My biggest mistake is lack of confidence. I'm afraid to do things cuz I think I'll ruin them until i just jump into it.
Modeling the N&W freelanced at the height of their steam era in HO.
Daniel G.
Forgetting to lining a switch back to its normal position after a switching move.
rrinker Glueing something together and then realizing you have it all completely reversed. --Randy
Glueing something together and then realizing you have it all completely reversed.
--Randy
rrinkerGlueing something together and then realizing you have it all completely reversed.
Say, Randy, that sounds familiar!! Had to cut a new freight door and add an additional frietht dock on the opposite side of a structure add-on when I discovered I had it backwards - - glueing it on, of course.
Another big mistake I made was getting hung up on things being perfect. I had a Woodland Scenics plaster retaining wall that had to be cut and modified to put in place. I was too worried that it wouldn't look perfect. Here's a blog entry I wrote:
"Today I finally took on a project I’ve been dragging my feet on since June, installing a Woodland Scenics Stone Retaining wall behind the paint factory. I bought this thing back in June and when I saw what I actually got, I realized it would be more work than first anticipated. You get six sections of cast-plaster walls like the one in the photo below:
In order to but them together, you have to cut off one edge and sand down the other. WS recommended a hacksaw or a coping saw. Not having either of these on hand, I used my dremel. First I cut ½” off the bottom of all six pieces and started cutting the one edge off. After two sections I got tired, threw them in a box and forgot about them. For months I thought about it but was two concerned about not getting them “prefect.” Well today I went to get something out of the cabinet and found the unfinished wall sections. That’s when I had a eureaka moment and realized they didn’t have to be perfect. Real stonewalls have chips and cracks in them. Why shouldn’t mine? In that spirit I grabbed the dremmel and knocked those babies down in short order. I cut one edge off all but one end section. Then I put a sanding head on the dremmel and sanded part of the other edge on each piece, living a small lip. This lip covers the gap between sections. Then I mixed up some dark gray poster paint and brushed it on. Next came three coats of weather wash to really grungafy them. Next came and overlay of DullCote. Installing the wall on the layout was easy. Just some foam tack glue on each section and then affixed them. So there they are, the fruits of my labor. They do look great but they don’t look perfect."
Perfect is the enemy of good
Modeling the Pennsylvania Railroad in N Scale.
www.prr-nscale.blogspot.com
Leaning over the layout arm fully extended "Planting Trees" my girlfriend came down stairs, behind me,seeing that I was concentrating she was quiet and approached the layout. I didn't hear or notice her until the critical moment my mind said hey there's something wierd here look behind you. Yeah I jumped, yelled, buried the tree, smashed some other things. But that tree is not coming out!!!!
It's annoying and painful when I drop hot solder on my legs, almost always when wearing shorts, as I work on track feeders under the layout. You'd think I'd learn to get out of the way by now. But nooooooooo.
But, it was fun reading all the other replies. I don't feel so bad now.
Jarrell
Maybe it's advancing age causing this, but I am thinking I need to take notes or keep a journal when I do a project. I find I'll do things out of sequence, leave out a step or generally re-learn what I learned the previous time I did something. ("Oh, yeah, I remember now what I did last time!") Of course, if I kept a notebook I'd have to remember where I left it....
George V.
Being the Mystery Gas Passer in a crowded op session (more of a social mistake, I know, but an embarassing model railroading mistake nonetheless).
Dayliner Being the Mystery Gas Passer in a crowded op session (more of a social mistake, I know, but an embarassing model railroading mistake nonetheless).
Most annoying? Not remembering from just yesterday that fingers don't make good heat sinks while soldering, which I recalled saying yesterday too.
To add to the Kadee coupler spring stories - get done installing the new trucks and couplers. Set the ol' metal Kadee coupler height gauge at the end of a recently installed spur, and check the trip pin and coupler heights. All is good, time to run trains.
Set the spur turnout for the main (I had power routing turnouts at the time). Trains run great. Decide to pick up the new car from the spur and add to the train. Throw the turnout for the spur, and everything stops. The case/heat sink for the power transistor on my walk-around controller starts burning into my hand, aiding my powers of concentration in realizing that I now have a short circuit.
Remembering that I recently installed that spur, I figured I must have a wiring issue. Start removing wires to the turnout frog contact, then feeders to the spur, and finally every wire to the layout in the general vicinity. Still could not find the short. A scant 2 hours later, I realize the new car is still coupled to the metal coupler height gauge. The thought of having to redo the wiring I ripped out almost cost me a basement window as I started to hurl the gauge. I ended up dropping the gauge on the floor and leaving the layout for 4 days.
FRRYKidWhat are some of the most annoying things you've ever had happen to you when model railroading?
Tichy train's flat car kit. That was a great kit, but the time it took to put the tie downs on...UGH. I went cross eyed almost.
(My Model Railroad, My Rules)
These are the opinions of an under 35 , from the east end of, and modeling, the same section of the Wheeling and Lake Erie railway. As well as a freelanced road (Austinville and Dynamite City railroad).
