MODELING It's Monday, January 25th 2021: Weekend Modeling Accomplishments

Jim Wiggin Jan 25, 2021

  1. Jim Wiggin

    Jim Wiggin Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Welcome back everyone. I hope you had a great weekend and got a lot done.

    Saturday: Since I was able to leave work earlier then expected Friday, I started my weekend by getting the rest of the outdoor Christmas lights taken down and put away. Saturday I worked on the office/studio as well as enjoyed some down time, reading about small industries that may work for the N scale layout. I finished the day by researching more NH towns to see if they would be a suitable modeling location for my criteria. Short answer, no luck. At this point I'm hoping by the spring of 2025 I may lay track.

    Sunday: After Saturday's frustration, I took it easy by building a movable wall to use on the many upcoming live streams for work. We have a few virtual train shows coming up so the studio is going to look more like a train show booth. I relaxed a bit as well and went antique shopping with the wife. I guess that is a sign now that I'm old as we both enjoy finding small treasures tucked away in an antique mall. I finished the day by finishing up the studio and called it a day.

    So how about you? What did you accomplish? Let us know. We'll come back and do it all over again on Friday the 29th and officially have the last January weekend. Until then, have a great week, be safe, stay healthy and as always...

    High Greens!
     
  2. mrhedley

    mrhedley TrainBoard Member

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    Much of the weekend was devoted to the bathroom renovation. The recent renovation resulted in a leaking drain into the garage ceiling. The contractor set the floor over cement board and built it up in the traditional method using tile and mortar, but despite several attempts at caulking and sealing could not solve a small leak. So the floor and base have been ripped out, and I'm in the process of laying down a floor kit of molded foam that will be the base for a new tile floor. I wish I knew about this a year ago. Would have saved time and tons of money.

    As for modeling, not much in the way of work on the layout. But the Chiefs so easily handled the Bills, that I spent most of the game playing with RailCad and coming up with a new design for the industrial area of the layout. It is loosely modeled after a real location in my hometown, but of course the prototype extended over a couple of miles that could not be easily downsized, and I wanted to add some switching variety. This is the latest design. The roadways in the upper corner didn't scale in correct proportion to the image size. The pink line is a backdrop/divider between sections of the layout. I'll try to get a few pictures of the area posted later on for better perspective, and to show what models are being used to represent the industries.

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  3. SP-Wolf

    SP-Wolf TrainBoard Supporter

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    Our Anniversary weekend went very well- Thanks to Y'all for the Happy Anniversary greetings.

    I re-layed Oxnard depot's spur track.

    And - I made great progress in decaling my FT project.

    Hope Y'all had a great weekend,
    Wolf
     
  4. Kitbash

    Kitbash TrainBoard Supporter

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    Got a few things done, not all that I wanted.
    1. Did manage to get all the labeling done for all wire/terminals below the future coal branch. The PDO3-AT is a terminal shown below. "PowerDistrict 03-Allegheny Tunnel" is a typical naming convention I use.
    2. Tuned up a few cars on the workbench. Coupler height issues, bolster screw adjustments, that sort of thing.
    3. Got mortar into the Highland Paint Co. building. The mortar still needs some clean up as do the corners. Got about 40% of the windows put in.

    [​IMG] [​IMG]
     

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    Last edited: Jan 25, 2021
  5. Tompm

    Tompm TrainBoard Supporter

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    Friday, we had a pest control guy out to deal with squirrels in one of our eaves. Saturday slept in late and had to make a run to PetSmart for prescription dog food and to CVS to pick up syringes for the dog. He has diabetes. Sunday was doing laundry and giving the range top and hood a heavy cleaning.

    No modeling for show this weekend. Everything was behind the scenes. My son and I went over the track plan for the layout remake. I took an inventory of what track I had and compared it to what we need. I have about 90% of the track but no switches. I spent Saturday evening trying to track down Code 100 #4, #6, and #8 turnouts. I had to make four separate orders for about half of what is needed. After seeing what was available and prices decided to do one track loop with all needed turnouts. This way I can run trains and expand as I get more materials.

    I looked over how I am going to expand the width of the layout. I figured out what lumber I need and how much along with pink foam boards. I need to head over the Home Depot this week and buy it.

    Several Model Railroader books on trackside industries arrived over the weekend. I read the one titled, “Milk Trains and Traffic.” It was very informative read. We are going to need to change a few things on the new layout. I have the Walthers Brook Hill Dairy and now we know better where to place it. I will need a couple of milk platforms. This also boasts the need for a team track or two in the city section. I now have a possible operations scheme to work with some night.

    The other books I got are “Guide to Industries: Livestock & Meatpacking,” “Produce Trains and Traffic,” “Express, Mail & Merchandise Service,” and “The Model Railroaders Guide to Grain.” To help with the construction of the layout I also got “Modeling Cities and Towns,” and “Space-Saving Industries for your Layout.”
     
  6. Philip H

    Philip H TrainBoard Member

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    Win some, loose some.

    I got all the tubs down to remove the Christmas Decorations inside but we made no further progress. Spent yesterday helping a friend install a new fifth wheel in the bed of his pick up truck, and managed to cajole the kids into clean rooms . . . . I also dealt with some garage organization issues - I can now walk to the door and the workbench successfully and safely.

    My oldest daughter is nursing her wounds from the Bills loss - which we watched. Oh well. Maybe there will be trains next week.
     
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  7. nscalestation

    nscalestation TrainBoard Supporter

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    My weekend went along just about as planned. Both thru truss bridges for my current layout expansion got some work in preparation to being installed on the layout. In this photo the bridge that will be at the rear of the scene got it's track installed.

    TBWMA24Jan21b.jpg

    Also continued to add scenery material and got a final coat of black / blue green acrylic on the river followed by a coat of gloss medium. Between rainstorms while waiting for things to dry I went for a couple of long walks to get some exercise.

    TBWMA24Jan21a.jpg
     
  8. logging loco

    logging loco TrainBoard Supporter

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    I finished a few things on the KISS list but I think my layout building is about to take a turn in another direction.

    SATURDAY
    1. Fixed wind damaged driveway gate and repaired broken pickets. The whole fence needs replaced but it is 18" from road, in the easement and grandfathered. Township won't let me tear it down and replace it, but I can "maintain" it. I'm going to replace it a picket at a time this year.
    2. Made one of two replacement legs for old workbench and cut plywood to reinforce top. It got too cold so knocked off out side.
    3. Organized storage shelves in cellar engle nook.
    4. Cleaned up modeling bench and room. I had it all nice and neat for about two minutes. Then I decided to remove an old hutch that just collects junk.
    5. Emptied IKEA computer hutch and started to disassemble it.
    SUNDAY, very cold and blustery so I stayed in.
    1. Finished disassembling old hutch when AADD raised it's ugly head! The back of the hutch was sheeted with two approximately 36x8" pieces of ⅛" hardboard. Just the right size for Giles Barnabe's Micro Portage track plan.
    Back in 2014 I wrote about possibly building this layout. It's been like an ear worm ever sense. I think about it often. It will fit my little train room better than the HCD layout.

    http://www.trainboard.com/highball/index.php?threads/micro-portage.76378/

    Well, that was my somewhat productive yet quite mundane quarantine weekend.
     
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  9. BNSF FAN

    BNSF FAN TrainBoard Supporter

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    As I noted Friday, haven't been sleeping well and while I did get a little more sleep over the weekend, still not great so it made the weekend feel like it went by too quick.

    Saturday, I spent about half the day trying to get some rest and that went so so. In the afternoon, the wife and I made a trip to do a contactless drop off at Goodwill. Never stops to amaze me that you can take a pickup truck load and hardly tell anything is gone. After that we rode around a bit checking out some new subdivisions in the area and on the way home, did a curbside contactless pick up at Home Depot. I'm glad places offer the contactless type shopping. Makes me feel a little safer about things for now.

    Sunday was a little better. I started by putting up the last 4 of the "shelves" that I picked up on Saturday. I still have a box of freight cars in jewel cases that I have yet to uncover. That will just about fill the rest of the spaces. Next, I trimmed down the tips of the flats between the silos on the grain elevator I am working on. Then sanded the top smooth and made a test roof / cardboard template for the tops of the silos. Also deployed 50 new autos on the layout. In an attempt to make traffic and businesses look busy, I have added a lot of vehicles. I am amazed at how the layout just swallowed them up. Think I am finally good on cars now. Could use some additional pickups and SUV's though.

    I should have gotten more done than just that but I was wiped out at that point and spent some time just sitting at the work bench watching a couple of RR DVD’s and sorting though / organizing my note books of stuff. Slowly making a dent in digitizing and reducing physical materials where I can.

    20210124_142047.jpg
     
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  10. bigGG1fan

    bigGG1fan TrainBoard Member

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    Pretty productive weekend. Sanded the spackle on the mountain approach, shimmed the roadbed with 3x5 cards, and tested that for derailments and uncouplings with my J and ACS-64. It looks good, so I'll make the 3x5 shim permanent this week.

