My challenge involved putting some scenery and a backdrop on one of my mines. ballast, ground cover, grass and bushes along with some weathering was the goal.

My review of Sierra Scale Models HO Scale Snow fence kit #135.

Just got home from the Western Pacific Railroad Museum and a wonderful hour of running a F7A locomotive. After a quick discussion of the controls in the cockpit, when and how to use the bell and whistle, I was released to take the locomotive out on the rails. I was rather surprised by how well the brakes worked and how smooth was the process of stopping. One question I forgot to ask was why the controls were on the right side of the locomotive. Perhaps someone here will have an answer for me.

Here are a couple of pictures for you to see.

When referring to the Louisville & Nashville Railroad I often see the saying "Gone, but not forgotten"  And so it is with the Richlawn Railroad as today after three days of work all of the railroad has been removed and is piled out back of my house.  Next up will be removing the glass above the door and removing all of the lettering before securing it back in place, painting, and patching the floor.  Happy Labor Day!

Here's another blog post... continuing my ideas on painting track and ballasting (resolved now, I hope!), and working thru the visual design for some trackwork twisting through a deep canyon.

http://rgsrr.blogspot.com/2012/09/most-ballasting-and-roughing-in-canyon...

Thanks to all of you who have been checking out my blog on a regular basis.  I'm picking up a great deal of traffic from MRH.   

I've started posting about planning and building the scene at Copper Cliff on the WRMRC.  I've been working on the scene for a while, but I've only just started writing about that one.  

The La Grange engine service tracks and caboose track are starting to get some use.

View of La Grange with Tortilla Flats and Gila Springs in the back ground.

The other end of the La Grange Industrial Park yard.

The GRANDE PACIFIC MODEL RR has seen its second eye of a hurricane. Isaac made it very slow pass on Wed morning. I am happy to say this time their was no damage. Gustave in 2008 took all of the new shingles off of roof. This is just another one of those things you have to plan for when building a place for your railroad. Building has now been hit by 125 mph winds. Isaac beat on us for over seven hours with winds of 60 to 70 mph gust. Visit www.grandepacificmodelrr.org and you will see the construction pictures of the building.

I busted out the box of N Scale cars and track that was in a corner in the basement.  I was going to mock up the latest iteration of Oconomowoc I had designed as a mini chain saw.  Boy were my girls excited about the N Scale cars and track!  (They weren't interested in the HO stuff at all....)

My wife asked why I didn't just do the layout in N Scale and put a loop of HO around the room up out of the way as to not waste the minimal HO pieces that I have.  I had often contemplated making the switch, but never could justify it.