Elliott's Trackside Diner XXIII: Moving on...

[TMarsh]

Good evening. Beautiful day today though I didn't get a chance to be out in it much.

Speaking of beautiful, there are a couple of layout shots here that fit the bill.

I see Jeff had a wild ride into the shop. Luckily the ride home was better and much safer.

Sam seems to be a bit confused. Must still be suffering from the newlyweditus. I don't know what he's talking about. Cata- what?

Tom- Sorry your new pride and joy is a painters nightmare, but you don't seem too torn up about it. It'll give you something to tinker with. 

Chris- The FrankenTrak in question is a F40PH painted in Phase 3 scheme and the cars are in phase 1. At first this didn't bother me but the more I hang out at the Rivet Counter the more it does. Even though I freelance, I find myself anymore at least needing to reason the oddities on the railroad out. That one I have trouble with as the paint scheme is too far apart for the locos. AAnd the loco is too old for the time frame, which is approximately nowish. I do like the F40's so I'm now contemplating...... I don't know. My railroad has this train which in turn would require a repaint? Possibly, probably, oh who knows.

Welp, I see where Ray says it's 12:30 so that means it's way past my bedtime and I listen to him even though he's just a musician so, Prayers for those in need. 

   

[grayfox1119]

 Good evening gents, just as Ray said, today was the first day that it got above 32F up here north of 72 north latitude. The sun even made an appearance this afternoon!! Both the wife and I have a terrible cold, all sinus at this time, hopefully no coughing type later. Ginger brandy and steaming hot showers to kick the immune system into high gear seems to be working for me. ( the wife doesn't like brandy, tsk, tsk, her cold is worse )

The house is finally all back to normal after the holidays, the village display tables are all down, so know it is finally time to get back to the layout for some serious work. 

RAY: I like that bridge. Is it a hybrid or an actual place on the map.?

Time to hit the sack,

 

WA1VEI  "73"

[blownout cylinder]

TMarsh

Chris- The FrankenTrak in question is a F40PH painted in Phase 3 scheme and the cars are in phase 1. At first this didn't bother me but the more I hang out at the Rivet Counter the more it does. Even though I freelance, I find myself anymore at least needing to reason the oddities on the railroad out. That one I have trouble with as the paint scheme is too far apart for the locos. AAnd the loco is too old for the time frame, which is approximately nowish. I do like the F40's so I'm now contemplating...

Todd:  Might I suggest something here. The F40PH could be left in Phase3 and you still can use the cars in phase1--as you slowly gain the phase2/3 lines. I have seen in some old RR fan mags from the 90's and early 2000 area that there were some Amtrak passenger trains that were mixed like that. If someone asks why you have it in that form you could conceivably argue that like the prototype you can only do so much in a given time frame----

Welp, this little puppy be gettin' kinda tired so's I'se befigures that this here little one be goin' off to

Have a good night y'all-----

[AmanaMedic]

Hey TODD: I got an ideer for ya Buddy... The Iowa Northern runs a seasonal football fan special called The Hawkeye Express. They took a F40PH, painted it in a red and silver Rock Island scheme. They took bi-level passenger cars and gave them a black/yellow Iowa Hawkeyes paint scheme. What I'm getting at...is you "could" always invent a little paint scheme for the Amwreck... OR, borrow from JEFF's bag 'o tricks and patch 'em for your little RR. Patchin' 'em would make it easy to justify the differing "phases" 'o paint scheme...at least in my mind. Throw (OK, spray) some fade/weathering on the older phased stuff... SHAZAM! Compatibility problem...gone.

Just another half-a-cent's worth of opinion, offered completely free of any charge or obligation.

TMarsh

Speaking of beautiful, there are a couple of layout shots here that fit the bill.

Very much agreed, and in THAT, I AM unanimous.

Chris

[Anonymous]

 Good Morning,

I have safely arrived at my father´s place and will now take him to my mother. Driving was pretty bad, the Autobahn north of Hamburg was not cleared at all. The communities were counting on a warmer winter, and now salt is in short supply, as well as the money to buy it.

Flo, I´ll have some

Thuddd, Ssshhpluurtz 

Flo, what is this, I did not order it! Make it a coffee for me, please, and would you be so kind to wipe that gooey stuff off the counter?

