This evening was spent adding details to my Prairie Shadows speecial run NAR GP-9, including Micro-Trains #1015 couplers, Miniatures By Eric bell, horn and winterization hatch, and a Sunrise Enterprises Sinclair antenna: The winterization hatch is still loose as it does not seem to fit well and I am not yet sure if I have it located and oriented properly. The new parts have yet to be paint matched to the shell. This locomotive is an interesting diversion for me (they operated into Dawson Creek on the mixed trains) and I plan to use this locomotive as a trial installation for the ESU Loksound decoder and a speaker. Tim
Continuing on with Little's Lumber and now have 1st section of sawmill done and starting on 2nd section to attach to first. Cutting windows and doors out of the 3/32nd wood wears out some single edge blades but fortunately I buy them by the 100s at the big box home improvement store for what I would pay for only 5 or 10 at the LHS. A lot of precision cutting on templates then overlay onto wood and more precision cutting and the Tru Edge sander my Wife got me about 2 years ago has been a Godsend.
Main hatches, cargo piping, high-pressure clean-out piping and manifold added, along with more walkways. Lots of touch-up and straightening still needed.
I don't know if this is allowed, but the latest thing on my workbench was my adding sound to the first of my Atlas H16-44s. I posted this on another site, so here goes (I hope this is okay). http://www.therailwire.net/forum/index.php?topic=32227.0 I got the initiative to do this after seeing all the great work John did. And special thanks goes to Brad Myers and Ron Bearden for their work in figuring out how to even install a decoder in the H16 and keep the original Red/Green marker lights working. Sorry for the OOF video.
Many hours, and I learned today that I got it all wrong! At least it came off cleanly. There is something to be said about using white glue, even with plastics.
Undoubtedly. Having made more than my share of "oops" when attaching parts to plastic kits, I know the feeling. And solvent cement can turn that "aargh" moment into a violent outburst. But then, models don't have feelings to hurt, so I guess it's OK?
The Northwest Shortline Chopper is for cutting thin woods and plastics to lengths and this one handles about a 2.5 inch length if one is using the stops that can be preset to duplicate exact lengths. There are several sizes and this one pictured is the smaller. It also has metal guides that give one a 30, 45, 60, and 90 degree end cuts for doing something like roof trusses. Gives good cuts in styrene up to .040 thick and similar thickness soft woods. Using a single edge razor blade and the cutting edge which can easily be replaced with a new one. Not for metals. Also by the same folks is another tool in the upper left of the photo behind the coffee cup called a Tru-Sander also made or carried by NWSL. Once I have the structure parts cut I can pass them through the Tru-Sander to make sure I have true edges for both wood and plastics. And there is a 3rd tool also produce by NWSL called a Duplcutter that allows preset lengths of wide styrene or thin wood sheet to be rapidly cut. Handles sheets of material up to about 7 inches wide. All three are essential tools for a scratch builder in my book. I have actually wore out one earlier chopper and this is my 2nd one.
John , you didn't mention some of the other important tools there , like the Kleenex box and Lifesavers and I do not see any bandaids for when your finger gets in the chopper. LOL Mike
Learned long ago about using one of those tweezers to get the occasional part that ends up under the blade. Can't say how I came to that practice but the scars on some of the fingers are mute testimony to the learning progress.
I couldn't live without my NWSL chopper. For metals I use either a miter box with razor saw or the most dangerous tool I have ever had in my woodworking and model making shops--that little 3" chop saw from Harbor Freight.
I may need to invest in one for my scratchbuiding projects. Its just about impossible to get a long, straight cut with an xacto
If you are cutting long strips of building or car siding from styrene sheets then you most likely want the Duplicutter. The Chopper is limited by the blade which is 1.5 inches whereas the duplicutter can handle about 6-8 inches long by however wide you want.
An update on the sawmill that occupies my workbench and will for sometime more. Finished all the major parts of the complex and they now just need to be finished weathering and then all joined together as one structure. The low bldg. in the front is the power house with the composite textured paper foam sides that was the subject of another post. Now about ready to start the wood chip loader, loading dock, and log loader/green chain which will involve a lot of cutting of many small wood parts.
Here is the weathered asphalt in my TOFC yard. This is intended to be a small facility loading 10-15 trailers a day.
I can cut some small stuff with a digital cutter. This piece is out of 0.5 mm (0.020"). It's a pipe support. I needed 30 of them for the Mobile Engineer Tanker I'm building. Could have done it in photo etch brass, but even 300 of them would not make much sense financially.
The 560' N Scale Mobil Engineer is nearing completion, with about 80% of the railings installed, and stairways and ladders next. I had to make some seam repairs on the hull, but repainting it will be a snap. While my work table looks like chaos, you can see, in front of the mahogany building plank, that my tool selection is actually fairly small: pliers, scissors, knife, ruler, tweezers, glues, dust brush, angle guides from my Chopper, small flashlight (to detect irregularities), touch-up paint and a few odds and ends. The tube of Testors gooey plastic glue does not belong! All the chaos behind the ship is just stuff that got pushed back there, and will be sorted and put back in order when I get the ship off the plank--i.e., finished. Putting it up on the plank keeps it flat, and also reminds me how much the ship is worth. My best build so far! I think I'm getting up to that "museum-quality" level with this one Still a bit of straightening and touch-up to go and, of course, the bow to finesse into shape--#$@$$##! Bows! It's why my smaller ships have cast resin bows--spend forever doing them correctly once, then mold and cast. But this is too big to cast.
