What did you do on your layout today?

@Jeff_the_Coaster_Guy posted:

Good call.  It rarely works out when you try to convert something you love as a hobby into something you sell. As soon as you take money for it, that involves expectations, delivery deadlines, complaints about design choices, stress...

It's easy to live with small things that you might have done differently if you're doing it for yourself.  Nothing as aggravating as getting a call from a customer with high expectations to the tune of "...you said in your message the cooks would be making bacon and eggs.  But it's clearly goetta and grits...I want you to re-do it in time to give to my grandchild for her birthday on Tuesday.  I paid yo $200.00 I expected bacon and eggs.  My grandkid hates goetta."

I so agree, I will not do this for money, it is so much fun now. I do run across a few people I like and have done work for them but I will not accept payment. Used to do it a long time ago but it does take the fun out of it. When I think of something I'd like it is a challenge to see if I can make it either from simple to complex. Keeping that 3D printer running.

I stated the Union Pacific "Challenger" Coach #5460 and first had to re-install an axle in one truck side frame.  Upon further inspection, I found the toilet in one bathroom was installed backwards. This is the fifth Lionel 21" coach car that has had this manufacturing error.  I rotated the toilet 180 degrees into the correct position.

The seats now have three coats of tan and I am finishing the toilets and sinks.  Hopefully later tonight,  I will start adding Preiser 65602 Seated People that I painted.  I was lucky to find two more Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People 24-packs in the United States.  My German sellers still cannot ship to the United States due to German Postal restrictions.

UPDATE:  Made quick work of adding Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People to the Challenger Coach #5460.  The seats do not line up with the windows, so I only placed people at seats with a clear view.  Here are a few pictures.

Have a good evening.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

@mike g. posted:

Sorry I have been away for a while. I am really enjoying all the posts. Everyone is doing such fantastic work and I want to thank you for putting it up here for the rest of us to enjoy!

There is nothing new from me as the CEO has been keeping me busy. I do have some ideas of what I want to get done next, just have to get time on the train room to get a good plan together.

I hope you all have a great week and find time to have fun with your layout and trains!

I too have been doing work for the CEO, Mike.  I have been able to slip in a little on the layout here and there, and hope to have something to report soon.  Actually, I just have to get the photographs ready.  

SIGNS

Gantry sent by Al G.

@John Rowlen posted:

I stated the Union Pacific "Challenger" Coach #5460 and first had to re-install an axle in one truck side frame.  Upon further inspection, I found the toilet in one bathroom was installed backward. This is the fifth Lionel 21" coach car that has had this manufacturing error.

The seats now have three coats of tan and I am finishing the toilets and sinks.  Hopefully later tonight,  I will start adding Preiser 65602 Seated People that I painted.  I was lucky to find two more Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People 24-packs in the United States.  My German sellers still cannot ship to the United States due to German Postal restrictions.

Have a good evening.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Had the same issue..... re-install an axel in one truck side frame.

Talk about fixing manufacturing defects - I bought a new'ish SF GP60M Diesel PS3 over eBay and had issues with derailing despite the seller assuring it was in perfect condition. Turns out one of the wheels was not completely seated on its axle, so the wheel base width between the flanges slightly exceeded the track width. A very light application of pressure with a large C-clamp brought the wheel into alignment - engine now runs great. Lesson here is "never assume new equipment is manufactured properly if you are having issues".  Quality control is not what it used to be or mean.

Jeff

Greetings all-

I moved a step closer to calling the building flat I've been working on done. I finished assembly yesterday. Added a backdrop image of sky and clouds to the wall.

I also added one more building print behind the main one. Not completely realistic but I think it will work overall. When mounted to the wall, the factory building in front blocks most of the flats anyway so its more of having something other than a blank wall behind the building.

All part of the learning process for the next layout.....

Bob

Bob, that works, nice

Thanks Ray.

@John Rowlen posted:

I stated the Union Pacific "Challenger" Coach #5460 and first had to re-install an axle in one truck side frame.  Upon further inspection, I found the toilet in one bathroom was installed backward. This is the fifth Lionel 21" coach car that has had this manufacturing error.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Backwards? It isn't a special throne with a view out a window? ...

Adriatic, 

Thank you for catching my typo. I rotated the toilet 180 degrees by using an Excel knife to cut the rectangular post loose from the floor.  I originally thought the backwards toilet was some factory worker's idea of a joke.  But it has occurred five times so far.  As it arrived from the factory, it is only able to be used by a "Phew" with the window open and legs hanging out.

Have a good week.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Wanted some steel drums for the layout, why not 3D print them, 50 and 30 gallon and some oddball size

After morning walk and chores, finally completed the last segment of the first operating session. The M1a had to take the nine car tanker and a single empty 2 bay coal hopper train through town to bypass the mainline for fictitious track repairs. Eventually the train reached destination. The engine dropped the train for switching to a siding and went to take coal at engine facility.

