CLOSED////////The Coffee Pot is still on and over 3 years. Here we gather as friends with trains.

[dbaker48]

Brent,

Sounds perfect !!!!! 

Does the house have a kitchen and bathroom ? 

[thor]

Can you cut a picture from your computer and paste it into a message? I just tried and got the 'downloading image' message but I dont see it here!

Oh, thanks Brent!  Here they are...I've been experimenting with my FasTrack

Fresh from the worlds messiest workbench!  I can find anything on it as long as nobody tidies it up (dearest please note).

[laz 57]

BRENT,

  Good LUCK with the offer. Is it a newer house or a fix it upper?

laz57

[Anonymous]

Well got some news!

I wasn't able to run the trains this weekend.   Due to house hunting with the wife... got to spend lots of time with her though ... any way... we looked at a house on Saturday, not bad but would need $50,000+ in improvements while we live there , so we passed on that one... looked at 9 houses yesterday...   first one was spoken for (just wanted to see the inside for ideas), second one needed $50,000 in improvements to the OUTSIDE alone and the inside caused wife to have an athesma attack (pet and smoke smell) - passed on this one, 3rd house was very nice (second choice), 4th house was similiar to the 3rd but poorly decorated (would have required wallpaper removal, carpet replacement, and MEGA painting and some wall realignment in basement) - passed on that one, 5th house... WOW!  We simply fell in love with this place!  It is just what we would have built if we were building (but no granite countertops)... we placed an offer today... (nervous nail biting now)... almost to the fingertips...

OH TRAIN ROOM????  Can you say WOWZERS????  I haven't taken measurements, but there is a potential for a 12x36 main layout, then a slight jog and a 5 x 19 run!!!  This is probably where the yard (far end), and town will be located... Industrial area to the right of the town, then farm lands and rolling hills (oil field), leading to a large mountainous area... when we were scoping the basement the wife was watching me, gave me a hug, and said, 'Its going to be impressive.  I can tell by the look on your face.  Just don't forget my wine cellar gets built soon after you start construction on the layout, can't have my wine collection going bad.'

(startled out of daze)

'Wine collection?'... I just gave her a hug and patted her on her rump!

She's definitely a keeper!

So major spending restriction is being enforced... but it will be worth it... all in the name of TRAINS!

WOW 12X36 that is big, hope you get it?

laz57

Laz,
Absolutely!  It wasn't just the 12x36 area - the way the house is laid out I can also connect a 5x19 leg to the left side... it just turns into one HUGE layout! :)

I would probably start with the smaller section, then add the large area at a later date. 

Brent

[csxt30]

Doug : just a couple ideas on that gear for your trolley. See if it has a flat spot on the shaft that the gear goes on. If so, you may be able to put some sort of shim in there if the gear wore near that flat spot. Sometimes a tiny peace of brass or a peace of a toothpick may work. Other than that, if no flat spot there, you may be able to clean it & use a 2 part epoxy or JB weld or something to try to get the gear solid again on the axle. Can you get the gear to slide completely of the shaft ?  Next, maybe call Bowser & see if they have had this problem in the past & what they would do. Keep us posted !! Oh, check for a tiny little set screw !!

Thanks, John   

[laz 57]

Well got some news!

I wasn't able to run the trains this weekend.   Due to house hunting with the wife... got to spend lots of time with her though ... any way... we looked at a house on Saturday, not bad but would need $50,000+ in improvements while we live there , so we passed on that one... looked at 9 houses yesterday...   first one was spoken for (just wanted to see the inside for ideas), second one needed $50,000 in improvements to the OUTSIDE alone and the inside caused wife to have an athesma attack (pet and smoke smell) - passed on this one, 3rd house was very nice (second choice), 4th house was similiar to the 3rd but poorly decorated (would have required wallpaper removal, carpet replacement, and MEGA painting and some wall realignment in basement) - passed on that one, 5th house... WOW!  We simply fell in love with this place!  It is just what we would have built if we were building (but no granite countertops)... we placed an offer today... (nervous nail biting now)... almost to the fingertips...

