Welcome back to the gateway to the weekend from rainy, no its snow now, no wait its rain again, oh well whatever it is in Central Illinois, it is not fit for man nor beast. I'm thinking the weather this weekend may allow most of us time at the layout and or workbench so let's see what we have planned. Saturday: As mentioned, the weather here is horrendous. We have had solid rain it seems for weeks and while everyone around us has been getting snow, we have been getting rain and flooding and lots and lots of MUD. More rain is expected tomorrow with it all turning to ice by noon, so the goal is to sleep in, get up and make a pot of coffee and dig into some N scale projects. Since I cannot work on the fascia project, I'll switch gears and go back to track work on the N scale layout. I have three more servos for the turnouts I need to install. If I can get these fiddly bits behind me, I can finally start the spur work. I have three spurs to lay before I can call trackwork on this layout done. Originally, I had planned on code 40, but I still have not figured out a suitable transition from code 55 to 40 rail. I may just cheat and use code 55. The Domestic Goddess has stocked up on various items for cold weather meals so we will enjoy a nice meal whilst watching a movie as the temps outside go from 30 to 5. Sunday: The morning ritual will be the same as Saturday. Once the caffeine has had its effect on me, I hope to be looking at a layout with all servos for turnouts and spurs installed. Next will be the DCC and DC bus lines and connections to the many feeders. My goal is to run a train by the end of the weekend. The other N scale item I need to start working on is setting up my trains for Galesburg. I want to collect the locomotives and cabooses I plan to run as well as appropriate cars and check them all for weight, coupler height and such. That will help to ensure my trains are not always causing issues, after all, I model B&M, not Guilford. Temps today will be 5 degrees so another warm savory meal with a movie before we end the weekend is scheduled. So how about you? What do you have planned this weekend? Let us know. We'll assemble again on Monday morning to see how we did. Until then, have a great weekend, stay safe and as always... High Greens!
Greetings from a slowly drying out but warm McLean VA. This Weekend Priority: Putter Friday through Sunday: A little of this and that. Painting scenery: Ya, some areas could use it. Painting figures? I really want a place to put them first but maybe Industrial Area: Might spend a few hours or more arranging the track / thinking aabout structures and operations. Lots of puttering and train running.
Good morning from Northeast Ohio, so dark I don’t know if it’s cloudy or not. Right now sitting in the doctors office waiting for my wife to have her physical therapy. When we get home I may get some modeling done first by masking a 60’ auto parts car and then doing some decaling before going to bowling tonight while the high wind warning is going on. Saturday, going to the club in the morning then working on building some cars and locomotives for painting along with decaling already painted cars. Sunday, more of the same along with doing laundry and house cleaning since my wife is having trouble getting around to do any of that. Rick Jesionowski
Happy Friday all! Probably a normal day but just maybe I'll be able to knock off a few minutes early. No snow here (at least not this weekend) but we are expected to get sever storms this afternoon and evening. Like Rick, we have high wind warnings for the next 18 hours or so. Wouldn't be surprised if we get a tornado watch issued later today as well. With that all brewing there are no away from the house evening activities so that means I should be able to get down to the layout after work and spend some more time working on the fascia. Saturday, the weather is supposed to be clear and the wife has a lot of errands and things she wants us to do so probably nothing more than a little coffee and computer time in the morning while she is getting ready and then out the rest of the day. Sunday should see cool but decent weather. Coffee and a couple of routine activities early, breakfast with the wife and then instead of the normal routine, it looks like we will stay in and I'll get the better part of the day to split between the layout and doing laundry. More fascia work and might try out some new material I got to start redoing a concrete pad for a spot on the layout. Hoping for a quiet and productive day! Hope you all have a great and safe weekend!
Good mornin and Happy Friday to Y'all, Friday: (I'm "sick" again) -- so, I will continue to decal my AT&SF H12-44 -- Saturday: The same -- Hopefully start on the railings and such Sunday: Depends on what I get done on Friday and Saturday. Y'all have a great weekend, Wolf
Good morning all and Happy Weekend! Hopefully most here will get an extended weekend due to ML King Day on Monday. For the weekend, several plans involving modeling. Continuation of a few scenery projects. Take a few RR posters to a shop to have framed for the "stairwell gallery" project. Get out one of the control panel faces I had made last summer and map out wiring and mounting the panel. This pursuit is part of my new years resolution for the layout. Will probably keep up with a few college basketball games. Sunday AM we are planning on going to a very early mass at Raleigh's cathedral which was completed about 5 or 6 years ago and we haven't been there yet. Everyone have a good and peaceful weekend!
Long weekend for me. I’m kind of on call today and then have Monday off. Today, while my kids are at school and most people are at work I’m going to run out to the orange hardware chain and pick up some HCDs and lumber for my benchwork; probably hit the grocery store too. The rest of the weekend I will work on benchwork and hang out with the kids until they get bored of me. Last night I raised one of the HCD shelves from 46.5 to 54 inches to experiment and make sure I like that height before I buy and cut the lumber. Immediately fell in love with the new height. It’s going to be fine for construction and maintenance, and perfect for ops and photos. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
@MetraMan01 - I forget which side of the DMV you are on, but there are alternatives to the big boxes for building supplies. When I was in Maryland these folks were 15 minutes away - and their door and hardware collection was and still is sick - https://www.communityforklift.org/
Well... my plans are pretty simple. I've been slammed with work and personal events (like the calling hours for my best friend's mom, church meetings, etc.) both days and evenings all week. So the weekend will be consumed with trying to catch up on my homework. Sunday I'll try to grout to the train club to write a check for our 15th anniversary custom rail car kits, but I'll have to leave early for a Zoom meeting with the board of our Liberia mission. Hopefully, I can squeeze something fun in there somewhere. Sent from my SM-S901U using Tapatalk
Thanks! I’m on the VA side close to Springfield, but that looks like it’s worth the trip. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Good morning everyone, I've been working on the propane dealer and plan to continue that throughout this weekend. Finished or not, photos on Monday. Wishing you all a great weekend whatever you are doing.
