Fiddler and Ed are off to Menard's... we don't have one down here.
I do have a $75.00 in store credit, and a $100.00 gift certificate to Mendard's. I hope I can make a trip to one before the Summer time.
Everyone sit down and have a large cup of coffee with me... and your favorite lunch sandwich is on me.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Good evening all. Well the sunshine forecast today did not materialize. Wet and miserable.
I know we clean the track and the wheels on our locomotives; today I cleaned the wheels of most of my carriages. Still some more to do plus my trucks to do as well.
Coconutty Haddock Curry.
Stay Safe Everyone.
David
To the world you are someone. To someone you are the world
I cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought
I know nothing about these, who, what, when or why. Just thought they are cool.
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
Those snow sculpture Trains are way cool Brent, ...SWEET!!!
Judy and I have gone to the Snow Sculpture Carnival in Saint Paul every year but I have never seen anything like that!
It would have been interesting to see the process and the ladders or scaffolding involved.
It goes without saying those took whoever a lot of time and talent
Whoever Larry Turner was, sure did a good job on the logging shay.
TF
Good Evening,
I was just listening to Lucia Popp singing 'O mio babbino caro'. She just blows me away. I think she has the most beautiful soprano voice I have ever heard.
Nothing new here. Where is Ken?
Just can't get motivated to do anything lately.
CN Charlie
Hello Railfans!
Top of the day to yas! For you beach weather lovin types, you got your wish around here today. Pretty mild for March, and blindingly sunny.
The fair day gave me the opportunity to scamper out from under the proverbial rock and do a few things. Mostly turn somemore wrenchs on the SIL's vee-hickle. Got the worst of it over with today. Now, weather permitting, its put it all back together time. Another day or so then its vroom vroom time.
Around this homestead, i tore into the printer last night. Was dreading the bearing change, and it was a little troublesome, but not as bad as anticipated. Still have the top half of the machine to do. I betcha a dollar to a doughnut, thats where the fun will begin.
Put some pieces parts on order today, they should be in in about a week.
Brent) Wow! Ive never seen anything like those snow sculptures. Awesome, thanks for the share. Save those for a day when its 110F outside in about 4 months.
TF) Thanks for the breakfast warning. I'll just park the Ferrari's while yall chow down
Critter Dave) "What diner manufacturer should we do next?" Well brown grits n green gravy, are we done with Pullman already? I was hoping you were just getting wound up!
Kevin) I havent seen the article yet, but I understand congratulations are in order. I spose this means you get the good parking spot in front of the diner for the next month?
Spose Ill see yall after while, i need to go move my car.
Clear Ahead!
Douglas
PM RailfanKevin) I havent seen the article yet, but I understand congratulations are in order.
Mine arrived today, and my daughter shared it on Instagram!
Good evening
Arn't daughters great Kevin! Good to see you so happy
"My adorable dad" That one is priceless! I would copy that and hang it on the wall over your desk if I was you
Glad to see you finally got to see your own article Did you have the hardware store cut the glass and polish the edges or did you just happen to have that piece?
Track fiddlerDid you have the hardware store cut the glass and polish the edges or did you just happen to have that piece?
I am going to post an explanation in Weekend Photo Fun tonight.
Another daughter instagram post. Daughters are the best.
Funny you mentioned the little spring tonight Brent as I can certainly relate to that one.
Just yesterday I was doing coupler conversion kits on a GP 7 and an RS 1. I was successful on the GP 7. The RS 1, not so much.
I busted both draft boxes trying to put them in the slot. Man those N scale tolerances are tight! I had to pick up another conversion kit at Scale Model Supply today while exchanging my Twin Cities & Western.
Can you see the little springs in the atlas box. The small spring you can barely even see is the micro trains one that I would never get back together in a million years
Track fiddlerMan those N scale tolerances are tight!
After lots of upset, bad language, screaming, and eye strain, I decided that I will never again buy an N Scale car or locomotive that needs the coupler changed.
York1 John
Yes, Daughters are the best Kevin
I'm seeing my youngest one this weekend and I have to remember to get a few more phone lessons These kids know everything about phones and computers.
I know how to make a phone call and type on the keypad
I hear you John!
I didn't know you could bust coupler draft boxes with your fingertips. Now I Do!!! You should have seen the look on my face as I was looking at all the little pieces all over the table
$16 later I will try again. Bruce down at SMS gave me some pointers that I hope will work.
