Coffee refill, please.
***Tom, I'd ask you for a complete loco roster, but it might bring down the Trains website. Sorry about your yard track issues.
Healing thoughts to those in need.
Rob
Evening Fellow Dinners!
Flo, get the bathtub out and a please!
On line I checked the temperature and it says it is 99 degrees, while I was at the repair shop the bank sign said it was 107 degrees! Steve shot the parking lot with a thermal gun and parking lot was 159 degrees! Not the time to go bare foot.
Home A/C Well the 8000 BTU window unit has helped a lot! On a day like today house would stay around 80 degrees. When I got home the house was at 74 degrees I can live with that. Still hope to get the 10,000 BTU, I still have 3 weeks to do the exchange. Central Air unit does shut down in the morning so maybe it will help with the electric bill.
Car A/C unit. Got the blower motor replaced thank goodness! It still needs to be charged to work better. I kept thinking I had a car of R-12 and I looked today. Yep, found a 12 oz can I have had for years now! Bob (repair shop) has all the need fittings but the tool that punches the hole in the can's leaks. I order one and it will be in Friday and cost me $17.00. I will give Bob the tool for free and he will charge the system for free in exchange. Found out you can still buy R-12 if you are licensed and Bob is. While $50.00 a can is expensive still cheaper than changing the system over for $300.00. I think the one can of R-12 will help a lot, Town Car systems still blow cool if on high so with the other can I think we will be fine.
Wife sure is not a country girl! On the way home I stopped a farmers stand and bought some fresh corn still in the husk. Bought 12 ears (why do they call them ears and way) for $4.50. Sue pulled a ear out of the bag and looked at it then asked "What is this"? Told her a ear of corn. She then asked "are you sure"?
Rob While the mood does not happen as often as it used to, I had a blast with cranking the system up. If I knew your where going to E-Mail your brother about my system I would have included the other components. I run a NHT SA-1 sub woofer. It has it's own 120 watt amp that sits next me with a adjustable volume and cross over. Speaker it self is 10 inches for a tight bass. While I am not a bass fan (no thumping for me) it did add a lot to the sound stage. I am all about sound stage.
What shocked me the most was when I up grade to Silver Jumper Wires with Gold RCA jacks! I use to use a Harmon Karmen EQ and color the music. After I went with the new jumpers, I run the preamp flat and pulled the EQ. It is sitting in the storage room.
My tuner is a Adcom GFT-1A and CD player is a Adcom GCD-575. My tape deck is a Yamaha K-700. I was going to go Reel To Reel before I bought the K-700 tape deck. After hearing it there was no longer a reason to buy a RTR besides they look cool.
My second speakers that are in the house are Keff 7.5. Good speakers but not as good as the DQ 10's.
Well, I have to BBQ tonight. All the meat I bought was for the grill.
See you later.
Ken
I hate Rust
oiiii, well today was one of those long annoying days that jsut doesn't want o end. but it finally did :D
anyways, on my model rr front, I started the scratch highway bridge. It's being imagineered; no real prototype
Sawyer Berry
Clemson University c/o 2018
Building a protolanced industrial park layout
Found that article on that turntable. It,s the September 2010 issue.It,s by John Pryke for his Hyannis engine terminal on the New Haven RR.
L&N.....Gone but not forgotten
Oh man! Am I tired. After all I did today i could use a break. Not to be it seems. The Air Helper Spring Kit for the Marquis came in today. That means my father and I have to drop the car and the kit at the garage tomorrow morning. Oh joy.
Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running BearSpace Mouse for president!15 year veteran fire fighterCollector of Apple //e'sRunning Bear EnterprisesHistory Channel Club life member.beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam
Evenin'
Flo just a tall glass of regular iced tea.
I'm just waiting for some paint to dry so I can paint the other side of the boards......... Hmmmm, twiddle, twiddle, twiddle.
BTW, Todd, I was going to say how sorry I am about your MIL. Hope they are able to do surgery and remove the tumor! You and the rest of the family are in my prayers!
100°F in the shade and 4,600 people in Rochester, NY were without electricity most of the afternoon... They hit an all time high for electric use around 2:30 today and started popping some breakers I guess.