Paul has come up with a just fantastic interpretation of MR´s Salt Lake route. I hope you don´t mind me publishing it here, Paul!

 

Needs a lot of fiddlin´t & tweakin´ to adapt it to the space I have available, but I think it is just GREAT! I just can see a long sulfur unit train snaking along the track, pulled by a consist of Kato´s SD70´s.

Have a good day.

PS We have just received a call from the hospital - my mother will be transfered to a hospital which is closer by my father´s place, maybe we can take her there. 

[LSWrr]

Good morning all,

  Garry, any pictures to share?  My free lance railroad’s colors are yellow and black.  That yard you mentioned is that the one across I-75 from the original Willies jeep plant? Actually I thought DT&I owned that yard in the 70’s but I might be wrong.  I’m originally from Toledo and grew up along the DT&I tracks that served a large scrap yard and ART IRON then onto the Anderson’s.  Actually the big money maker in Toledo was the Toledo Terminal Railroad, their motto should have been: “the most expensive 65 miles of track in the world”.  In the 1800’s they built a ring of track around Toledo.  If you wanted to go to the passenger station, docks, grain elevators, or almost any company in Toledo you had to get authorization to cross or right of way on their rails.

I got two packages in the mail last night: the SPROGII arrived and 2 cases of cork road bed.  I’ll be setting up a programming track in my computer room and a full report will be forthcoming Saturday.  The cork was a great price from Standard Hobby Supply, 50 cents/3’ section cheaper than Walther’s or the LHS.

[GMTRacing]

Good Morning All,

   24 on the way to 43F today. I'll have a regular in a to go mug again this morning. Next Tuesday we start the model railroad afterschool program for the elementary school which is just up the road from the shop. This is our 4th year with it though we have virtually no repeat customers as the school is k-4 and the program is for 4th graders (and some recommended 3rd graders). Last years group were a dickens until we got them fully engaged so I'm looking forward to see what we'll get this year. Brought the rolling stock for the program layout to the shop to go through and I'll stop by the LHS to get some track cleaning supplies to keep with the program stuff. The actual 4 x 6 layout table stays at the school and even though it's carefully stored the track still gets dirty.

   well it's starting in the shop already - gotta run. CUL, J.R.

[Blazzin]

Keith: loving the pics...  Wondering about your "Storage Tracks", are you going to have a specific track for each car?  I thought that if you used a magnetic dry erase board, you could have each "Liner" on its own little magnet, and thus know where all your stored Liners are at a glance. 

   Well Sam I wish I knew,  I really do.    Lets turn the 'Way Back Machine' to .. well almost 2 years ago.. this 'Father's Day' coming up.. lol.  Lets not~  Sam this is a 'Waay over the limb' layout.  This is what you don't want to do.  My layout is what you call 'Backward Engineering' .. lol.  I built the layout first.. now I'm planning.  I know I know~  yeah.. but here I am anyways.  So I'll describe to you my layout.  And then go from there. 

  This proposed layout.. is four levels.  Each level going back in time.   The bottom one you are looking at .. is supposed to be the newest.. around 1955-1985.  And the highest level .. very old.. maybe 1880-1900's.  And the two levels in between fit in between those two extremes.  Now the dates are probably off,  but close enough.  Each space/staging area will be getting smaller and smaller with less space to work with.  Yes, somewhat of a challenge .. as we've all agreed. 

  Now as far as your question .. "...are you going to have a specific track for each car? "  I dunno~  I guess it could get rather 'busy'. There are five storage lines going back in there,  each one will hold five liners.  I've sort of disguised the five tracks running 3 of them through the 'engine repair shop'.  If I had more room,  I'd be having more spurs running off those,  but I felt I should leave some room for buildings.  As far as certain lines,  I haven't crossed that bridge..or track should I say.  But if I were to tie all this in together,  I like many different types of engines, liners and so on.  Even my wife,  Jeanne is involved in this and has her own lines.  Jeanne has the Union Pacific Lines(shark nose),  I particularly like the B&O colors.  But we have collected our own lines.. of many colors and dates.. and not to be limited to just having one.  Or one particular 'time period' but having some of the nicer ones we like and started collecting almost 2 years ago. Well, the only solution was to do a layout with four different time periods, with this bottom level being a very busy passenger liner station.  But ask yourself, what nice colors of liners do you like? What would you collect?  There are some nice ones out there~   Ok  Sam,  as you can see .. I do too much talking..lol.  And probably haven't answered your question.  But nice to see you at the Diner Sam.  Take care .. Keith.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

 Good morning. It's 49 and cloudy. It will remain cloudy as the high as the high struggles to reach 55 later today. The chance of rain is 30% this morning increasing to 60% by evening.

