PRR Panhandle 2.0

Thank you Pete and Mark.  We'll get a little touch-up paint on the fascia and then it's time to move on!  No shortage of things to do.  As they say, it's a target-rich environment.

George

@G3750 posted:

Updated 9/15/2021:

It's dry now!

George

I love the use of the space and the turtles!

@G3750 posted:

Thanks!  We have a whole zoo on the layout:  turtles, heron, possum, fish, wolf, fox, rabbits, bear, dogs, and of course, Sasquatch!

George

Nice critters George. Bigfoot, hmm, I'd have to see it to believe it.

Anyway, a bunch of years ago when I was biking along the Delaware, it was a calm summer day, not too hot. This was between Lambertville and Trenton. Along the river there is a canal, and there is always a bunch of critters about. You see a good variety of water fowl, turtles and maybe if your lucky some small mammals like rabbits or such. I do remember a few times turtles popped up on some logs to sun themselves but got skittish when people/bikers would come racing along. For the most part some are used to the traffic on the foot path, so you can get pictures like what you set up. I haven't been biking down that way in years, not a lot of time you know.

Well, it isn't a great photo.  I was pretty far away, but we spotted this blue heron near a pond on our daily 3-mile walk route.  There are houses all around.  This was taken by my iPhone at a range of at least a 1/4 mile.

George

Updated 09/22/2021:

As usual, I am attacking numerous problems on a broad front and making less progress than I would like.  Yes, I’m a Type A personality in case you hadn’t noticed.     Here’s the line-up:

1. I want to use a high-volume smoke unit (or 2 or 3) on the layout but I don’t want to kill anyone or give them COPD. So I am looking at ways to improve air-flow and move smoke out my small (12” x 28”) basement window.  An exhaust fan is under consideration.
2. To effectively install the above, I need a safe and consistent way to access the window. Falling on the Staging Area won't do me or the trains any good.  The window is near the ceiling and I have to stand or kneel on the layout to reach it.  The access holes are great for this, but I need a step stool or step ladder to climb up.  Standing on a chair doesn’t cut it, so today I bought a 4' step ladder at Lowe's.  Problem solved.
3. Some research for a magazine article requires communications with a library in the mid-west. I need some high definition images and permission to use them.  I had no success last week, leaving a series of phone messages and e-mails without success.  Today, I actually got through and we made contact.
4. I did manage to get a lot of scenery materials stowed and out of the way in preparation for the next stage of layout building. At this point, it looks like that might be construction of the Weirton Steel area.
5. I am looking at an Arduino project and will begin working on the project kit I purchased.
6. I have a brass yard tower that will soon get a coat of primer. I have not decided on the final color – rust brown, black, or tan are in the running.
7. A forum friend, Sidehack, graciously 3D printed a new smokestack sleeve for my newly acquired Alco S-2. Once we get a few details worked out, I will have the locomotive painted in Weirton Steel colors.  It will bear #207.

More when I know it. 

George

I ran both steamers the other day, doing switching moves where the trains compete for a section of track. One wants to get on a siding to drop off coal, the other is trying to stage hot metal cars.

What a smoke show! I was hoping to get away with just opening the windows in the basement but I'm seeing that I'm going to need some sort of ventilation. It's that or turn the smoke down (boooo ). I'm wondering if they sell drop in exhaust fans for the small windows in my glass block window. That would be ideal.

@BillYo414 posted:

I ran both steamers the other day, doing switching moves where the trains compete for a section of track. One wants to get on a siding to drop off coal, the other is trying to stage hot metal cars.

What a smoke show! I was hoping to get away with just opening the windows in the basement but I'm seeing that I'm going to need some sort of ventilation. It's that or turn the smoke down (boooo ). I'm wondering if they sell drop in exhaust fans for the small windows in my glass block window. That would be ideal.

Bill,

We should talk.  I am looking at some ideas, but they require real $$$ to test.

George

@Dave NYC Hudson PRR K4 posted:

Nice critters George. Bigfoot, hmm, I'd have to see it to believe it.