Hmmmmm, twiddle, twiddle, twiddle.... Guess I'll go back into the oven (much cooler now. Only 93°F at 8PM!) and try more painting. Without standing in direct sun, i can now manage to be outside for about 10 minutes before heading in for the air conditioning....
Later!
73
Ray Seneca Lake, Ontario, and Western R.R. (S.L.O.&W.) in HO
We'll get there sooner or later!
Evening All,
Not much happening here. Got a lot done on the layout today. I plastered the tunnel today (what a mess that was), did my roads and laid a bunch more ground cover on the meat packing siding. I was trying to figure out how to elevate my roads at RR crossings and my solution was to use the ends of WS inclines (already had them) and glued cut to fit pieces of plastic "for sale" signs on top leaving enough length for a smooth transition on both sides and then painted them with WS asphalt covering. I still need to add the wood in between the rails.
It is amazing in the middle of July that most of the country is hotter than FL.
Stan- That is a amazing turntable and feeder tracks that you have.
Tom- I was like you today at the LHS. It takes 30 minutes each way and 7 minutes in the store. Have you looked at homaboard? Here is a website you might be interested in www.homabed.com.
Garry- I thought originally you meant that you did not like the scarecrow, but then I realized you meant it was a failure because crows were on it .
Ray/Joe- Thanks for the input today. Although I had previously tested it with a heavyweight coach, based on your suggestions I retested it and although it would work it was very snug, so I moved what supports I could to give me a little extra room. Flo please give the these gentlemen a on me.
YGW- I have had 2 shipmates in the Navy killed by driving drunk. What a waste.
Todd- Prayers for your MIL and your family.
Ken- I laughed when I read about the corn.
Prayers for those in need and everyone have a good night.
Curt Webb
The Late Great Pennsylvania Railroad
http://s1082.photobucket.com/albums/j372/curtwbb/
Weeeeeeeell Helloooo ladies! Root Beer? Why sure thank you. I'll just sit here in the front and.........rest.
Was hot in the kitchen tonight with no air moving. Had the back door closed because the exhaust fans were drawing in the furnace like air from outside making it worse.
I remember corn at roadside stands 99 cents a bakers dozen (13 for you young uns).
Tom- There was an article in MR not too aweful long ago about a guy who used some flooring material for road bed. Can't remember if it was carpet backing or linoleum type backing. Sorry I don't have the issue to refer to, I've skimmed the issues I have here but I probably skimmed over it. I will try again tomorrow. But maybe if you go to some big box home improvement place such as Home Depot or Menard's, or whatever you have out there, look in the flooring department for something sound deadening yet not as prone to drying out as cork. He made a cutting device out of wood and a utility knife blade mounted at an angle on a sliding fixture to cut the slopes. Just a thought.
Well I best be headin to bed here in a few. Brenda isn't home and I haven't heard from her yet.
What's that miss? Me? Oh , no, no! I'm just watching you girls to make sure you, um, er, don't get hurt. Never can be too careful. Safety is number one. Just ask Jeff.
Prayers For Those In Need.
Todd
Central Illinoyz
In order to keep my position as Master and Supreme Ruler of the House, I don't argue with my wife.
I'm a small town boy. A product of two people from even smaller towns. I don’t talk on topic….. I just talk.
David Parks I am the terror that flaps in the night!
Good evening ...
Todd ... I am very sorry to learn about Brenda's Mom. Prayers for your MIL and your family, too, during this difficult time.
Curt .... Yes, my scarecrow is a failure at scaring crows. They birds are on the scarecrow and the fence posts. It was an attempt at corny humor.
Ken .. Speaking of corn. "Ears" to you!. No I do not know why corn has ears, but tell no secrets in the cornfield.
I am beginning my Walthers Union Station kit. I begin my kits by first preparing the surfaces before assembly. In this case, I did not want the building to look like gray plastic. So, I sprayed sand colored automotive camouflage paint on it. Next a brushed on a wash of alcohol and india ink mix. Now, the surfaces look more like real concrete that is somewhat dirty. I'll be installing the windows next.
Have a nice evening, everybody.
GARRY
HEARTLAND DIVISION, CB&Q RR
EVERYWHERE LOST; WE HUSTLE OUR CABOOSE FOR YOU
I'd like the "tripple dish special" as presented on Bill T's post. Awe heck, add a A&W rootbeer, to.