OH TRAIN ROOM????  Can you say WOWZERS????  I haven't taken measurements, but there is a potential for a 12x36 main layout, then a slight jog and a 5 x 19 run!!!  This is probably where the yard (far end), and town will be located... Industrial area to the right of the town, then farm lands and rolling hills (oil field), leading to a large mountainous area... when we were scoping the basement the wife was watching me, gave me a hug, and said, 'Its going to be impressive.  I can tell by the look on your face.  Just don't forget my wine cellar gets built soon after you start construction on the layout, can't have my wine collection going bad.'

(startled out of daze)

'Wine collection?'... I just gave her a hug and patted her on her rump!

She's definitely a keeper!

So major spending restriction is being enforced... but it will be worth it... all in the name of TRAINS!

WOW 12X36 that is big, hope you get it?

laz57

[Anonymous]

Well got some news!

I wasn't able to run the trains this weekend.   Due to house hunting with the wife... got to spend lots of time with her though ... any way... we looked at a house on Saturday, not bad but would need $50,000+ in improvements while we live there , so we passed on that one... looked at 9 houses yesterday...   first one was spoken for (just wanted to see the inside for ideas), second one needed $50,000 in improvements to the OUTSIDE alone and the inside caused wife to have an athesma attack (pet and smoke smell) - passed on this one, 3rd house was very nice (second choice), 4th house was similiar to the 3rd but poorly decorated (would have required wallpaper removal, carpet replacement, and MEGA painting and some wall realignment in basement) - passed on that one, 5th house... WOW!  We simply fell in love with this place!  It is just what we would have built if we were building (but no granite countertops)... we placed an offer today... (nervous nail biting now)... almost to the fingertips...

OH TRAIN ROOM????  Can you say WOWZERS????  I haven't taken measurements, but there is a potential for a 12x36 main layout, then a slight jog and a 5 x 19 run!!!  This is probably where the yard (far end), and town will be located... Industrial area to the right of the town, then farm lands and rolling hills (oil field), leading to a large mountainous area... when we were scoping the basement the wife was watching me, gave me a hug, and said, 'Its going to be impressive.  I can tell by the look on your face.  Just don't forget my wine cellar gets built soon after you start construction on the layout, can't have my wine collection going bad.'

(startled out of daze)

'Wine collection?'... I just gave her a hug and patted her on her rump!

She's definitely a keeper!

So major spending restriction is being enforced... but it will be worth it... all in the name of TRAINS!

[fifedog]

Chief - actually don't have the newer techknowledgy on my pike.  I can appreciate it, but it's just not for me (if I want to hold a remote, I'll go watch the boob-tube).  The problem is as simple as the GP30 (about 4-5 years old) has logged a million track miles, and the brand new GP40 hasn't stretched it's legs enough.  Thanks fot the input, just the same.

[cnw1995]

Good morning from a frigid Chicago (6 degrees) where Super Bowl mania has officially begun with the local CBS affiliate posting a count-down clock in the upper left of all their TV shows, and the lions in front of the Art Institute getting new Bears helmets.

Any ideas about how I might fix this? The worm gear in the middle is connected to the white plastic gear on the axle in front of the rear wheels. All of a sudden, this axle wants to slip down out of its hole...

Hope Reggie's daughter is healthy on arrival. My latest we adopted when I was 40. Never too late.
Jim F, as odd as it looks in print, after much experimentation, I have used regular 'ol dark colored yarn to tie tubular track together. It is practically invisible, easy to cut off, 'gives' just the right amount, it doesn't have any electrical conductivity issues like wire or potential to interfere with axles like twisty ties. I've tried the rubber bands - both 'normal' and mini-bands - like for braces - and it is hard to get 'consistency' in how it keeps the track together - some work out tighter than others and want to buckle the track.

[Anonymous]

Reggie : The guy that owns those 2 N&S engines was at the club layout by Tom ( Spankybird) this past summer, hauls them in a big trailer & they are remote controlled & even have sounds of the real diesel eng. I will try to run down more info on the Co. that manufactures them through the club or something. Will get back to you as soon as I find out something !! That club is affliated with the OTTS & Museum .

Thanks, John

 

ok thanks will be patiently waiting. me and the wifey are headed to the hospital tonight as she will be induced to go in labor, and my preciuos little girl will finally be here either tonight or tomorrow. ohh i cant wait. i will finally be a dad at the tender age of 27. do you guys think i waited to long to get started, as i'm not getting any younger

Reggie,
No way!  It is NEVER too late to have kids!  I'm turing 36 in a month and a half and my wife and I will be starting a family late this year or early next year God willing!

