Weekend Update 6/8/2014

[mark dance]

Mark that rust colored water is terrific . On the prototype is it because of iron or mud/clay that makes it that way ?

Hi Richie...I can't say for sure.  I don't think it is iron as the swamp can often be clear for much of the year.  I have just noticed this coloration in the last month.  My best guess would be some form of red/brown algae.

And to be clear I am not aware that the prototype has a swamp near where I have modeled it.  The swamp I am copying is due to a beaver dam in a very large forest/park near to us  (Pacific Spirit Park for those who know Vancouver).

thx for asking though!

md

[MichaelWinicki]

Had a couple Bachmann "high-water" boxcars and decided to lower their ride height to something a little more realistic.

I did one and took an image of the two boxcars, end to end to show the difference between the two...



Geez those couplers are big.   

[Power Stroke]

I finally picked up a long sought after locomotive, and for a resonable price. NSE B&M 200 Bicentennial. Very well done! Now for the box car.

[primavw]

This week I continued the push to finish up my shortline loco for the layout. I'm hoping to have it done for next week's update. It is a Kato mid SD40-2. Tonight I worked on getting DCC installed. Gotta love these ridiculous sprung frames... I had to shim the front of the board to get the decoder to fire up. I'm sad to say my track is in need of a cleaning again so it delayed my programming of the decoder. By the time I had to leave for work, the chassis was going around the layout in "do whatever I want mode" and ignoring my attempts to reset the decoder. I'm on the graveyard shift again so I'll finish programming tomorrow... *sigh*

[eja]

I had to shim the front of the board to get the decoder to fire up.

eja here  who recently had had a long running thread about problems regarding my conversion to DCC.

I found that Digitrax decoders  are thinner that my original Atlas PC boards and perform inconstantly


How did you shim them ???????????.

[packers#1]

I'm sad to say my track is in need of a cleaning again...

Get some No-Ox, one little tub should last you a long time. I used some on one layout and never had to clean the track after applying it.
http://www.model-railroad-infoguy.com/no-ox.html

[OldEastRR]

Hello all...
back from a whirlwind, but very nice, trip to Texas.
The set-up and show were very nice-great seeing old friends and meeting new ones (We'll make a trip back soon!)


Here are picks of "Arbonado" in the setup (main buses with the powerpole connectors were added the evening before the setup, and once the tracks was given another good cleaning, it performed wonderfully!)






Thanks for looking!
Bruce

Is that a rail crossing module in the middle? like a 90 degree junction between the two mains?

[eric220]

Got a little more work done this morning.  The throat is fully installed.



Everything beyond the rerailers is temporarily installed, so again, no CSX track laying jokes.

[chuck geiger]

Casper, WY this birthday weekend....

http://cheyrails.blogspot.com/2014/06/bnsf-action-between-casper-and-cheyenne.html

[Dave V]

Scenery of a different kind.  Finished planting last night just before dark.  In true Colorado fashion we had a hailstorm within an hour of finishing.     Fortunately the plants look pretty good this morning other than a lean to the blue columbine.

[Cajonpassfan]

Where are all the young single women??  I got into this hobby for the girls.........

Me, on the other hand, got into the hobby for the women, but stayed for the money... 
Well, maybe not...
Otto K.

[BCRail_FSJ]

Back to working on the actual layout this week (instead of scenic test dioramas).  It was time to rough out the track layout for the Muskwa Industrial area.  I needed to know the locations of the fuel storage terminals so that I could map out their exact location on the photo backdrop which I will be working on over the next few weeks



The industrial area will have fuel storage and transfer tanks (on backdrop) a sulphur loadout area in the middle and TOFC ramps along the front.    I avoided the temptation to cram in more tracks as I want to leave room for access roads, structures, parking areas and muddy gravel clearings.





Eventually the Muskwa industrial area will go here.   



The paper grid on the backdrop is how I sketch out the key photo backdrop elements before laying it all out in Photoshop.    Best way I know to make sure that key backdrop structure photos are in the correct location.

[Pennsy]

I'll add some of my pictures of the NMRA Lone Star Setup. AustNtrak was the only group to setup. We did both a N-Trak and a T-Trak layout. And yes we do have a crossing module care of Conrad.











Jim

[hegstad1]

I almost hesitate to post a picture of my progress on the layout because there is a lot that is temporary and final decisions that have yet to be made, but here you go.  Some more rock work needs to be done.  The river bed was painted just so it's not white but it is not the final color.  The backdrop is a printout that I will probably use but is not attached. I have yet to decide what to do for ground cover.  I have to work on the talus slopes and, of course, grow a lot of trees.  The top valence is just s piece of 1x3 painted and tacked in place to test where the final facia will be.

[C855B]

Casper, WY this birthday weekend....

http://cheyrails.blogspot.com/2014/06/bnsf-action-between-casper-and-cheyenne.html

That truss bridge was oddly familiar... you do know about these, don't you? Accidental railcams supplied by WyDOT, updated every couple of minutes:

http://www.wyoroad.info/highway/webcameras/I25Casper/I25CasperEast.jpg

http://www.wyoroad.info/highway/webcameras/I80PointOfRocks/I80PointOfRocksEast.jpg