Weekend Update 5/5/19

[Cajonpassfan]

Cajonpassfan:  Those pictures look like the trains in Pasco in the mid-70s.  That's one of the reasons I model 1974.

Part of it is practical.  In the early 70s N scale models of Northwest prototypes were fairly rare.  By modeling the BN and Amtrak, I could use a much wider variety of equipment than if I modeled the GN or NP.

Yes, Tim does a great job recreating the area scenery and consists. The layout is mostly single track main from Seattle (staging) to Spokane (staging), with a big yard at Elliott and a handful of small towns with passing sidings and industries typical of the region providing for lots of operating fun. The railroad is fully signaled and is controlled by a CTC board and a dispatcher via radios. And, being a retired locomotive engineer of forty plus years, his ops scheme is quite realistic without being overly rigid or anal as sometimes can be the case with guys who take this stuff very seriously.
Looking  back at it, it was a very interesting time; note the clearance card for my Amtrak train dated May 4, 1976.
Fun stuff, and I'm learning a lot of things applicable to my own layout.
Otto

[cbroughton67]

I've been making some scenery headway on my "Cramped & Crooked" FreeMoN module. Now that I have most of the structures built to varying degrees of completion, I've been able to work out their placement, and start adding ground cover. It's still very much a work in progress, but it seems to go so much faster when he ground cover goes down.


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[Onizukachan]

[ Guests cannot view attachments ] I bought some 1/2” x15 3/4” x 8’ melamine shelves and pink foam, thinking I can run back to back with add on loops, or point to run end to end with turning loops. I’ve got long trains, and no train room, so these will be placed down on the living room floor like I did as a kid in the 80s or atop sawhorses perhaps, and then put away when not in use.

Eventually when we move in a year or so, I will have a train room and can use these two “modules”  as the start of a round the walls layout, but for now it’s the best I can do, aside from part of a V6 set on the kitchen table!

Initial idea was to do the pictured track, bay and dunes in the arc, start of housing where indicated, small orange grove that hasn’t yet been sold to a developer on the same location opposite end. Sort of a stylized Santa Clause beach area but I am thinking I might want to do double main to avoid needing to run an psx1 and PSX Ar



The other board would be double as a passings siding but for it I am thinking more of the cliffs further down the coast, and a spur to access my warehouse and maybe another small industry / offloading point.

What do you guys think, do the psxAR and just build detachable turning loops?  Essentially I went with 8ft so each board could contain an entire train (daylight is about that length.) or go double track and avoid the headache? 

[thomasjmdavis]

What is it?

@mark dance  @Iain

Its a DCC++ base station- see here
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJmvQx-fe0OMAIH-_g-_rZw/videos

Software is here: https://github.com/DccPlusPlus?tab=repositories

I built the "mega" version.  Note if you do this the video has an error as far as pins are concerned- there is a note on the page with the video (or to save you looking it up, the jumper goes between pins 2 and 13 (I think the video says 4 and 13)

For the moment, using my PC as a controller.  There is software for this shown on the link above as well.  The software is specific to his layout (although as I learn more about Arduinos and Java, I may be able to make it specific to my layout), so I am planning to use JMRI if I can get it to run on my Linux OS (Zorin).  Working on it.  It should also be possible to make it work with a conventional hand held throttle.

It provides 2 outputs, one for track power and one for a programming track. 

With the current hardware, it will allow for 2 amps output per channel (the programming channel could be used as another regular track power channel with a bit of software modification.  However, once I get a better handle on programming, I could upgrade the "motor shield" (the smaller circuit board on top) and install a board that would allow for 5 or 8 amps of output.

This is the outcome of a Christmas present from my son, who is an electrical/electronic engineer- and Arduino experiment kit.  So this is my first project.  Learning as I go.  But while relatively low power (2 amps) it is a functional DCC base station.

[peteski]

Well, I suffered a big fail when trying to install a Loksound Select Direct into an Atlas B23-7. One that may cost me an expensive decoder. 

I am following the instructions from here: https://www.trainboard.com/highball/index.php?threads/my-first-esu-loksound-install.120015/. It looks like this gentleman was able to install the decoder without having to do any cutting of the frame. However, when I tried...




There is a tiny cylindrical component (resistor?) that is supposed to go on the solder pads that I circled. I think it got knocked loose when I tightened the frame halves. Unfortunately, I did not notice it came loose until I tried using my LokProgrammer to check for new firmware. I heard about two or three irregular beep noises coming from the before I could cancel it.  I did not see or smell any smoke and I was able to recover the resistor. My hope is that I can solder it back in place and the decoder will still be salvageable. In any case, I will need to break out the Dremel and do a little trimming.