I Hope, ...If I bust another one, that's going to cost me as much as the locomotive did
York1After lots of upset, bad language, screaming, and eye strain, I decided that I will never again buy an N Scale car or locomotive that needs the coupler changed.
Way back in the early 1990s when good running N scale equipment was just becoming available, the locomotives still had truck mounted "rapido" couplers with a huge hole in the pilot for the coupler sweep.
Micro-Trains (still part of Kadee then) released conversion kits that contained the pilot fill piece, body mount adapter, and the coupler.
I had to cut the coupler box off of the powered trucks, drill and tap the body, put in the pilot, assemble the coupler, and then put it all together.
It took about three hours to do my first RS-3. I had eight or ten of them... I looked at them and thought about how much better G scale must be.
What you just described is exactly what I was doing with my coupler conversion kits yesterday Kevin. I knew to hand tap was the way to go because the drill wood strip it out.
The GP 7 went smooth as silk. It wasn't till the RS 1 I had serious problems. Bruce told me he had heard more than once that the tolerances on those are way too tight. He told me to take a Jewelers file and give the slot openings a once over before attempting to fit the coupler draft boxes in. I'm hopeful that will work for me tomorrow.
Post Hog!
Well, it's 11 O-clock and time for me to hit the rack. My wake time somehow shifted from 5 in the morning to 4. I haven't been so fond about losing that extra hour.
Nighty night and have a great night gentleman
CNCharlie Good Evening, I was just listening to Lucia Popp singing 'O mio babbino caro'. She just blows me away. I think she has the most beautiful soprano voice I have ever heard. Nothing new here. Where is Ken? Just can't get motivated to do anything lately. CN Charlie
BATMANI know nothing about these, who, what, when or why. Just thought they are cool.
Cool!!!??? Freezing more like!!!
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Good morning all. A mixed bag weatherwise today. Up and about at six o'clock.
O Mio Babbino Caro. One of my favorite songs.
N Gauge. Everything is too small and fiddly for me never mind changing couplings and losing springs!
Now I need some coffee to stay awake.
Thoughts & Peace to All who Require
After conducting a forensic search of the area where the 4-8-4 met it's demise courtesy of Dame Agatha, I was concerned there was just too much of the engine not found. Soo--off to the vet we go. An X-ray, enemas, and more X-rays, a bath, Dame Agatha was given the green light. $427.86 later. I could identify the back section of the boiler, part of the cab and sand dome. There were however, other items that definately were not train related. Mostly pine scraps, I think. With another seven months or so to grow, ( If I let her live that long) she now weighs 103 pounds. As I move about in a controlled lurch/fall, with cane assist, ( At this point I refuse to use a walker) the sound of her coming from one part of the house to another causes an immediate survey of grab points to maintain stability. She has one speed, flat out.....sorta like the gorrilla that could hit a golf ball 600 yards, his downfall was he putted the same way.
At least I can stop worrying about her having a gut/intestine punched and her getting sepsis. Still trying to figure how she sucked just the engine, and left everything else standing on the track. The track is 35 inches above the floor, and she had to reach over the control box, which is 11 1/2 inches wide, and 4 feet long.
Cold, high wind, freezing spray advisory, the best part is no boat to worry about, and I can stay in a warm bed.
Best to all, hope all are well fed, warm, and dry. Prayers for those in need.
From the Island,
herrinchoker
Something's good cookin' in the Diner!
GN_Amtrak-Diner by Edmund, on Flickr
Fourteen degrees Fahrenheight in NE Ohio right now! Brrrr!!
We picked out some nice ceramic tile at Menards yesterday. Wow, that place has tons of stuff. I really could have spent a few more hours in there just looking at everything!
B-O_menu_0002 by Edmund, on Flickr
2983-010 by John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library, on Flickr
American Car & Foundry, Berwick, Pennsylvania plant.
2984016 by John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library, on Flickr
2983-023 by John W. Barriger III National Railroad Library, on Flickr
Cheers, Ed
PM Railfan"What diner manufacturer should we do next?" Well brown grits n green gravy, are we done with Pullman already? I was hoping you were just getting wound up!
Hi Douglas,
Nothing says that we have to move on just yet, but I was thinking that five days in any one location would be enough. If anyone wants to contribute more Pullman stuff, feel free!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Good morning, diners.
I've got a sore arm, but that's about it after getting the second shot yesterday. My wife actually feels sick.
Herrinchoker, I wonder what the dog smelled that she thought would taste like food?
