Me too ! I am left eye dominant and this is making life miserable. I have one last eye appt in August. If no improvement they will prescribe glasses. Already told the doc that i dont care if they cut the bottom out of a Coke bottle and use it...as long as I can see again!
Just about completed the box cabs with dull coating and window glazing left. I also redid the decals on an earlier box cab that is in black paint. All three now await some Bandai #5 mechanisms from Japan. Those are 8 wheel pick-up and 8 wheel drive mechanisms which I believe are made by Tomix for Bandai. 000_0329-3 by John Moore posted Jul 11, 2018 at 7:14 PM
The Bandai 8 wheel drive mechanisms arrived from Japan and I am now doing final fitting into the box cabs. I also added a small amount of weight to each shell being careful to balance them. These Bandai mechanisms come without side frames the side frames being part of their locomotive or self propelled car kits. Those kits provide extra sideframes giving one the option on which to use of at least two different types. So I had a bin full of the unused sideframes. I am using just a small touch of Walthers Goo to secure the mechanisms but not enough to interfere with getting the mechanisms out if I need to. So the first one is ready sitting upside down while the Goo sets up and the 2nd mechanism is ready to fit with side frames. These mechanisms come with Rapido couplers but can be fitted with MT T shanks 1128-1129-1130 or Kato couplers all of which are simple drop ins. These mechanisms as I have said before are all wheel pick-up and all four axles geared with one traction tire. They have excellent throttle response and a nice slow speed. Several years ago I tested a mechanism without weights or a shell and it pulled 20 cars on a flat and level and up a 2% grade. This mechanism can run flat out at scale bullet train speed if it was used for the Bandai models of that train. So it has quite a speed range. The black box cab is slated for the port area switcher while the two green ones will be run as a pair as road freight power. My layout is DC but these could be converted to DCC but it will be a challenge due to the small size. 000_0335-3 by John Moore posted Jul 16, 2018 at 6:47 PM
I used a Bandai 3 powered chassis in my Milwaukee Electric Light and Power L4. It pulls 20 cars without a problem. Amazing for such a small engine. These are very nice mechanisms right out of the box. I also wired mine with a Digitrax DZ126t decoder. I don’t recall it being especially difficult to hardwire because there was plenty of room under the shell.
I am using both the Bandai 3 and the 5 mechanisms in various things and because of there relatively low profiles they fit much better than the Kato mechanisms and leave more room at the top to fit other things in like a decoder and wiring. And both mechanisms out pull the usual Kato mechanism mainly because of the all axle drive where the Kato is only two axle drive. I have heard that Kato has finally come out with a four axle drive but I have yet to find anybody carrying them.
Turnouts! I decided to handlay my turnouts using Peco code 80 rail (as Peco flextrack is easily available here) and last night, finished my first one. No special tools; a template, a soldering iron, a handful of files, and several track gauges! It works fine, in spite of not being pretty; micro trains trucks glide through! I need to work on my soldering skills i think.
Maybe I am getting too many N Scale Pacific Electric interurbans...still trying to finish up 1124 and 1445, and I just picked up a a Portland Twelve and a Hollywood Car...today I received a 500 and a 1000....I need 4 more Tomix chassis and 7 pairs of poles.....I have located a 3D printed source of poles in France....my wife is going to kill me....
Why not try my "Green Max" power chassis. You can cut the power chassis to fit. Here's the link — https://www.ebay.com/itm/323401395498 — Mike B
I Bought THE farm.... Laser cut farm buildings. It comes with 5 buildings but I only have room for the 3 most important; Barn...Tractor Shed....Chicken Coop. The other shed and smoke house I will use later down on the 'Homestead'. Tough build...especially with only one eye working It took me a week to build 3 buildings But THE Horse Boarding Ranch is starting to look like one Still have the 3 rail fence to plant...but that is a story for another time.
Yup...its by Laser-Art. A real nice kit...real bad for the eyes with all those really small parts. It just takes patience...which I have little of waiting yet another month for my cataract surgery. Grrrrrrrrr
I didnt like their black paper rolled roofing. I have sheets of 1200 W/D sanpaper. I made my own roofing and will scribe in lines with an old dull Xacto blade One good thing about using the real fine sandpaper...if you want to 'weather' the roof...just rub your finger over it
Looks great. I like how the sand paper worked out for the roof. Now you just need to paint "See Rock City" on the roof.
I’m working on a Showcase Miniatures kit, The Tom Yorke Depot at Frijole Flats. It’s been a fun build so far
I have a Life-Like Alco PA with the plastic frame on the bench. I have it apart while I figure out how to do a DCC + sound install in it. The wiring looks pretty straightforward, but the packaging? Not so much...