Motley Things that annoy me.... 1) When installing Kadee couplers, and some cars are diffuclut due to screw locations, etc. And you finish, only to realize the little microscopic spring came out of the knuckle. I just throw the coupler away, I can never replace those tiny things, good god. 2.) When laying ballast, you spend all that time making it look perfect, and brush off pieces from the ties. Next day I'll glue it down, but you forget and then you lay your hands on that section and screw it all up. 3.) Having friends over, excited to show them what you've done so far, run a train and it prompltly derails. Whoooops, what happened to my bullet proof trackwork?
Things that annoy me....
1) When installing Kadee couplers, and some cars are diffuclut due to screw locations, etc. And you finish, only to realize the little microscopic spring came out of the knuckle. I just throw the coupler away, I can never replace those tiny things, good god.
2.) When laying ballast, you spend all that time making it look perfect, and brush off pieces from the ties. Next day I'll glue it down, but you forget and then you lay your hands on that section and screw it all up.
3.) Having friends over, excited to show them what you've done so far, run a train and it prompltly derails. Whoooops, what happened to my bullet proof trackwork?
Point 3 - been there, done that! You forgot to add that that particular loco had never derailed before ...
Point 1 - I read this regularly. Maybe I'm lucky, I find it really easy to replace the springs. I take a modelling-sized slotted screwdriver, pick up the spring with it near one end, fit the far end over the little nub on the coupler, then shove the near end onto the other little nub. Takes me longer to write this. During the time that I worked evenings in a hobby shop, I never bought a Kadee coupler. The customers brought in their screwless couplers and for every one that I fixed, I kept one. Everybody happy.
Oh boy where to start, done each one of those so many times I could write a book about it. And still doing it. Personal favorite is knocking over not one but three jars of floquil at the same time. Of course they were all open. I think that might be a record of some sort but I am sure someone here can match that.
Keep it on the high shiny stuff Neil
I try to avoid these little mistakes in life like having a heavy base (some childhood project made by one of the kids in ceramics class that just happens to fit my glue bottle) for my glue bottle, but when I get to the layout, how about a custom mixed bottle of rail paint for touchup (rail was all rattle caned), knocked over losing 2/3 of its contents on scenery that had its first coat on.
Years ago, a "previous" club member was using the spray booth in the wookroom. A full bottle of Scalecoat 1 fell and smashed on the concrete floor, spattering paint across the room, workbenches, table and chairs. His solution was to mop it up w/ qt after qt of laquer thinner and paper towels. The only problem, one of the main retuns grills to the furnace is in the room. I have no idea how those vapors that stunk out the entire club (50' x150' space) didn't ignite. The club smelled of laquer thinner for close to a week even after airing out. Next metting was quite the 'fight' as most wanted to totally ban all solvent painting and storage of same within the club. We now have an isolated paint/ spray room w/ separate air intake and dual hood exhaust.
Modeling B&O- Chessie Bob K. www.ssmrc.org
Today I pulled another boner.
Getting lunch I washed my hands and there were no paper towels so I went to the basement to get a package of towels we bought at Costco. As I went by the layout I saw some scenery material (clump bushes) on the floor so I pick them up and placed them in a likely spot. I reached around for my glue bottle, twisted the spout and as I extend ny arm across the layout to the new piece of scenery glue is going everywhere, In stead of opening the spout I had unscrewed the cap. I started to mop it up but that was only making matters worse so I'll see what it looks like after it dries.
The good news it that I found my lost tools (see earlier post) They were in a plastic container that had paint supplies which I emptied to use for the tools. Forgetting that i had done that when I needed my tools I never looked in the old paint box. Some how I'm making progress in spite of myself. Bob
The good news it that I found my lost tools (see earlier post) They were in a plastic container that had paint supplies which I emptied to use for the tools. Forgetting that i had done that when I needed my tools I never looked in the old paint box.
Some how I'm making progress in spite of myself.
Bob
Don't Ever Give Up
Complete over confidence in my mental ability to actually remember stuff, coupled with not writing things down...leading to having to measure cuts for benchwork not once...but twice and in some completely idiotic occasions, THREE TIMES . Have I evolved and learned from my mental lapses?
What was I saying again......LOL! No I haven't.
Happy modeling all!
Don.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I have some good news and some bad news. The bad news is that both engines have failed, and we will be stuck here for some time. The good news is that you decided to take the train and not fly."
EMD.Don Complete over confidence in my mental ability to actually remember stuff, coupled with not writing things down...leading to having to measure cuts for benchwork not once...but twice and in some completely idiotic occasions, THREE TIMES . Have I evolved and learned from my mental lapses? What was I saying again......LOL! No I haven't. Happy modeling all! Don.
I hate it when I am thinking of something and then I go to get/do what I was thinking about, but I just forget.
It happens to almost everyone.
They say measure twice, cut once