G scale Rio Grande Southern Engineering Report

[Kevin Yutz]

I hear you man, enjoy it, itll be fun and you'll learn things along the way to make the next one better!

[davefoxx]

I just shudder at the thought of having to break up that concrete and disposing of it when moving day comes.  For Dave, that could be sooner rather than later in his line of work.  If it's possibly as soon as 2016, I don't blame him for keeping demolition in the forefront of his mind.

DFF

[Dave V]

New addition to the RGS...  The Bachmann Big Hauler boxcar is by no means even close to an authentic D&RGW 3000-series narrow gauge boxcar, but the good ones are well over $100 and in F, not G, scale.  That said, there are still some Delton Classics 3000-series boxcars to be found, and if I can find one for a good price I may bite.



New dog does equal trouble for the Rio Grande Southern.  I'm using deterrent sprays to keep him from pooping on the railroad (which he seems to enjoy), but the spray washes off the rocks routinely with all the rain we've been having.  Tonight I ran a train and he plowed over the large landscape rocks, dislodging some of them, and tried to bite the train.  We did some training with him and he eventually was content to lie down at watch it without chasing.  He's a Border Collie, so he wants to herd the train...but he's also smart so training has a better chance of success.

[eric220]

The trick is that you need to teach him where the train is supposed to be. If he's willing to heard it back onto its path when it runs astray, I'd say you've got a winner!

[OldEastRR]

New dog does equal trouble for the Rio Grande Southern.  I'm using deterrent sprays to keep him from pooping on the railroad (which he seems to enjoy), [/quote]

He's probably not happy you spend time on the RR instead of him, and is telling you with his dumps on the track. Let him run the train once in a while!

[Dave V]

I took advantage of the dry, hot weather and made repairs to the Rio Grande Southern... Fixed some loose trestle bents, regraded the approaches to the trestle, replaced some ballast that had washed away, and tightened the rail clamps. I used metal stakes to hold back the rocks and pavers behind the trestle abutments.



A southbound Rio Grande Southern mixed freight crosses the trestle at Bilk, CO en route to Vance Junction and eventually Telluride.

[Dave V]

Started working on that big hauler D&RGW boxcar.  Again, it's not even close to the body style that would be correct for a 3000-series boxcar, but the lettering is quite good (with one exception...all of the dates are from 1924/5 when the cars were rebuilt...the "flying Rio Grande" scheme puts it squarely post-1939).  That said, all of those black Delrin separately applied details need to be made an oxide color to match the body per D&RGW specifications, which I did.  You need Dullcote to give the Delrin some tooth for paint.

Before:



The underframe, truck side frames, couplers, grab irons, and brake rigging all got a matching oxide along with two coats of Dullcote (one before detail paint, one after):



This one will be weathered with chalks...  It's the newest paint scheme and I model the 40s, so I'm not going to make this a rolling wreck.

For contrast, here's my F&CC boxcar weathered as a rolling wreck.  Note the door tracks look correct on this car but backward on the D&RGW version.  The body is the same, except that the F&CC is the earlier release with plastic wheels.

[packers#1]

Already looks better with the new paint, very nice. Since It's G scale, will you be changing the date, or is that a detail that isn't too big of a deal for you?

[Dave V]

Already looks better with the new paint, very nice. Since It's G scale, will you be changing the date, or is that a detail that isn't too big of a deal for you?

Honestly, I'm saving my proto-fussiness for the N scale Pennsy.  For me, G scale is just about goofing off and having fun.  It "captures" the look of the Colorado narrow gauge and that's good enough for me.

[jpec]

Loving the weathered car, Dave. Really propels the models away from the "big clunky plastic toy" look. Did you fade the lettering down with a light sanding or is it all chalk?

Jeff

[glakedylan]

very, very nicely done!
looking really good.
great job on the paint

kindest regards
Gary

[Dave V]

Loving the weathered car, Dave. Really propels the models away from the "big clunky plastic toy" look. Did you fade the lettering down with a light sanding or is it all chalk?

Jeff

I used 70% isopropyl alcohol to very carefully remove a bit of the lettering.  I would not recommend the technique in N unless complete removal is desired.

The car was mainly airbrushed for weathering.

[Dave V]

Some subtle weathering with washes, and D&RGW 3000-series boxcar #3527 is ready for service on the RGS...

[Dave V]

No pics worth sharing, but a beautiful weekend here in Colorado means time to rehabilitate the outdoor Rio Grande Southern railroad.

When I had my deck replaced around Veterans' Day I had to dismantle the western half of the railroad.  The construction crew trampled the roadbed pretty badly.  I'm essentially rebuilding it completely.

This time for ballast I'm using chicken grit with crushed oyster shells and polymeric sand.  I'm also raising the western end of the loop by one foot to reduce the grade.

[garethashenden]

If you're raising it by a foot are you putting anything under the ballast or just using a lot of ballast?