Brent

[Wes Whitmore]

Chief,

This was the one I was gawking over from sears.  I don't know if this is the one you have or not...  Is the 21829.  From what I have read, its really a Ryobi 3100, but has a few more features, and costs more. 

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?BV_UseBVCookie=Yes&pid=00921829000&cat=Bench+Power+Tools&subcat=Table+Saws&vertical=TOOL&ihtoken=1

I don't know why I'm not a club member.  I buy pretty much all Craftsman tools, and even get calenders in the mail.  Maybe I am a member...I don't know.

It's $399 now, marked down from $450.  The other saw I'm looking as is the Ridged TS2400LS.  It's more, and doesn't have any of the extra accessories, but seems to have a slightly better rip fence.  My current table saw has a $200 aftermarket fence that I really don't want to give up, so finding a decent fence on one of these portables is pretty important.  The Craftsman seems nice enough, but not as smooth as the rigid.  i do like the fact that I can leave one of my routers attached to the table saw though, and that crosscut table seems very nice.

All in the name of finding more room for trains in the basement!

Wes

[csxt30]

Buckeye : Yes, I'll send it to you, & here's a picture of it just sitting on my layout. It is 10 & 5/8 between the base at the bottom, could also go to 10 & 3/4". Spans 3 tracks on my layout.

  

Thanks, John

[Buckeye Riveter]

John, would you do me a favor and send me the inside width of your MTH signal tower.  I would like to know if one of those will span my double tracks or do I need to move the tracks closer.  Thanks.

Back home for the week.  Drinking hot coffee this am.  It is cold in Buckeyeland.  12 degrees and lower. 

Had a great weekend. 

Awaiting on news from Reggie!  He will find that his daughter will be fascinated with the trains.  Mine is nuts about the PE. She loves to set it up under the tree and when people ask about it, she says, "Its mine, not my husbands!"

See ya down the tracks,

[ChiefEagles]

So I have officially made the decision to get the workshop out of the basement.  The kids toys are really starting to pile up, and we just need more room.  So it's tool liquidation time.  I'll use the money to get more compact tools so I can store them along the garage wall when not being used.  I'm looking at the Rigid and the Sears Portable Contractor Saws.   They fold up very small, and really look built pretty well.

 Wes

Wes, I've got one of the Craftsman portable table saws.  Love it.  Gave away my radial arm saw becasue of it.  Folds and stores easy.  I cut all my benchwork with it.  Got the extra warranty for a few bucks extra.  Are you a Craftsman Club member?  Sale going on right now.  10% cheaper and get to buy a week earlier than the regular sale.  That is when I got mine and saved $$$$.

[ChiefEagles]

Morning gang.  Cold here and wind chill is down low.  Train and coffee day.  Snow in Ohizo???  How wonderful.  Let it snow, let it snow.  Have a good one. 

Tried to double-head my GP30 and new GP40, but they weren't working that great together.

TMCC?  Odyssey?  If TMCC and both have Odyssey, they both need to be turned on.  If one has it and the other doesn't, turn the one with it off.  Set your "throttle" by getting them moving, hit set, light will flash, get it moving and just as it comes to stop, hit set [horns will blow and lights stop flashing].  Funny, in some documents, it says to get them to creap, other it says just as they stop.  What you want is for them to start and stop together.  If they are conventional, send me an email as I can tell you a trick.

[csxt30]

Good Morning Everyone !!  Well, it looks like a good foot of snow in our driveway from that lake effects snow storm last evening. Glad I'm off !! I want to keep experimenting with my new TPC I got yesterday & maybe monkey around with my new MTH signal tower ! Boy, it sure is nice to be able to open the coupler now on my MTH steam eng!!

Well, got to catch that dining car now !! Hope everyone has a nice day !!

Thanks, John

[Wes Whitmore]

It's superbowl week.  My team isn't going, so it's a little less special, but both of my friend's teams are going, so it's going to be exciting to watch them go back and forth on Sunday.  We are watching the game at my neighbors house.  I have been helping him finish his basement.  It even has a bar!

So I have officially made the decision to get the workshop out of the basement.  The kids toys are really starting to pile up, and we just need more room.  So it's tool liquidation time.  I'll use the money to get more compact tools so I can store them along the garage wall when not being used.  I'm looking at the Rigid and the Sears Portable Contractor Saws.   They fold up very small, and really look built pretty well.