Have to go to the pharmacy today to pick up more antibiotics. No surprise there. I'll be starting on a new project today. A Con-Cor flatcar that I received in the mail. It's missing some pieces, most notably the pins that hold the trucks on. The holes the pins fit in will be filled with glue which when dry will be drilled and a screw threaded into each hole.

[Blazzin]

ns3010

Keith, that's looking good! And sorry I forgot, but what scale is that?

  Joe, this is N scale.  My particulars in model railroading,  N Scale happens to be the size I want and need.  I've always liked the idea of continuous running.  With N scale I believe my needs will be met.  If I have my way,  this will run and run and run.  Starting out on main #1.. if it completes its first loop (from lowest level to 2nd level),  if nothing is done.. it goes back down ... it can jump onto main #2 repeating the same loop but different track.  And with any luck have some sort of 'jump' that goes onto the 3rd and 4th level (single track).  And if all goes well.. once again.. some how some way.. it ALL leads back to main #1 at the very bottom.. starting the continous loop all over again.  Yeah I know.. wish me luck. .. lol.

  Joe, btw .. every now and then.. I watch your video's .. I Love em.    Keith

[Robby P.]

 Good morning.  Its 42 degrees, and it feels much warmer. 

 Thanks for the comments on my layout.  Hopefully I can work on it some today.  

 Other than that, not much planned. 

 Hope everybody has a good morning.

[Blazzin]

  Der John,  Nice work.  Wow, I am impressed.

  JR... " cork sheet would do for the terminal area and you could cut between sections to give some depth to the ballast when you get to it (you did remember ballast for the track, right?)."  Absolutely~!  In all parts.  I especially the idea of cutting out sections for depth.  I believe Jim had also mentioned the cork.. he also mentioned or should I say.. used the initials of H L in which I have no idea what that is.  If he meant Lowes I wish he would have said so.  JIM?  I did check at Ace Hardware and Home Depot.  No luck.  I found some on ebay, fairly cheap.. but the shipping is a bit much.  Over all,  under $30 dolllars for a piece of 2'x3' by 1/8 thickness.  I'm checking on about 3 rolls right now... seeing if there is a discount on combined shipping.  But thats it for the cork as far as finding a store that sells it locally.  Another 'slowdown' on the layout building.  But I thank you JR,  and others for the input and the encouragement.. until the kind words.. I was feeling a bit down,  I really needed it.~   Keith

[Heartland Division CB&Q]

Hello ...

Who would like an apple turnover from the Paducah bakery? Shelley purchased a supply of them there yesterday.  These are outstanding apple trunovers and they are huge.

Robby ... I, too, liked the layout pix.

Ulrich .... Your track plan looks great! Have fun building the layout.If you're interested, my Ulrich trailer that I painted for GN piggyback will be in WPF.

Keith ... I like the CNW colors, too. CNW's passenger trains were called the 400's. In the 1960's, CNW sold some surplus coaches to GN and to CB&Q. GN painted theirs in their orange/dark green scheme. Burlington painted its ex-CNW cars silver.

Lee ... The D&TSL yard was named "Lang Yard". You can see it today from I-75 at the OH/MI border. Now it tylically has unit coal trains holding there. If you are driving on I-75 into MI, you will see it on the west side parallel with the highway. It will be the final mile or two of I-75 in OH. The north end of the yard begins at the state line. The D&TSL was a busy little RR in its day. It typically hauled over 100,000 carloads annually. Most of that was CN/GTW traffic. 

Jeff ... that's a nice pix of the boxcars.

My first FT AB set is complete and ready for WPF.