Then I started yard orders for session no. 2. Picked up a boxcar from a business and another from the engine facility and took them to the yard. Picked up several 2 bay coal hoppers at engine facility and 3 from a coal business and brought them to the yard to build train.

Many switching manuvers. I'll post few pics later.

I reformatted my switch lists to include my new hopper cars.

Goodness knows when I'll get to use them in a session, though. 

I went to a local printing place, because my printer wasn't working very well, and encountered a really mouthy jerk who was hostile for really no reason. I made it really clear that I wasn't to be talked to like that, and the look on his face was well worth it. He really didn't expect me to talk back to him.  During that, I looked him up and down real quickly to make sure he wasn't packing, and that I was standing right next to the table that had all the scissors on it. I used to teach hand-to-hand combat in the Army, so I wasn't too worried...

YIKES, maybe he was printing 100 bills and you disturbed him?

@sidehack posted:

YIKES, maybe he was printing 100 bills and you disturbed him?

LOL

Beats me, Ray. Probably having a bad day before I dared to ask him if he was using the copier, but that was no excuse.

I'm too old to let people talk to me like that, but also far too young to use age as an excuse to keep quiet.

I'd be seething right now had I not stood up to the guy. It's been a while, but I still remember how to motivate someone to a trip to the ER if I have to, if he isn't armed.

Still, it probably wasn't the smartest thing I did today, and I made sure to watch my back going out to my SUV afterward, and then making sure I knew where my 'tools' were, if you get what I mean.

He was smart and stayed inside. My only worry was if he'd followed me, how I'd have explained to the police and my wife afterward. I was trained that a fight isn't over until the loser has had the worst day of his life.

Or, worse.

It all worked out, as I left and went to a locally owned copy place nearby that I'd never been to, where the prices were very reasonable and the employee was very nice. I'll be sure to deal with them in the future.

And that's all I have to say about that.

@sidehack posted:

Wanted some steel drums for the layout, why not 3D print them, 50 and 30 gallon and some oddball size

So now I have to figure out how to smuggle a 3D printer past the CEO????? I have a hard enough time with the trains

Very nice Ray. Seems like imagination is the only limitation to what you can make with that thing.

Bob

I have track for a twice around over and under all around the layout room except for the lift up section.  Wiring is still just alligator jumpers to individual drops.  Here is my solution to the inside loop where it has to be higher than the loop against the wall so I can see the track and future buildings behind.  This K-Line set of wooden piers will serve the purpose until I get a better idea.  No hurry since I will want to scenic everything behind it first.  

Even though everything isn't leveled and secured to the tabletop, it supports this SD40-2 and caboose fine.

  looking great Mark !!  can't wait to see your new steam engine,

                                                  pulling a coal drag up the grade,  going to be nice !

@Mark Boyce posted:

  Here is my solution to the inside loop where it has to be higher than the loop against the wall so I can see the track and future buildings behind.  This K-Line set of wooden piers will serve the purpose until I get a better idea.  No hurry since I will want to scenic everything behind it first.  

 

 

That looks like a great way to handle it.

@RSJB18 posted:

So now I have to figure out how to smuggle a 3D printer past the CEO????? I have a hard enough time with the trains

Very nice Ray. Seems like imagination is the only limitation to what you can make with that thing.

Bob

If you get one in a kit form the box will be smaller, easier to smuggle.   Yes if you plan ahead then divide and conquer the imagination is probably the only limit.

Finally got all the train stuff into the new house, finally have a basement rather than an attic, much larger too. Also started working on the rough designs for the new layout. looking good.

Finally have enough space for a full O-72 Y to turn my vision line big boy and other large steamers. plan to have 3 atlas bridges to allow a walkway into the middle.

Thank you Ray and Brian!  I'll get a video once I have a little more done.

acrking76 That is a wonderful room for a layout!  I like your track plan too!

Looking for junk air whistles for some upcoming projects!  Can you help?  Thanks!   

https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/...r-whistle-mechanisms

Mitch 

Good morning everyone! Sorry, I have not published another video sooner but I was finally able to get this one done. I hope y'all enjoy it and that y'all have a good Fourth of July. Thanks and happy railroading!

Completed my Alco C630 conversion project.  This unit came off the shelf as an MTH Union Pacific Alco C628.   The Duluth Missabe & Iron Range Railroad bought ten C630's from the UP in 1973 to alleviate a power shortage.  The UP color scheme was preserved, old markings were painted over and a simple DMIR herald was added to show ownership.

The model is a RailKing scale C628, so it had lots of room for added detail.

Yesterday I installed the pilot bridges that I scratch built from brass.  Pilot foot boards were also scratch built from brass.  The MU stands, firecracker antenna and all weather windows were purchased.   I highlighted the vents with some caulk dust and sprayed the entire model with a matte finish.   Sometime in the future, I would like to give it a heavier weathering, but first I need to do more research on weathering techniques.   For now, it’s helping to move iron ore as part of a three unit lash up.

Cheers, Dave

As delivered MTH RailKing C628:

The added horsepower of the C630 required a bigger venting system. The venting was modified with scrap styrene:

 Pilot step bridges test fit, Cab end stowed, back end engaged:

Additional details:

 Finished Look:

Prototype:

I took some time today away from the heat and bright sun to detail the Alaska 72' Baggage Car from the four-car set.  The doors do not open and one window is blocked by the 60' interior used in the car.  I moved the interior around and painted the floor with Yellow, Sand, Dark Tan and Earth Red Testor's Flat Acryl Paint.

Fortunately I was able to find some crates and people to put inside the baggage car near the doors so they would be seen through the windows.

Back out to work around the pool after dinner when it cools down.  The weeds love this weather.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Mission accomplished!

I mounted the building flat to the wall last night. I will fill in some details but I think it looks good. Looks like I have room for the fence I was considering building too.

Bob

          looks great Bob !!

Getting some household chores and projects done during these unfortunate circumstances. Too hot to fish here now. So, Session No. 2 yard orders are moving along. The 505 B6 assembled a 10 car coal hopper train for the Decapod to haul the empties and retrieve loaded cars for eventual  return trip through town. The switcher rests on a spur after taking coal and water at the engine facility. Meanwhile in town the daily commuter train stopped in town to drop off and pick up mail and travelers. It made it through town but encountered a hold signal at Block 2.

B6 No. 5244 pulled 2 boxcars from the outer port yard track and 2 reefers and a boxcar from the bridge spur to start the switching train for town. The last boxcar was coupled to make the BBRRBB switch train. More to follow. Stay well.

Mark, 

You are getting some serious work done and I like your "temporary" solution to raising the inside loop. Sounds like you will have some time to finalize the idea until scenery work is completed on the backside. 

acrking76, all I can say is wow! This looks like a great space and as Mark said, your track plan looks wonderful. Can't wait for you to start your build. What are the dimensions of the area for the layout? It also looks like you have a direct entrance to the basement from outside, which makes the whole situation ideal. Congrats on your new home and train room. 

Dave

Finished a chain link fence to keep people off the track under the station. 

Bob - the flat looks good there, more depth.

Pennsynut - nice shots of your layout. 

Stay Safe,

Scott

3D printing  barrels and painting

built ramp for dock

Posted pix of my new to me MPC GP-9 BAR Spirit of '76 with matching caboose, on "Buy anything cool....", spent a happy hour this afternoon doing some routine maintenance- cleaned motor, grease, give the shell a bath....

Love the growl of these AC motors......

All ready for the big day tomorrow.

@luvindemtrains posted:

Mark, 

You are getting some serious work done and I like your "temporary" solution to raising the inside loop. Sounds like you will have some time to finalize the idea until scenery work is completed on the backside. 

Dave

Thank you Dave!!  Yes, I will have some time for a permanent solution.

Someone mentioned an 11x11 room being tight.  Here I am set up ready to cut a shelf for my Z4000 to go under the layout.  I would cut it on the patio, but it's too hot today.  88-degrees is nothing for a lot of folks, but it's about as hot as it gets around here.  

Thanks Scott and other thankers. 

The Lionel 2027230 Union Pacific Excursion 2-pack #3 arrived with the "Walter Dean" Dome Observation with EOT Lights and the "City of Denver" 36-seat Dining Car without sound and an empty kitchen area.  Looks like I get to scratch-build another kitchen.

I thought the 2-pack would have a Dome Dining Car in it, but that will probably be the Union Pacific Camera Vision Dome since there are two upright posts molded into the lower lounge to hold the camera board and feed wires up into the Tables in the Dome.

Here are a few pictures of the " Walter Dean" Dome Observation.  I will post progress here as I complete the car.

UPDATE:  The interior has been painted with three coats of paint.  I am now painting more Preiser 65602 Unpainted Seated People.  I have six boxes of twenty-four people and then I am out of people to paint.  My German suppliers still cannot ship to the United States.

Have a Happy Fourth of July.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Sky and clouds for the train room!   I had beige walls in my train room and it was reminding me too much of the Saharan sand, so it was time to fix it. Plan A....  purchase a backdrop. Price with discount was over 1100$ including a discount, so......   Plan B.... I tried using some cloud paper on the walls, but it became too repetitive and the clouds were too evenly spaced as i started put some up, so I canned that idea. Plan C.... headed to my hardware shop and bought some deep blue paint.  ....dark enough that I could dim the lights and do twilight runs without the sky looking too pale.  For clouds, I was not confident of my artistic talents with a brush, so I decided to make use of my computer and inkjet printer.  I found some images of clouds, isolated individual clouds in a photo editor, and then shaded the surrounding sky on the cloud pic to be a close match to my wall color.  I then printed it out on a matte nylon "art canvas" 8 1/2 x 11" sheet for inkjets, and mounted it with double-sided removable tape i purchased off of Amazon.  I've already moved some of the clouds more than once as I decide adjust their distribution in the sky.  Here's a few pix.   Not sure whether I'll leave it as a mostly sunny day or add more.

You're building flat looks good, Bob, it fits right in, nicely.

Rusty

ScottV. I think the clouds look great. I like the looks of your layout, too. Nice scenery, especially the retaining wall.

Rusty

I screamed ; Only one side of this trailer came decorated! This was plain pink.

So I gave it a fast, crafty acrylic "pop".  

and bumper and license I C MOO

After dinner of course.

I might redo these; drawing the bag art before folding this time 

The cups are 3 different wire connector crimp covers with a tiny piece of wire insulation for straws. Chinese carry out tub is folded paper & a staple handle...w/chopstick slivers for chopsticks... of course.

It doesn't doesn't need to perfect for outside, just liven the mood. So I didn't worry about the new art being "loud"; the waffle side was too quiet and quaint alone.

Adriatic,  seeing that picnic table made me hungry. I would have never guessed what you had used to create it.. Great job matching the front decor on the back. Cute penguin too.   Time to go raid the fridge....

You made a wonderful scene out of it, Adriatic!!

Happy 4th all!

Everyone is doing great work.
Ray- the lumber yard is looking great. Love the barrels too.
Adriatic- searching for the ice cream truck.....
Mark- I've noticed the heat bothers me more as I creep up on 60 (very slowly ) 20+ years behind a desk is making me soft.
Scott- the room looks great. The clouds have nice depth to them.
John R- going to be another great car.
B&O Fan- nice fencing.
Pennsynut- that's a busy railroad you are running.
Dave-- nice work on the UP/ DMIR diesel. Looks perfect.

Thanks for all the likes and comments on my building flats too!

Bob

Happy and safe 4th of July to all!   We are saying home, no friends, no parade, no fireworks, no fun,  but still enjoying our annual Bloody Mary toast to honor our Country!   Be safe,  maintain your social distance, wash your hands and don't touch your face!

Cheers, Dave

Last night I ran some trains a took a video https://youtu.be/QRVCTjmbewo  

Featured items include MTH NYC green E8, MTH Santa Fe F3, MTH Metra, and a Lionel custom run Santa Fe F3.  All of these are from @MrMuffin'sTrains.  Enjoy.

Thank you Dave!  You too!

First pix from my un-named "leaky basement railway." Started out with the best of intentions wanting to do it all "by the book". Later I realized that if I started out doing a plan in RR Track and going from there, I would never live long enough to see a train run on the doggone thing. So I stole parts of a John Armstrong plan and adapted it to my space and goals. I laid the yard to make sure I had the space for the one I wanted, then I installed the turntable and "imagineered" the rest of the engine terminal to make sure I had a least MOST of the space set aside for that--a good diesel/steam servicing facility was a must-have for me.

I had originally planned to have staging underneath the platform. But I decided my back just wasn;t going to be up to the down-low work. So I am building UP instead, with an elevated reverse loop and a 2-loop helix to make connections to the yard and engine terminal. All this work is cut-n-try, then cut again. I just lay out the track where I think it needs to go and then I figure out the connections, curves and grades. So far, so good.

No scenery yet. Ignore the structures that you see--they are just being stored where they sit. They won't end up where they are. Some of the won't even end up on the layout! I lay some track or work on a structure kit every day. Progress is slow but.....getting there!

Don

@John Rowlen posted:

I took some time today away from the heat and bright sun to detail the Alaska 72' Baggage Car from the four-car set.  The doors do not open and one window is blocked by the 60' interior used in the car.  I moved the interior around and painted the floor with Yellow, Sand, Dark Tan and Earth Red Testor's Flat Acryl Paint.

Fortunately I was able to find some crates and people to put inside the baggage car near the doors so they would be seen through the windows.

Back out to work around the pool after dinner when it cools down.  The weeds love this weather.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Is this new tooling? I didn't know some baggage cars had interior details from Lionel. If not, where did you find them?

Wow, everyone, great work, enjoy your holiday, July Fourth, and stay safe, stay healthy, Pray continually. Have a great weekend to. Happy Railroading .. The two cars on the siding are hand made circus cars, actually scale with Kadee couplers.

WinstonB,

These two interior pieces are from the Lionel 60' Baggage Cars (C&O, Santa Fe, Amtrak, etc.)  Lionel has used these same interiors in the longer Baggage Cars (Union Pacific, Canadian Pacific, Penn Central, etc.) that have doors that do not open.  The 60' Baggage cars have opening doors and details in the car can be viewed..

These interiors are made by Lionel and are included in the new cars.  Unfortunately, the interiors sometimes do not line-up properly and need to be modified.  

I wet blended the floor with Yellow, Sand, Dark Tan and Earth Red from Testor's.  The people and crates are Woodland Scenics figures as the factory produced them.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

finishing steel drums

@RSJB18 posted:

Happy 4th all!

Adriatic- searching for the ice cream truck.....

It's a trailer; a Dollar Tree item, pre-Easter.  Seems like it's drywall material. I made a brass tow tounge and frame too.  Its towed by a pink VW Beetle convertible (bout time I found a way to make it fit in)

The company made the grass yard seen before and little gnomes, furniture of flowers, toadstools, leaves, etc.   I chose leaves as they were at  least near real designs Ive seen. I also ground away overly foo-foo flower detail off the wood fence in places.

Sidehack,  That is a very nice lumber yard.

John Rowlen

@John Rowlen posted:

Sidehack,  That is a very nice lumber yard.

John Rowlen

Thank you John

the drums look great Ray. If you really want to go over the top, add some labeling and haz-mat warnings.

Sorry you can't get more people to paint John. Hopefully the shipping restrictions will be lifted soon.

@RSJB18 posted:

the drums look great Ray. If you really want to go over the top, add some labeling and haz-mat warnings.

 

yes I have been looking at them, very small but we will see, maybe

Well, my heart goes out to everyone working in a small room. Mark's is 11x11 and I can hardly imagine that! Put in the train, leave some aisle space and then....where do you work? Where do you store raw materials? Or works in progress? You spend more time moving things around to make working space or digging something out of a packed storage area than you do working on the layout!

My layout is a 16x17 island with 24-30 inch aisles on all sides except one. I use flat-top carts on wheels as work space. For big stuff, I sometimes work right on top of the tracks. 

It's sometime a doggone zoo.

Don Merz

@Don Merz 070317 posted:

Well, my heart goes out to everyone working in a small room. Mark's is 11x11 and I can hardly imagine that! Put in the train, leave some aisle space and then....where do you work? Where do you store raw materials? Or works in progress? You spend more time moving things around to make working space or digging something out of a packed storage area than you do working on the layout!

My layout is a 16x17 island with 24-30 inch aisles on all sides except one. I use flat-top carts on wheels as work space. For big stuff, I sometimes work right on top of the tracks. 

It's sometime a doggone zoo.

Don Merz

Don,

You are absolutely right; It's a zoo!  Sometimes I spend my whole train time for the day just moving stuff around.  Saturday a week ago was like that.  The benchwork and backdrop is up enough that I cleared out almost all the wood scraps, loaded them up, and drove them over to my friend's place for his bonfires.  You should have seen the room before that!    Indirectly I am benefiting my family in another way.  My friend's son married my older daughter, and his grandson married my younger daughter.     Actually there is less than 4 years separating the 4 young people.  So my daughters can roast hot dogs over my wood scraps.  

Here are a few photographs of the train room; and the overflow.

Entering the train room.

View from the laundry room is the best overall view.  No we can't expand through the window.  You think the train room is small.....

Overflow

I just took a video of a first run around the layout using the temporary lift out Bob suggested.  It works good.  I'm waiting for the video to download, so come back tomorrow.  Same bat time, same bat channel!

Oh yes, the young'ns!

WHOO HOO! A FULL LOOP!

YOU'RE WELCOME!

You should be proud of your girls Mark (I'm sure you are). Seems like they both chose well!

Bob

@Mark Boyce, in the 3rd and 4th pics it looks like you have set up a drive-in movie theater for your engines! 

I like your room, it looks like "home", and your family has grown in a most positive way - good lookin' bunch o' kids! 

Keep chugging along!

George

I wish I had your space. Almost every time I work on my 9x13 layout, I think if I only had an extra foot this way or that - mostly for staging or a yard. At present I keep only a rolling cabinet with ~40 cars on it. Everything else is either in my workshop / furnace room or in a storage room on either side of the layout. I keep thinking about taking down a wall for some extra space, but then that means I will rebuild my layout once again - that is not going to happen in this house. 

So I have been busy putting in a concrete crossing, finally getting signal wiring proper for a couple of z-stuff signals - (my idea of up-track is not the same as theirs, not to mention how I think the signal should work), redid one of my movable bridges, and decided I needed to stop thinking about more cool ideas I get from you all and focus on one major thing at a time. Also found/bought a 500 foot roll of 4 / 22 gauge stranded signal wire to replace the solid thermostat wire I was using - just too stiff.

The MTH bridge has a door hinge which swings out from this view, the middle Lionel bridge is a lift out and the inside Lionel bridge swings in . The latter two are wired with banana plugs so I can pull out the entire bridge as necessary. Hinges are on the left side of the photo and all bridges are mounted on a pine 1x4 mainly so I can get alignment right. The bottom hinge is nothing more than a 3/4 inch piece of thin wall conduit through a couple of 2x4 pieces. For this photo the Lionel bridges are just placed on top of the track to get an idea of position. BTW - the date on the image is wrong - should be June 2020. 

Finally got some work done on my ATSF Northern project. Decaled and clear coated the tender shell today. Have to do the same with the cab and boiler then wire everything. I should hopefully have it done sooner rather than later. 

George, You must be referring to the TV I brought home after my aunt passed on in March.  It has been sitting on the floor in front of the bookshelves with the buildings.  I moved it to take photograph 6.  It does look like the engines are all facing the movie screen!  

Bob, They went to church, Sunday school, and youth group with the fellows.  They come from an excellent extended family.

ScoutingDad, I think the square space is better than a small rectangular space.  This is the most room I have had going back to my first HO layout in the late '60s.  It looks like you have the movable bridges worked out to access the middle of the layout.  The three bridges will look great once installed permanently.  I think mine will swing up.  I'm glad I took Bob's advice because I was going to tackle the hinges, electrical contacts, etc.  At least I can run some trains to check out all the track with different engines and consists first while I work on ideas for the flip up bridges.  

Thank you everyone.

@ScoutingDad posted:

I wish I had your space. Almost every time I work on my 9x13 layout, I think if I only had an extra foot this way or that - mostly for staging or a yard. At present I keep only a rolling cabinet with ~40 cars on it. Everything else is either in my workshop / furnace room or in a storage room on either side of the layout. I keep thinking about taking down a wall for some extra space, but then that means I will rebuild my layout once again - that is not going to happen in this house. 

  

try living with a 4 X 8.......

The bridges look good.

Here is the video of the first run I mentioned last evening.  To answer Don's comment about stuff everywhere, I did another spin around the underside of the layout to show what is under there.  And yes, when the weather is bad out, or too hot (bad also), I setup the sawhorses in the 6x4 center viewing space to make cuts.  It can get a little crowded for sure!  I don't think this layout will ever be on anyone's open house schedule once events start happening again.  

       very cool Mark,  great job

Looks great Mark. 3 + minutes for a full loop is not a bad run at all.

Congrats!

Bob

Earlier in this string I showed the automation of my Command Gantry Crane.  https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/...7#146142158431808647

Well, I finished it. I replaced the 1ft. spindle with a 2ft spindle giving the crane plenty of room to roam.  I also decided to scratch build a platform for the scene and to cover the above layout spindle. Gave me an opportunity to give it some more interest.  I also extended the road to provide a transfer point for trucks to also supply the crane with another loading/unloading opportunity.  It worked. This weekend my 8 yr. old Grandson fired up the layout and moved the crane into position and started transferring cargo.  Now, that's what I'm talking about.  Here are a few pics and short video. Notice the fearless Superintendent on the Crane.

@Mark Boyce posted:

Here is the video of the first run I mentioned last evening.  To answer Don's comment about stuff everywhere, I did another spin around the underside of the layout to show what is under there.  And yes, when the weather is bad out, or too hot (bad also), I setup the sawhorses in the 6x4 center viewing space to make cuts.  It can get a little crowded for sure!  I don't think this layout will ever be on anyone's open house schedule once events start happening again.  

 

Very nice first run and very smooth. Thanks for the video.

Ed- love the crane. The platform is a nice way to hide the rod too!

Bob

Thanks, Bob. 

Mark, I like your track plan. I wish I had the foresight to plan more than one level to extend a continuous loop. I watched your video and my first reaction was to slap my forehead and utter those infamous words of Homer Simpson “D’oh”. Well done 

First run! I am so jealous! Nice work Mark!

Don Merz

Got the cab decaled/clear coated today. Just have to decal the road number on the sand dome and clear coat the boiler then it's time for reassembly.

@ToledoEd posted:

Earlier in this string I showed the automation of my Command Gantry Crane.  https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/...7#146142158431808647

Well, I finished it. I replaced the 1ft. spindle with a 2ft spindle giving the crane plenty of room to roam.  I also decided to scratch build a platform for the scene and to cover the above layout spindle. Gave me an opportunity to give it some more interest.  I also extended the road to provide a transfer point for trucks to also supply the crane with another loading/unloading opportunity.  It worked. This weekend my 8 yr. old Grandson fired up the layout and moved the crane into position and started transferring cargo.  Now, that's what I'm talking about.  Here are a few pics and short video. Notice the fearless Superintendent on the Crane.

Very Nice and well done!!  Thanks for sharing!

Cheers, Dave

@Mark Boyce posted:

Here is the video of the first run I mentioned last evening.  To answer Don's comment about stuff everywhere, I did another spin around the underside of the layout to show what is under there.  And yes, when the weather is bad out, or too hot (bad also), I setup the sawhorses in the 6x4 center viewing space to make cuts.  It can get a little crowded for sure!  I don't think this layout will ever be on anyone's open house schedule once events start happening again.  

Mark, Congratulations on the smooth run!   So glad that you are progressing.   Well done!

Cheers, Dave

I glued some cardboard strips in the mountain section of my DB Interchange and Port RR.

@ToledoEd posted:

Mark, I like your track plan. I wish I had the foresight to plan more than one level to extend a continuous loop. I watched your video and my first reaction was to slap my forehead and utter those infamous words of Homer Simpson “D’oh”. Well done 

Thank you Ed!  I came up with the idea, not a new idea by any means.  DoubleDAZ Dave is the one who drew it up in SCARM to make it work.  BTW, I like how well you gantry crane works!!

@Don Merz 070317 posted:

First run! I am so jealous! Nice work Mark!

Don Merz

Thank you, Don!  I hope you can get a first run soon!

@darlander posted:

Very Nice and well done!!  Thanks for sharing!

Cheers, Dave

Thank you, Dave!!

dan 77 Good start on scenery on your multi-level layout!  It takes a bit of thinking and maybe trial and error to scenic a layout like ours convincingly!

 Wow, Mark, you've made great progress on your layout, and it looks very good'.. No dead spots on your track', and that is a very big plus'... The rest will be clear sailing'...😁👌👍🏻

Ed, there is a lot of industrial activity going on in this area on the layout'.  The extra foot extension makes it all work and it all looks very good'... Beautiful job'... That superintendent looks a little pushy..... 😁

@Quarter Gauger 48 posted:

 Wow, Mark, you've made great progress on your layout, and it looks very good'.. No dead spots on your track', and that is a very big plus'... The rest will be clear sailing'...😁👌👍🏻

Thank you, Ted!  I did have a dead section at first.  I took the alligator clips off from testing and then forgot about it 😄

@Quarter Gauger 48 posted:

Ed, there is a lot of industrial activity going on in this area on the layout'.  The extra foot extension makes it all work and it all looks very good'... Beautiful job'... That superintendent looks a little pushy..... 😁

Thanks, Ted. As for the Super...well, what can I say?😁

Time to drag some hoppers away from the silo. Not much done, just put some cars away to make space for others. 

WOW been away for awhile and just checked out some of the amazing work thats going on here!

Mark, Great work on your layout and nice to see the first full run around it! Looks like everything went smooth. Congrats!

Ed, wonderful job on the crane! I hope you dont mind if I steal your idea about the platform for my layout! It looks great !

I havent been in the train room for 2 weeks now, but did get a chance to hang all the cool BNSF calendars I picked up about 3 weeks ago on the outside wall to the entrance to the train room. I will try to get a photo of that later today!

Everyone keep up the great work and I hope you all have a great week! Remember to try and find time for fun on your layout!

@mike g. posted:

WOW been away for awhile and just checked out some of the amazing work thats going on here!

Mark, Great work on your layout and nice to see the first full run around it! Looks like everything went smooth. Congrats!

Ed, wonderful job on the crane! I hope you dont mind if I steal your idea about the platform for my layout! It looks great !

I havent been in the train room for 2 weeks now, but did get a chance to hang all the cool BNSF calendars I picked up about 3 weeks ago on the outside wall to the entrance to the train room. I will try to get a photo of that later today!

Everyone keep up the great work and I hope you all have a great week! Remember to try and find time for fun on your layout!

Mike, thanks, and no problemo!  I'm flattered you are going to use the idea. Please post when you are finished.  

@mike g. posted:

WOW been away for awhile and just checked out some of the amazing work thats going on here!

Mark, Great work on your layout and nice to see the first full run around it! Looks like everything went smooth. Congrats!

Ed, wonderful job on the crane! I hope you dont mind if I steal your idea about the platform for my layout! It looks great !

I havent been in the train room for 2 weeks now, but did get a chance to hang all the cool BNSF calendars I picked up about 3 weeks ago on the outside wall to the entrance to the train room. I will try to get a photo of that later today!

Everyone keep up the great work and I hope you all have a great week! Remember to try and find time for fun on your layout!

Thank you, Mike!  I do have some areas I need to adjust to run my steam engines.  Some of the grade transitions are a bit too severe.  But it is easy to take those sections apart and make adjustments, like I made on the first one I ran into.