Got a lot of accomplished today, all indoor stuff up in the studio. Whew!
Have a good night all.
Good Morning ! from Tipton IN.
Bill Tidler Jr.
Near a cornfield in Indiana...
Good Morning
We appear to have somewhat got over the heat haze and humidity of the past few days...for now.
There was a few things that I needed to do outside..in the heat, haze and stick and gum of yesterday..namely cleaning up the garage...why yesterday? Because we needed the extra space for some things for another neighbourhood yardsale......everytime I went out I sweat buckets before I did anything....my sister spent yesterday doing rakuing at a friends studio...she is now a lobster...
Flo, I'll have a coffee and a breakfast bagel please..I'll be at the RC for a bit..
Any argument carried far enough will end up in Semantics--Hartz's law of rhetoric Emerald. Leemer and Southern The route of the Sceptre Express Barry
I just started my blog site...more stuff to come...
http://modeltrainswithmusic.blogspot.ca/
Lunchtime!
Ham and eggs on toast, Janie dear, and a tall glass of root beer, please. Bill has such a nice way of making me want to drink that stuff...
It is a miserable and cold day. Temperatures are not exceeding 55 F in our region, it seems as if the heat stays on your continent this year, folks.
No plans for the day. Petra and I did all the weekend shopping already - not a major affair for the little the two of us need.
Todd - my for your MIL! Not really a good year for your family, same as on this end of the Atlantic. My worries about my parents continue, as my Mom is doing all the household chores by herself, again. What to say? You can lead a horse to the water, but you can´t make it drink...
I´ll be going for a mid-day snooze now, did not catch enough sleep last night.
Have a good one & CUL!
Good Morning,
104: How hot it will feel here in Northern Ohio today… Hopefully the front moving through Sunday will cool things off!
Curt; great pictures!
Jeff; your doing great things for your parents, someday you will benefit from all the good things you do in life. When my Aunt was still alive I busted my tail at her place helping out. When she slipped money in my coat pocket I would save it for salt for her driveway or I would pick up Chinese and take it to her house. Now I find out that I’m the heir of part of her house and her oldest son listed me in his will. Doesn’t do me any good right now, but it was a great gesture.
I got some good news last night; I found a contractor willing to clean up the old roofing material from Dorothy’s back yard for $330.00. That’s only $16 more than what it would have cost for me to clean it up myself. My county doesn’t have a landfill, they use to take it down to the lake front and burn it. If you Google Downtown Cleveland everything north of the railroad tracks is landfill from the old days.
BM1 Lee Soule USCG (ret) L.S.&W Railroad Serving the Lower Great Lakes
Good Morning!! Coffee and scrambled eggs loose, hash browns, sausage patties and sourdough toast please with blackberry jam thank you. Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 97. Heat index values as high as 111. Temps are plummeting. I’m feeling cooler already. Did not sleep well last night. well actually once I got to sleep I did. Unfortunately I didn’t get to sleep til after 2am. I may have to join Ulrich in the nap room there before w**k. (still amazes me how such a small car can have so much stuff in it. Like.....magical) Too much to do to list and you’d probably say “gee, wasn’t he gonna do that a week ago?” to a few of them. Migh check out the bay to see if there's anything I can't live without first though. Didn't make it there last time I was gonna. Probably missed the DEAL of a LLLIFEtime Walk slow and drink plenty of water. Ya’ll have a Great Day!!!
Good Morning!! Coffee and scrambled eggs loose, hash browns, sausage patties and sourdough toast please with blackberry jam thank you.
Mostly sunny and hot, with a high near 97. Heat index values as high as 111. Temps are plummeting. I’m feeling cooler already.
Did not sleep well last night. well actually once I got to sleep I did. Unfortunately I didn’t get to sleep til after 2am. I may have to join Ulrich in the nap room there before w**k. (still amazes me how such a small car can have so much stuff in it. Like.....magical)
Too much to do to list and you’d probably say “gee, wasn’t he gonna do that a week ago?” to a few of them. Migh check out the bay to see if there's anything I can't live without first though. Didn't make it there last time I was gonna. Probably missed the DEAL of a LLLIFEtime
Walk slow and drink plenty of water.
