Weekend Update 2/7/16

[up1950s]

[chicken45]

FM with DD1 containers. Just need to weather these guys.
Chopped 2 scale feet from the center of a Red Caboose 42 foot car.
Shaved off stake pickets.
Sanded the sides flat.
Added styrene to fill in the end sills.
Fabricated new stake pockets from channel bracing and added a small piece of styrene on the front tops to complete the look.
Grab irons were custom bent.
Added end supports and used phosphor bronze wire between them.
Brake wheel for this style was not freestanding.
Added Archer Rivets.
Tack boards applied to end sills and car sides made from scribed styrene that was roughly sanded for a fine grain. 
Decals by John Frantz.
MTL 2004 couplers were used.
MTL Bettendorf trucks with BLMA wheels.
Containers available on Shapeways by Keith Thompson.
Deck sides were cut with a razor to rice the appearance of individual boards.
Sprayed deck with Valleho Sand/Ivory, followed by Raw Umber oil washes and gray dry brushing.
Big thanks to Douglas Nelson for doing one first and figuring the hard stuff out.

[Puddington]

You don't see a lot of TOFC unit trains on the Kanto Sub but when you do you can count on our rail fan shutter bugs to click away liked there's no tomorrow.... We present a photo essay on Train 663 that diverted to our rails earlier today...







Quite the power lash up with a pair of SD 40's ahead of an MLW RS 10..... lots of HP there...



A P.I.E. unit looking a little weary.....



Wow, were we amazed at a rare CP Bulk Systems trailer.... these usually carried diesel or gas....



We'd seen that New Haven trailer a few days ago; guess it's headed back east.....



A pair of Wilson units, one is a reefer trailer; wonder what it's hauling...?



Monon.... really..... look almost new..... what the he.......?????



A Navajo reefer.... not something we see often in BC.....



That's the Caravan trailer that we saw last week headed to Samuel Ridge.... guess its on its way....



We've seen SOO units before but this one is a reefer and that's new.....



Two of the newer design for Smith... we heard they now have a "Pac Man" logo too..... well; we "heard".....



Ya, well; it is a CPR train..... yawn.....



Supertest.... what the .....??? That's an Eastern Canada gas company... and just how old is that trailer...?



Well, I guess the rumour about a Pac Man Smith logo is true..... but wait; its on the wrong end..... and that yellow....yuck!

This week saw a lot of painting, decalling and weathering trailers..... ran out of hitches.... I also weathered this little guy who we found shunted out of Dymon Colour.... a Ti02 tank car.....







Lots of fun.....

[craigolio1]

Nice!  Always impressed with your progress.

After pondering what Kiz was going through this week, and hearing others talk about maintenance and the never ending quest to finish large layouts, I came to the realization that I will likely also never have the time to finish the layout I have designed for my basement.  In each of the three houses I have owned, I planned a basement sized layout which satisfied me in the space I had at that time.  Two of them got to the basic bench work stage and one of those had a working piece of track!  Amazing, I know right?  Well in the current house the plan is even more awe inspiring (for me).  No matter which basement it's in, it seems to always NEED all available space in the basement.  Well I've re-evaluated my NEEDS.  What I WANT, is a working loop of track that I can run all of these custom built models I've been building for the last 15 years. 

So that's what I think I've decided to do.  Take the small room in the basement, (which also happens to be the one that has the sub-floor, electrical and drywall finished),build one level around the walls, and run trains.  It will be able to grow into the original plan if time and finance permits but at least for now I'll be running trains.

This week I cast a whole schwack of LEDs into ditch lights.  Nothing worthy of pictures.

Craig

[bnsfdash8]

Another customer build.



I'll have to do myself one to go with my ES44AC hybrid demonstrator.

[jmarley76]

My week consisted of running a short local...



and fighting off Imperial forces...

[mu26aeh]

Track crews were busy replacing turnouts on the CSX Hanover Subdivision

20160205_220137 by Adam Henry, on Flickr

20160205_220128 by Adam Henry, on Flickr

And busted out about 4 dozen trees from my sedum harvest.   Thinking some might be too big so will either cut them up and make more trees out of them, or do them as is and present them to an O Scale friend that is modeling the same line during Western Maryland times that lives about 2 miles from me.

20160205_220058 by Adam Henry, on Flickr

[mark dance]

Castlegar station is now basically complete.  I may add a light or two when I light the freight shed which I am building now to complete the scene (you can see it behind the station).









Have a great weekend!

md

[bbussey]

Got the MTL gondola representing a Bethlehem Steel 50' mill gondola lowered to a ride-height close to the prototype.  Had to mill the underframe and construct new bolsters, as well as swap in BLMA trucks and stirrups and 1015/1016 couplers in 2001/1019 boxes screwed directly to the underfloor of the body.  I notice in the photo that the triple valve is hanging low so the model needs some more work.

[ Guests cannot view attachments ]

[wm3798]

Good to see everyone is still using hatchets and paint rollers to do their finest N scale work...  Jaw dropping all!

[nuno81291]

progress on my river bed and a first shot at some snowbanks/icy road

[mighalpern]

making roads and parking area with sand free grey grout.  tried scrubbing lines on one part and on the larger I just sanded it smooth, but still shows sandpaper marks,
Lee your building is almost ready,  been playing with LED lights, SMD lights and 12 grain of rice lights.  I have about 100 of the grain one's and I don't plan to have the lights on much of the time so I might just go for it and use up a bunch and save the LEDs for the other side.
hope these pictures come thru.

[nkalanaga]

Richie:  I have that picture, cut from the Spokesman-Review years ago, when they first(?) reran it, long before 2015.  They cancelled all mail subscriptions several years ago, so I no longer get the paper.

The caption for it, the first(?) time they reprinted it, was:

"Whoops!
   In 1946 two freight cars collided close to a switch near the Northern Pacific station.  The accident happened after one of the cars was released and backed down the track and cornered the other.  No one was injured."

I have a photo of two engines like this near the Pasco station in the very early years of  the BN.  BN 1882, GP9, was still in the early NP Roman lettering scheme, while BN 6521, SD45, was new in 6/71.  The Big Hook didn't have far to come from the roundhouse and was already on the scene when I got there.  Apparently the GP9 needed a little help getting back on track.

[peteski]

Lee your building is almost ready,  been playing with LED lights, SMD lights and 12 grain of rice lights.  I have about 100 of the grain one's and I don't plan to have the lights on much of the time so I might just go for it and use up a bunch and save the LEDs for the other side.

Looks good. But go with LEDs 100%!  Bulbs are so 20th Century.    But seriously, once you install the LEDs (and power them up properly), they run cool, are as bright as you want, and will last your lifetime.  LEDs are so cheap nowadays that there is no excuse for using bulbs.

[central.vermont]

A pair of Wilson units, one is a reefer trailer; wonder what it's hauling...?





Lots of fun.....

BEER!!!!!