Today, I took an older Lionel 15 inch vista dome car, Silver Pony and upgraded it to match the newer cars with full width diaphragms, full interior with people, green tinted window inserts (came with the silhouette windows), and ungraded fully sprung trucks. 

I needed an additional Vista Dome to go with my 2 other Dome cars for the California Zephyr and this fit the bill. 

Now to my next project, I have a lot on the work bench, just need to figure out what is next.

RAY

Wow! You have to tell us more about this amazing upgrade.   

                              Marci helped me put in some more shelving...

                                she also got me this cool looking taxi...

                      then we ran some trains,   have a great weekend everyone !!

Haven't touched the layout in months, but yesterday these came in and my son put them on the track.   Now we have to clean the stuff off the layout that's been accumulating and then clean the track before we can run these new Lionel F-7's.  

Conductor Earl,

The upgrade to my California Zephyr Vista Dome Silver Pony, was easy, getting the parts was a little more involved. I mainly model the CB&Q, GN, NP, but have a nice collection of steam from the UP, SP and PRR just because. I wanted to model the California Zephyr, but knew my home layout was just a little too small for the 21 inch cars made by Lionel and others.

Over a year ago, I picked up a 15 inch Lionel Southern Railway car that had interior detail including figures, full width diaphragms, and scale sprung trucks for a very good price. I knew I could use the parts for something later on.

I recently found the Silver Pony shell on ebay  for a price I could not refuse. I knew the parts were interchangeable. So all I had to do was to install all the parts from the Southern car. They fit without like a glove.

Now my 9 car Lionel CZ set cars all have detailed interior, full width diaphragms and scale sprung trucks. I lean more toward scale models, and yes, I know the 15 and 18 inch cars are not full scale, but my home layout will not accommodate 21 inch cars. So there has to be some compromise. I have a Legacy set of CB&Q F3 A/B/A units in silver, changed the pilots to passenger pilots with from P&D and added grab irons to the front of the engines. 

I also have several Legacy E7's and E8/9's that I have added new pilots and correct grab irons to the front of the engines. Several of these I painted and lettered. 

My favorite part of the hobby, is upgrading and improving the overall appearance of the model. I've been doing this for years and find this most satisfying.

RAY

Ran some trains last night and made some videos.  Pretty much all the trains are from @MrMuffin'sTrains.  Enjoy

https://youtu.be/QMpFOpgdKcA

https://youtu.be/Gjq-3pXpOmc

https://youtu.be/EIF-2stOSnM

https://youtu.be/QlgwxbOpGxE

https://youtu.be/gnLIvaAbvmg

John

Finished assembling the TW Trainworx Lackawanna Bridge Kit. Beautiful bridge and fun to assemble. I had to get it done because I am into tracklaying right where I want to use it and I want to make sure it fits and plan the scenery around it. It will be right near one of the entrances/exits of my helix and return loop. But which entrance/exit it will fit the best is unknown. So I am playing my usual cut-n-try game--"full speed ahead" and darn the track plan!

I also purchased an MTH/Marklin Leipzig station which finally solves my passenger station issue. I wanted a stub-end terminal because I haven't got space for a through terminal. This should be perfect. I am going to add TW Trainworx platform kits to the rear of the station. I think this will make it distinctive and confuse the viewer who looks at it and thinks "tinplate?".

So the layout is ending up with two major tinplate pieces--the Leipzig station and the Lionel Backshop. There will be many lionel operating accessories mixed in with scale hi-rail structures--all on a gargraves/ross hi-rail track layout with the most realistic scenery that an inexperienced layout builder (me) can conjure up. Rules? What rules?

Don

Got around to working the Switch Order in session no. 2. B6s 505 switches out 2 boxcars at a freight house and drops 2 empties. B6s no. 5244 hauls 4 boxcars and 2 empty reefers from the yard to town, and its (fictitiously) 10 am well after the local commuter train and regular mail train have passed through. So the locals will be uttering discouraging words while the switching for local businesses clog the intersection by the train station. Switching was complicated by having to pull out cars and return them to get to traped cars. It makes switching more interesting but time consuming. After the town switching was completed, 6 cars were hauled to the yard where 2 reefers were coupled to the next outbound nine car freight.

Hi`, Mark, the layout looks great, wish you all the best with it, Phil

@Love trains posted:

Hi`, Mark, the layout looks great, wish you all the best with it, Phil

Phil, Thank you so very much!!

Morning guys, I don't have a lot of time as I have to go to a meeting. But I said I would post photos of the wall going into the train room. So here you go!

I hope you all have a great weekend and find to enjoy your layout and trains!

Yesterday I added a dark green, non-glare, coating to the short hood of my new C630.    Also found some time to run some trains.   Happy Weekend to all!

Cheers, Dave