My replacement lights (and then some) arrived from China yesterday. I'm not sure how they get these here so quickly for $2 shipping, but good on them! They've added a few dedicated Z scale items that I found too interesting to pass up for the price. Now I need to build some new modules to make use of them all.
So I finally was able to finish the yard lighting, and here are the pictures to prove it. Light poles are switched (x6), three at a time, so they don't have to be on full time at shows, and also just because I wanted to. This has been a fun exercise for me, and now I want to light everything, of course. First, final pole layout, unlit. Yard lights lit, with overhead lighting on... Yard lights lit, no overhead lighting... End view...
Nice haul, Kez. Despite the defects, those parking lot lights look pretty cool. Edited to add: They're not parking lot lights, they're yard lights. Here's my progress on my layout. The western viaduct done, I'm working on the east side now. The bridge was the first brass model I made and was designed VERY durably as it's been tossed around and abused for some years now despite me using CA glue instead of soldering it. I have an old sheet of graffiti decals that will find their way onto the bridge and viaduct supports before everything is glued and/or screwed down. One half of the viaduct is done, but the other is awaiting a replacement for the signal I decapitated before it's done. Current plans are for the near bridge support to be on a small island surrounded by a shallow marsh. The ground level tracks just off camera will be on narrow strips of land, modeled on the Meadowlands in NJ (no stadiums or mega-malls planned as of yet). You can see (out of focus) the signals for the passenger station in the back.
And this is SOMETHING like I imagine it will look for shows, with varying locos, cars, and loads on display. Buildings, ramps, platforms are just plopped down for visualization, as I'm still not sure how everything will be situated. I contemplated putting lights in the Archistories tower, as I have building lighting on hand as well), but opted for just lighting the yard, for now. I have a hard time committing to anything... Yard lights off, overhead lighting used... Yard lights on... And other angles with yard lights on...
Kez, my plan for wiring street/rail lights is to wire each one to an Arduino's I/O pin. That way, I can make light shows.
Great pictures of the yard! I like how it came out! Very cool! I really like that heavy equipment load in the back!
Thank you for the compliments, Joe. I have to give all credit for the custom loads in this picture to a Z scale legend, Mr. Fred Ladd (RIP). I was fortunate to share short bits of time with him as a part of our club years ago, and then fortunate again to acquire bits and pieces of his impressive collection after his unfortunate passing. I credit him for a lot of my passion for Z other stuff, if you know what I mean. It's not just the trains...
That’s so awesome you got to know him let alone acquire pieces. I think that’s why I like this board so much. I haven’t met many but I feel like I know many. The inspiration from others and guidance (learning) is the best.
Very nice Bryan!!! Well worth the wait for the light show. Brace yourself though - Loren will be along any minute now requesting little Z-scale moths and Junebugs to be buzzing around the lights.....
Bryan, Your bringing good things to light. Nice job with the lighting and the concrete aprons. Just a thought, what if you masked off the switch covers, and painted them the same color as the apron. Or, build wood platforms over them. Anyway, looks great and the night shots look really good as well. Can't wait to see how you model up the moths! Scott
I'm starting a new project, one I have wanted to do for a long time. When I was a kid, they built a Safeway store near my house, and although the building is still there, it's a 99¢ Only store these days. Most of these stores became too small by 1980, so Safeway built larger stores, and these Marina stores were sold off and became something else, but they can still be found all over the US and Canada Here is the look I am going after with the structure, known as the "Marina Style", designed in 1959, and named after the first one built in the Marina district of San Francisco, the neighborhood where the winding Lombard Street, and those famous Gingerbread houses are located: I started with the front window, scaling my store down to Z: And because the structure is so big, taking almost a small city block, I wanted to see if it is going to be too big, so I started by building a fascia mockup first: As you can see the structure is 4.4" wide. It can accommodate 8 cars out front, which is just about as much space as I want to allow for a grocery store:
Rob, The Spaceway project, this will be good. Great start so far! I too like the looks of this commercial building, although I was introduced to Safeway later in my life. Nice bit of background on the building. Scott
Google Street View is your friend! I think I am going to try and do this one full size, because I want it to be a recognizable show piece. That means all the bells and whistles, full interior because you can see in a window like that, I want the loading dock to go below grade too: But I like the concrete and rock siding with green roof trim that this Safeway has, it's just I want to put the loading ramp on the side like the first two pics, instead of in the back of the store, to keep the depth to a minimum: Oh, and look, there are Bells, but fire hose fittings instead of whistles:
