Weekend Photo Fun! February 10-11-12 2017

[hon30critter]

zstripe

how I change the suspension to accept A-Line wheels/tires so they roll:

Cool Frank!

Dave

[howmus]

Ah....  the weekend and WPF!

Folks all I can say is that the WOW factor is way up there this weekend.  Too many truly fine projects and photos here to list individually.  I'll just say I have been glued to the screen for a while and have gone back to look at several of them more than once.

I haven't had a lot of time for the layout during the past few weeks and didn't really get anything accomplished until just a couple days ago.  This was last time I posted:

This is earlier today:

And after that I added more tree armatures for the woods:

Keep all the good stuff coming folks.  Lots of weekend left!

73

[M636C]

hon30critter

 

 

 

The GE 45 tonner is an HO scale Bachmann Spectrum.

 

 

OOPS, I was out by 2000 lbs! Shows how much I (don't) know about prototypes.

Dave

 

The main difference was the intended customer:

Railroads had an agreement with the unions that locomotives of less than 90000 lbs could be operated by one man.

Locomotives for railroad use were therefore 44 ton, but industrial customers were not restricted by the union agreement and a generally similar locomotive was called a 45 ton. There were also 65 ton and 80 ton locomtives in the industrial range, some of which were similar in appearance to the lighter units.

The industrial 45 ton units often had one traction motor per truck, and hence the connecting rods but railroad 44 ton units had four traction motors, possibly because they were intended to run at higher speeds on the main and branch lines.

Peter

[zstripe]

Looking great! Ray,

As many of You know I have been working on a whole 15ft area that I changed around quite some time ago.....a slow struggle being as young as I am (74) lol. Seem's like the mind always says yes.....but the vehicle (body) says no...joys of life. Anyway...thought I would share a few more pic's of scene's that I managed to almost finish a couple months ago before I got sick. I managed to finally tear down the gas station (moved) and Miss Betties diner, moved in, at the same time that happened, She sold it to a new owner and they named it the Dog House. Unfortunatly, I could not get all the signs to stay on at the same time without changing the sequence, no way I was going to do that. Just remember all scenes are still in progress, so You'll see, tools and such not intended to be there....LOL The camera does find things.....and the brightness of the lights in the diner, really are not that bright in person.

Take Care, All...Great modelling this week! 

Frank

[hon30critter]

Peter:

Thankyou for that interesting bit of railroading history! No wonder they look so similar. 

Frank:

Nice work. I know what you mean by the camera over exposing LED lighting.

Dave

[hon30critter]

I finally have the gallows installed. Not a great picture, but when I tried to use the flash the rust stains on the gallows made it look like it was painted bright red:

Dave

[gmpullman]

hon30critter

I finally have the gallows installed.

Wow! I'll bet you're glad to see this stage of the progress, Dave! 

Very nice work     Nothing says "Railroad" like a turntable. It is nearly always one of the first features on a layout that visitors comment about.

Weeds, oil, cracks... looks just like it has earned its keep for years.

I had a pleasant surprise when the Post Office van arrived right at noon today.

The B&O Walthers arched-top baggage cars arrived that I had ordered about six months ago 

Approaching...

Closer...

Broadside—

Off they go!

I'm a sucker for "head-end" equipment. Mail, baggage, express, milk... heck, racehorses and theater scenery if I could get any of those special PRR cars at less than $500!

Thanks for letting me share the photos... well—it's what WPF is all about!

And still a day to go

Ed

[hon30critter]

Hi Ed:

gmpullman

Very nice work     Nothing says "Railroad" like a turntable. It is nearly always one of the first features on a layout that visitors comment about.

Thank you for the kind words. I enjoyed working on the turntable very much despite the amount of time it took and the numerous corrections. The next project will likely be the nine stall roundhouse. I have ordered some Plastruct brick sheets to finish the interior walls, and all sorts of options have been running through my head as to what I can do with it. Besides, working on it will require a major clean up and re-organization of my workbench to create enough space to just even put it down. I'm going to have to invest in one or two more rolling drawer units to store the stuff but heck knows where I will be able to park them. Clearing off the workbench is long overdue!

