Good morning, everyone. Bacon, eggs, and black coffee, please.
The biggest event in my life recently: I ran a locomotive on some new track yesterday. That's the first running train in months. Of course, it was just a test, but it seems like great progress.
The I-beams came from Plastruct, so I am going to start building my first bridge. I'm so glad I decided to scrap the last layout and start over. It has breathed new life into me.
Lion, I'm still in your debt for your suggestion to put all wiring behind the fascia instead of under the table. I drill holes down through the table where needed, push wires through, use a stick to grap them and pull to the connectors. All my wiring is done sitting in a chair beside the table.
Of course, I still have to install some switch machines, and I don't see any other way to do that except to go under. Not looking forward to that.
Bear, I have loved your Where's Waldo Kevin thread. Kevin emailed and said he loved it, too. I have a feeling we will be seeing him back in the diner soon.
Mike, I forgot about jinxing myself with comments about snow. I see some more may be coming later next week. It will be my fault.
Tin Can, I went years without a snow blower, and one year, my wife gave me one for my birthday. I wasn't real thankful -- there were other things I wanted more, but over the years of a snowy driveway, that snowblower has become my favorite birthday gift ever.
David, that's interesting about you listening to audiobooks. I have wanted to do that when we drive long distances, but my wife does not like them. She wants us to listen to music, which isn't real good for keeping me awake driving. Our small town library has a huge selection of audio books, and I know a lot of people use them.
TrackFiddler, you've been very good about taking pictures of your bridge progress over the months. I will try to remember to take some pictures while I work. My daughters also like to see pictures of my layout. Thanks for inspiring me to try scratchbuilding the bridges.
I hope everyone has a great day today. Those of you who read this thread, how about posting some comments!
The Alabama and Western Florida RR:
York1 John
Hi Brother Elias,
I just want to say that I love the pictures that you are posting of the beautiful big cats! Every time I see a picture of a big cat I get a bit of a rush.
Thanks,
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
LION knows all about conspiracy theories.
Today's conspiracy seems to involve a Greek Sandwitchand a trip to Walmart.
That is about as far as I can go without being chopped off for promoting polytics.
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
Good morning (just) Diners. I'll have a large coffee and some sweet rolls please, Flo.
We have been listening to an Audio Book about Conspiracy Theories. Some Dawn and I go along with. Others we keep an open mind.
A friend who knows I like to do some baking visited yesterday and left me some shortcrust pastry. Plans are to be made as to what to bake. Sausage and Cranberry Rolls is high on the list.
Not only is Kevin missing, there are a number of others as well. I hope they return soon.
Try and call into the Diner later.
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
*Turns on lights* Hello?
Flo, better start a pot of coffee and get some sweet rolls baking. Looks like we'll need to draw them in today.
Mike
Happy Hump Day
I think we're getting your snow John. It's been dusting on and off since last night but too warm to accumulate or stick. I hope you get your styrene delivered today.
Congrats on your daughter making starting lineup for the varsity high school soccer team Mike. I know for certain you are so proud of her as we are of our grandson Anthony as well.
We went to see him graduate high school last fall. He earned a scholarship from his grades and was picked by scouts to play football and baseball in the college he started recently. We are due for another visit and plan one later this spring.
One for passenger car guy
Courtesy of Getty Images
TF
John: We had about 4 inches of wet, dense snow yesterday. Enough to cause a 10 am start to schools. My wife was helping clean off my car (no room in the garage, yet); I couldn't help myself. I made several snowballs and sent them her direction. She couldn't/didn't return fire, as I was all dressed up for work. Once the sun came up, the snow melted pretty quickly. We haven't purchased a snow blower yet; don't know if that is in the future, or if we purchase a plow for the lawn tractor. We do have a very long and wide driveway, but the times when we had big snow, everything was closed, and we didn't go out. We were able to shovel it out manually.
