I bought a Peco Inspection Pit to be used with my Engine Shop, but I swapped places for my shops and I do not have room at the Engine shop. I do however have plenty of room at my Car shop. It’s going to be an outside pit so I can see it, but I just don’t know if a Car Shop would be an appropriate place for it.
Well, I know several smaller car repair shops that don't have one. If you have wheel/truck issues you usually just jack/crane the car body up and swap trucks. But, if it is a passenger car shop it can sure be handy, though not required. It is pretty much a must for locomotives to be able to get at the traction motors for inspection and inspection. If it was already there (building conversion) it may simply get temporary covers.
Thanks, that’s what I was thinking that they would probably just use a jack or a forklift. I’m just so set on having cars in the “car shop” and engines in the “back shop”, but it would work so much better if I had the engines in the car shop, because I would rather see my engines instead of cars. If only I could get that out of my head. Maybe I should hang a sign outside the Car Shop saying “Engine Shop”.laugh: I do have a lot of Passenger Trains.
Ya your right, I don’t know why I’m even worrying about it. I’m going to go ahead and install it. I’ll decide later if it’s going to be a Car Shop or an Engine Shop. I don’t have the Back Shop built yet, but I placed the Car Shop in its spot and it fits. Only I would rather have the double shop as my Engine shop. Well that will be another discussion when I get the Back Shop built.
It's one of those things where you don't need it all the time, but when you do, it's a real blessing to have, much the same wya that you don't always need a lift to work on your car, but on the off chance uyou need a little more clearence than a Jack is going to give you...
That’s good, I guess I could always move some Amtrak cars on the track. I wounder how many use the Walthers Car Shop as their Engine shop.
I’m thinking more and more of just using the Car Shop as the engine shop. I have a couple of track pieces drying and then I’ll be cutting in the pit. I'm looking in to adding lights to the pit at the moment.
This is where I’m doing the Inspection Pit along the outside of the Car Shop. I made a track alignment & gluing jig to install all three tracks at the same time, but I have to wait until the glue dries before I can start cutting, I’m going to use a small trim router to cut the trench for the pit. I should have cut the trench first, but I wasn’t sure where it was going
I wish I would have taken photos at my brother-in-laws shop. I can’t remember how many tracks there were and I’m guessing maybe 5 or 6, but there were gondolas on the far track that were being repaired and locos on the 1[SUP]st[/SUP] 3 or 4 tracks. There was a place inside the building that might have been a pit because it looked like it had removable covers.
There is a pit in both the Roundhouse and the car shop in Samoa, Ca. The pit in the roundhouse was used by the railroad. Not so sure about the pit in the car shop.
Ok I got a problem. I cut out the opening for the pit and discovered that the Peco Code 55 does not connect to the Atlas Code 55. So, I replaced it with Atlas Code 55 rail and there’s nothing left of the rail. Well very little and I’m not sure if there is enough to hold the wheels on the rail. What do I do now?
Oh that's right. Peco has the hidden rail (it basically has two bottoms so it's both Code 80 and Code 55). My suggestion is to take either a fine saw or a file and file the bottom of the Peco track so your Atlas Code 55 will mate with it.
FWIW: It is my understanding that most of the modern hump yards have an inspection pit on the lead and an inspector looking for anything loose and hanging. I'm not sure his signal overrides or just notifies, but the offending car is routed to the RIP tracks. Then again, at my age, I just might be full of doggie dodo. Wayne