The ceiling layout is really starting to come around.  I need to buy a few more Lionel 027 042 turnouts, if you guys know of anyone who is selling them for a good deal.

Have a great day!

 Wes

 

Buckeye, those pictures look good.  That last picture is my personal favorite.

Wes

[fifedog]

Mornin' boys.  Just sitting down with cup #1.  The boy got sick overnight (spaghettit).  Looks like me and him today.  House will be quiet with all the heffers gone.  Did some night running on the layout last night.  Tried to double-head my GP30 and new GP40, but they weren't working that great together.

Chief - lots of crazies coming out of the woodwork this month for some reason.  Some succeed, some just wanna go home with you. CCFCCP - coocoo for cocoapuffs.

[Blueberryhill RR]

Good Morning from Blueberryhill....

It is a cold 11 degrees. We got about an inch of snow during the night. Going up to only 25 today. Maybe a little more snow.

Today, I have a few errands to run. Hate to go out in this weather. I heard that up North, they got hit hard with a blizzard. Lake effect snow. I worked on layout for a few hours yesterday. Set up track plan and checked for all details. Need to make a little more benchwork. Going to be a big upper level. Bridges look good.

Well, full Dining Car just rolled in from " points west " Breakfast.

Y'all have a great Monday.

Chuck

[Roger Bielen]

P.S.  A cooooold 19F this morning with windchill bringing it down to 10F.  My eyes nearly froze walking up to get the paper from the box, 100+yds. each way.  I've already turned on the space heater in my work room.  Think I'll spend the day working on redoing Pullmans into SAL's.  Three are stripped, primed and ready for final color coating and two more soaking in the break fluid.

[Roger Bielen]

RE: rubber bands

Jim, I've read that the small rubber bands used for braces work well.  I'd guess a drug store would have them.

[cheapclassics]

Good morning all,

It is cold this morning in SE Indiana with temps staying in the teens all day.  Winter has hit Indiana.  I guess they do not want Indiana celebrating too much, and this does wonders for the Super Bowl bid they are making.  I watched a little of the Rolex 24 this weekend.  I had to get my racing fix somehow.  Reggie, I hope all goes well for your wife and daughter and let us know when everyone is ok.  Buckeye, looks like you had a good sized crowd.  Dining car is headed for "Points East", and there is still a train car full of food.  I hope everyone has a good day.

Keep on training,

Mike C. from Indiana

[laz 57]

HI GIZ,

  Cold and windy here today at 18 to get to 30?

Ran GG1 last nite for a half hour all good.

CHIEF,  I remember the pink cigars.  How about candy cigarettes?  Or bubble gum cigarettes, when you blew into them a puff of smoke would come out.

laz57

[Jumijo]

Good morning everyone.

We had a nice uneventful weekend here in New England. I finally saw Syperman Returns and loved it! I think this guy is actually a better Superman than Chris Reeves.

We had a dusting of snow. Just enough for the kids to go out and play in.

I went to a train store this weekend and bought a FasTrack operating track. The uncoupler magnet works fine, but have had no luck making the operating rails work the sliding shoe uncouplers on my post war cars. In both instances, the show doesn't touch the rain.

While at the train store, I got a preview of the new SF F3 I want to buy. They had an F7 set there that looked just like the F3. I was amazed at the details! I'm in!! The little ligt rings on the top of the engine make me a little nervous, but wow, great looking diesel!

Reggie, my thoughts are with you and your family today. The best of luck to you!!!

Jim 

[dwiemer]

Top of the morning to y'all,

     Chief, still no word from Reggie, hopefully Momma and baby are doing fine and Daddy is still on cloud 9.  A little cold this morning....25F.  No snow, I don't think it has snowed down here since the 70's. 

     Well, have to get to work, got a few early cases today.  I hope that everyone has a great day and that my CTT finally gets here.  If it is not here when I return, well I will just have to give that nice lady at customer service a call.