Yes, it is a resistor and if you are lucky, you should be able to re-solder it.  I too was surprised that they used a cylindrical (not flat SMD chip) resistor. IIRC, it is 22 ohm (you can check the color bands, if curious).  I suspect they used that type of resistor because it probably has a higher power dissipation rating than an equivalent flat resistor of he same footprint.

And in my typical crumodgen way I like to mention that this post would be a better fit for the DCC section of the forum (since this is a decoder problem and if someone has a similar problem in the future, this info would likely be easier to locate in the DCC forum). That is my logic.

[bnsfdash8]

Another NS B40-8W in the works.

[John]

Working on the Battalion ..

[Iain]

@mark dance  @Iain

Its a DCC++ base station- see here
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJmvQx-fe0OMAIH-_g-_rZw/videos

Software is here: https://github.com/DccPlusPlus?tab=repositories

I built the "mega" version.  Note if you do this the video has an error as far as pins are concerned- there is a note on the page with the video (or to save you looking it up, the jumper goes between pins 2 and 13 (I think the video says 4 and 13)

For the moment, using my PC as a controller.  There is software for this shown on the link above as well.  The software is specific to his layout (although as I learn more about Arduinos and Java, I may be able to make it specific to my layout), so I am planning to use JMRI if I can get it to run on my Linux OS (Zorin).  Working on it.  It should also be possible to make it work with a conventional hand held throttle.

It provides 2 outputs, one for track power and one for a programming track. 

With the current hardware, it will allow for 2 amps output per channel (the programming channel could be used as another regular track power channel with a bit of software modification.  However, once I get a better handle on programming, I could upgrade the "motor shield" (the smaller circuit board on top) and install a board that would allow for 5 or 8 amps of output.

This is the outcome of a Christmas present from my son, who is an electrical/electronic engineer- and Arduino experiment kit.  So this is my first project.  Learning as I go.  But while relatively low power (2 amps) it is a functional DCC base station.

My singular complaint is there doesn't seem to be a schematic that I can find.  I don't want to watch an assembly video, I just want a schematic

Edit:  Oh, you can just use a motor shield.

Welp, I just ordered an Arduino Uno and a Motor Shield

[Brian M]

I've been a little too busy to accomplish any real modeling lately.  But I did take my wife and daughter with me to go witness some railroad history yesterday...


Shot above was at Tie Siding, and the one below was a spot a bit northwest of Laramie.  It was incredible, and I can't wait to see it again, whenever that may be.



-Brian.

[nkalanaga]

Cajonpassfan:  He does go all the way for realism.  Are those actual BN forms, or has he recreated and printed them?

The last line on the message looks a little odd.  "See no failure to comply to comply with these instructions."?

[paggs]

Mark,
Great to meet you at the 7th Div PNR in Vancouver today. Great clinic on the Slocan sub. Had a great time to share the RMIM at the meet. My quest is still out for a vote about, building a Procter module. I'll think about it this summer>  keep in touch.

MP

[nscalbitz]

(Attachment Link) ...
What do you guys think, do the ...?

I'd wanna make sure the pixie under the table doesn't turn into a troll before anything else____   
cheers

[up1950s]

Great op session today with fifteen other guys  on Tim Dickinson's colorful BN HO layout set in the mid-seventies. At the time, I thought Amtrak "pointless arrow" scheme was ugly, but today, well, it was quite enjoyable to run the "rainbow express" and other trains,  a collection of multiple schemes and prototypes, through beautifully done Pacific Northwest scenery.
Very nice.
Otto K.
https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?action=dlattach;topic=47070.0;attach=28108;image

I love the end of yard berm , very very nice .

[up1950s]

Worked a bit on my horse barn. A little weathering and added a ranch hand -- holding the horse by the nose.

I plan on adding "road apples" in the corral at some point. And water and feed troughs.



Thanks,
Wolf

Unique detail Sir , love it . Painted solder splats might work for the poop . You could glue un melted bits of .032 solder to the splats to give that special " I wasn't moving when I did it " pile .                     .

[Maletrain]

Having shoveled a good bit of horse manure (literally as well as figuratively), I don't agree that horses go "splat" like cows do. 

Horse "road apples" are just sticky brown pellets maybe a couple of inches in diameter, which, for N scale, is only 0.0125".  They are typically left in a pile somewhere around 1' in diameter, with some pellets loose and separated.  They tend to get separated as they are kicked around, later.  So, some dusty pellets scattered around a paddock are typical. 

For N scale, I am thinking coffee grounds, with a little attention to the grind to get a believable size, plus some diluted white glue to keep the piles together and the separated ones tacked down.