Dave

Edit: Sorry, I forgot to say that the B&O cars look very good! However, the (nicely painted) guy with the lunch pail should be hanging onto a railing or he might not make it to lunch!

[mlehman]

Dave,

Congrats on getting the TT project to this point. It's one of those things that takes a lot of time and patience in addition to model building skill.

[hon30critter]

Thanks Mike!

Dave

[gmpullman]

hon30critter

Besides, working on it will require a major clean up and re-organization of my workbench to create enough space to just even put it down.

Oy! That brings back memories...

I actually had two substantial screws driven into the wall studs and when I wasn't working on the roundhouse I hung it up on the wall like a piece of art 

It kept me from knocking it over, kept the cats off of it and made a safe place that was out of the "Danger Zone".

Plastruct sounds pretty involved. Have you thought about printing your own "textures" on photo paper and using that as the wall graphics?

http://www.textures.com/

You can print safety signs, doorways, piping, electrical boxes and through the windows and doors looking into the building can be very convincing.

With a little practise on a graphic editing program you can scale, duplicate and layer all the wall graphics you need, then using photo-safe spray adhesive apply it to the interior.

This site allows you x-amount of free downloads a day and you can make some pretty convincing graphics. I use lots of the rolled roofing and brick textures.

http://cs.trains.com/mrr/f/11/t/260320.aspx

 

CorelDRAW is my program of choice but there are others. Sometimes I edit the downloaded "texture" first before importing it into Corel and turning it into a vector-based graphic.

hon30critter

Clearing off the workbench is long overdue!

I do that once every five years! You wouldn't believe the things I find buried there (never money  of course)

Whew, busy-busy tonight 

hon30critter

However, the (nicely painted) guy with the lunch pail should be hanging onto a railing or he might not make it to lunch!

That's "Bruiser-the-Brakeman" He has more black & blue than the engine!

Ed

[hon30critter]

Ed:

gmpullman

I actually had two substantial screws driven into the wall studs and when I wasn't working on the roundhouse I hung it up on the wall like a piece of art

Brilliant!!! I have a bare space on the wall right behind my workbench. Excellent suggestion!

gmpullman

Plastruct sounds pretty involved.

I used Plastruct brick sheets to finish the interior walls on the Atlas roundhouse I built a few years ago. It was pretty easy. The Plastruct brick sheets are only about .020" thick and the plastic is fairly soft so they cut quite easily. Here is the interior of the Atlas roundhouse:

The brick isn't defined as crisply as the Walthers brick sheets but it still gives the desired appearance. The Walthers sheets look great but they are much thicker and cutting them to shape is a pain.

Dave

[gmpullman]

hon30critter

The Walthers sheets look great but they are much thicker and cutting them to shape is a pain.

Aah, yes. That stuff IS tough to work with.

The Plastruct sheet does look nice in there. Don't forget to put banks of steam pipes on the walls for heating. It is one of the details I see in many roundhouses.

Good Stuff!

Ed

[zstripe]

Dave,

I commented on Your other thread about Your turntable.....I'll just say great job, here. But I'm curious about what Roundhouse You are building and if You are (or any others) aware that the Walthers Cornerstone Modern Roundhouse with add-on stalls, are double walled. They have brick interior walls and outside brick walls and there is no nead to add any walls to the inside, just details. Might be a little pricey for some. I built a nine stall, with Machine House added to it for My layout some yrs. ago, but that is on one of the sections I gave to one of My Grandson's for His layout in progress. The Walthers 130ft turntable that I bought to go with it, has never been out of the box....just looking at the plans. It is the original DC version. Hopefully this summer, I get get out to His house and set it up. He lives in a different state than I do and I don't drive anymore, since My stroke.

https://www.walthers.com/3-stall-modern-roundhouse-kit-16-x-20-1-8-x-5-1-2-quot-40-6-x-51-1-x-14cm

Good luck on what ever You do! 