Here's a blurry picture of the dining car on Amtrak's City of New Orleans in 1989. Compare that with all the pictures we've seen of the dining cars in the 1950s. Makes me kind of wish for the good ol' days.
Good morning
I'll take the Spanish omelette with Melba toast for $.85 cents off the B&O Royal Blue menu please
The plan for today is to get my new hinges on the cabinet doors and get them installed. I never did find the right hinges I wanted at Menards or Home Depot. I ended up finding them at Rockler which is a fine woodworkers store up here. They had the exact hinges I was looking for but I had to dip into my pocket a bit.
After that I'm heading back to Menards to get the materials for the floor bases and four temporary shelves. I don't want to build all the slide-outs for it until it's nice outside.
It would be interesting to see the ceramic tile you chose Ed. As you said, Menards sure has a lot to choose from. Choosing the tile you prefer is like being a kid in a candy store with only one choice permitted. I'm hoping you'll share your progress with your tub surround I'm always interested in seeing a good project in progress
Have a great day gentleman
NorthBrit N Gauge. Everything is too small and fiddly for me never mind changing couplings and losing springs!
Top of the day to yas!
Critter Dave) Yeah i guess 5 days is about right so as to hit the rest too. Your doin a great job but your fans want more!
Time relavance) As it seems above, 5 days have just flown by me like the 20th running 3hrs late. I ordered some parts just 2 days ago (evening of the 3rd). I wake up today and I have a msg about one part.... "Delivered". 1000 miles in 1.5 days? Yeah, i dont believe it either. So much so i didnt even go down to the PO (a mile away) to see if its true. So im wondering, did the sun flare and we hit a time warp or something - or am i just getting old?
"Time keeps on slipping, slipping, slipping, ...into the future."
Have a great evening folks - im off to cause some dis-array somewhere.
Double Red over Green!
Friday night and the regular crowd shuffles in —
Track fiddlerIt would be interesting to see the ceramic tile you chose Ed. As you said, Menards sure has a lot to choose from.
Well, it is just a plain ol' tub surround, TF. I stripped out the molded plastic one that survived raising two kids (drywall was perfectly fine underneath so there wasn't any water problems).
I put up Hardie Cement board, sealed that with the Red Guard, built the "niche" rather than pay $80 for a "prefab" job.
The tile is pretty basic ceramic. I wanted to stay with a simple color as the porcelain on cast iron tub is still in good shape (beige) and the existing wall tile I put in around the rest of the bathroom is still good (almond) so when I went to find the color for the surround we chose "bisque" which is what I guess they call the latest trend in tan-colors.
Yeah, you can go crazy with all the mosaics and accent pieces. Sometimes that can get a little, shall we say, busy?
Here's what I had after I stripped the drywall off:
IMG_1412 by Edmund, on Flickr
I added those 2 x 8s as a place to anchor the assist grab bars, plus a vertical 2 x 6 on the upright at the left. Nothing fancy. I did fully insulate the walls of the surround. Mainly to act as a sound deadener.
I was big into N scale back in the late '90s — 2000s. A friend of mine asked me to install Microtrains couplers in his Kato F-3s A-B-B-A set. It took me hours to do each one! . I gave all my N scale stuff to my older son. as far as I know it is still sitting in boxes on his damp basement floor
Here's a video of an open run night at the North American Prototype Modelers layout. If THIS doesn't inspire you to keep working on your layout, nothing will
gmpullmanThe tile is pretty basic ceramic.
When we were planning our bathroom reno a few years ago we were having a hard time deciding on which tile to use. Dianne's brother suggested that we look into faux marble instead. What we ended up with is a walk in shower that looks like marble and is super easy to keep clean. There are only four wall panels plus the floor basin. There are no grout lines. The joints between the panels are caulked and so far the caulking has stayed perfectly clean with minimal effort. If it does get dirty it can easily be replaced. The cost was about double that of a tile job but worth every penny AFAIC.
My only caution would be that, unless you have experience with similar installations, you should hire someone who knows how to fit the panels and the base properly. The workmanship on ours was amazing. My brother had a similar system installed and the amateurs who did the job totally botched it.
gmpullmanFriday night and the regular crowd shuffles in —
And I'll have a tonic and gin....
My idea for leg gussets won't work. The leg and the joist are in the same plane, meaning a only gusset of 0" thickness would work. That exists in geometry but not in carpentry.
3 days of sun, Wednesday and Thursday were 57 today was cold. Next Thursday is forecast to be 68! We still have some snow next to the house.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley