Amfleet 2's

Just before I started packing for our move back to the states, I started superdetailing my fleet of Amfleet 2's.  I'm adding HEP cables/receptacles, air hoses, hand grabs, blacken wheels, and some road grim.  Think the final detailing will be adding marker lights controlled by a DCC decoder.

Also one of my big projects is building the Conrail Business Train:

http://www.trainweb.org/conrail/models/ocs.htm

ME!

You could have posted in both

You could have posted in both places...or Short Synopsis/glamour shots here and the rest there...you know, advertising for your blog!

But as for me, the whole modeling thing is backshelf since I moved out of the apartment 2 years ago.  I simply haven't been able to set up a proper workbench since.  And that is very important!!!

Spending money...

I just bought 3 Atlas GP38s decorated for the Buffalo & Pittsburgh. Same paint job as my Willamette & Pacific (or very close at least) so I'll be able to Microsol the numbers and logos off and replace them with the WPRR ones like I did for my first one of these locomotives.

That will bring me up to 6 total locomotives in my home road's colors.

I also picked up the Marklin Z-scale bridge I'd ordered last month at the Hobby Smith (along with another near $30 worth of stuff...) so I can now work a little further on my Z-scale figure-8 "amusement park railroad."

A much-maligned road, but if you need something quick...

Joe - FWIW, I started with a CNW a Kato SD38-2 and reworked/repainted it as a CSX unit in the summer of 2007.  Snapped ~ 15 in-process photos as I went along.

I posted a pic of the finished product on the modelrailroadforums.com photo gallery, but the one person who rated it gave it a failing grade (6 out of 10).  I think anything painted for CSX brings out the worst in some people.

http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e182/CSX_road_slug/2454_project/SD38-2_2454_front_left.jpg

Nice to see another CSX fan

I only have 2 CSX locos a Bachmann Ho loco type not sure of and a K-line/lionel O gauge SD70M(a monsterious loco)

Does dithering count?

I am dithering on locos and rolling stock, does that count?

The Lyndonville subdivision of the Canadian Pacific in Northern Vermont, my current choice for the "next one", ran pretty much the same freight schedule from 1965 to 1980 and beyond. So did it's interchange partners, the MEC and StJ&LC. This schedule included pool power with the B&M during most of this time between Newport VT and whatever was the current interchange point of favor with the B&M.

Whats killing me is trying to pick an era so I can start picking up rolling stock and locomotives. I prefer the freight cars of the late 70s. I prefer the locmotive schemes of the B&M in the 60s.. the CP & MEC in the 70s.. and the StJ&LC in the late 70s early 80s. Passenger traffic ended in 1965 although I can "jiggle the handle" and let it run later..

I never should have bit into the apple of prototype knowledge.

Now that I have.. I find selecting an era and the resulting trains I can run to produce enough waffling for me to open my own breakfast shop. It doesnt help that the wife keeps reminding me I need to pick soon if I want to get any new freight cars for Christmas..

Chris

maligned on the mainline??

Why malign them, when you can have fun with them? Here's a pic of a Kato SD40 that I picked up in Milwaukee Road for just 25 bucks. A dip in Chameleon, some Floquil and "altered" decals and it's now at home on an east coast pike.

Wait til I get the GP30 road slug finished that goes with it!

No hurry

I have a Kato SD45 that has been on the workbench for months.  Someday, I'll assemble it.   

Working on locos

When I ought to be working on my layout to make sure it will run when my bro-in-law and nephews come over on Sunday, I'm instead working on some locomotives - I've got 3 out of 4 of my re-decal projects finished (to the point of needing to do numberboards, something that mildly terrifies me). I've got the trucks on two locos painted silver using "rub n buff" per an article in an older MR. Now I've got to do the following:

Coupler swap-outs for Kadees

Detail (like handrails) mounted

Decoder swap-outs for TCS A4X's.

Put 'em on the programming track and get them set to roll.

Here are some photos of the

Here are some photos of the last railcar I worked on prior to cleaning up the old workbench and starting construction on the new layout room. It is an Athearn BB 50' boxcar former Rock Island. I repainted, weathered and patched in the new owner. Hope you all enjoy.

Yech!

Yech! That looks awful! GREAT job on the weathering!!!!!

Charlie

Very nice weathering,

Very nice weathering, Frisco.  I'm going to try my hand at some weathering this next week, but I'm sure it won't look that good.

NOW I remember where I've

NOW I remember where I've seen your userID before: the "empty-W" forum!

I haven't been over there anytime recently myself though, I just don't have the time to weather any more cars [other than the Chessie cement hopper] that'll be considered worthy by that crowd.

skiloff, You should go over

skiloff, You should go over to modeltrainsweathered.com there is a wealth of knowledge to be had from those guys. Glad you liked it.

Ken, Yeah, I thought that I

Ken,

Yeah, I thought that I recognized your user name from the "empty-W" forum. I still pop in about every day to see what is happening. Looking forward to seeing your Chessie cement hopper when you get it finished.

Here it is...

S.R., I forgot to mention that your boxcar looks great!  When I tried to post that correction into my original reply earlier, I got some kind of Drupal (sp?) error message saying the "server is down, please try again later"...oh well!

I actually finished the cement hopper last April.  Spent over a month working on it, trying to make it look exactly like the proto-photo.  Hummer Dave liked it, but Rich never commented on it. 

Anyhoo, this is it:

It's a slightly modifed Athearn RTR PS-2 2600 cu.ft. covered 2-bay.

Ken, Thanks glad you like my

Ken, Thanks glad you like my boxcar. Wow, That hopper looks spectacular. If HummerDave liked then I would say you had a winner. I really like the rust streaks and the trucks look great. To bad Rich never chimed in. I got an attaboy from him on my Appilachicola Northern 50' SIECO I did for the MTW weathering exercise. You really spent a month working on it? Wow. The car I did above only took me a couple of days. But, when I do something I go all in, it drives my wife crazy unless I'm working on something for her.Do you use the car on your layout or did you sell it?? I prefer to keep mine or give them to friends.

That is one heck of a good

That is one heck of a good weathering job!

Charlie

Staying on the Home Roster

S.R. & Charlie,

Thanks for the kind words! At the moment I have no intention of selling it, I'm saving it for when I stage photos of my as-yet-unbuilt cement plant.  I must say though, one valuable thing I learned from MTW is to always use reference photos for the type of weathering I want to do, even if they're not the exact same car.

A-line's Blacken It

 Well, used A-line's Blacken It, and I left my Amfleet wheels in it a little too long, now all my wheels have a heavy coating of rust, so if you're gonna use it, a little bit goes a very long way!

Another weathered car

Here is another weathered and tagged car car that I did a few months back. I worked from several prototype photos to get this final result. It is an Athearn Genesis 50' SEICO. I completely disassembled it (not to easy considering how fragile the detailparts are). I gave it a fade and then started in on the weathering. The Graffitti isn't hand painted but Blair line decals, sorry. I prefer to hand paint the graffitti but wanted to try the decals.

That's some dandy weathering!

Wow, nice weathering job!

You know cars that look like that are going for hundreds of dollars each on ebay, right?

Thanks Joe. I used to look at

Thanks Joe. I used to look at those auctions and wonder why they go so high. I'm not too interested in doing that. I prefer to either keep them or just give them away. The AN car I gave away to a very good friend who could appreciate it and use it on his layout. He was blown away by how "nasty" it looked. Thats what I enjoy.