Ya’ll have a Great Day!!!
Morning Folks
Flo, Frosted Flakes and a Root Beer Please.
Well it was warm in the family room when I turned in last night. It was 78 degrees, hate to guess what it would been with out the window unit. When I got up, house was down to 72 and the central air had shut down. It is 80 degrees this morning and high will be 98.
BBQ Well I was done before the meat! Note to self, don't BBQ when it is 100 degrees out! Buy a pizza instead!
Well, time to get ready for work.
Flo ... How many people come in here and order frosted flakes and root beer like Ken just did? What a cobination! ... I'll have coffee and a donut, please.
Joe (edit. I corrected the name here. Sorry, Joe. I'm emabarressed) ... I saw your opening photo in WPF. Very nice. As information, Amtrak F-40's are being rebuilt near here for subiraban train service. Caterpiller's subsidiary, Progress Rail, has a plant in Mayfield, KY where they are doing the work.
Ulrich .. .Sorry to learn about your continued situation with your parents. Also, I hope your own health is holding up okay. Preayers for you and yoru family.
Todd... Prayers for you MIL. I hope Brenda will be okay, too. It must be tough on her. By the way, did the "bad guy" get convicted who attacked your daughter and grandson last year? Also, how are they doing? Prayers for yoru family.
JimCG .. Are you looking in? Miss your posts.
Duke ... Same to you.
Below is one of my WPF pictures. I modified the Bachmann Santa Fe dome care to look like a Great Northern "Great Dome". A few months later, Walthers announced it would produce the entite Empire Builder including a prototypically correct Great Dome......
That's part of Murphy's law. If you want a model of a certain car, you can spend a lot of time kitbashing to make one. Soon after you do so, a manufacturer will produce one. On the other hand, if you never kit bash the car, no manufacturer makes one.
Have a nice day.
Morning from Sunny(hot)Cal:
Just toast and apple juice for me this morning. It's already about 80 outside, and supposed to top off around 103 or so today. Yes, it's Bake Time in the state of Shake n' Bake, LOL!
I was kinda/sorta hoping that our heat wave out here would do the trick in sending that Alaska air down through Canada and cooling you guys east of the Rockies off, but from what I've read on the thread so far, it doesn't seem to be working. Maybe in a couple of days---? I sure hope so for your sake.
One thing we don't really have to put up with out here in the Valley is the humidity--it's a pretty dry heat. And I remember the humidity back there when I was traveling through Missouri, Arkansas and Louisiana. WHEW!! Beautiful states, but I remember watching the crease go out of my pants the minute I stepped out of the car, LOL!
So hopefully, it'll break for you guys soon. God knows you DESERVE a break!
Well, as usual, I started over-reacting to my 'yard ladder' problem yesterday. After I cooled off, I went back out into the garage and started studying the problem. I don't need to re-do the whole yard, just get better support in the ladder lead itself. Take out the foam roadbed there and substitute a stronger, less 'spongy' support under the turnouts. Once I get the heavy lokies off the ladder lead, they're just fine in the rest of the yard, Code 83, WS foam roadbed and all.
See,that's one of my problems--professional Musician. We tend to explode easily then calm down and wonder why we caused all the fuss in the first place, LOL!
So, Curt and Todd: Thanks so much for the suggestions. Curt, I was pleasantly surprised to find that Homaboard is produced right up the Valley from me in Cottonwood, which is just a little south of Redding. Which is a wonderful excuse to go up and watch some train action on the Shasta Line. Which is in itself, a really beautiful stretch--and busy--stretch of single-track mountain railroading (about 20+ UP freights plus AMTRAK per day). Sounds like a good week-end outing for me.
One thing I really like about this Forum (and this thread) is that whenever I run into a problem, there's always a bunch of good people ready to jump in and offer good suggestions.
Jeff: Let me join in on the kudos to you for taking such good care of your parents. Having lost both of mine over the past several years, I know how important it is to both them and you to have someone that really CARES. Good on you!
Garry: That's a GREAT photo of your GN "Murphy's Law" full-dome. I always thought it would make a good 'starter' for one of those Espee 'home-made' 3/4 dome cars, but I'd have to lower the height a lot. That's a really nice job.
