Rob, Here in Connecticut we got a foot of snow last week. Luckily it was not heavy wet snow. I just got back from Jersey packing up more of my dad's train collection. Time to catch up on your activities. The hotel is really taking shape. Your wiring and electronics are always very well thought out and executed. Scott
The hotel is looking really good! Love to watch your build process, most specifically the design aspects. Helps me utilize those techniques in my own laser cutting efforts.
Today I woke up to a clear and sunny morning, albeit cold at 5 degrees. Stepping outside I had to stop and admire the beauty of a fresh snow. I went back out at around 11am and the temperature was already up to 10 degrees, but there was absolutely no melting of the snow going on. Here is my backyard view today: In case you are wondering what I was doing last fall and up till Christmas, My son and I started building and outdoor BBQ kitchen, something I have always wanted to do, you know a guy thing. I let my girlfriend hang a couple butterfly's but i picked out all the hardware. On the left is a 30" Blue Rhino Razer griddle with a pizza oven drawer on it, although it only fit's 13" maximum pies. I got a stainless prep table, then may pride and joy Pit Boss 1100 Pro pellet smoker with both a pellet barrel and a propane barrel, and a side burner on the far right. I added a couple 36" 480cfm exhaust flow hoods to carry away excess smoke, and I can't wait till spring when I will add a Kegerator to help ease my summer suffering Trains can't be my only hobby now can they?: And I fixed myself a Triple Shot Latte to wake me up before heading out to the garage to work on my hotel: So today I did more design work, and finally dialed in the front porch, as well as all the windows and doors parts. I also painted the interior module white so the lights will show up well, then test fit the interior and it slid in just fine. Tomorrow I will have to paint the structure in the NP Sand and Brown scheme, then apply all the windows and doors:
Your hotel is looking great! Look forward to seeing it finished! Excellent BBQ setup in your backyard! Nice that you even have smoke vents for the cookers! With that setup you could feed a small army!! HaHa!
Is your train shed insulated? Seems like you got huge temp swings. But man that outdoor BBQ set up is bad ass! I’d be cooking there even in the cold!
Train shed is insulated and heated, but I have not been out there lately, because I am still working on completing the set of modules needed for a running loop. That's in the garage for now.
Today I masked and painted, I used the Tamiya masking tape and it gave a great cut line all around the base of the model. While waiting for the paint to dry, I soldered 38awg wires to the stepper motor that will drive the ceiling fan. I also stained the porch deck gray, and glued on the porch, and started applying windows. Each window is composed of 2 panes and 2 pieces of glazing, so I got burnt out after 16 doors and windows, leaving 19 more to do before moving on to the wiring:
Today I finished applying all the windows and doors, and I made the Lester Hotel sign, which is just a photo print of the original: Next I wired in the micro stepper motor and all the LED's for all the rooms: And lastly, I programmed the microcontroller, and started wiring it. My friend came over so this was my stop point, meanwhile we got another several inches of snow fell today. Tomorrow morning I get to shovel snow again, yay!
Today I finished wiring the microcontroller: Then I added room curtains cut from paper towels: And I added a fan blade to the ceiling fan and tested operation OK: Proof:
Nice BBQ! Family project too. Beautiful. Loving your Hotel. Ever thought of having one of those Arduino or whatevers turning lights on and off randomly, at long intervals?
Now I'm getting to the fun part. I started detailing the structure. What I like to do is carefully examine the photos, and put what I see on the prototype, onto my model. I like to go over the photos several times, and add more and more details, as I discover them. I found that the average guy will go for the shape, then the discerning modeler will try and make signs and details seen in photos. I found that it really takes sitting the model in front of you, and going through the photos a few more times to take it up to the next level. I figure that a model is not really next level unless someone looks at it and says "Oh, I Just $#!t My Pant's! Did You Really Make That Yourself?" So after I draw up and cut some roof shingles, Apply and weather them, then I will go over the photos again and see what I can find. So here is where I am so far:
Rob, I’m really liking the historic lines of this hotel. I think you are accurately grabbing every detail of this building as it would’ve existed in the day. Patient and precise building skills, crisp straight lines, smoothly applied paint, windows aligned properly, well chosen paint colors, and faithfulness to history all combined are yielding yet another masterpiece. This is what the average guy needs to learn from your work.
Yes, I used 3mm square ABS tube from an Amazon vendor, and made a cradle template, then engraves all 4 sides. I used 2mm round then 3mm round to make the rest of the stack. T still have to paint the pipe a weathered galvanized color, with more soot on the cap.
That roof is very well done! The shingles look right if that makes sense. Will they get paint? Stain?
