Mother-in-law is visiting and she'll help Char out tomorrow with her biopsy and bringing her home etc. Char will be fine in a day or two. I'll be offline a couple days - might be able to do email and CTT, but maybe not. I'm not sure of the amenities at the hotel and it's all provided by work etc.
TARDIS keys will be with SJ for the week, so he can bring the Banilla. TTFN!
RIP Chewy - best dog I ever had.
YEA THEY DID!!!!
Enjoy,
PROBE sorry bout the windshield.
Here I go again for the third time trying to post pics. MTH DAP F7s on left and MTH Railkings F3s on the right.
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