God Bless,

Dennis

[ChiefEagles]

Thought I would wait up and get the first PINK bubble gum cigar from Reggie. [remember those?]  No, actually went to sleep watching thenews and now hitting the bed.  Yanks will be happy to know it snowed in Roseyville tonight.  Did not stick as ground too warm.  Frankie called at 10:30 as he was a few miles outside of Roseyville.  They had beeen trying to talk a guy out of his house for quite a while.  He had taken a rifle and ran his family off earlier today.  They had taken out mental papers on him.  They are hoping to get him out.  If not they will go in and get him.  Not good if that happens.  Anyway, he told me it had been snowing pretty good.  Cold tomorrow and I will stay in and do trains.

Good night all.

[underworld]

Good afternoon all,

Jim Fortner,  What you need for cutting balsa is a chopper.

 

http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/53-694

Works for balsa to 1/4" and basswood to 3/16".  I've had one for years and would not want to do without it.  They have cheaper model with a masoneite base instead of this cast aluminum model as well.  It comes with jigs for 30, 45 & 60 degrees.  You can make them for any angle from sheet wood or styrene.  I made all the cuts on my stockyard with this.

I've got one something like that but mine is handheld made by Midwest Products

Works really well, but I think yours is probably more versatile.

 

underworld

 

[dwiemer]

Jim, hope it works out for you.  I can't take the credit for the idea, I saw it some where, but not sure where and who gets the idea credit.  Anyway, Good luck.  I went the way of Fastrack as when I got back into the hobby, I had a loop of old O27 around the tree, the old #2020 would make the track separate.  When I set out the new Hobo Set that I got, the fastrack was easy to use and I don't think a full size steamer would make it separate. 

Hopefully by this time Reggie is holding his little girl.  YOU GO BIG GUY!  Please give your wife a big kiss from the crew here and tell her it is OK for girls to play with trains too!  God Bless you and the family.

Dennis

[Brutus]

 I need to get some track clips or something to keep the track from pulling apart.  I had it screwed down to just the foam underlayment before, but pulled all the screws to put on some white flannel for Christmas....  Anyway, the kids are sleeping at friends' house, so TTFN!

Jim, I have seen where you can take rubber bands and wrap them around the ties at the ends of the two track sections and this will keep them together.  Basically, you start on one side, wrap the band over the two tie ends, then cross the band under the ties and go across to the other side where you come up and over the tie ends.  The other way to do it, and probably better would be to get some black wire ties and pull the ties together and use the wire tie to keep them approximated.  Or you can do it the old fashioned way of either screws or the old track clips.

Dennis

Hey - thanks, that's a great idea!  I'll grab a bunch of rubber bands and start playing around with it tomorrow.  I've got a couple pieces of nice plywood around and I'm going to make a sort of box or case to contain a service panel and hook ups for my switch controllers.  Then I'm going to mount the switch controllers right on the top and leave room for the Z1000 controller as well.  I have very little space at this time and want to use as little as possible for this stuff.  I'm also going to mount control buttons around the outside of the layout to operate my accessories, so that you can see what happens while pushing the button - got that idea from another thread (thanks guys!).  I just love this forum, I get so many ideas and such great advice all the time!

John (jefelectric) - thanks, I was looking at that chopper 2 years ago in a Walthers catalog, back when I was playing with some HO stuff.  I'll bookmark it and the next time I get some allowance, I'll order it.  I am going to first make a new water tower out of balsa (etc) like Tom (Spankybird) did, based on an old Marx style watertower.  Then, I'm going to make a barn.  I'm not into scale at all, other than in general terms, so all will be O27.  Mostly want it to look good on the layout but not take up too much room.  Speaking of which, I hope I get my camera back soon so I can post some pics of the evolving layout and also that gondola I repainted.  It didn't turn out too bad for a first try I guess.  Mostly I was just trying to do a better job than the guy who had it before me, so the old letters wouldn't show through.

John B - glad you got your computer back.  Hope the weather doesn't have you down too much and your train comes soon!

Colin - your Dad is in my prayers.  Glad he's home and hope he's doing a lot better!

Reggie - congratulations! Hope it goes fast and all is well.  I was 33 when my oldest was born and in fact being a little older I think has helped me be a better parent in a way.

[laz 57]

BUCKEYE, looks like you had your own OTTS meeting?  Watch out that southern man might have left some GRITS there?  Hope your anti GRITS radar was on high alert?  Probably was buzzing when the CHIEF was outside your house?

REGGIE,BIG CONGA on the BABY GIRL,hope all goes well.

laz57