While using my Dremel Tool model 370 as a router, I misplaced the "Housing Cap Screw" --- ok, I lost it --- that screws onto the nose of the tool.  Emails to Dremel about a replacement part went unanswered.  Time to see if I could make one.

The nose is threaded 3/4" x 16 tpi.  A trip to the local hardware store yielded a 3/4x16 hex nut for a little more than a dollar.  I spent a little time with a lathe and now the Dremel has a shiny nose.

I am seldom intimidated by a project. Ever since I took apart my first alarm clock as a child, I have jumped into practically anything with confidence (or chutzpah) and enthusiasm. I've had the occasional setback (I remember blowing a fuse amid smoke and sparks while demonstrating electromagnetism in 5th grade, and at my retirement recital one of my favorite contraptions went seriously cracker dog), but most everything eventually worked reasonably well.

Then I acquired this kit in 2013:

Only working a few days over Christmas has given me time to do some further work on the layout.  Getting up at my usual time in the morning (too early) gives me time to do some work on the layout before anyone else in the house is awake.  After getting the staging yard throat to my liking, along with getting the routing set up properly, let me work on some other needed things.  

The week before Christmas, and the days right after found a great deal of time to make a concentrated effort on completing a majority of the benchwork on the railroad. We implemented a few new techniques on the upper levels and found these to be very effective. Next up, all the Masonite: spline, fascia, and backdrops. Details in following posts