Our basement is finished and served by our HVAC. I noticed that our dehumidifier is not working; so that will have to be serviced soon. I have not made a decision on how I want to build benchwork. There is some discussion as to whether this is our last home; my wife wants to move back to Texas after I retire, but I have always wanted a basement, and this house is as good as it gets. So I have to plan for something that might be moved as in some type of modular benchwork. I have stockpiled 3/4 cabinet grade plywood to rip into dimensional lumber for framework. I have always wanted to try spline roadbed of some sort, and I may do that on the mainline. No rush, still have to finish projects in the garage before I can start building benchwork in the basement.
York1It might be close to the time to put the snowblower and the shovel away!
Good morning, everyone.
The snow we got yesterday all melted overnight, so there was nothing to clear off the driveway. It might be close to the time to put the snowblower and the shovel away!
It's cold and windy today, which means it's another good day to stay inside and work on the layout. I believe my shipment of plastic I-beams comes today, so I may be able to start on building my first bridge. Are any of you structural engineers?
gmpullmanI hope our friend Young Steven is doing OK with the nasty weather passing through New Orleans lately.
Two of my daughters are there right now visiting their old hometown. They let us know they spent the evening in the hotel lobby. The highrise hotel lost power several times, with the result of people sitting inside non-moving elevators. They didn't want that, so they stayed in the lobby until the storm passed.
Hope everyone has a good day today.
How about the Seminole Gulf RR from Ft. Myers, Florida?
Jimmy, I'm so sorry to hear about Gary. He sounds like a wonderful man. As hard as it can be, just remember it is not "goodbye", rather it is "see you later". And you will.
As for layout work, it will come when it comes. Great thing about a hobby. You do it when you want to. My own layout work has been in fits and starts lately. Mostly fits (i.e. not much happening). That's OK.
We are closing in on our family vacation here. Bags are packed, kennel is lined up, family is definitely ready. FWIW, the forecast where we are headed looks mostly good. Hope it is. When we return I already know I'm going to be swamped at work. Vacation better get me prepped for that!
Have a good day everyone!
Wednesday — already!
Reefers and Snowbirds by Edmund, on Flickr
Cheers, Ed
Good morning Diners. A sunny day here in the U.K. Tea and toast please, Chloe Trying a different way to post.
Playing teaboy when friends visit later.
Hopefully get to see the train room
Stay safe Everyone.
The original "shorty":
CN_Plough_55401 by Edmund, on Flickr
Why all the interest in snow removal while we're in Florida?
A little repair work at hand:
Rods down, 1976 by Fred Clark, Jr., on Flickr
The Daylight 4449 in St. Petersburg in 1976.
I hope our friend Young Steven is doing OK with the nasty weather passing through New Orleans lately.
hon30critterI wonder what the story is about that plough.
The only info I have.
FROM A COLLECTION OF PHOTOGRAPHS RELATED TO THE EARLY DAYS OF THE MONTREAL TRAMWAYS COMPANY/COMPAGNIE DES TRAMWAYS DE MONTRÉAL
Brent
"All of the world's problems are the result of the difference between how we think and how the world works."
BATMANOH DAAAAAAAVE.
One at a time please Brent, one at a time!
I wonder what the story is about that plough. Maybe the picture was taken in the summer since the trucks appear to be sitting on logs. Also, the trucks seem to be pretty tired looking but the blade doesn't show any dents that I can see.
Cheers!!
NorthBrit grumbles: "I get so frustrated trying to post something on this Forum. Sometimes I try six or seven times before it posts. Other times I just give up."
Are you using the online "composer" for the drafting?
I've found it easier to compose and revise posts using a simple text editor (on the Mac, I use TextEdit), then just copy and paste into the online reply editor. A little simple formatting, and... it's done. That's why you'll not see traditional "quoted text" in my replies.
I also right-click on the "reply" button, and then open the reply box "in a new window", so the original posting is still there, in the "window below".
Been doing things for years this way, on numerous forums...
Somehwere in South Florida during one of my early 1970s visits:
Florida East Coast Caboose by Edmund, on Flickr
Another type of elevating transfer table:
Model railroad facilities by Fred Clark, Jr., on Flickr
OH DAAAAAAAVE.
Edit; I see I have tops. Snow ball freezies for all.
Jimmy_BraumI lost someone very close to me on March 2nd- a Second Father of sort .