Well, got the AC-9 all painted and decalled. Still need to do some touch-up work on it, but it turned out pretty well. One thing about brass--you can either spend $$ to have it professionally done, or learn to do it yourself and hope for the best, LOL! She crawls around the layout rather nicely, but that old motor whines like a baby that needs its diapers changed. Should have the replacement Pittman in a week from Bowser. Then I'll let her Rip!
Well, time to go out and turn the fan on in the garage and study that darned yard ladder for a while.
Best to all, prayers to those in need.
Tom
Tom View my layout photos! http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/TWhite-014/Rio%20Grande%20Yuba%20River%20Sub One can NEVER have too many Articulateds!
Tom .... In my youth, our family traveled in West Coast, and we rode in one of the SP dome cars. We were on the Shasta Daylight from Oakland to Portland. I'll never forget the specatcular ride. ,,, Several years ago, I was modeling the SP because I wanted to include some of the trains I rode. I was thinking I could kitbash the dome car. For the dome I would have used the top of a "shorty" full dome care. I think it was Life Like that had "shorty" passenger cars. I would have combined the dome top with a standard length car made by Rivarossi or Con Cor. ... Many of my ideas are never implemented, however. (That blankety blank, Murphy) I have always had too many non-model-railroad things to do.
Here is another pictire of the GN train with a differant camera angle. The never-ending funeral is at the backdrop.
Mornin' everyone!
Zoe I'll have a short stack of blueberry pancakes with lots of NYS maple syrup, and a few cups of dark roast to start my day.
Still very hot here in the Finger Lakes today, but about 10° cooler supposedly. Humidity is down to 41% for the moment and THAT should make it a bit easier to bear. Garden sure is growing! very lucky for some crops here THAT we had the wet Spring, so the soil is still moist. It is currently 86°F under bright sunny skies here in the Finger Lakes. High will be around 90°F. We generally only have about 10 days a year above 90.... I think we have already had THAT many and it is still July!
Hope to finish the door for the shed today. As soon as I post this, i will be heading out to finish up the trim painting. Then Later this afternoon I will be installing the trim and getting it ready to put back on the shed. I'd like to get it done before the roofers get here tomorrow.
I think it was Tom (from PA) that asked about the wine grapes and the heat? From what they are saying the heat has been great for the grapes as it adds more sugar to them. could be a great wine year for the Finger lakes.
Tom from CA, us musicians have a quick temper??? Nah....
Best be moving on...
Good Morning All...Its sunny and 88 here...Yesterday afternoon it was 80 here in apartment with A/C set at 73...Got it cooled out then got a phone call at 2:45 AM..One of my daughters in trouble...short nite...Working a a covered hopper..to hot for much railroad'in...
You all have a good one...Jerry
This morning was interesting. My father and I took my mother's car into town to have the air spring helper kit installed. On the way the new starter on his Tracer kicked in and being overspun by the flywheel promptly burned up. Seems the repair shop hadn't fixed the problem the previous day. They just replaced the starter. Looking at how it acts I'm convinced the problem lies in the ignition switch. Start the car with a good starter and everything is fine then suddenly the starters bendix drive kicks back in ramming the drive gear into the flywheel and the bendix stays engaged preventing the starters overrun clutch from working. Result: The starter get spun at high speed and the fields burn out. So naturally when we got the place that's working on my mother's car the Tracer won't start. Not even a click. So my father has a couple of guys come out and push it so he can roll start it. We go back home and at my suggestion he parks the car on a hill in the yard. I made use of that hill many times back in the 80's when I had a manual shift Escort that had a dead starter circuit. After a break during which he let the repair shop that was supposed to have fixed his car know that he was bringing it back in and THIS TIME they need to find the CAUSE of the problem and fix it before it burns up another starter. So when drove it to the shop I followed him in my van and brought him back home. Now he's trying to line up transportation so he can get to and from work today what with BOTH cars being in for work.Oh, for those curious about what happened with the dead starting circuit in my Escort, I eventually put in a starter button and relay to kick the starter over.
I am calling it a day for today.
My prayers go to the victims of the terror attack in Oslo, where the death toll has risen to 7 now!
What a world we live in!
Strong coffee in a SULTRY & SOUTHERN mug, please.
Looks like it's going to be another indoor day here until the sun is low on the horizon.
Have a good day all.
Hi Gang,
Well it has finally cooled off here and is quite pleasant to be out and about, we are expecting some rain this evening and into tomorrow.
It is hard to believe that two weeks have passed and it is that time again for your next lesson in Railroading History.
So sit back and enjoy, cause here she comes >>>>>>>>>>
The roadbed and rolling stock of the railroad of today have reached their high standard through the labors of countless ingenious and persevering inventors, each of whom has added his link to make the chain more perfect; even the smallest detail shows the combined talent of many industrious workers, one taking it up, advancing it a step, and then giving place to another. It therefore seems peculiar to be called upon to describe a new method of railroading designed as a whole by one man—a new railroad from the ballast to the top of the smokestack, from the pilot to the coupler on the last car.
The system herewith illustrated is the invention of Mr. Joe V. Meigs, of Lowell, Mass., and has been tested under conditions far more exacting than would be found in actual practice. The road is not a model, but a full-sized elevated railroad in every respect. This was made necessary .by a section in the act of the Massachusetts Legislature authorizing the incorporation of the Meigs Elevated Railway Company, which states that "no location for tracks shall be petitioned for in the city of Boston until at least one mile of the road has been built and operated, nor until the safety and strength of the structure and the rolling stock and motive power shall have been examined and approved by the board of railroad commissioners or by a competent engineer to be appointed by them." To fully demonstrate the possibilities of the road under widely varying circumstances, the company has built tracks of several kinds—wooden way of the cheapest possible kind; wooden way following the contour of the earth; wooden way with level grade secured by varying the heights of the posts; wooden way with very short curves and steep grades; and iron way upon high grades, increasing in height until a level of 14 feet in the clear above the earth was secured. The trial road, beginning at the shops of the company on Bridge St., East Cambridge, has one curve of 50 feet radius, 165 feet long, on a grade of 120 feet, and on level and curves has grades of 240 feet, 300 feet, and 345 feet. So far everything has worked in the most satisfactory manner, the train rounding the exceedingly sharp curves easily, and mounting the steep grades without trouble.
The peculiar features of this road, wherein it differs roost essentially front the ordinary railroad, are the way, switch, trucks, passenger cars, engine, drawbar, and brakes.
The posts for an iron way are made up of two channel bars united by two plates, thereby forming a box-like structure whose cross section may be varied as demanded by location. The posts are to be placed upon foundations, the plans of which vary to suit the character of the material that may be encountered.
The way upon which the train runs consists of a single iron girder 4 feet in depth for each span, placed over the center line of the posts. The girder carries an upper track beam and a lower track beam, upon the sides of each of which the rails, four in number, are placed. The two bearing rails, which carry the load of the train, consist of angle irons placed upon the outer upper edge of wooden stringers upon the lower track beam. These stringers are placed in the exterior recesses formed by two channel bars properly secured to the sides of the posts. These rails are fastened to each other, to the stringers, and to the track beam by bolts passing clear through. Two vertically placed rails for the balancing or friction wheels are carried by the upper track beam. The distance from out to out between the lower rails is 22½ inches, this being sufficient to insure the necessary transverse stiffness. This is the gauge of the road. The distance between the upper rails is 17½ inches. It is expected to adopt the common form of rail, beveling the edges of the lower stringers and placing the rail at an angle of about 45 degrees. In our engraving, the rails are in the form of a right angle, and the treads of the wheels are made with a corresponding right angle groove. The usual length of post, 24 feet, would give a clear headway of 14 feet, 4 feet being taken up by the truss and 6 feet forming the foundation.
The switch is formed of a single swinging section turning upon a hinge of great strength attached to one of the posts. A movement of four or five feet by the free end of the switch is enough to permit the cars and trucks on one track to clear the end of the other track. The free end travels upon a carriage provided with rollers moving upon a supporting rail. Suitable mechanism is provided for operating the switch and locking it in place.
