Weekend Update 12-28-2008

[John]

Ok, the last Sunday of the year. Let's see what you got done.

Me, I just ate too much ..



And ran trains on Saturday at the B&O museum.

[DKS]

Modified a Monroe Models kit for a background building. Before:



After:



Its home is at the back right corner of the layout.



Article on its construction is here: http://jamesriverbranch.net/project_15.htm

Finished arranging a street of houses (they run to the left of the Auto Salvage building above); used photoshop to help with the design.



Article on the process of developing the street is here: http://jamesriverbranch.net/project_26.htm

I also made a huge batch of lasagna. That was the best part.

[Scott Lupia]

I got one of those Grand Trunk Bluford Shops auto parts cars and turned it into this.  The Erie Lackawanna had a fleet of them so I felt the need....

I painted the car and made up some decals for the car.  I then weathered it.  I am now looking for a way to replace the Accumate couplers.  I will have to shoot on down to Kenvil Hobbies and see what Rich suggests.  The coupler has a strange setup due to the length of the car.  Right now I am looking at body mounting the coupler.  I don't think that will be a problem with the curves and switches my layout will have.  My passenger cars are find and they are about the same length.

Scott Lupia

[davefoxx]

I went to the LHS yesterday and spent a little of my Christmas bonus: two new Seaboard System U23Bs, two Extended Vision cabooses in the Family Lines scheme, and a couple of pieces of rolling stock that fit into the early to mid-1980s era.





While this is a slight era change for me, I can still use my much of my C&O equipment on that planned RF&P/C&O (Doswell, Virginia) layout one day.  This change has long been planned by me, as evidenced by the RF&P GP40s that I have owned for years and were sitting in long-term storage off the layout.  This last picture really reminds me of my college days in Richmond, Virginia, although, I admit, those SBD locos would more likely have been B36-7s.  But you get the idea.  I love those mixed lash-ups of run-through power with the RF&P locos (cab signal equipped) on the point.


Happy New Year,
Dave Foxx

[up1950s]

[Puddington]

Very nice work as usual gentlemen...I like the job on the "uber boxcar" Scott....Richie; just how many big steamers will the Wyoming and La Grande roster anyway !!!!!?

And by the way kind sir; this is "YOUR FAULT"......!!!!! >



You just had to go and do that nifty job on that WOT SP RPO/Baggage car for your MOW lash up now didn't you ? You did such a good job that it made me remember I had picked up a couple of those on a trip to L.A. in March at Allied..... (no reason to, just thought they's come in useful one day... and they were on sale)

So; after "ohhing and aweing" over what you did, I naturally pulled one out to check and see if it was the same car... and promptly left it on the bench......that was the first mistake.....

I swore I was done painting for the "Klingons" (aka Canadian National) after I 'finished" the Super Continental but when the WOT baggage cars came in; and after checking the Morning Sun Colour Gulde to see how close they were AND after having stumbled upon a picture of that express mail and baggage car I found myself back into black and olive land...grrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!! - that was the second mistake.......

The car is close to the CN prototype - right number of windows (albiet slightly wrong spacing) - slightly too short doors (about a foot) and about 2 feet too short in length (but in n scale......?) but it really captures the look.

CN ran it's last RPO in 1971 so that's close enough for me and running with a WOT shorty baggage and an old HW coach it's a perfect regional/secondary consist.....

So; it's clearly Richie's fault I did this.....I rest my case ! ;D

[Dave V]

Played with my new Broadway Limited set from Christmas.  I also recently added DCC to my GG1.



I know, I know...  no catenary!  I'll eventually hand this train over to a pair of E8s, although I did haul them briefly with my kitbashed M1 4-8-2.

Man, these cars are SWEET!  Here's the diner/kitchen/dormatory set...