Hi Jimmy,
I'm sorry for your loss. It sounds like Gary was a great guy.
I haven't touched my layout in a while either. I'm not going to worry about it or feel guilty. It's a hobby.
Take care,
Hey all. March has not been kind to me.
I lost someone very close to me on March 2nd- a Second Father of sort . Gary was his name, and he was originally my dad's best friend. When my dad passed in 2018, Gary took me under his wing as the phrase goes, and helped me deal with it. He even took me to the 2019 Daytona 500 race and let me stay at his place in Florida. He was the one who got one of my dad's Antique Harley Davidison motorcycles- a 1952 Cherry red Panhead. He organized a memorial bike run for my dad, and so much more. He helped me clean out my dad's house and make it livable. He pretty much became a second father to me, and I miss him dearly. I spoke at the funeral, and let me tell you- a biker funeral is one of the hardest to go to.Work has been slow, but steady. So there is that to take my mind off it. I haven't had much drive to work on my HO scale layout, but I've been doing small stuff on my current T-Trak module- a yard on the Pittsburgh &West Virginia railway in the 1950s.
(My Model Railroad, My Rules)
These are the opinions of an under 35 , from the east end of, and modeling, the same section of the Wheeling and Lake Erie railway. As well as a freelanced road (Austinville and Dynamite City railroad).
Good afternoon from the rainy West Coast.
With the forum in what appears to be a death spiral, it could hit the ground without notice. I will be found over on "Big Blue" if that happens. Where will the rest of you be? We should put out a list.
David, I am sorry to hear of the ongoing health issues your wife is having. My wife is suffering neurological issues and her deterioration while slow is noticeable. I have been helping her groom the dogs often lately and also almost always go to Costco with her now as it is becoming a chore for her.
My in-laws are both in their eighties and the MIL has Alzheimer's. The FIL is very fit and quite able to look after her and to his credit does an amazing job. The MIL always ate a lot of crap, however, in her current state she seemed clueless as to what she was eating. We made up a diet extremely low in carbs and the FIL stuck to it. Within two weeks the MIL started recognizing him again, knowing who he was as well as other family members. Then she started walking to the park on her own again even tho it is right across the street she had been unable to do that. The tremendous improvement in cognitive ability meant she remembered what she would like to eat and refused to stick to the diet we set out. She is now back to where she was before. It was impossible to convince her to eat low carb once her mental state would improve. The roller coaster was too much for the FIL to handle so he had to give up.
Mike, Congrats on your daughter, behind every successful kid you will see supportive parents, grandparents, and others. I seem to live at the hockey arena for years and that just took the kid so many places with all the connections he made through sport. He is now on the board of directors with an organization connected to Hockey Canada. It is a volunteer spot but he has been volunteering most of his life, I can't ever see him not.
He started the movie work in high school and it was his attitude and work ethic that quickly propelled him into a very enviable position, and while he knew it was not going to be a career for him he now has a lot of great contacts he communicates with on a regular basis.
Time to hop on the bike, my Garmin Active 4 says my fitness age is 52. I am 65 but I want to get that into the 40s if I can. I had a short ride yesterday but I usually push zone 5, 400+ watts for 30 minutes. Then I can be a gluttonous pig at dinner.
Got a note from Rapido that my decoder is on the way back, they changed the programming on the F7B to match the F7A units better. The "B" unit did not have the delayed start like the "A" units and I could not get them to play nice.
SGRR_31860sm by Edmund, on Flickr
Maybe it would help to invoke the friendly spirits of the STRATTON & GILLETTE by clicking our heels together and repeating the S&G mantra three times. It worked for Dorothy and Toto.
York1Ed, isn't that a strange picture of cars on the open train cars. It reminds us how our world has changed over the past 40 years.
Even then they had to take drastic security measures! The hub caps were locked in the trunk of the car. Of course the keys were tucked into the sun visor or in the glove box. Doors weren't locked.
Instant Messaging, railroad style:
John Roskoski-2 by Center for Railroad Photography & Art, on Flickr
A Milwaukee Road supporter shows his colors:
Mike Raia by Center for Railroad Photography & Art, on Flickr
I hope everyone can see their way clear of the misfortunes that may be impacting them.
