Weekend Update 2/18/24

[Lemosteam]

These are very evocative of on-the-fringes businesses pretty much anywhere in the country, especially 1950-1970. I can almost hear the tinkle-tinkle of the door annunciator bell on the speed shop/former gas station. Great job.

Thanks Mike. Still deciding on placement for it on the layout. I had it under the elevated tracks, but the concrete floor makes it too high, now

[John]

The Baltimore, Rock Island, and Northern, aka the BRIAN railroad, came in to some more power recently. U25B #234, GP-7 4446, and GP40 #361 are seen here holding their respective trains in the yard. 234 and 4446 may look familiar to those keeping score at home, as they came from Allen's Little Rock Line. @Bendtracker1

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Those ROCK's rock

[craigolio1]

I’ve been away from modelling for a few months prepping for a promotional exam at work, but stepped away for the weekend and took in the train show in Barrie, Ontario with @CNR5529. We ran into a bunch of others we know and found some great deals. Was also able to connect with an old friend I haven't seen in a while and stopped by his house to see how his empire is going. He’s not on here but guys in the BCR/PGE community would know him. Mike Lawrence.

He’s made some great progress modelling a 1950’s PGE layout, based on the PGE mainline from Squamish to Lillooet, BC. With his permission, here are some photos.

As you all know I have a thing for bridges so we’ll start there. Some will recognize the Cheakamous Canyon.





He’s started on a nice mill scene.



Anderson and Seton Lakes with the portage at the end.



And I can’t recall the name of this power house but it’ll be familiar to those who know the line (Tim?)



This is the Lillooet end of the line. Squamish is underneath this but is not yet built.



And the two levels are connected with this finely constructed helix.



It’s DC with blocks and runs quite well. Mike says he he has lots to do yet but as you can see things are well in the way.

It was a real treat to join him for the tour.

Craig.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Where am I?

Heaven??

[BCR 570]

I’ve been away from modelling for a few months prepping for a promotional exam at work, but stepped away for the weekend and took in the train show in Barrie, Ontario with @CNR5529. We ran into a bunch of others we know and found some great deals. Was also able to connect with an old friend I haven't seen in a while and stopped by his house to see how his empire is going. He’s not on here but guys in the BCR/PGE community would know him. Mike Lawrence.

I remember Mike well from his visit to our convention in 2012.  He submitted photos of his layout for our virtual layout tours and he has definitely made a lot of progress since then.

The power house would be the Bridge River complex near Shalalth on Seton Lake.

Please  say hi for me!


Tim

[craigolio1]

I remember Mike well from his visit to our convention in 2012.  He submitted photos of his layout for our virtual layout tours and he has definitely made a lot of progress since then.

The power house would be the Bridge River complex near Shalalth on Seton Lake.

Please  say hi for me!


Tim

I knew you would know. Haha.

Speaking of Shalalth, he did the car loading siding at the station as well. It’s a neat scene. Lots of great signature scenes that give that PGE flavour.

Will do!

Craig

[PiperguyUMD]

After much hemming and hawing I pulled the trigger on the cheapest XY drill press vice on amazon.



It is cheap, sloppy, and perfect for N scale trains! I'm not going to attempt any serious precision work with this but this has allowed me to get a small backlog of projects moving.

I've milled a flat spot on the tender frame of the Y6b for true scale couplers,


the frame for my chop nose GP7,


and the sides of the frame under the firebox on my WM K2 4-6-2.

 
If you've been on the fence about one of these, I say go for it!

[C855B]

Heaven??

Gawd. Not a couple of weeks ago. That area was clobbered by the serial storms. Don't know of specific damage in this spot, but I'll bet the furniture was shuffled around... provided it's still there! 

[Roger Holmes]

Thank you all for your very kind comments.  I am in awe of this week's Update which featured sub-miniature electronic in a first generation passenger car, 3-D printing including T scale gems, custom painting, narrow gauge and so many other skills that I don't posses.  I love building structures but I am running out of room.  I had more basement dug in 2004 but I am getting too old to do that again.

