The Coffee Shop (a place to chat) Est. 2004

[Anonymous]

I told you all I'd post a picture of my loco paint scheme. Here it is.



I may change it a little. For instance, move the name a little closer to the cab, or use a bigger font size. It is in no way the final scheme. Hope you like it. The logo will be on the front below the stripe. All the handrails are red. I may move the stripe up a little. And, I may add a stripe along the walkway. Still a workin' on it. I just wanted to give ya'll an idea about it.

Robert

[Noah Hofrichter]

Ed, There working out pretty good, I like the paint scheme alot. Problem is, one if them runs considerablly louder and at higher voltage than the other, so I may end up sending it back for a replacement. I went to try oling the motor a little first. Oh, they are ady by Athearn as ready to run kits. I don't ahve time for pics today, as I've got a chrismas program at school tonight, and a little homework, so I have to keep moving. I'll post some on the next day I can actually relax.

I guess I better go then, adios!

Noah

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Warthogdrvr

Hey folks -

Cjm89 - Chris, that's an easy name to remember - and your last name is spelled the same as my mother's maiden name. My barber when I was based at Sheppard AFB in Wichita Falls, TX, used to be an engineer for the CB&Q and the follow-on roads (through mergers). He was also a decorated combat Marine with time in Korea and Vietnam, so I used to LOVE going and getting my haircut.

Chris

Chris,

Kind of interesting, we both have the same name and you mother's maiden name is the same as mine.

Being an engineer on the FW&D/CB&Q in the 50s/60s, did the barber have any good steamer stories?

'Nother day without much going on. I'll have to fini***hat module's legs so I can bring it in the house to work on.

Christopher

[PennsyHoosier]

Hi friends,

We FROZE in northern Indiana today--but it was a beautiful winter day capped off by a stunning sunset. Life is good!!!!! [^]

Chris (Warthog) - I hear conflicting reports about how the K4 restoration is going at Steamtown. If they go belly up, maybe the outfit in Michigan that saved the Pere Marquette 1225 (which provided the sound for Polar Express) could pick it up. They are starting to get going up there in Owosso. I sure hope Steamtown can hang on, though.

Dan - Good advice on the airbrush. I am using water-based paint almost exclusively now. Just upgraded to a dual action Badger. But my old 200 NH still is a great brush.

[PennsyHoosier]

Ron -- Congrats on the new star! [tup]

[pedromorgan]

robert - sorry i didnt get back to you on the paint question i have been away cor a coupld of days. i could recommend some but there wouldnt bew much point as they would be for the brittish market anyway (railmatch & precision) the only one i would advise against would be humbrol white as it always comes out cream/baige.

Peter

[krump]

Chris -
you've found the place to be, lets grab a mocha and chat. As far as my mom's stolen household goods - nothing recovered (but the car). I think she was checking the pawn shops mostly out of curiousity ... she volunteers at a Thrift Store and has a lot of fun doing that, and although I do routine checks at pawn shops (probation officer related duties), I doubt that my mother had ever darkened the doorway of such a business.
btw- what DOES a warthog drive? (welcome to the coffee room)

[tomwatkins]

Good Mornin' Everybody,
It's another cold, clear, beautiful morning in the mountains. Not quite as cold as yesterday, but cold enough. The weather guessers are calling for snow again on Saturday. We'll see, but that would be nice. Let everybody get the running around done and get home,get the fire going, and then let it come. Sounds good to me.

As frequently happens, the errands and odds and ends took longer yesterday than expected. I did manage to get a little done on the scenery and on the Southern light mountain. There's a lot less of the necessary stuff on the schedule for today so I should be able to make some real progress today.

I think that after Christmas (when the sales start) it's going to be time to look at digital cameras. I'd appreciate comments and suggestions about what brands and models to consider. I definitely want macro capability and high enough resolution for really good clarity. I'd like to be able to post photos of the railroad fairly easily and quickly, and that seems like the way to go, but I need to do it without breaking the bank. I'd really appreciate the help.