[TMarsh]

Good Morning. Coffee and one of those Turnovers please. Thank you. And Thanks Garry. 

I say........ Ohhhhhh what, by tomorrow at....ummmm....5. NO! 3. Pm that is. THAT'S how long I give the ole "what's a scratch builder" thread to last. Got my  in early.

I hope to get to the train room today. Wouldn't that be great? We'll see how the day plays out.

Barry- Yeah that was my original plan. Actually my original plan was not to worry at all because 98% of the people viewing my layout are of my age group and so well remember the red, white and blue stripes of Amtrak they probably wouldn't notice that they are wrong for the time or possibly notice they aren't used at all anymore. Time though, that is the biggest problem I have. ( see what sitting at the RC has done) Originally I was going to have a time frame of the mid to late ‘70's and that could be pushed to the early ‘80's and therefore the loco could be used and the paint scheme could be stretched. Numbers on the locos or cars in relation to what the prototypes are or were and the smaller details that set it apart from early or late production did not, does not and probably will not ever matter to me so that's not an issues either. But now that I've moved to the current time, the old 40's don't fit unless I want them to be a baggage car. NOPE! They must me a loco prime mover. Oh and that puts the phase 3 paint scheme a stretch,(though I wouldn't swear off seeing one yet) but the phase 1 should be right out gone. So, I'm leaning towards my railroad having a passenger service. An idea very similar in execution like what Chris said. Having bought an old Amtrak loco and some cars and they will get painted to be the railroad colors that have yet to be determined. They are working on that, the colors, in the town with no name. You know the town that has the industry that no one knows what it does? In the section that's being redone without an idea yet as to what I'm going to do? Sure you do.

I love it when things start to come together. 

Have a Great Day!!!

[howmus]

Mornin' everyone!

Chloe how about.... hmm,  maybe some......  OH!  Are those apple turnovers on the counter over there.  Oooo look good.  I'll have one and my usual cup of dark roast in a FGLK Mug if you please.  Thanks Todd!

Remembered last night I may be responsible for the Moment for Mission at Church again this week.  Sent an email to the lady who asked my for last week.  I'm really hoping that someone else has it covered.  This will be a very, very busy weekend, and I would just as soon someone else did it.  Have to do some shopping and a bank run for the MLK Committee today, but the rest of the day should be mine (unless I have write another Moment for Mission........)

Dick, The "Bridge to Nowhere...." is totally freelanced.  It goes well with my "Figment" style RR.  The logging RR was put together originally 25 or so years ago.  Much of the scenery has to be redone, but I decided to leave it.  In my original idea way back then the track was supposed to go where I ended up putting a farm because I couldn't reasonably use a steep enough grade to get a bridge up to the level (next to the tunnel portal).  Every time modelers come to the layout they wonder about the little short stub of a lead left up on a narrow hill.  This is an attempt to show the rail line continuing to somewhere else over a light bridge so typical of the stuff used on logging RRs.

Weather people are saying the high will get almost to 40 today here in the Finger Lakes.....  "We're Havin' a Heat Wave........, Tropical Heat Wave........."

Prayers for all those affected by the earthquake in Haiti and for all in need!

Later!

73

[blownout cylinder]

Good Pre Noon hour

See how picky this is getting?

I just spent a good part of my morning both on the phone and on the 'pooter for work----now I'm off for a bit.

Ray: That bridge actually looks right for that area  

Todd: It will come together for sure. I was thinking that the period does allow for things like the intermixing because it apparently is still something that I come across even up here. Amtrak trains that I've seen up here---and I always forget the dang camera--have been sorta mixed in terms of paint schemes at times. Even odder yet---Amtrak train with a Go superliner?

Chloe, I'll have a Ceaser Salad and a Beef on Rye sandwich as well as a coffee please------I'll be at the RC for a bit----

[Heartland Division CB&Q]

Ray .. I meant to say I like your work so far on the bridge when I wote earlier.

Here is a "Padacah Built" Apple Turnover. They are huge and have a cinnamon topping.

[Anonymous]

 Well, it´s me again!

we were able to bring my mother to the new hospital, so it was not necessary for her to be taken by an ambulance to that place. When she collapsed, she was taken by heli to Kiel, which is over an hours drive away from my parent´s place. Now she is in Rendsburg, which is just 15 - 20 minutes away. A neighbor will take my father to see her every day, so that will help him to build up confidence again. My mother is doing actually quite well, she wanted to go home instead of the hospital - oh, mothers!

Starting tomorrow, my father will get a cooked meal served, there will be someone looking for him and doing some household chores. I took me quite sometime to arrange for all of this. I wish I could stay on, but my leave from the GULAG is only limited to today. On Monday I have to report back, although it is just a waste of time. and .

I did a short calculation on what the track for that Salt Lake layout would cost - another dream down the drain . At the rate I can save up the money, it would cost me 8 years just to buy the track - no loco, no rolling stock - 

When will I learn to accept my current life and boil things down to what is realistic - when will I stop dreaming?  .

Actually I feel a bit ashamed , fussing about my MRR woes at a time, when the people in Haiti are fighting for bare survival. I have donated a little to the German Red Cross, as we will have a little surplus this month.

Chloe, it is about time for supper - how about a bowl of that spicy chili and a Coors to wash it down?

Garry - I´ll take one of that - I just love cinnamon!

Blessings and prayers to all in need!

 

[TMarsh]

Barry- Yup, it'll all work out. And you are right. Not often mind you, but ever so often I see stuff on the RR that shouldn't be. Like is said, to and extent, there is a prototype for most everything.

Ulrich- In your financial situation and all the worries (that WILL work themselves out, by the way) you have, you still found it in your heart and pocket book to help those in Haiti? You, my friend, are amazing

[Anonymous]

 Not much, Todd, only 10 Euros , but we cannot spare more at the moment.

[LSWrr]

Ulrich, what is the supply list for the layout you have planned (track and turnouts)?  That was a N-Scale plan right?  I tell you what $5 in Haiti is a month’s pay check for some of those people.  I’ve been there twice in the past and it was a deplorable and depressing place, I felt sorry for the people that lived there then, I’m truly sorry about their current plight. If it’s possible to have less than nothing that’s what they have now.

[Trainman Sam]

TMarsh

Chris- The FrankenTrak in question is a F40PH painted in Phase 3 scheme and the cars are in phase 1. At first this didn't bother me but the more I hang out at the Rivet Counter the more it does. Even though I freelance, I find myself anymore at least needing to reason the oddities on the railroad out. That one I have trouble with as the paint scheme is too far apart for the locos. AAnd the loco is too old for the time frame, which is approximately nowish. I do like the F40's so I'm now contemplating...... I don't know. My railroad has this train which in turn would require a repaint? Possibly, probably, oh who knows.

Hey Todd, Amtrak has been known to borrow NJT stuff when they get themselves into an equipment jam!  Can you imagine what people are thinking (not to mention the looks on their faces) when they are standing on the platform in DC or parts south (has happened) and here comes an NJT train to pick them up???(I wish someone had taken pictures!)  NJ Transit is STILL running their F40PH-2's... everyday on the Hoboken Division...  Also, we have equipment that hasn't gotten the "new" paint scheme yet... (what I mean is that we now have three different paint schemes going on at the same time... (i.e.: Comet III's have the narrow black band going down the sides of the cars; Comet IV's have the bigger black band going down the sides; Comet V's have the "Raindbow/Fade design"; and the Multi-Levels have a similar rainbow/fade.  The locomotives we have have THREE different paint jobs...  Here's the F40PH-2 in action:

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=294841&nseq=56

And here is a GP40-2 still in everyday service, not to mention the mixed paint schemes in consist!!!!
http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=302544&nseq=33

I even found this one from 1983...  Look at the engines!!!  talk about different paint schemes!!! (Sorry I get excited sometimes!)

http://www.railpictures.net/viewphoto.php?id=294826&nseq=57

I even recently saw that Amtrak has used mixed consists... one REALLY raggedy baggage car was on a New Orleans train leaving New York...

Hope this helped???!!!

Talk to you guys later...

BTW...  I am not the only one to blame for PIE SLINGIN' aroung here!!! 

 

[ns3010]

Evening all. Janie, I'll take a RBF and a bacon cheeseburger, thanks.

TGIF!!!!!!!!

I'll be over at the RC catching up for a bit.

[ns3010]

Chris: Now that the paint is dry, it seems to be holding the car together well enough, as well as disguise the damage. But if it breaks again, I'll be sure THAT I use glue to fix it.

Ulrich: That sounds like a GREAT idea for a layout. I absolutely LOVED that article!

Keith: I've found N to be WAY too small, but hey, whatever floats your boat! And I think I get what you're getting at. Good luck with planning a layout with that. Maybe at the ends you could have turnaround loops, and the entire layout be double tracked. Or, you could always go with at million percent grade between the first and fourth levels...
And thanks for the complements! I haven't taken any videos in a while, but I might just do something with the layout. I'd like to go out to Mount Arlington one day after school to catch 877 again, but that's gonna be hard with exams coming up. Maybe the week after exams (the week after next, next week is exams).

Garry: Mmmm... I'll take one of those, please! Or maybe three...

Sam: I know that that Amtrak has leased MLs for Thanksgiving and National Train Day. And the last Clockers were powered by ALP-46s.
I don't know why with the Comet IVs (and later the CIIMs) they switched to the wide window band. I don't mind, especially if they keep narrows and wides together (as in trains of only narrows, and trains of only wides). They look kinda wierd mixed. Then again, mixing is really hard now that most of the CIII cabs are in storage.
The 4205 and 4213 look really good in the  new "faded disco." That would also look really good on the F40s as well.
As you probably know, the F40s also often end up on the Coast Line. They'll probably be around for a while, since they were only rebuilt about 10 years ago... (IDK why Metro-North is rebuilding their -2CATs, as well as the four [4115, 4116, 4123, and 4125] that they recently bought from NJT. BTW, there's photos of the former 4192 and 4123 on their way to be rebuilt as 4908 and 4913. I'll post links once I find them...)
And back in the 80s, there was a huge mix (from photos, I never actually saw this since I was only born in 1994...) of paint, since everything was in NJDOT, NJT White (some E8s), and NJT Silver (again, some other E8s).
If you don't already have it there's a book on NJT, although I forget what it's called. I'll check later. It's from 1996, so nothing new (for example, it still shows the F40s pre-rebuild, as well as E60s, pre-rebuild CIIs, and nothing after 1996), but it's still pretty interesting.

Well, I guess I should shut up so everyone else can talk for a bit...

[Packer]

Evening ya'll, meat lover's pizza for me

I took a look at the injectors on my car. The O-rings are messed up so that explains the leaking and truck-like gas mileage. I'll get new ones tommorow and put them on. While I'm out and about, I'll get some bondo activator, fine sandpaper for the orbital, a few cans of primer, a few cans of trim black, and some steel angle iron so I can finish up the hood that will have the cougar eliminator scoop. I'm gonna paint the hood myself (I have an airgun with the right red for my car) and try running a flat black stripe from the scoop down the rest of the hood, like some of the boss mustangs.

Sam, think you could get one of the pigs whenever they are retired? Well, than and a MARC widecab GP40. The cowls on the pigs came off of BN F45, and that's also where the noses of the MARC widecab GP40s come from.

[jeffrey-wimberly]

Got the Con-Cor flatcar together. I filled the truck mounting holes with super glue and let it dry then put in two Bachmann truck mounting screws to initially tap the holes then removed them. I then installed Kadee #5 couplers using the push in coupler covers that came with the car. I then installed the trucks and secured them with the Bachmann screws.

[blownout cylinder]

Trainman Sam

I even recently saw that Amtrak has used mixed consists... one REALLY raggedy baggage car was on a New Orleans train leaving New York...

So that might expplain why I sometimes come across different cars on Amtrak then....

Trainman Sam

BTW...  I am not the only one to blame for PIE SLINGIN' aroung here!!! 

Oh sure----now you say this---AFTER walking around with pie catapault remotes in thine pockets----

[TMarsh]

Trainroom has been a dream so far today but today ain't over yet. (as I pass by and quite deftly swipe a piece of meatlovers pizza totally un noticed.)

