Weekend Update 6/12/22

[up1950s]

https://www.trains.com/trn/news-reviews/news-wire/railroading-heritage-of-midwest-america-union-pacific-agree-to-donation-of-challenger-other-locomotives-cars/

https://www.up.com/media/releases/challenger-3985-donation-nr-220428.htm

https://railfan.com/up-donates-two-steam-locomotives-to-non-profit-challenger-to-run-again/

https://steamgiants.com/steam-news/up-donates-challenger-3985/

https://rrhma.com/up-donation/

https://www.american-rails.com/3985.html

https://www.energy.gov/sites/prod/files/2019/04/f62/fcto-h2-at-rail-workshop-2019-hoffrichter.pdf

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https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2021/05/12/tour-the-mountains-by-rail-in-the-1956-pontiac-fairmont-hy-rail-18-replica

[Dave V]

Built the McCarville Studios/Banta Modelworks HO scale RGS Ridgway office kit. The kit has thick resin walls and typical Banta layered laser-cut windows and doors and paper shingles. I narrowed the platform by half to fit my space. I had to do some "editing" of the existing yard trackage at Ridgway to make it work (chopping off one siding and extending another).

[bbussey]

Been working this week with the Uno controller board for animation projects.  Earlier this week, I debugged an occupancy detection circuit for my hidden trackage on the B&NL.  Now, I've got the sound effects working for the Brooklyn 4am module, with illuminated momentary push buttons turning sound effects (and light effects eventually) on and off.  Each effect also has a duration ceiling, which when hit will turn off the sound and the button LED.  I have the controller programmed to handle four sound effects.  The is the music for the rave party in an abandoned warehouse.  Barking dogs and ambient city noise are two companion sounds, haven't finalized the fourth sound yet.

This is the debugged test circuit with the rave soundtrack.  The base is over-modulated to simulate hearing the music from the outside.

[C855B]

I'm highly skeptical of all of it.

For one, 3985 was extensively cannibalized to restore 4014. UP may have donated the used parts, but there is more shop and machine work than you can shake a stick at to fix what was pulled off of 4014. 5511 is highly unlikely to see operation anywhere. Multiple high-ups (and retirees) in UP's heritage department directly told me that it beat up track so badly back in the day that current engineering management would let it operate on UP rails only over their dead bodies, the "NO!" was that adamant.

Then there's 6936. I didn't read anywhere that there were plans for it be put back in operation as part of this deal. It's been in mothballs for quite a while; granted, I haven't had contact with Heritage managers for about five years, but I wouldn't be surprised a bit that important pieces were "borrowed" by North Platte to keep early SD40-2s going.

Please, somebody with better/more current info prove me wrong. 

[wazzou]

All I’ve heard that sounds reasonable is that they intend to do the oil conversion and rebuild of 4014’s tender and reunite it with the #4014 so that #3985’s tender can be mated back with it.

[BCR 570]

After several years of preparatory work, I finally have the parts for the final instalment of my Prince George Auxiliary:  the 150-Ton Industrial Brownhoist diesel crane.  One of only three such cranes built by the company, it now resides at the museum in Squamish.  After surveying and photographing the crane and creating scale drawings with my measurements, Jeff Briggs is producing the crane as a limited run 3D printed kit which is now available on his website.  After working with several early iterations of the parts, I now have the final set of parts:




I started work on the chassis, adding the various grab irons which are included on an etched fret, creating cut levers from brass wire, and adding a Gold Medal Models brake wheel:






The chassis takes Micro-Trains #1015 couplers and rides on Micro-Trains Buckeye trucks which I have equipped with Fox Valley 28" wheels.  The cab and boom are next.


Tim

[nkalanaga]

Another picture from my narrow gauge.  Here's West Ridge Railway #2 and a loaded coal gon crossing state highway 601 at the west end of Moria.  Revenue coal cars are all steel hoppers, or side-dump gons, from various sources.  A few of these ex-D&RGW cars are kept for company coal service to make the railfans happy.  As there's usually a car parked at the coal tower in Moria, next to the highway, it was felt that the older cars would look better there.  The preserved steam-era rolling stock also comes in handy for movie/TV filming.