Frank

 

[-matthew]

Slipping in towards the end of the weekend...

For the layout, I finally got some brown paint to cover the blue foamboard.  I can finally start transferring the track plan.  I also cut out the foamboard where the harbor will go.  No pictures of that, though.

I finished up a Walther's kit this week.

 

I also received and started assembling a cargo ship from N-scale ships.  Without a doubt it's the most advanced kit I've tried.  The kit is a sheet of styrene with the components laser cut...

[hon30critter]

Hi Frank:

zstripe

I'm curious about what Roundhouse You are building and if You are (or any others) aware that the Walthers Cornerstone Modern Roundhouse with add-on stalls, are double walled.

I'm building the older version roundhouse #933-3041:

https://www.walthers.com/three-stall-roundhouse-kit-14-x-14-1-4-x-4-11-16-quot-35-6-x-36-2-x-11-9cm

I checked again and it doesn't come with interior walls. The only double sided walls are above the roof line. You had me scared for a minute that I had wasted a bunch of money on Plastruct brick sheets (which are far too expensive IMHO).

Dave

[ricktrains4824]

Ok, this is my 4th attempt at this post, as Photobucket is making my browser freeze and refresh, so bear with me folks, as I will be saving and editing this post as I go...

First off, some great modeling being done here! Nice looking stuff!

I will have pics of in progress projects, as well as the recent motive power acquisitions I have, one a purchase, and two gifts..

First off, some in progress shots of a SD40-2 project, where I am installing DCC in a old Athearn BB unit, along with LED headlights and operating ditchlights on the front. 

Now, with Chassis included.

The custom decals and weathering were done by her prior owner.

As you can see, I still am working on the DCC and lighting, and will include disconnects on the lighting wiring to allow removal of shell for maintainance work.

Next, some railcars in progress:

First, a Accurail Hopper kit...

The trucks have been weathered with a custom mix of acrylic colors, and it is almost ready for a shot of dullcoat and pastel weathering, before getting a seal coat and final assembly of trucks, and wheelsets. 

Next, a Scaletrains Boxcar kit, that has received a dullcoat and is ready for pastels before final seal coat and final assembly.

Now, some motive power recent acquisitions, one purchased from a friend, and two gifted to me.

First, a Bachmann GP38-2, with a NCE Decoder already installed.

This one needs a shot of dullcoat before light weathering to remove the plastic sheen.

This next one is a newly acquired P2K Alco FA-2 and FB-1 set, in Erie freight scheme, that was gifted to me.

I have not added DCC to them yet, but am planning to. They both will be getting a complete tune-up, in a tear down, clean & lube job. The A unit will also get her crew painted, LED headlights, and some details replaced/repaired. I am debating on doing her as a heritage style unit by updating her to include ditchlights, but I am not sure if I will do that part or not... Hey, they do have a E8A in Erie paint with ditchlights, so, it is at least possible....

They will also both be getting a Dullcoat overspray to seal, and kill the plastic sheen.

Next, a newly received Mantua steamer, also gifted to me.

She will be needing a complete tear down, as well as a lube and clean job, as she refuses to operate on DC right now, so will be getting worked on in the future, but I will be definitely working on getting her operational. She is too nice looking to become a shelf queen without my at least fully attempting to get her going.

Also, yes, the track on the shelf is indeed Shinohara Bridge track, that I found in a LHS damaged pieces bin, for 50 cents each! The issue with them is a few ties are not lined up quite correctly, due to a miscast, but they will eventually be going on a pair of bridges on the back edge, so the issue will not be noticeable. I think $1 is a real deal for that!

[G Paine]

I built a 6 stall Walthers roundhouse (3 stall with an add-on kit) for Boothbay Railway Village a few years ago, the inside is completly open except for support girders. This is the way they typically were built.

[gmpullman]

Thanks to everyone for making this a great WPF! Lots of really neat Stuff out there 

See you all next week, and maybe a few new contributors, too?

Everyone is  See you next week...

Happy Modeling, Ed