Teffy, the pawn shop idea as a place to look for a compressor is another good one. Actually, they're good places to look for a lot of tools. I also use Krylon a lot. It's excellent paint. Warming the can makes a big difference improving the spray pattern.

Dharmon, that's all very good advice for getting started in air brushing, especially the practicing. It's a skill that has to be learned, and the brush has to be gotten familiar with. It just takes practice. I agree that a good basic brush will do very well. I've used a Binks Wren single action for almost 35 years. I've tried several more complex brushes and always went back to the single action. Incidently, I've used Floquil on plastic without ever using "barrier" for the whole time and never had a problem. I just use several light coats and build the finish up gradually, without allowing the paint to puddle or go on too wet. It is a solvent based paint, so a respirator and gloves are definitely needed.

N2mopac, congrats on 3 stars.

RdlkrbyvllRR, that's a good looking scheme. I like it.

JP, enjoy the time off.

Warthogdrvr, I'm glad you're enjoying the coffee shop. It's a nice place. Please call me Tom. "Mr Watkins" makes me feel too old.

I'd better get going and get some of this stuff done.
Have a great day, everybody,
Tom

[Anonymous]

Good Morning All:

Tis cold here only 49 degrees but clear with a hint of rain. If it doesn't rain it'll miss a good chance.

John:
The Sassi book that I was talking about is "A Realistic HO Layout for Beginners". The number is "ISBN:0-89024-214-3".

I found out that if I was going to save on ground foam and put the paint down first and then put the foam down, the paint had to be VERY thick as it dried too fast and the adhesion to the foam wasn't very good if it was a light coat. You waist more foam by putting it down first and using diluted white glue, but you get better adhesion. I never could get enough paint from a spray can to make the foam stick. Now I use the paint just to change the color. I spray the diluted white glue with an old windex bottle. Since ash is so "flighty" you might have to do an "mist overspray". GOOD LUCK. I just thought about this, spray on a heavy coat of dil. white glue and then dust the foam on. I wish I'd thought about that when I had all of the stuff out. By sifting the foam on after the adhesive is down you can vacuum the overage up and use it again. I have a Black and Decker hand vacuum and it's nice around the layout because it's so easy to see what was vacuumed up when you put it in the trash.

Ya'll have a blessed day and remember SANTA FE ALL THE WAY
Bob

[Anonymous]

Mornin y'all

There's more and more stars every time I check in it seems like. Congrats on all of them.

Looks like we're having a paint discussion since last time I checked in. How do y'all get white letter decals? I need an A, a T, an &, and an L. Will they cover green paint good enough?

Got to go to school in a little bit, so I guess I better study for the semester test some more.

See ya'
Greg

[n2mopac]

QUOTE: Originally posted by der5997

Ron:

QUOTE: And it only took me 4 years to do it. That means I can reach 5 stars in just 12 more short years.

..and to think we still won't have finished our layouts by then[:O][:P]
Congratulations you stellar people [tup]

How true it is! Sad, but true. Oh well, this is after all a lifetime hobby. [:)]

Ron

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: Originally posted by JPowell


I mentioned it to my dad last week, then he called my CFO (wife) and she got..

what does CFO stand for (C= F= O=)?

[egmurphy]

CFO = Chief Financial Officer (i.e. the one who controls the pursestrings)

[Anonymous]

Mornin'. How's everybody been doin'. Frozen, more than likely.

bnsf6733: CFO, the one I know, is short for Chief Financial Officer. Hence, why wife's are called this. But, could mean something else to others. I don't have one, yet. I'm a lookin', though.

T.W.100: Microscale, I believe, offers several sets of lettering in white, along with stripes, and decals for a variety of road names. Woodland Scenics offers dry transfer letters also available in white. You can check your local office supply store. They may offer dry transfers, you may have to ask if they sell them in white. You might check into buying a printer that prints in white. I can't think of the name of the printer right now. When I do I'll let you know. I hope this helps. As for the white lettering on green paint, it should show just fine. Though, I've never painted and lettered anything before. [?]Hey guys, can you provide more info.

