I got a new cell phone and was able to shoot a quick video of my very much in-progress Housatonic RR, in N scale. There are thousands of trees needed, weathering, ballast and scenery. The buildings still need final paint, signs and details. The first scene is purely fictional, as there is no gorge and bridge like that on the prototype. The last two scenes represent actual industries in New Milford,CT. [video=youtube;Svj6lZ4PGhA]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Svj6lZ4PGhA[/video] Eric
Great video. Like the warehouse and backdrop intergration! Question , what are you using for couplers ?
Thanks again for the positive comments. Narlie: I am using MT and Accumate couplers on my rolling stock. All wheelsets have been changed out to FVM low profile wheels. Brakie: My industrial buildings are scratchbuilt or extensively kitbashed. There are really no kits that look like the buildings I need to represent the customers served by the Housatonic. For the Kimberly Clark plant, I incorporated some Nu-Line warehouse walls with the styrene sheet material. This was my first ever attempt at scratchbuilding. It represents Stratas Foods a/k/a Quality Oils and is all Evergreen styrene sheet. Here is an overall view of Kimberly Clark. It measures 24" x 44" Eric
Your Kimberly Clark plant is simply awesome.. Thanks..I need some modern "box" industrial buildings for Slate Creek and I am gathering ideas..
It has been a long time since I have worked on the layout. My wife and daughters keep me busy and life gets in the way sometimes. Thankfully, it is all good stuff. Well, I finally made some time to work on my layout. I figured that I needed to make some time for small projects. These small projects led to bigger projects, and that all equated to progress on the layout. I did not like the mock up I had for Becton Dickenson and the track arrangement for switching. I ripped out the single track from Canaan to the way too short, New Milford siding and extended that siding all the way to Becton Dickenson. This will make switching out both New Milford and Becton Dickenson much easier. I added a small deck girder bridge where I had a culvert for more visual interest. I took the B&D building apart and reconfigured it to better match the prototype (both building and track arrangement). Proto shot of B&D: Re-done B&D model (still just the front of the structure). The rest of the building needs to be completed. I wanted to capture the unique loading dock area. This also shows the roughed in bridge, which still needs paint and abutments. Finally some views of the extended siding and switching area for B&D: I also finalized the Canaan yard area and the enginehouse/service area. I ripped out the old track configuration and redid the entire area. The taped together engine house is a stand in until I can scratchbuild one. All track is cut and still needs to be attached, wired and painted. While I was at it, I also ripped out the Specialty Minerals trackage and using satellite photos, laid it out to match the prototype. Proto view of Specialty Minerals. As you can see, I still need to build a number of buildings, silos and conveyors! Eric
Hi Eric, I live in New Milford, and fan the Housy a bit. Been wanting to get a pair of GP-35's in housy paint, or any, at a decent price to paint. I like the way you captured the hill at Lovers Leap. I'm familiar with K-C, and Stratos, but where is B-D???? Do you live near New Milford???? Joe D
Hi Joe. Atlas did a run of the N scale Housatonic GP-35's a while ago. They are still available on auction sites now and then. You can also get N scale decals for the HRRC from Berkshire Hills MRR shop in Canaan. My layout has a section where the space time continuum sends trains from New Milford to Canaan. That is where Becton & Dickenson is located. I am trying to model just about every industry served by the Housatonic between Danbury, Newtown and Pittsfield, MA. I am leaving out the long single track runs through the woods, in favor of operations and trying to keep actual car capacities of all industries the same as the prototype. I am just over the hill, in Woodbury. Our friends keep a boat on Lake Lillinonah, so I will be modeling the marina at the Bleachery as well as those awesome bridges over the Housatonic there. Here is a shot where I am mocking up the New Milford train station and Railroad Street. The bridges over the Housatonic can be seen past that. Disregard the Atlas Middlesex building to the right of the station. I am using that as a stand in, until I can scratchbuild or kitbash a compressed version of the Bleachery and the marina there. I'm also providing rail service to Neeltran, on Picket District Rd., just because I want to. It is a cool looking building and it is plausible that rail service could be used for it's transformer and electrical control business. Neeltran: Thanks for the kind words Joe. Eric
Do you know that O&G industries is going to build a 3000' foot siding off the Housy to their quarry up here.They will have their own loco. Somewhere north of Boardman's Bridge will be the tie in to Housy, I guess. GF and I looked at a condo at Wood Lake right after Christmas. Beautiful area, but I guess all shopping in Southbury? We should continue through PM or e-mail. Eric, do you run DCC??? Joe D
Yeah, it sounds like they want to run 40 car stone trains between the quarry and the O&G plant in Danbury. I was planning on building a small version of the concrete arch bridge located at Cornwall Bridge as a scenic divider between the New Milford and Canaan scenes, but I may scrap that and put in a stone loading spur for O&G instead. The hillside and loading equipment could still provide a scenic break. I'd have to limit it to 20 cars total though in the space I have. That is food for thought though. Eric