The truck is a development of the conditions controlling the adoption of the permanent way. It consists of a horizontal rectangular wrought iron frame, stiffened by cast iron pieces and provided with stiff pedestals bolted to its under side, in which is a fixed short axle for the wheels. Each truck has four wheels set at an angle of about 45 degrees, the axles being properly inclined. Between the supporting wheels are two horizontal wheels, one on each side of the upper girder, upon vertical axles attached to the frame; these wheel bear upon the rails of the upper truck beam, and are kept in yielding contact with the rails by springs outside the boxes, and serve as balancing wheels to take the side oscillations of the cars. They are formed with flanges that pass under the lower edges of the rails, thus tying the truck to the rails, so that no lifting or jumping can take place, and there is no possibility of the trucks running off the track. The wheels are 42 inches in diameter, have a tread of 3½ inches, and rotate independently of each other. In case any or all of the wheels should break, provision is made to prevent the cars from overturning or leaving the track, by means of a strong shoe, which would slide upon but could not leave the way. On top of the truck frame is a movable iron frame carrying four posts containing heavy spiral springs. These posts interlock with similar spring sockets bolted to the framing of the floor of the car, which is directly above the truck and within 18 inches of the top of the girder. The truck is guided in turning by a center pin, and is securely tied to the car body, as the horizontal flanges of its frame castings overlap the rim of the upper turntable. In passing curves and switches, the trucks turn upon the balancing wheels, placed centrally between the supporting wheels, which are 4 feet apart.
It has been found that, by reason of the independent motion of all the truck wheels, curves are followed so closely that practically the increase of friction of the cars upon curves even as small as 50 feet radius is too slight to be noticed or measured by weighing in a model one-eighth full size. This construction of the trucks also admits of a car 50 feet long turning from a street only 28 feet wide into another of the same width.
The cars possess many novel features, both outside and inside. The circular section and rounded ends admit of the strongest possible construction without an overweight of material. The floor consists of a platform made of 5 inch channel beams, and is 7½ feet wide by 51 feet 2 inches long. The framing of the body is of light T iron ribs, bent in a circle, filled in by panels covered with rich upholstering, which covers all the interior; the exterior is sheathed with paper and copper. The cylindrical portion is 10 feet 8½ inches in diameter. While adding to the strength, this form is expected to diminish the wind resistance fully one-third. The interior of the car, as shown in Fig. 1, is light, roomy, and pleasing to the eye. The seats are upholstered like the rest of the car, and comfort and luxury have been carefully studied in every detail. At each window is a specially designed device for securing ventilation without the annoyance caused by dust. There is an entire absence of sharp corners, so that, in case of a serious accident, the liability of the passenger being greatly injured is largely avoided.
The locomotive consists of a platform car supported upon a truck at either end and housed like the passenger car. The floor is 7½ ft. wide by 29¼ ft. in extreme length; the tender is 24-and-two-thirds ft. long, has a tank and bin for the water and coal, besides additional room which maybe used for other purposes. Upon the floor of the engine are, in effect, two complete stationary engines, each connected with a single driving wheel. The boiler is of the locomotive type, is 60 in. in diameter, 15 ft. in length, and is placed over the engines, its center line being 61 inches above the floor. There are 200 tubes, 2 in. in diameter and 7 ft. long; the grate is 4½ ft. square. The crown sheet is arched in shape, and is inclined downward at the back end to allow of climbing and descending grades equal to 800 feet to the mile without exposing any uncovered part to the fire. The cylinders are 12 by 22 in., and their center lines are placed 18 in. above the floor and 61 in. apart. The piston rods connect with independent crossheads gliding upon steel girders supported at their ends by standards bolted to the floor beams.
The driving wheels are 44.6 in. in diameter, flanged upon their lower edge like the balance wheels of the trucks, and are mounted upon steel axles 6 in. in diameter, which extend through a sliding box containing the journals. The boxes slide in cast iron ways placed at right angle to the line of the engine, and each axle has a crank keyed upon its upper end. The well known slotted yoke connection is used. The slide valves are of the usual locomotive form. The links are placed in a horizontal instead of a vertical position, and are operated by two bell cranks. The throttle valve, link rod, brake, and coupling rods, and the connection between the driving boxes for producing pressure against the rails, are operated by hydraulic power, although hand levers are also provided.