TEFFY: Did you get the e-mail I sent you. Or did you forgot about me.[:D]

TTFN, Robert

[JPowell]

QUOTE: Originally posted by egmurphy

CFO = Chief Financial Officer (i.e. the one who controls the pursestrings)

Ed - Thanks for taking care of that ? for me. I'm just now getting back here to order a Hot Fudge Sundae for desert.

[egmurphy]

Good Morning Coffee Clubbers,

Cool weather has finally made it’s way down here to Veracruz. It’s been in the 50’s and overcast for the past couple of days, cooler at night. I’m loving it, Fran and the In-Laws are pulling out their winter gear. Of course, houses down here don’t have any heating. So when the masonry gets cooled down it does seem a bit nippier inside than it does in the average wood frame house with some central heating up north.

But I’m not holding my breath for a White Christmas.

Haven’t read all the new trains magazines yet, but I put a dent in them

Congratulations to Robert on his first star, and to Ron for his 3rd!!

QUOTE: Chris; How do you like living in Mexico? Any reason you retired down there, other than the dollar can be stretched quite a bit there? Just curious what the biggest differences are between here and there. My only experience with Mexico was in Tijuana…

It’s okay. I could be happy in any one of a number of places (I made 23 long distance or international moves in my career, plus uncountable temp assignments). I had worked down here on several assignments, met and married a woman from here. When we started thinking about retiring it just worked out better being here. She’s real close to her family, who live next door, and I only have one daughter living in the States (and until very recently, she and her husband were also moving around a lot). I actually think you could live for the same amount of money in a number of small towns in the States or Canada. Border towns are considerably different than the interior of the country, and usually give people a bad impression.

QUOTE: Looks like your packing a lot of layout onto the back of a door!

Yeah, probably too much. Next time I’ll try for more space or less stuff. I’d really like to widen the curves out a bit and have a bit more space for scenery. But you make do with what you’ve got.

QUOTE: John: On the ash-dusted-over-wet-paint front, looks like I'll be glueing down quite a bit. The top surface of most of what I did yesterday is not bonded. Just how much paint does one have to use to make a ground cover stick?

When I did the diorama I thought about the paint method but it didn’t seems to me that it would be wet enough to hold much foam. What I did was to let the paint dry, then brushed on a coat of white glue, slightly thinned with water. Not as thin as it would need to be to spray, nor too runny. Just enough to get it to brush easily. After putting on the foam I still had to wet it and spray on a top coat of diluted white glue.

QUOTE: JP: I'm taking next week off. 3 days vacation (I have 89 days on the books)

Any particular reason you are saving up so many vacation days, or simply not taking vacation more often? I remember back to a time when I didn’t take vacations. Then one boss I had made me start taking my yearly allotment plus starting to draw down on my backlog (which was nowhere near as big as yours). Discovered I really liked having time off. Started me on the road to early retirement, he did.


Pedro, I see you got your answer to the Bombardier car height out on the General Forum. That’s the way it often goes. Now some questions, like the best technique on spray painting, can get answers from everyone here in the Coffee Shop (except me, no experience except with hardware store spray cans). But really specialized questions do better out there.

QUOTE: Tom: …time to look at digital cameras….I definitely want macro capability and high enough resolution for really good clarity. I'd like to be able to post photos of the railroad fairly easily and quickly…

As with trains, there are lots of makes and each has their devotees. I have a Kodak DX6440 with 4 megapixel capability which is plenty of resolution for large prints if you’re so inclined. I suppose the same model is probably out with 5 megs this year. Has an optical zoom and macro setting. I have it with the camera dock that serves both as a recharger for the batteries (I’ve been very happy with their performance) and has a USB cord that plugs into the computer (I keep it plugged in to one of the USB ports all the time) making transfer of pictures a snap. Just one opinion, I’m sure you’ll get others.

