After reading Dennis B's Guide to Hi-Rail and studying for a few months(it is already dog-eared) and buying his fence kit and ballast, I finaly decided today to attempt my first weathering project. While I do not consider myself a Hi-Railer but more of a Hybryd- Railer, as a custom high end architectural fabricater for the last 35 years, I can really appreciate his skills and attention to detail. I feel the same way about my dentist. How many guys do you let put the equivent of a high speed Dremel in your mouth.
My son and I are big fans of functionality but also fun. An old Marx drum loader competing against a couple of American Flyer barrel loader fork trucks (can not figure out why they call them "carts") to see who can load faster is also a big part of the hobby for him. For me it is getting them to perform flawlessly.
Well anyway, the Atlas turntable fit in the budget and after fixing the belt issue, we wanted it to look a little bit older for our steam engines.
I have an idea of putting it into a gentle slope, filling in the open bays with granite blocks topped with a fence kit to give it the illusion of being more "pit-like"
With on side submerged and the roundhouse and approach tracks mid-slope and level and then maybe an embankement bolsterin the low side like an earth dam, it may look a little more interesting and less flat.
Also getting the roundhouse from another forum for a good price. Looking forward to it.
Unfortunately, after dealing with the folks at Atlas on this first purchase, I do not intend do any other business with them. I just got 5 40" pieces of Atlas flex track used for $30.00 so I will in the future only buy used.
I always welcome feedback, positive or not. Nothing is more appreciated by me than an opportunity to learn from or at least listen to someone who has alreay been down a path that I am contermplating.