My New Haven EP-5 showed up today. Time to go to the layout and get 'er rolling!
NH EP-5 372, September 1964 by Marty Bernard, on Flickr
I heard from Kevin and he had a comment about the earlier turntable discussion. He mentioned that the Florida Live Steamers had a turntable built on a hydraulic ram that could be raised or lowered for loading on to trailers or raised up to the "steaming bay" levels.
Thanks Kevin!
Hi Mike. Kevin has my address..
I get so frustrated trying to post something on this Forum. Sometimes I try six or seven times before it posts. Other times I just give up.
Being amongst a great group of people I would hate to miss you all.
I am sure the Moderators know there is a problem (or two). Can they (Will they) sort it out.
Meanwhile I shal continue to try to post.
Thanks for the kind words for my daughter, guys. I hope that some of the locals that have always given us grief for traveling like we have for soccer reconsider when they hear this and see her play. What's more is that through all this, she is still both humble and coachable. Her coach approached my wife about it (they teach in the same building) and affirmed as much. Has me excited for this season!
David, I tried to message you through the forum, but that feature failed for me. Does anyone here have an email for you where we could check on you in case of absence?
Bear, I love the Where's Waldo thread you started! Fun idea. I heard from Kevin today and it sounds like he has been trying the suggestions that have been offered up, but no luck. He is debating creating a new login (I'm guessing wouldn't want to lose references/access to his current one), or calling support (seriously, who wants to have to do that?). Hopefully we get him back soon, if for no other reason than to shut down the Where's Waldo thread. This one promises to be fun!
Good evening all. It is very frustrating as slowly I am being 'frozen out' of various threads.
If I go 'missing' it is not my computer.
Edit: At last this post has gone through.
To those I have missed. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers for Dawn.
Mike. Congratulations to your daughter. A great achievement
It's officially spring ... we have white junk falling from the sky and collecting on the driveway and yard today. Hopefully the concrete is warm enough that it won't collect too much.
In my working days, these kind of days were not good. If you have normal school hours, you'll have buses running on the dark, snowy country roads with kids standing out in the dark, blowing, freezing snowy weather. If you start school late, you'll have working parents upset about the work hours being interfered with trying to get their kids to school midmorning. Ask me if I'm happy in my retirement.
David, I hope and pray the meeting today gives Dawn some comfort and relief.
Ed, isn't that a strange picture of cars on the open train cars. It reminds us how our world has changed over the past 40 years.
Mike, great news about your daughter's sports team. That's a real compliment to her abilities and work.
With the weather today, my battle will be dragging Daisy the Dachshund outside. She would rather hold everything in than to go out and get her dainty feet wet. I've never seen a dog so averse to getting wet.
The new layout is coming along slowly. Today I'm going to start soldering wires to the track. Maybe in a couple of days I can get the first UP locomotive running on the track! Then it'll be time to start the first bridge construction. I love this hobby!
I hope everyone has a good day. ❄️
Water Level Route My youngest got some wonderful news last night. She is a freshman in high school and her coach is not only putting her on the varsity soccer team, it sounds like she will be starting. She was absolutely beaming last night!
My youngest got some wonderful news last night. She is a freshman in high school and her coach is not only putting her on the varsity soccer team, it sounds like she will be starting. She was absolutely beaming last night!
Congratulations. When my daughter went to high school, she was on the lacrosse team and the ski team. The teams clhose her to be their captain in both sports.
You are right to be proud of her, and of yourselves as parents. She did the hard work, but you provided a lot of support over the years. Well done, all of you.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Water Level RouteMy youngest got some wonderful news last night. She is a freshman in high school and her coach is not only putting her on the varsity soccer team, it sounds like she will be starting. She was absolutely beaming last night!
Hi Mike,
Congratulations to your daughter! It is very rewarding when you see your kids succeed.
Good Morning All. Flo, a coffee to go please.
Just checking in to say a quick hello.
Busy day today, so I have to be going. I'll try to check back later.