If I was still as “into photography” as I used to be I would have gone for one of the SLR digitals. But I’ve had this for a year now and it’s fine for the photography I do these days.

QUOTE: Robert: Woodland Scenics offers dry transfer letters also available in white. As for the white lettering on green paint, it should show just fine. You might check into buying a printer that prints in white. I can't think of the name of the printer right now.

I’ve used the Woodland Scenics dry transfers on red and green cars and they covered well. The printer you’re thinking about is an “ALPS”.

QUOTE: Robert: I don't have one, yet. I'm a lookin', though.

Just be sure that you check out prospective candidates to see what their opinion is of model railroading. They don’t need to be wildly enthusiastic, but they should be supportive. Any ones that turn up their nose at the hobby can be eliminated from the running before you’ve invested too much time and money. Saying “That’s cute” is marginally acceptable.


Okay, gotta run. Catch up with you guys later.

Ed

[JPowell]

Well Ed, to make a long story short... the CFO always gets mad when I take days off (cause she does not get that much time off...2 weeks, plus she 'buys' an additional 2 weeks for emergencies like the kid getting sick), and I can't stand it! But I look at it from several different viewpoints... She's the one who chose her career path and I'm the one who chose mine is the most obvious of them all.

[Anonymous]

Afternoon y'all

Just had some excitement out here! Saw the county Sheriff go by about 160 m.p.h., so I went to the scanner and listened to them, they had two wrecks working on the Interstate, and they were tryig to cathc someone that was running form the scen fo another accident all at the same time. The dog caught him though, so he wasn't hurt as bad as if the deputy had got him[:D].

Anyway, thanks for the info on the decals, I'll have to check at the hobby shop next time I get to the city.

Tom: We have a Kodak easyshare that I really like. They work easy, and take high quality pics. I use a sony at school in Yearbook Class, but I like the way the Kodak works better.

See y'all
Greg

[Anonymous]

T.W.100: Anytime you have a question, just ask. Some of us will help you with the answers. I miss spoke in my last post. I've used Woodland Scenics dry transfers. Take care when using them, or you may transfer more than you want. They're easy to use. I bought a burnisher that's made for dry transfers. Look at your LHS (local hobby shop) for one. A dull pencil will also work.

[?]Hey, you guy's gave some good links to locos. Do you have some for cars. I want to develop my scheme for cars, too.

Also, just remember. I call myself an expert-beginner. For, I know alot about the hobby, but, the technical sides still gets me confused.[:D]

Here's another picture of my paint scheme.



Robert

[Noah Hofrichter]

Robert, I think if you look on the same page, there are some cars there too. They are in a link right below the engine one.

Well, I'm, up to the usual, so I better get going. I'll see you all later!

Noah

[Anonymous]

Noah, thanks for the info. I did not see the link about cars there.

Robert

[Anonymous]

Hello, everyone. I have a few more pictures I want to post. So, here they are. The first is my updated logo. This is the final product. The second is a boxcar with the logo on it.





The lettering on the boxcar is out of alignment. So, I will adjust it when I ever get around to painting and decaling it. Just thought I'd post it to show everybody how it will look.[8D]

'til another time.

Robert

[JimRCGMO]

QUOTE: Originally posted by pedromorgan

sorry no offence was intended, however apart from portability, can you think of an advantage of using an can of air? and i did say USUALLY the ones tha havnt tried using a compressor. i used a can of air to do a job and found it only gave me enough air to do 2 sides of a carridge.
the point i was trying to get across in my other post was that the purchase of a compressof was a purchase that would not be regretted.

once again i apologise if i caused any offence.

Peter

Well, Peter, the one thing I can think of in terms of advantage might be less noise with a can o'air than with a compressor... But you're right about less capacity at a time. Also, cans o'air (initial cost) run more $$ than a compressor does. So some of us save up by using the cans until we have enough for the compressor and it separate soundproof booth... [;)]

Jim in Cape Girardeau

[JimRCGMO]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Noah Hofrichter

Phil, yep it's digital, forgot to mention that.