Anyway, a bunch of years ago when I was biking along the Delaware, it was a calm summer day, not too hot. This was between Lambertville and Trenton. Along the river there is a canal, and there is always a bunch of critters about. You see a good variety of water fowl, turtles and maybe if your lucky some small mammals like rabbits or such. I do remember a few times turtles popped up on some logs to sun themselves but got skittish when people/bikers would come racing along. For the most part some are used to the traffic on the foot path, so you can get pictures like what you set up. I haven't been biking down that way in years, not a lot of time you know.

OK, you asked for it!  The West Virginia variant of Bigfoot is called (according to the TV show Mountain Monsters) the Yahoo.

Here we can see the Yahoo flushing a turkey and a deer along the base of Pier #2 of the Panhandle Bridge.

Of course, this took place awhile ago (pre-water)! 

George

Updated 10/9/2021:

Not a lot of visible progress, but work on the Arduino projects and on the ductwork continues.  Here's photo of all the trains that I moved out of the Staging Area so as not to get dirty.  Right in front is the new Alco S-2 (awaiting its Weirton Steel paint job).  After that are the 2 Decapods, the E-7s and their passenger consist, and the 2 K4s.

More when I know it. 

George

Updated 10/20/2021:

On the eve of York I have been doing a bunch of small things and making preparations for work afterwards:

• All Arduino projects have been temporarily transferred to their own project box for the purpose of housekeeping.
• I have watched a number of YouTube videos on Arduino programming - Paul McWhorter's videos are very informative.
• The Lionel Western Pacific #553 (6-28538) Alco S-2 switcher has been given to the locomotive painter and is in the process of being transformed into Weirton Steel #207.
• The train room has been somewhat cleaned up in preparation for a major push next week.  I plan to cut a new access hole near Weirton Steel.
• The template has been created for the fan's duct work (top & bottom).  We'll cut the actual wood next week.

More when I know it. 

George

Updated 10/29/2021:

Again, this week has been a mixed bag - some progress along many fronts but no real breakthroughs or major accomplishments.  Here's the list:

• Watched 8 different Arduino videos on YouTube.  I've taken some notes about how I want to program several simulations.  I have also narrowed my choices as to the types of hardware required.
• Exchanged e-mails with a potential supplier of a smoke generator for my Open Hearth.  Power and control options are now solidifying;  I expect to pull the trigger on this purchase next week.
• Decided that I will scrap the Lionel Industrial Smokestacks earmarked for my Open Hearth and replace them will 2.5" PVC pipe.  They will be appropriately scribed, painted, and equipped with ladders (cages) and blinking LEDs.  One of the Lionel versions will be moved to a powerhouse and the other will go to Federal Paperboard in Steubenville - at least that's my current thinking.
• I acquired a number of different sound effects for the simulations.  I will play around with the sequencing and multi-tracking until I get the right sound and duration.
• Also downloaded a audio editing tool for mixing the sound effect files.
• Cut the top & bottom of the duct work and applied primer.  Cut the side of duct from acrylic sheet.  I'm hoping to begin assembly very soon.  I really wanted this done by now and it's starting to bug me.
• Determined that the reinforcements to the cat gate were a success.
• Updated my inventory spreadsheet after York.
• Conducted some research on the Open Hearth steel-making process using my father's 1957 edition of The Making, Shaping and Treating of Steel.  The time-line of processing in the Open Hearth will be used in the simulation.
• Explored the feasibility of building my own fast clock and tying it into various simulations around the layout.

That's it for now.  Sorry about the lack of photos, but most of this is just thought processes.

More when I know it. 

George

If you don’t plan what you are going to do, you will be doing it all over.  Good list.

Supposedly it was Ben Franklin who said:

“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!"

Did you pick up anything good at York?

Tom

@PRR8976 posted:

Supposedly it was Ben Franklin who said:

“If you fail to plan, you are planning to fail!"

Did you pick up anything good at York?

Tom

Thank you Mark and Tom.

Yes, I did pick up some things:

• Extendable magnifier lights for the workshop
• A B60b for the express mail train
• An N8 cabin car
• A 2-rail stock car (labeled for Armour Packing) that was too nice to pass up
• A DZ-1020 set of cross bucks (signals)
• 2 switches I had ordered from Ross
• 4 building kits that will end up in the Steubenville area

George

Updated 11/03/2021:

After much effort, fitting, cutting, re-fitting, and working in the cramped Staging Area, the duct work is finished!!  I've got a tiny bit of effort left - weatherstripping and possibly some final fit-and-finish work, but the major effort is over! 

Sorry, no photos or details because the effort is being teed up for a future magazine article.

I am expecting the smoke generator in the next 4-5 days and then we'll give the entire system a serious test.

More when I know it. 

George

Updated 11/12/2021:

As Col. John "Hannibal" Smith of the A-Team would say:  "I love it when a plan comes together!"

The smoke generator arrived a day ago, I hooked it up to 12VDC, positioned a PVC "smokestack" over it and viola!  Instant air pollution, 1950's style. 

Then I turned opened the window, positioned the duct work correctly and turned on the fan.

      We've got serious airflow out of the train room through the basement window.  

I'm declaring victory and moving on to other areas.

More when I know it, 

George

Watch out George, you neighbors might see all that smoke coming out of your window and think you are having a marijuana party!

Tom

@PRR8976 posted:

Watch out George, you neighbors might see all that smoke coming out of your window and think you are having a marijuana party!

Tom

😆😆😆

that would be a shock in George’s neighborhood!

Great progress George. A lot of irons in the fire. It keeps it interesting moving to different projects more often.

Andy

@Mark Boyce posted:

😆😆😆

that would be a shock in George’s neighborhood!

Would it now?  I'm not so certain.  

George

Updated 11/15/2021:

Christine Braden completed her transformation of Western Pacific #553 to Weirton Steel #207.  Here it is along with its stable-mate, 208.  I think she did a great job!!

More when I know it. 

George

George, Christine's work looks great as always!!  Congratulations!!

Keep the great pic of your layout coming Great Work,love to see if you were local but the pic will have to do.

Very sharp looking.

Tom

Thanks gentlemen!

George

That fourth photo fooled my eye for a minute. Looks great!!

Updated 11/17/2021:

Got a number of things done and started some new efforts:

• All locomotives were moved back into the Staging Area.  I can tell that the track is a bit dirty as we had some fits and starts as well as dead spots while the engines were crawling back to their spots.  At some point, I will give the track a good hard scrub, but not right away.
• Electrical components and wiring were moved back into their respective bins - Track, Switch Bus, and Accessory.
• Carpentry tools were hung back up in the workshop and electrical tools went into their carrying tray.  Power tools went back to their storage space under the layout.
• Newly arrived Plastruct and Evergreen structural shapes were stored in their project boxes for later use.
• I got out the plans, jig, and the first roof truss of the Open Hearth.  It's time to deal with this big job.  I've got 8 more trusses the one below to make.  
• 
• The "Lean-To" portion of the Open Hearth is now being designed.  This will house the Arduino, large smoke generator, powerstrip, and other electrical components that will run the simulated steel-making operation.
• We are still thinking about the base of the model and how such a large structure (62" x 37") might be moved without damaging it.  I am certainly open to suggestions on that.

More when I know it.

George

George,

I'm late but the diesel looks wonderful. That's a scheme I never seen in my frequent visits around the area.

Dave

@luvindemtrains posted:

George,

I'm late but the diesel looks wonderful. That's a scheme I never seen in my frequent visits around the area.

Dave

Dave,

That paint scheme was used from the mid-1940's through the mid-1980s.  In that time (and prior in the steam era), Weirton Steel was an Alco customer.  A video made in 1989 (link below) shows these switchers still in service along with EMD SW1500's in the newer black and yellow paint scheme.  Weirton maintained and modified its own fleet of Alcos.

I believe MTH has brought out both the Premier Alco S-2 green paint scheme version and the yellow and black variant.  The problem for me, of course, is that they run DCS (which I don't use).

George

George, housing all that stuff in the building will have it right there, but not in view!

@Mark Boyce posted:

George, housing all that stuff in the building will have it right there, but not in view!

Mark,

An explanation is probably in order.  An Open Hearth mill has 3 parts.  In the photo below refer to the large building with the numerous smoke stacks.  From Right to Left:

• The low "Lean-To" like building houses the smokestacks and boilers; in my model, that part will be closed up.
• From end of the Lean-To's roof to the mid-line of the building is the Charging Floor;  that's where the ovens are "charged" (loaded) with pig iron from the blast furnace, oxygen, alloys, and chemicals and cooked on an "open hearth" inside an oven to make steel.
• From the mid-line to left end of the building is the Pouring floor (where hot steel is poured from the ovens into ingots).

The current thinking is that the "Lean-To" will be enclosed; no view into this part of the model.  The rest of that end of the building will have a detachable panel so that people can see into it.  That's the plan anyway.

George

Updated 11/24/2021:

Truss construction is underway.  On the table are a number of partially constructed 30" (120 s') trusses for the Weirton Steel Open Hearth.  I am using an assembly-line process to do this repetitive work.

More when I know it. 

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

George

How far are those trusses going to be spaced?

@BillYo414 posted:

How far are those trusses going to be spaced?

Excellent question.  The main Open Hearth building (not including the "cracker" extension at the south end) will be 50" long.  That's the "cracker" (as it is called) to the left side of the photo.  There will be 9 such trusses, so one every 6.25" or 25 s' (which matches up with the generic Open Hearth plans I purchased from the late Michael Rabbit).

In fact, just this morning I was reviewing the plan and decided to make a few changes:

• The "Lean-To" has gone from 7" wide to 8" wide.  This provides more space for electronics, smoke units, and other components needed to run the animation.  It is also a bit taller to allow the smokestacks to extend higher relative to the height of the main building.
• Total building width has gone from 36" to 38".  We are constrained by the width of the stairwell to the basement.  The length will remain at 68".  And of course, as the size increases so will the weight.  It's likely that safely moving the building will take 2 people.
• The main building has gone from 12" high to 15" high.  This gives a bit more space for the cranes and makes the interior look more prototypical (i.e. huge).  Total building height is now 26" or 104 s'.

Here's the new end view plan.  I still need to modify the Charging Floor and the Pouring Floor plans.

More when I know it. 

George

You do great work keep pic coming ,Thank You.

@douger posted:

You do great work keep pic coming ,Thank You.

Thank you!

George

That’s some nice detail George. Glad to follow along.

Andy

Updated 12/2/2021:

Truss work continues.  In the photo below, I am adding the "C" channel to the outsides of the trusses.

More when I know it. 

George

Updated 12/03/2021:

Thinking - that's what gets me into trouble. 

So in researching the Weirton Steel Open Hearth I've come to realize that the 2 floors meet the terrain at different levels.  The Charging Floor is at the higher level.  To understand this photo correctly, go to the roof peak and then split the building down the middle.  The extension on the left with a lower roof line is called the Cinder Yard.  It's not part of the Open Hearth, per se.  If you could remove that and just look at the building end-on, the left side would be the Pouring Floor and the right side would be the Charging Floor.

I think this diagram shows the concept better. 

The problem is the uneven terrain, which I failed to plan for when I built the Weirton Steel bench work area.  I had it as all flat.  Instead, I'm thinking about placing the Open Hearth and the adjoining Strip Steel mills on a small (6" high) plateau and making some cuts for the sidings.  At the south end of the bench work, the fascia will gradually rise to that height, disguising the cut into the Staging Area (behind the divider).  That's the thinking at this point, anyway.  The revised layout plan eliminates a switch and a number of dead sidings, so that's a plus.

First, the original plan.

Next, the possible changes.

The lime green area is an access hatch that will be disguised by at least part of the plateau.  I hope that the plateau will convey the illusion (if nothing else) of a more hilly area.

I would love to hear any thoughts, reactions, ideas, etc.

Anyway, that's the crazed thinking at the moment.

More when (if) I know it.