Weekend Update 3/4/12

[BCR 570]

After a diversion into photography for some upcoming articles, I am back to work on the layout.  On the upper deck the roadbed and track segments had reached the west bank of the Kskatinaw River, a slow moving river with steep mud banks which meanders across the south Peace.  The railway crossed the river in 1958 with a 458 foot span comprising a 150 foot deck Howe truss with frame trestle approaches at either end.  It is thought to be the largest timber bridge of its type still in service today.  I visited the bridge site in July 2009:




This will be a signature scene on the upper deck incorporating a full size model of the bridge scratchbuilt in scale lumber.  I am fortunate to have copies of the railway's plans for this structure.  Several years ago I built the deck and top cross-members for the Howe truss span to see if I would indeed be able to scratchbuild a model of the bridge:




To get the rails across the river in the meantime, I have installed a temporary span comprising a 1" x 1" piece of fir with a cardboard mock-up attached to the front, and a length of Micro Engineering Code 40 flex track on top.  Feeder wires were installed at each end.  Here is the temporary span in place on the upper deck:




The bridge brings the end of track to within three feet of the yard limit at Dawson Creek.

It might interest some forum members to know that the Kiskatinaw River was also bridged by the United States Army during construction of the Alaska Highway in World War Two.


Tim

[diezmon]

Still working on my wee little extension(of the shelf layout, sheesh)  .. trying to get some gravel, grass, and pavement in place.






think I'll play the axe while I wait for the upside down faux fur to dry.

[chuck geiger]

Love the LAST TRAIN TO CLARKSVILLE depot, I need to finish mine.

[C855B]

One of these days I'll post modeling pix, but not yet. Anyway, this week and weekend have been all Lionel, all the time. The local history museum has a Lionel layout ostensibly to commemorate our town's extensive railroad history, but there's barely anything on the layout having to do with either the town or the local RRs. The layout and trains have been neglected for several years; two weeks of repair, lubrication and fixing wiring mistakes have things back in operation. Still a lot of clean-up to do, but so far the museum director is pleased. Maybe I can snap a pic with my phone next time I'm over there.

(The funny thing about this is I've never cared for Lionel - even as a kid my tinplate choice was American Flyer. Yet here I am.  )

[MichaelWinicki]

[wm3798]

Opened the box in the mail to reveal a White Tower model smaller than a standard foam peanut.  Mind blown.  I don't think I have any paint molecules small enough to handle this project...

Lee

[BCRail_FSJ]

Spent a fun day at the Calgary Railroad Prototype Modellers meet (yes we do have one).  Finally got to put several faces to names.  No N scale on display except for mine, but lots of CP, CN, BCR and Northern Alberta Railway goodness in HO to drool over.

[bbussey]

Yeah, there's still issues with the inside but that's a good thought.  On the trailer home the big flat part of the roof is perfect, but then you see the stepping on the pitched part.  I think that has to do with resolution/stepping.  The side walls however get more of a cross hatching pattern like Chris's Z scale car showed.  That falls under the way the car was built.
I think.  ...

Definitely the way the model was built.  The Pullman-Standard (NE5) caboose sides were built from the top-down (or bottom-up), so what we are seeing are the result of the layers built.  If the sides had been turned so that the outer faces faced up, then that wouldn't be there.  However, then you also have to arrange the part based on the direction of the print head.   In the case of NE5 sides, I would want them to be perpendicular to the print head path, so that the welded ribs are parallel to the path.  That is the best option for that particular model, and if the machine is calibrated properly they should be as close to perfect as possible.  But of course, Shapeways doesn't allow the choice of orientation so it forces us to seek other alternatives.

[M.C. Fujiwara]

Fired up The Banananator (my yellow & black static grass applicator) and started flocking the heck outta the detachable extension to the Shoofly Free-moN module:





Went a bit overboard, but it'll all work out in the end.
Also added some trees, bushes and a wire fence.
Love that E-Z Line.

Happy Weekend, everyone!

[Dave Schneider]

M.C.,

Do you have a real job or do you spend all your time modeling? I am amazed at how quickly you produce top quality results. You might want to write a time management for modelers book.

Best wishes, Dave

[cv_acr]

After a diversion into photography for some upcoming articles, I am back to work on the layout.  On the upper deck the roadbed and track segments had reached the west bank of the Kskatinaw River, a slow moving river with steep mud banks which meanders across the south Peace.  The railway crossed the river in 1958 with a 458 foot span comprising a 150 foot deck Howe truss with frame trestle approaches at either end.  It is thought to be the largest timber bridge of its type still in service today.  I visited the bridge site in July 2009:

Wow. You don't see too many of those anymore.

That should be a neat scene on the layout.

[cv_acr]

Well, today I hauled out the styrene box and scratched up some bulkheads for this guy:



Prototype photo:
http://canadianfreightcargallery.ca/cgi-bin/image.pl?i=cp305513&o=cprail

Also did some work earlier this week on my coil steel gondola project. Just some fiddly work applying ribs, still a little more fiddly work to do there. No current pictures of that. All the ribs across the top are done, just need to finish up the angles pieces along the side of the cover.

[BCRail_FSJ]

In addition to the Calgary RPM meet I spent a bit of time planning out the track arrangments at the east end of Fort St. John yard. 

[M.C. Fujiwara]

M.C.,
Do you have a real job or do you spend all your time modeling? I am amazed at how quickly you produce top quality results. You might want to write a time management for modelers book.

I have a "real" job
I'm a writer and editor, as well as doing layout designs on the side.

I probably do about the same amount of modeling time as everyone else: some days a couple of hours, other days 5 minutes.
The difference might be the fact that I work at home, and so I can pop out to the garage to prep a project, complete a step, or do some organizing throughout the day.

Back when I had a 9-5, projects that I painted or glued in the afternoon / night would have to wait until the next day for the next step.
Now I can paint something after breakfast, work for a couple hours, pop out to the garage & glue it together, work a couple hours, weather it & install it, work a couple hours, then take some photos.
So a project that would have taken 2-4 days with an office job now takes a day (or two, depending on the paint / glue).

I also try to do something on the layout every time I pass through the garage to leave the house: chop replacement ties & throw them in the Big Jug O' Stain, take a toothpick and touch up rails with paint, pull the T-pins out from cork or track after the caulk has dried, apply another coat of stain to a building, etc.
Stuff that just takes a minute or two.
Sometimes it's just cleaning up a section of workbench or laying out specific tools for the next project as I pass by.
All the little things add up!

Tim: that's going to be a kick-a$$ scene with that bridge!
Diezmon: good to see you adding more fab layout to your fab layout.  Can't wait to see how it all comes together!

[coosvalley]

This week I had the pleasure of operating on MECfan's layout. Thanks again, John.

I also found time to finish up these two projects. Well, mostly, as these pics show me a few things that need tweaking....

First is a Walthers pulpwood car that was an undec, with some salt weathering...(good car for experimenting, the load will cover most of it!)



Next is a Bachmann 44Tonner, stripped and repainted to look like this...

http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/showPicture.aspx?id=1446169

And here is my version....







Have a good week....