Jim, I have used shims under code 55 to match the height of code 80 to transition between them. I have not used code 40 but I think the same method would work by placing a .015 shim under the code 40. Link below to a blog post I made on this. Tracks across Nevada: Connecting M/E code 55 to Atlas code 80 track (palisadecanyonrr.blogspot.com)
Friday: More rain, similar to the storm on Tuesday which caused a great deal of flooding, downed trees, and power outages. This means I will not get in the outside decorations again. The only good thing is it is supposed to be over early Saturday morning, half of the time of the previous storm. I will be monitoring the basement for water. Saturday: I need to go to the hardware store and get two basement window well covers. One of our existing ones is missing and the other is broken into pieces. When ever this happens, we can get water in the basement from the window well. My wife and I are going to try again to get out RSV shots. We failed last weekend due to the slippery conditions. Then there will be some shopping and laundry involved. Sunday. Our kids come home from their Caribbean cruise and right into temperatures below freezing. We will work on getting the Christmas decorations down. My wife and I got most of them packed in bins but since I am not allowed to carry anything heavy one them will have to help. In the modeling world I have some new rolling stock to enter into my inventory program. I am also in the process of adding the interior cardboard photos to the windows on the Ashmore Hotel. Once that is done it will be time to assemble the walls.
Lots of details to take care of on the B&M. I think we have a new Mayor of Puttering. Decaling and building. Quiet and productive is a good idea. H12-44 is in town. "Stairwell Gallery" sounds great. Many people like a higher benchwork. I am always on the outside of the DMV until I go get my driver license or tag. Uh-oh, more homework. Propane dealer pics on the way. Interior cardboard photos will make rooms look real. Hello from cold and wet North Central Alabama. Expecting eleven degrees Monday. Earlier this week I began making parts for seven turnouts. I had to fine tune them so they would fit on the module. Earlier today I made switch rods which will need to be trimmed to length. Some switch-stand bases are done as well. Still need more parts. I almost forgot Friday the Thirteenth comes on the Twelfth this month. Have a warm safe and healthy weekend.
Looks like a cold one (by our standards) here this weekend in South Texas. That'll likely keep me inside for some hobby time. Among other things, I am planning to finish up weathering this batch of cars (below) and, if the USPS pulls through, work on decals for a few Roundhouse boxcars for the operations fleet on the W&NW. So far, these have the initial gray/grime coat with airbrush.... In case you are wondering: NVL is Brad Bourbina's freelance "Neosho Valley Lines" and KMLX is my freelance "Kansas Midland Leasing" concept for service on the Wichita & Northwestern (W&NW). Hope you stay warm and have a good one, -Bob T.
Cold here, too. By reputation it is not supposed to get this cold in NW Washington. But here we are. Recovery from surgery is going very well. Still restricted to lifting 20 pounds or less. That ruled out a couple activities for the weekend. My new heater for the garage has arrived which opens up other possibilities. I don't have a daily schedule, but here is what I hope to accomplish by Monday night: Rearrange some workbench modules to return the workshop, aka spare bedroom, to useable configuration. Sharon has offered to help, and keep an eye on, me so I don't overdo it. If done right, it will enable: Turn a new air assist nozzle for the laser engraver. Modify the laser module housing for better performance. Cut the final version of disc driver inserts for UP 2295. Prime those inserts. Create an outline drawing of 2295 to guide boiler and dome design. Adjust boiler proportions to match outline. Turn prototype sand and steam domes. At least one of the steps involved will require some skill development on my part. Time expectations should be liberal. Fabricate new truck bolsters for 2295's tender. If I get that far, several things will be drying, curing or setting. Meaning I will be waiting before moving on. It will also mean I am quite happy. Let's just wait and see how far I get. Pictures no matter what. Stay safe,
This weekend is another "special weather statement" weekend. That's the jargon used by Environment Canada to describe messy weather. There will be snow, rain, and maybe in between, sleet. They don't know exactly how much of what (do they ever?). I prefer more of what doesn't need a shovel. Basically, one big bleeping weather smorgasbord. I can make a mean smorgasbord too, but it tastes much better. At least I'll have an excuse to use my new slicer and dicer (it's the air oven/fryer's fault I bought that ). When I'm not shoveling or eating something delicious: Find an unsuspecting piece of land to use my static grass applicator. Clean the track some more. Find an unsuspecting kit to assemble. Fix things. To do all that I'll need to keep my fingers out of my slicer/dicer...
My brother was released from the hospital and seems to be on the mend. We made arrangements for him to fly to other family in Florida. He's headed there as a type this. We arrived safely to our winter place, last few hours of the drive were nerve wracking with heavy rain and so many semis creating rolling roadblocks. Sadly though, we ran out of space in the Volvo, and the tool chest I assembled with some locos and cars, Kato Unitrack, powerpack and accessories didn't make the cut. I guess no modeling this winter. But then there's always the possibility of finding a bargain on some second hand N or even Horribly Oversized stuff. HO might actually be a better match for the garage. Lori says there's no way I'm taking over the den or guest room for trains, since I already commandeered the entire basement of our main home. I'll be lurking until I have any train themed reason to contribute. See you all around... Ron