The diesel is a Republic Locomotive Works Davenport body on a Marklin chassis, and runs surprisingly well.  It's 31 years old, having entered service in May 1991.

The gon is styrene, with Detail Associates brake cylinder and brake wheel, and KD/MT trucks and couplers.  I have no idea when it was built, but probably in the mid to late 80s, so could very well have Kadee-branded parts.

[hegstad1]

I need a depot for Garrison, MT.  I may scratch one at some point in the future but for now, it's a kit bash.

[chuck geiger]

Andrew do you need that depot? Brick style ATSF? I have one we could trade? Don't need it, I did the same thing, thought it
would work for Hemet and didn't - My stand in is MP Erie Station until I build it. Love what you did with the last depot.

[Jim Starbuck]

After several years of preparatory work, I finally have the parts for the final instalment of my Prince George Auxiliary:  the 150-Ton Industrial Brownhoist diesel crane.  One of only three such cranes built by the company, it now resides at the museum in Squamish.  After surveying and photographing the crane and creating scale drawings with my measurements, Jeff Briggs is producing the crane as a limited run 3D printed kit which is now available on his website.  After working with several early iterations of the parts, I now have the final set of parts.


I started work on the chassis, adding the various grab irons which are included on an etched fret, creating cut levers from brass wire, and adding a Gold Medal Models brake wheel:


The chassis takes Micro-Trains #1015 couplers and rides on Micro-Trains Buckeye trucks which I have equipped with Fox Valley 28" wheels.  The cab and boom are next.


Tim

I’ll be following this with great interest Tim.
The print looks great.

Jim

[Jim Starbuck]

Another picture from my narrow gauge.  Here's West Ridge Railway #2 and a loaded coal gon crossing state highway 601 at the west end of Moria.  Revenue coal cars are all steel hoppers, or side-dump gons, from various sources.  A few of these ex-D&RGW cars are kept for company coal service to make the railfans happy.  As there's usually a car parked at the coal tower in Moria, next to the highway, it was felt that the older cars would look better there.  The preserved steam-era rolling stock also comes in handy for movie/TV filming.



The diesel is a Republic Locomotive Works Davenport body on a Marklin chassis, and runs surprisingly well.  It's 31 years old, having entered service in May 1991.

The gon is styrene, with Detail Associates brake cylinder and brake wheel, and KD/MT trucks and couplers.  I have no idea when it was built, but probably in the mid to late 80s, so could very well have Kadee-branded parts.

That scene is outstanding!
I’m loving the Davenport.

Jim

[mu26aeh]

Getting closer to modeling/layout building.  2nd coat of paint on the walls, installed new window and rehanging my ceiling grid that had to cone down to put walls up.

[bnsfdash8]

Inspired by another Stewart crane build I decided to give it a try myself.

I designed a new frame for it with a slot for a motor and the use of Kato caboose trucks.

I'm not sure yet how I'll improve the body, but I'll get to that once I get the motor where it needs to be and running somewhat decent.

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[Jim Starbuck]

Inspired by another Stewart crane build I decided to give it a try myself.

I designed a new frame for it with a slot for a motor and the use of Kato caboose trucks.

I'm not sure yet how I'll improve the body, but I'll get to that once I get the motor where it needs to be and running somewhat decent.

I’ll be following your crane build with interest as well Reese.
Beautiful job on the chassis. Very cool!
When I built mine I glued the car body floor to the sides then cut the floor all out flush with the inside of the sides. Leaving the roof off worked well to see how everything fit up inside. Once the motor and electronics were fit up I glued the roof to the sides so the carbody was then treated like a regular shell. It’s held to the chassis with screws from the underside tapped into the metal carbody.

Jim

[packers#1]

Now that I’ve got the layout back up, I’ve been playing around with running switching ops and figuring out where I’d prefer to have my two main industries. I think I’ve settled on having the plastic film plant that takes up the bulk of the switching along the run around, with the scrap paper warehouse down at the end of a long spur. In the photo below, you can see the spur just barely holds five hoppers; I’ll be swapping a few pieces of Unitrak around to lengthen it slightly and move it further back to let the scenic elements work. I’ll be off the start of the week and hopefully will get my engineering report updated during that time!