And the Mountain View...  Unfortunately, the photos wash out the detail on the drumhead:



Also just messed around with my other Pennsy stuff, giving my Conrail fleet a break.  Here's a meet at LEW Interlocking between my kitbashed N scale M1 4-8-2 and a local:



The Digital Macro setting is cool for close-ups witha limited depth of field...  Here's that M1 again:



The close-ups do show the imperfections of the model (the boiler is about the diameter of an index finger) but do convey the monstrous size of the prototype well.

[diezmon]

I threw together a quick freight house, based on the extra structure that came with my walthers grain elevator kit.



I'm also trying to fill in where roads will be..  I just grabbed some cheap "For sale" signs to use as styrene 

[Ed Kapuscinski]

There's a lot of really awesome stuff already!

I too was at the B&O museum this weekend (but on Friday).

Here are some pics:

[up1950s]

David , wonderful job on that quonset hut modification . I wouldn't have redone it though , as the original model you did was also outstanding , I would just bought a second kit for the mod .

Scott , the weathering on that autoparts box is terrific .

Davefoxx , I really like those rock outcroppings on your main , very well done .

Puddington , Super job on that RPO/Baggage . Was your kit warped like mine ? As far as W&LG big steam , that as big as it goes , but more steam are in the wings . If USRA built a triplex , the W&LG would have bought it though .

Dave Vollmer , that second shot with the passenger train going over the viaduct is wonderful and a great place for photo ops .

diezmon , nice freight house , hope to see it all done and in a sceniced setting ,

Ed , very nice scenes , I especially like the brush filled troughs between the tracks .

[wm3798]

Mr. Vollmer...
You can get that drumhead to look right by reducing the ambient room lighting, extending the exposure to about 8 seconds (to improve the depth of field and compensate for the lower light) and cut the track power after a split second of exposure.  That will allow enough light to illuminate the markers and the drumhead, but not so much that it blows it out.  The additional exposure of the car with the lights out will pick up the printing on the drumhead better, too.

Love the houses and structure projects this week.  Not much for me...  Still toiling away in the kids' bedroom...  Hopefully paint by next week!
Lee

[Ian MacMillan]

Not much work for me but I did spend the money that's been burning a hole in my pocket for the last 3 days. Picked up;

20 - C55 flex to start setting down some track (Can't wait to start setting out 40" curves....ummmmmm )
12 - #10 turnouts
3 - Boxes of cork
2 - Conrail GP15-1's
2 - Conrail GP38's
1 - 1:1 EMD push/pull bell valve with automatic activation via airhorn bypass
1 - Canon WD-43H High Definition Wide Angle lens for the HD camera
20 - Sheets of 4x12 drywall

[Erik W]

I finally have some new photos to share.  I’ve been replacing many of my InterMountain composite GS Gons with new steel GS Gons from Trainworx and Micro-Trains.  When I bought the IM Gons they were the only show in town.  Now I’m adjusting the fleet to more accurately represent the ratio of types of GS Gons that would’ve been seen.


Here are a couple of GP9s with an example of the two new types of GS Gons.


This close up shows the Micro-Trains 40’ GS Gon in the front and the Trainworx 46’ GS Gon behind it. 


Another shot of the Trainworx Gon.

I’m really impressed with the quality and detail level on the Trainworx D&RGW #72000 Class GS Gon.  This is definitely the most accurate D&RGW Gon out there.  The Micro-Trains represents a 42’9” #46000 Class GS Gon on the D&RGW so its internal length is 2’9” too short.  As far as the paint scheme goes, Micro-Trains didn’t do their research well enough as the Rio Grande lettering between the ribs should appear as RIO   GRAN    DE not RIO  GRA  NDE for this class.  Besides that oversight and the length, which I can live with, I’d say the Micro-Trains car is pretty nice too.

Erik

[Chris333]

Still have small details to add, but the bulk of this freight station is done. It is a mirror image of the Erie freight station in Warren, OH http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/el/bldg/erie-warr-fh-alb.jpg This is the truck side, I modeled the track side.



It is 15" long and that sign on top is David's handy work,  Thanks!

[Puddington]

That freight station is fantastic...!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!