Peteski,  here is the CTA Kedzie Avenue Bus Garage that you did the decals for since these certainly weren't available off the shelf.  The building started life as a Walthers HO White Tower restaurant.





boB Knight-- the arched windows that you asked about are simply an overlay of Holgate and Reynold brick sheet that I did many years ago.  The building is the old Chicago Traffic Court building that I was very familiar with.  They sent us down-state judges to Chicago to help with the backlog.  I was always first in line to volunteer for a two-week stint since my Mother was still living then in the NW suburbs, I could visit my favorite downtown restaurants and even took in some musical theater and a few Cubs games.  All I had to do during the day was move people though the system as quickly as possible.  My most memorable day was 2,100+



After posting this photo the other night I noticed all of the figures piled on the roof.  Not a part of the real building, just a handy place to put all of the pedestrians that I knock over every time I re-arrange the downtown buildings.  When I bother to change the watch batteries the clocks actually work.  I leave the battery out of one to realistically represent the one clock on the real building which never worked.

[PGE_Modeller]

I’ve been away from modelling for a few months prepping for a promotional exam at work, but stepped away for the weekend and took in the train show in Barrie, Ontario with @CNR5529. We ran into a bunch of others we know and found some great deals. Was also able to connect with an old friend I haven't seen in a while and stopped by his house to see how his empire is going. He’s not on here but guys in the BCR/PGE community would know him. Mike Lawrence.

He’s made some great progress modelling a 1950’s PGE layout, loosely based on the PGE mainline from Squamish to Lillooet, BC. With his permission, here are some photos.

As you all know I have a thing for bridges so we’ll start there. Some will recognize the Cheakamous Canyon.





He’s started on a nice mill scene.



Anderson and Seton Lakes with the portage at the end.



And I can’t recall the name of this power house but it’ll be familiar to those who know the line (Tim?)



This is the Lillooet end of the line. Squamish is underneath this but is not yet built.



And the two levels are connected with this finely constructed helix.



It’s DC with blocks and runs quite well. Mike says he he has lots to do yet but as you can see things are well in the way.

It was a real treat to join him for the tour.

Craig.

To amplify a bit on Craig's description of Mike Lawrence's 1950 era PGE layout, Photo 1 shows the Mile 19 crossing of the Cheakamus River with the North end of the Mile 18 bridge showing (there is about a mile of track and two other bridges missing).  Photo 2 is the Mile 18 bridge on the side hill of the Cheakamus Canyon (470 ft long, 12 degree curve, 2.2% grade).  Photo 3 shows a typical sawmill along the PGE but could very well represent Andy Devine's Blackwater Timber operation at Mile 83 with its typical beehive burner.  The tunnel in Photo 4 appears to be patterned after a short tunnel at Mile 88, just North of D'Arcy.  As Tim (BCR520) has pointed out, the powerhouse in Photo 5 represents the BC Electric Company's Bridge River development at Shalalth (Mile 105), while Photo 6 represents Lillooet, the North end of the Squamish Subdivision and the Evans Co. mill at the South end of town.

Cheers,
Greg 

[wm3798]

I love what you've done to the place!
(from my trip to Chi Town in 2021)

[Ed Kapuscinski]

I spent Saturday chasing the Northern Central's "Wine and Cheese Train".

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Then I caught the Conrail local coming back from Feezer Foods before heading home.

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[mu26aeh]

Doing some more contract work for the Reading & Lehigh.  They bought a couple of ex Boston & Maine RS3s.  But the new railroad is power short so it's a quick patch out and renumber for these 2 so they can get out on the rails.  Besides, the superintendent likes the Maroon and gold paint scheme.

[Scott1984]

Finished up some mine tunnels this week in the mining section of the layout.





Still have 2 more tunnels to do and add more lighting. Thanks

[peteski]

After much hemming and hawing I pulled the trigger on the cheapest XY drill press vice on amazon.



It is cheap, sloppy, and perfect for N scale trains! I'm not going to attempt any serious precision work with this but this has allowed me to get a small backlog of projects moving.

Being sloppy is the least of your worries. Larger drill presses (like yours) usually use Jacobs taper mount for chucks.  They are *NOT* designed to handle lateral loads of milling. I recommend  reading https://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=54357.msg745633#msg745633 and the subsequent posts from multiple members (not just me).  Be careful, and good luck!