Robert, Try here for scale drawings of locomotives, and then you can paint them and add logos in Paint. Really very handy. The link is: http://www.trainiax.0catch.com/mescaleloco.htm

Noah

That is a great resource, Noah! [bow] Someone either has inside connections with the manufacturers, or very good skills of observation.

Jim in Cape Girardeau

[der5997]

Good Evening everyone: Away all day, but I have a VIA Rail baggage car, so that's solved [tup]
Bob and Ed: Thanks for all the paint/foam/ash/glue tips. What I think I'll do is to continue laying in the ash for the between-the-rails ballast for the entire yard; wet mist soak it, and eyedropper on the dilute glue and wait for that to dry. I find that a spray bottle with dilute glue always sends out blobs of glue eventually that, landing like Warthog's rockets, create impressive but undesired craters in the ground foam [V] That's why I mist on LOTS of wet water, and let that water soak in the glue from an eyedropper. Nothing moves. When everything is soaked in glue, the ground cover can be sifted back on to restore a bit of texture. I've already put oil on my turnouts, so they aren't going to get glued shut any time soon, I hope.
When all is dried, I'll vacuum up the entire yard and see what of the outside-the-rails ash stuck to the original paint job. Then, if as I suspect, it's not much that has stuck, I'll use Bob's idea of spreading (probably with a paint brush) dilute-ish glue as if it were paint, and re-sifting on the ash. Once that's dry I can assess the whole thing. Weeds will be "grown" in puddles of dilute-ish glue. I don't want to overdo them, but I know the yard needs some visual relief from the "ashes only" look. Small buildings are going to help in that respect too.
It will be interesting to see how much of this I can get done before we are once more hip deep in grandchildren after Christmas. I'd like to get the rails painted as well and everything cleaned up before they come, so we can run trains in the yard. No pressure here........[(-D]

Thanks too Bob for the ISBN and title. I'll get the local library on a search. Should be interesting. By the time they've got a copy, I should be out from under that pile of work I've just set myself! [:D]

On the covering power of white decals, these are white decal letters and stripes over Tamiya Hull Red, the orange is from a sheet of orange decal colour. As you see, the white covers pretty well. Go for it!

For some reason, this pic won't enlarge for me here. Email me if you want , and I'll see if I can send it to you in a larger format.

Well, bed time again. Thanks for the java and chat.
God Bless.

[egmurphy]

Evening all,

Boy with this chilly weather, a good hot cup of coffee sure goes good while catching up on the day’s posts. Guess the Iced Coffee is out until spring!

QUOTE: Robert: I've used Woodland Scenics dry transfers. Take care when using them, or you may transfer more than you want. They're easy to use. I bought a burnisher that's made for dry transfers. Look at your LHS (local hobby shop) for one. A dull pencil will also work.

Yeah, one of the things you have to watch out for is pressing on other letters while you’re trying to transfer one. It may be easier in HO. I’m using an old golf tee as a burnishing tool, but then again I don’t know what I’m doing.

The logo looks good, Robert. Nice having your own paint scheme and logo for your locos and cars.


I see that Warthogdrvr got his question regarding the blue strobe lights in the Roanoke yard answered out on the Trains forum. Blue warning lights for protecting engines or cars being worked on. Now that it got answered, I can recall seeing these lights placed on the tracks in a refinery where they were loading tank cars.


I’ve got two airbrush starter kits, each with a can of air. I’m still intending to try them one day. One was purchased a long time ago and was hidden when I purchased the second one at a show about a year and a half ago.

Even though I’m not in the market for a compressor at this time, I do look from time to time when I’m at a Home Depot. I think they’re like electronics. I see smaller and cheaper ones coming out over time. By the time I get up the nerve to try the airbru***he compressors will probably be within my budget and storage space limits.


