Dave
The new trees and grade crossing really look nice.
I had the opportunity over Christmas to have some great nephews and great niece run some trains and operate some accessories. At their tender age, its always a challenge to keep the trains on the tracks! In the meantime, I started the process of painting the rails on the tinplate track using Rust-oleum rusty metal primer and satin black. I had tried using a water based rust color but it is too red for my taste. It's a little messy to coat the outside rails but the paint wipes off easily before tit dries completely. I am going to try the "grease rail prep" next. That should make it easier to wipe off the excess paint.
I also replaced the pickup wires on the 3424 Brakeman car that I got as a child. After 60 years, the insulation on those wires gets very brittle. I made an interesting discovery too. When going down a steep grade (Lionel trestle set grade), the brakeman won't pop up. It starts up but is leaning too far forward to stay up. I am going to have to relocate the acuator rail to a more level location. It works perfect going up hill or on the level.
