N scale "What's on your workbench?"

Mark Watson Oct 28, 2009

  1. in2tech

    in2tech TrainBoard Member

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    [​IMG]
    It’s amazing the stuff we can figure out to mock stuff up. Bent a piece cardboard to hold up the island roof. Ice Machine front of store.


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  2. in2tech

    in2tech TrainBoard Member

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    Getting there. Have to put the 12 safety yellow poles in front of the store, and odds and ends. Man N Scale safety poles are tiny. Lot's of $%@#^& used, if you know what I mean BTW, if you are cutting out 12 small poles with a hobby knife, put painters tape on then so they don't fly across the room. How do I know? Even used the 3D printed trash cans and pallets a friend sent me. I am amazed I actually got some of the decals on items. Even the ICE ones on the ice container. One around the corner from me is silver, so, mine is silver! Lots still to do, parking spots in front of store, light the island and store interior with my Just Plug lights ( somehow ), etc...


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    Last edited: Jul 19, 2021
  3. Shortround

    Shortround TrainBoard Member

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    Use a pill splitter to make such cuts. I filed a slot on one side and inserted the tubing into the splitter and cut it. The splitter catches the cut off.
    And it still splits the pills.
     
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  4. in2tech

    in2tech TrainBoard Member

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    Alright about 99% done with this two week project. For the most part I really enjoyed putting this kit together. The air conditioner units on the top of the store took me forever to put together, and not gonna lie there were some %$^@#& words used during assembly of them. Of all the things I thought would be difficult, it was not those. But turned out for me they were a pain. I know you can see some imperfections on the video close ups, ( like some sprue hanging on the yellow safety poles, etc... ) , but I can't when viewing from a normal distance on the layout.

    Has anyone else built this kit in N Scale? I have a few pieces left on the sprue and can not for the life of me figure out where they go. Also, you get a bunch of backup pieces too, which was great for me :) I recommend it if you like this type of kit?



    Thank You for everyone's Like's as I was posting pictures about the progress. Much appreciated, and made it fun for me to put together, as people were viewing my progress. Trainboard is awesome :)
     
  5. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    It's not unusual for Walthers kits to have a bunch of unused parts in their kits. I recently assembled their Sante Fe depot and it came with just about everything but the walls for the add on freight section. I guess they offered that as a separate kit but have never seen one myself. I like your C-store. I almost got that myself but the footprint was a little too big for the layout I have planned.
     
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  6. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    Another sound conversion completed. Trix BR18.9. I replaced the GOW bulbs with dual color red/white pico LEDs for lighting and ripped the guts out in the tender to make room for sound decoder and speakers. Had to disassemble the engine almost to the last screw to re-run the forward light wiring but it gave me a chance to see the engineering of Marklin/Trix which was quite impressive.


     
  7. alister

    alister TrainBoard Member

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    A bunch of Steam in various stages of completion.
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    Attached Files:

  8. logging loco

    logging loco TrainBoard Supporter

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    20210725_103142.jpg
    Working on an Intermountain 1937 AAR 40' box car kit.

    The glue from my tube of Original Super Glue won't cure for some reason. It was the only one in my little travel tool kit that hadn't hardened in the tube.

    I ran to town and picked up acetone in a pump bottle at Dollar General. It pumps up into a little cup style reservoir like alcohol bottles used in electronics soldering.

    A full pump stroke is way to much for my needs. I'm thinking I might be able to limit the pump stroke with some type of spacers or stop. So far trying to get a short stroke is a little iffy and requires two hands.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2021
  9. JimJ

    JimJ Staff Member

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    Reading glasses live on my workbench too.
     
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  10. logging loco

    logging loco TrainBoard Supporter

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    I have 2.5 and 3.0. glasses in my travel kit. The cutting mat is trimmed to fit in the rim of the Tupperware sewing kit lid. When I wear the 2.5s, working at table height puts things in focus.

    When wearing the 3.0s I work with the lid on top of the sewing box and the project is in perfect focus.

    This travel tool kit works great for me. It fits nicely in my overnight bag along with other essentials. The acetone bottle won't fit in the travel case. I need to find a tight sealing screw top container to hold the acetone bottle while traveling.

    As of now I don't see me flying anywhere so TSA compliance isn't a concern.
     
    Last edited: Jul 25, 2021
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  11. nscalestation

    nscalestation TrainBoard Supporter

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    This weekend I am working on another signal control relay board to support some more signals I recently installed on the layout. I am using NCE sensors which will activate these low current relays.
    TBWOMW25Jul21a.jpg


    I am also experimenting with making some resistor axles to add to my cabooses and battery FRED cars so both ends of a train will activate the signal blocks. Having trouble getting any consistent values. I am trying out a carbon based conductive paint and may need to spring for the silver based type to get better results.
    TBWOMW25Jul21b.jpg
     
  12. wingnut1974

    wingnut1974 TrainBoard Member

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    i have a disaster new puppy chewed up two buildings a new switch a loco and seven freight cars i got the carnage on the bench now.
     
  13. mtntrainman

    mtntrainman TrainBoard Supporter

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  14. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    Another unexpected sound install. The Fleischmann BR23 pictured below was my first DCC loco which I bought as a set that came with a Roco handheld controller to venture into the DCC world. A couple years ago I updated the command station to an ESU CabControl which for the most part has worked well with everything except an NCE chipped Atlas loco and as I found out last Friday this loco. Decoder and speaker has to go in the cab due to the drive unit taking all the space in the tender. Replacing the GOW lamps with red/white dual illuminating LEDs for normal illumination in forward ops and red for EOT pusher duty.

    Thus far I've installed an ESU loksound micro decoder with the appropriate sound file from the ESU site. Probably the biggest file I've downloaded to date by 10 woo woo woo but definitely the best sounding I've heard yet. I only had room for a 12x8x6mm sugar cube speaker (you can see it crammed in the cab) but it does an excellent job getting the sound out nice and clean. Still have to install lights in the tender.

    20210726_092317[1].jpg
     
  15. Carl Sowell

    Carl Sowell TrainBoard Supporter

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    freddy_fo,

    Ay chance you have an image or two of the decoder/speaker installed, with shell off?

    Carl
     
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  16. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    Carl, I'll snap and upload some pics when I go back in to install the tender lights.
     
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  17. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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  18. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    Done! Sprechen Sie Deutsch?:D

     
  19. JimJ

    JimJ Staff Member

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    That’s impressive work!
     
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  20. freddy_fo

    freddy_fo TrainBoard Member

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    I finally got my hands on two unpainted hopper kits from intermountain to do a couple more sasketchewan cars. The last pic below shows the two painted and decaled along with a factory car (North American Railcar Corp - left) which I also recently got for a reference to build mine out. Thing is I think NARC got the paint wrong because looking online the paint I used seems closer (Tru-color MKT green) to the real life cars. Not a biggie for me as I've got several roads where the paint is slightly off between the different manufacturers.

    I had to order another set of decals as I buggered up the hidden side of the middle car after I applied micro-set. The decals are so soft it turned the film into goo and created wrinkles as the film expanded. I switched to the less aggressive micro-sol for the rest of the decals which worked great. Once I get that last decal in place I'll clear coat with satin then finish assembly.

    The one thing new for me is that these recent Intermountain hopper kits have changed up a bit. I've assembled over a dozen of their kits but they have all been the older runs that come with spare grabs and most parts still on sprues. Now most everything is pre-separated and bagged except for the brake wheel assy and grabs. And they only give you enough grabs to complete the kit where before one had spares incase any broke during assembly. Fortunately I have plenty of spares from the previous kits in case I get into trouble.

    20210727_135320.jpg


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