Sounds like a plan, John. I’ll second the eyedropper for placing glue/water. Of course it’s easy for me to say as I only have a small area to cover. For those with a larger area to glue down, something along the same lines but with more capacity might be an ear wash syringe or a turkey baster (not the wife’s).


When photos won’t enlarge, it’s usually because that’s the size you actually uploaded to railimages. If you upload a bigger one, the forum software automatically resizes it down to show here on the forum (I think), while providing the option to click and enlarge.


Some of you have said it before, but the Coffee Shop is a nice, easy going place to hang out and chat. Just like Elliot envisioned it when he started it, I guess. That disagreement about compressors was as close as we’ve come to having words that I can remember, yet the people involved defused it rapidly. Seeing how things deteriorate on some of the other forums, I can’t tell you how happy I am that we’re maintaining the level of friendly conversation that we have here. Thanks guys.

Hasta mañana

Ed

[JimRCGMO]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Warthogdrvr

Hey folks -

...<snip>...
JimRCGMO - I try not to scare railfans - engineers are another story! Always wonder what they're thinking when we practice head-on guns passes against a string of Norfolk Southern diesels. I'm with you on obnoxious cell phone users, too - one guy received a call during one of our mass briefings and attempted to take it! We threw him out of the briefing and locked the door behind him, then he had to pay a fine before being allowed back into the squadron bar to drink.

...<snip>...

Chris

Sounds like a pretty good punishment to fit the crime (IMHO)...[:)] [oops][;)]

Jim in Cape Girardeau

[JimRCGMO]

QUOTE: Originally posted by der5997



Bob:

QUOTE: You need to think about a book like Lou Sassi wrote about building a layout.

Not familiar with that, what's it called? It would be interesting to watch our local library try to find it [:D]
Actually if anyone has the ISBN # for it, I'll get them to give it a go. Next year I'll qualify for the "The're too old to remember to return it" Senior's amnesty on book returns that our library runs, so I'd have time to read it. Takes me for ever to read a book, but Kris is a one a day reader. [:D]
If I find a spare lifetime laying around, I'll think about writing one [(-D]

TTFN

"A Realistic HO Layout For Beginners" - Lou Sassi, ISBN #0-89024-214-3 $17.95 (when I got my copy a couple of weeks ago)

Actually, John, I'd second the others' comments, based on your pics of your work. You do pretty good work, I'd say (and I have a fair amount of the perfectionist in me at times).

Sassi's strengths are scenery and also that his layout work is overall very good quality - some people are good in one area, but not as good in others. Sassi's more evenly great quality, including doing enough research on the possible prototype RR to make the layout look and operate like - as the title says - a realistic railroad.

Jim in Cape Girardeau

[JimRCGMO]

QUOTE: Originally posted by egmurphy

Good Morning Coffee Clubbers,

...<snip>...

QUOTE: Robert: I don't have one, yet. I'm a lookin', though.

Just be sure that you check out prospective candidates to see what their opinion is of model railroading. They don’t need to be wildly enthusiastic, but they should be supportive. Any ones that turn up their nose at the hobby can be eliminated from the running before you’ve invested too much time and money. Saying “That’s cute” is marginally acceptable.

Okay, gotta run. Catch up with you guys later.

Ed

Or for the real test, see if she'll go to your LHS with you...[(-D] If she doesn't get totally antsy inside of 30 minutes to 1 hour, she's a possible keeper.

But if her eyes glaze over when you start talking about scenery techniques, watch out... [;)]

Jim in Cape Girardeau

[JimRCGMO]

QUOTE: Originally posted by RDLkrbyvllRR


Here's another picture of my paint scheme.



Robert

Robert, I liked your earlier one with the stripe all the way across the body (and the larger type size). You might try some serif typefaces (with those 'feet' on them, kind of like Times New Roman, etc.) if you want a more classic look, or a blockier, italic typeface if you want a more modern look. Just my [2c]. My only qualifications are some commercial art classes and a fair amount of informal study of type styles... Your taste may or may not match that, however. [:)]

Jim in Cape Girardeau