Weekend Update 1/5/20

[up1950s]

https://www.flickr.com/photos/7652577@N05/15990926369/in/photostream/

http://www.drgw.net/trips/report.php?tr=TTCI.3

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https://hiveminer.com/Tags/brady%2Cohio

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[Mike the Modeler]

Back in the train room after nine months or adult responsibilities. Cleaned the track and some wheels and took the SW1 out for a spin. A great runner but always manages to find that one speck of dust that keeps you from a flawless run. Can anyone direct me to a thread on building a keep alive circuit for this locomotive?

[mark dance]

What a beautiful scene Mike...

Not a lot of modelling time these days.  With what there is I try and sllooowwwwllllyyyyyy finish off a myriad of little projects.

This week I finished the Nelson sandhouse







Have a great weekend!

md

[draskouasshat]

Ive been working on a couple things this week. first,  my m-190 got a decoder but i forgot my LEDs at home for the headlight!
Second is a Santa fe steam generator car. Its made out of an E8 shell and tender frame. I needed something different so after reading an article on it,  i figured i need one.
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Drasko

[wm3798]

Pulled this old gal out of mothballs, changed out the motor, which had been cooked by an errant decoder, also removed, so now it's ready to run DC on the Retro rig.

[BCR 570]

At the end of a year focused primarily on completing equipment needed for operating sessions, I was able to get some long awaited layout tasks completed during this last week of Christmas holidays.  All of these are part of getting back to operations later this month but with a higher level of performance than before.

I summoned up the courage to remove and replace two turnouts which had issues since installation several years ago.  Fortunately I had planned for this possibility back then with half length rail joiners installed at all three ends of the turnout which could be slid back without disrupting the ties, and minimal glue applied underneath the turnout in three locations.

The turnout for the west switch at Sundance:






and a turnout located in the Canfor mill at Chetwynd:




I also managed to get the aux bus wiring for the new fast clock system run, and after getting the openings in the fascia cut for the clock repeaters, was able to power up and get them running.  The fast clock system has been developed by local modeller Victor Gilbert and can display real time:




or fast clock:




The final step is to get some lamicoid surround panels made in which to secure the repeaters in place.

One of the more significant concerns to address after the first seventeen operating sessions is getting my locomotives able to run better with each other.  I have held off doing this for some time to break them in as few had run any distance.  After getting my DecoderPro back up and running with the new DCC system and updating my roster in JMRI, I am looking forward to learning how to speed match my locomotive fleet.  To that end I purchased the Accutrak II Speedometer and have assembled a test loop:




That is all for now.  I will leave you with a photograph of the first train over the line in 2020 as track cleaning is well underway.




Tim

[SP-Wolf]

Back in the train room after nine months or adult responsibilities. Cleaned the track and some wheels and took the SW1 out for a spin. A great runner but always manages to find that one speck of dust that keeps you from a flawless run. Can anyone direct me to a thread on building a keep alive circuit for this locomotive?

Mike,

Outstanding!!

Wolf

[MichaelWinicki]

[C855B]

Back in the train room after nine months or adult responsibilities. Cleaned the track and some wheels and took the SW1 out for a spin. ...

Beautiful modeling, beautiful scene. Captures the California coastal range in spades. Inspired by the Santa Cruz branch?

OK... about that switchstand... obviously  . A craftsman rarely reveals his secrets, but I do have to ask about your source. That is the exact style (Pettibone-Milliken) I'm seeking for the layout. I acquired a 1:1 to model by, but if there's a commercially available version (to save beaucoup work), I'm all ears...

[Cajonpassfan]

Mike,

Outstanding!!

Wolf

What he said! Wow!
Sierra foothills? Central coast?
Otto K.

[Philip H]

Unpacking from the great holiday slog, and I’m reminded why I have great in-laws:

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[wazzou]

What he said! Wow!
Sierra foothills? Central coast?
Otto K.

NWP is my guess.

[ednadolski]

That pic belongs on a calendar

Ed

[Missaberoad]

@Mike the Modeler can you tell us more about that log load? Very effective!

[Mike the Modeler]

Thanks to all for the kind comments. Being an observant and curious bunch there have been many good questions that I will try and answer here.

Location: Bryan wins with his guess of NWP, and all recognized the location as coastal California. The scene on the layout is along the Russian river (out of view below the camera) in northern Sonoma county.
Switch stand: A plastic kit made by Sequoia Scale Models that to my understanding is out of business. I swap out the plastic target post with a piece of wire.
Logs: They are small branches from a Jacaranda tree that have the bark stained to look more like the bark of a Douglas fir tree. The coastal firs were massive trees and the NWP liked hauling them in gs gons. I lived in CA for awhile and had a jacaranda in my yard. Before moving I harvested what I could.

Mike