Modeling topic
IAIS's West End - The search for the perfect GP38-2
Over the years, I've made a number of attempts at modeling Iowa Interstate GP38-2s. I've never built one I'd consider anywhere close to "perfect", but the just-released Athearn Genesis model, factory-painted for IAIS, is close enough that my search for something better is over. I thought it might be interesting to show the progression over the years.
My trip to the Smokies and how I "discovered" a railroad I didn't know about.....
I've lived here in Georgia all my life and one of my families favorite getaway destinations that is fairly nearby has always been The Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I knew that, way back when, before it was a park that there had been logging operations. Not being much of a proto guy anyway I'd never been really that much interested in it and assumed that "The Smoky Mountain Railroad" that ran back in that time was a logging line. Well not quite.
Faller Expert Cement
I've been reading about Faller Expert Cement for a number of years from Bruce Petrarca and several other folks. I decided to give it a try and ordered a bottle. Trouble is, I can't figure how to get the darn bottle to flow. I figured there was probably a seal inside the cap that must be removed, but I can't get the cap off. Even with pliers, it feels like I'm on the verge of destroying the bottle, but that cap won't budge!
So how does one get this stuff to start flowing?
Propane in 1967
Propane began shipping in 1952 by rail according to my research to date. I am trying to determine what railway cars would have served a propane industry in 1967. Box cars for individual cylinders is my guess, but higher volume would require a pressurized tank car? Does anyone know? Tx.
Seattle and North Coast N scale Kato F7
My next entry is my nearly completed Seattle and North Coast Kato F7. I have not done any custom painting in a very long time so I am pretty impressed it turned out pretty well. I have some minor details to add such as a roof beacon, winterization hatch, and some MU hoses, and a decoder. This was fun to do since no one has done a commercially available unit in this scheme in N scale.
Determining a car's direction of travel
Good day - at the East Coast Large Scale Train Show (held in York, PA last week) a gentleman who attended my presentation asked if I could come up with a way to determine the direction of travel of a passenger car.
He had a G-Scale USA Trains observation car that had directional lighting. It worked properly when operated by standard track power but he was using constant track power with a radio control system so the lights never changed. The same issue would come up with DCC or battery operated trains.
Scratch building an n scale car float apron
Scratchbuilding an n scale car float apron
By Shawn Newkirk
My home layout is a hybrid of the old Seattle and North Coast railroad and the BNSF branch out to Anacortes, WA. For the Seattle and North Coast segment I really wanted a static car float operation so I decided to try my hand at scratchbuilding one. I already had a laser cut car float so all I needed was the apron to connect it to. The process only took a few evenings and uses all commercially available materials.
Modelling train wrecks
Has anyone tried, succeeded in or viewed a train wreck as a model, such as a sideswipe still on the tracks or a derailment, etc. Was/is it based on a prototype? Can you supply photos od the model?
ME turnout details - Add or not?
This is not about right or wrong. Just an informal "add the add-on details or not?". I'm thinking of not adding the detail to turnouts that are out of sight or maybe not adding to turnouts where one side is not visible to a viewer. I get a headache thinking of 25 turnouts with 8 rails clamps each!
Thoughts?
Charles
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