Adhesion of the driving wheels to the rails is obtained by means of a cylinder and piston secured to the sliding boxes. The engineer is on an elevated platform in the front part of the engine, the fireman being at the rear end. The former has an unobstructed view through the windows of the monitor roof, and before him are five hydraulic cocks, which control the throttle, links, sliding boxes of the driving wheels, the brake, and the coupling rods of the entire train, while just above are steam and hydraulic pressure gauges and indicators, whistle and bell ropes, etc. With an engine thus furnished with provisions for griping the rails, steep grades become of minor importance, as the steepest possible can be ascended if the requisite power is provided.
One turn of the$1****$2controlling the couplings divides the train into segments of separate cars, each of which has a brake which acts automatically upon detachment from the train. This partially destroys the momentum of the whole, and a collision could only take place by a succession of comparatively light blows from the engine and slowing sections of the train, instead of by a single blow with the momentum of the whole train.
The brakes are operated upon the balancing wheels of the trucks, but they may also be fitted upon the supporting wheels. The action of the brakes is well illustrated by rails between the rolls of a rolling mill, except that the action is reversed. It is apparent that no slipping of the wheels can take place, no matter what pressure may be brought to bear upon them.
In the illustration, Fig. 2 is a plan view of a train on a sharp curve, Fig. 3 is an end view of the track and the engine, Fig. 4 is a section through tender and track, and Fig. 5 is a section through the car.
From the foregoing it will be seen that this system is as applicable for surface as for elevated railroads. It may be more cheaply built than the ordinary road, as the construction of the rolling stock allows the contour of the ground to be more closely followed. As an elevated road in cities, the permanent structure presents far less obstruction to light and air than the usual form. The center of gravity of the cars and engine is brought as low as possible, thereby lessening the effect of leverage caused by wind pressure. The smooth, even surface of the exterior of the entire train serves to decrease the resistance to the wind, and permits a high rate of speed.
from Saskatchewan, in the Great White North..
We have met the enemy, and he is us............ (Pogo)
Afternoon ladies and gentlemen.
Just stopping in quickly. W**k at four.
Todd, hopefully all goes well with MIL. She and your family are on our super prayer list.
Curt, thanks for the offer on the beer, but I'm only 17, and Vinny is watching... But I'll take a root beer!
Ken, if you ever need a pizza, give me a call! I'll even be nice and give you a discount.
Garry, don't worry about it, and thanks! Progress is also doing the rebuilds for Metro-North. However, they've come back with a few problems. Not making a whole lot of progress.
Sorry, bad pun... Guys, why do you have pies? Guys? Vinny, help! *splat* Come on, I know it was a bad joke, but did you really have to pie me?
Well, it's time for me to go clean off this pie before w**k. See you later. Animals...
-Joe
SRNJ GP9 100 and M420 3519, along with retired M420 3579 on wooden pallets, are seen over the tread of an old wheelset in Winslow, NJ.
My Model Railroad: Tri State RailMy Photos on Flickr: FlickrMy Videos on Youtube: YoutubeMy Photos on RRPA: RR Picture Archives
Good Evening..
uuummmm...Vinnie? What s with the Coconut Cream Pie on the back wall? ...somebody threw it? Again? Sigh....
We had a few degrees less hot hazy and humid today ...not much but it was enough to allow for a modicum of BBQ activity out back this afternoon...
Ulrich: Our prayers go to those families who are effected by that man's actions in Oslo Norway...
Garry: Backdrop is looking good there
Ray: Musicians have quick tempers? Since when?
Chloe, I'll have a giant Banana Split and a RBF please...I'll be at the corner booth where...BBBLLLLLOOOOOOOAAAAAARRRRTT!!!!!...... Whoopie Cushion
Sitting here relaxing. Got a lot accomplished today, I painted the tunnel and both approaches to it along with ground foam. Did the ground foam for the South Freight siding, Coaling Facility, Diesel and Steam Servicing and the Stock Yard. I still have the North Freight Siding, Passenger Station, Farm and Stub Yard to do.
John Boy- Another great story.
Garry- I really like the stained glass windows, are they stock or a upgrade you did?
Bill- You cool us down then warm us back up
Prayers for the folks in Norway in their times of trouble.
Everyone have a good night.