Well, gee, thanks guys for the support on the FrankenTrak. I didn't expect that. You are however correct on the railroad's " let's use it and worry about what it's painted like later" attitude that so many don't want to acknowledge. But, I think  will paint it like a passenger train for my railroad. Eventually, thanks to your responses.

For those of you who have arrived in the diner after I have determined what my latest railroad is, or for those who forgot or even tried to put it out of their minds because, well just because, I shall restate my latest plan. My railroad has morfed into an idea that the Texas and Pacific had not been purchased by the UP, well, actually the MoPac didn't include the T&P in the deal is more like it, and is still a viable railroad today. Small but still functioning. Also that cattle are still bing hauled by rail, at least in some areas, and this railroad does. And now, that passenger service has not altogether been placed in the hands of AmTrak but some railways still have service in parts of the country and this happens to be one of them. I've also got steam included in the form of a tourist train from a tourist trap town so I can involve my little 4-4-0 and there are plans eventually, for a larger steam train from who knows where to pass trough occasionally. I have a static display and because the railroad is small and has purchased most locos second hand, that allows for an odd mixture of locos that I like, regardless of year as long as they aren't too far out. Talk about freelancing, I think I've pushed the envelope. But life is good in the make believe. Now if I could just get my wife to change her mind and give the OK for the nudist colony (sometimes even the king has to get approval from the queen)

[ns3010]

Packer

Sam, think you could get one of the pigs whenever they are retired? Well, than and a MARC widecab GP40. The cowls on the pigs came off of BN F45, and that's also where the noses of the MARC widecab GP40s come from.

Sure we can. We'll buy both, put it back together, and paint it back in BN!

Actually, I just saw the 4138 the other day at Mount Arlington, Tuesday, I think?

I caught the 4139 from back in November. It's been on the Aqua Track for the past two years because the HEP is shot and the MMC won't fix it. Here it is on the Wall Track in Summit, on the rear of the Aqua Track (bad shot because I used my phone, and there was a set of Arrows blocking my view, so this was all I could get while we pulled out...):

[twhite]

Evening all from JustAboutToGetWhackedCalifornia: 

Just got news that the 'storm door' is open again, and we're about to get a whole series of soaker/snow makers starting Sunday and lasting through most of next week.  A combo Pineapple Express and Alaskan Nasty that are predicted to meet right off the coast and move in with a vengeance.  Snow levels about 3500', lots of rain for us here in the valley.  Anywhere from 4-6" of rain down here in the Valley and 4-10 feet of good old Sierra Cement in the mountains.  The skiiers will be out in droves.  So will the avalanches.

AND the UP rotaries, now that they're throwing more trains over Donner Summit.  Should be exciting around here, next week. 

That's about the big news on the Home Front out here.  It was sunny here today, so I got brave and took the boiler of my 'new' brass overpainted loco out and tried some stripper on it.  Just did the cab roof.  Stripper just sat there.  Didn't even bubble.  I let it 'cure' for about thirty minutes, went back out.  A couple of little bubbles in the paint.  I have NO idea what the previous owner painted it with, but this is going to take a long, LONG time to get down to the brass on this cute little lokie.  And to top it off, Onequicknova, on another thread said that he had a loco in similar condition, and the stripper started eating into the solder and he ended up with a brass 'kit'.  I did get some of the paint off of the roof, but there's quite a bit left.  This is going to be a MAJOR PROJECT!   And I've got to be careful--I don't want to have to end up re-building the darned thing.  Soldering is NOT one of my favorite projects!   

Seriously, I've never run into this before, stripping a badly painted loco (even some that I initially blew it on when I painted them).   I may have to search around the area and find a professional loco refinisher, if this doesn't work.   Actually, maybe it serves me right--for about $50 more, I could have bought the same loco in raw brass from the same company.  Oh well---

But ugly or not, the little lady DOES run very sweet. 

Garry:  Wow!  How come apple turnovers in Kentucky look so much better than the flat, unappetizing things we have out here in California (unless you can find a good, old-fashioned German bakery)?  Now, THAT, I could take a bite out of and be extremely happy for about a day or two.   Of course, the big thing out here in California is making things out of tortillas and using a lot of Cilantro, not matter WHAT the result is.  Yuk!   

Best to all, prayers to those in need

Tom