    Switched the rolling stock on the layout to UP for the next little while.

    Worked with the new Barbie Doll Digitrax throttle to get used to it. Post-COVID, and once I have the layout JMRI-enabled, odds are the Digitrax throttles will be reserved for guests who don't want to download apps to their cell phones.

    Ran and speed matched two of my Kato/Kobo UP E8s. I think I'll sell 962A and 957B, unless somebody really wants a matched A/B pair (coming soon in swap meet). I like them a lot; they arrived well-set up out of the box. Love the way the sound ramps up perfectly with the power.

    Set up some basic programming on the PRR E-units to start the process of speed-matching and figuring out why they don't move until 0% power. Not set up as well as the UP E units.

    Fried SceneIt's BLI SW7 :cry: in the yard running counter to a switch and failing to detect the source of the short quickly enough. Ow. Replacement ordered, household peace intact.

    Oh yeah... ran more trains. :D
     
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  11. dti406

    dti406 TrainBoard Member

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    Added the second color to the 50' PS1 Boxcar and started decaling it. Painted the Exactrail 4780 CF Covered Hopper, but the decals have not arrived yet so I don't know if I will get it done this week. Almost Finished the Evans 5277CF Boxcar Kit, just have to add a couple of grabs and the Hennessy Door Opening Wheels. Started on an IMRC 10,000 Gal Tank Car. Sent in my payment to Overland Hobbies for 2 passenger cars and 3 auto racks.

    Worked on the taxes, should be able to finish soon as my SS forms are in the mail today.
     
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  12. logging loco

    logging loco TrainBoard Supporter

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    Tom, two other books that have dairy/creamery related info are "Lazy Old and Slow" the story of the Lancaster Oxford and Southern. That may be available from the RR museum in Strasburg.

    I can't remember the exact title of the other book but it was about a branch of NYO&W. I believe it mentioned milk or dairy in the title.

    I'll look for it tonight or tomorrow morning when I take the HCD layout to the attic.
     
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  13. gmorider

    gmorider TrainBoard Member

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    Let's see. Saturday: "Repaired" dryer for relative. Dryer failed to work after the "repair'. Relative let's me use that dryer and washer for my laundry. Washed clothes their and went to other relative for drying. Hard to drive while in "dog house". Saw great-granddaughter (3 mo. old) and got to stay for supper. Have not been this tired in a year maybe. Sunday, off day for rest. Cabooses still need main roofs with smoke jacks and end rails, brake wheels and trucks (mostly prefabbed). Work I saw above looks great. "Ya'll" be safe and well. (y)
     
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  14. Kevin Anderson

    Kevin Anderson TrainBoard Member

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    Didn’t get much done other than cleaning. Can’t finish the light effect had to order supplies

    I dos find out the Utah ffree- mo weekend got changed on me and that is N scale
    Few-moN guys aren’t invited this year. I guess I put them all to shame with my two modules that I displayed last year. I hope they change their mind and let us come again.
     
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  15. bigGG1fan

    bigGG1fan TrainBoard Member

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    Sent from my SM-T837A using Tapatalk
     
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  16. gregamer

    gregamer TrainBoard Supporter

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    I got a bunch of detailing done on a couple of buildings. Painted up a utility pole and even did some ballast.
     

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  17. logging loco

    logging loco TrainBoard Supporter

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    [QUOTE="Tompm, post: 1167051,

    Several Model Railroader books on trackside industries arrived over the weekend. I read the one titled, “Milk Trains and Traffic.” It was very informative read. We are going to need to change a few things on the new layout. I have the Walthers Brook Hill Dairy and now we know better where to place it. I will need a couple of milk platforms. This also boasts the need for a team track or two in the city section. I now have a possible operations scheme to work with some night.
    [/QUOTE]

    Here is the book I mentioned. One of my favorite!

    20210126_155827.jpg
     
  18. rch

    rch TrainBoard Member

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    I built up a couple old Walthers well car kits last week. Both are done pending arrival of the Plano etched parts to be installed on them in lieu of the plastic walkways. Here's one of them:

    [​IMG]

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    [​IMG]
     
  19. Tompm

    Tompm TrainBoard Supporter

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    logging loco - Thanks for the book suggestions. I definitely would like to get the NYO&W book. Next time we are out at Strasburg I will look for the other.
     
  20. rch

    rch TrainBoard Member

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    Plano parts installed on my four-unit Walthers Thrall LO-PAC II. Only two more five-packers left!:coffee:

    [​IMG]
     

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