Amendment to the above comment, "Unless someone trimmed them that way on purpose". I know a gardener, Japanese descendant who can take a tree and sculpture it into almost anything you want. Beautiful trees and shrubbery. So it's possible to have perfect looking trees. It all depends on the landscaping for a particular home place or business. On the next video: I must warn you someone forgot to mic up the presenter so it get's a little quiet on the set. Making Pine, Spruce and Fir Trees Video 1 Courtesy of: ShortHillWestern [video=youtube;GxMwx-CUUrk]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GxMwx-CUUrk[/video] Uploaded on Sep 10, 2011 First in a series of 4 videos for our YouTube Channel on Making Realistic and Inexpensive Pine, Spruce and Fir trees for your model railroad. This is one in 4 videos for our YouTube Channel. Due to the size of the video being produced we had to break it up for YouTube. The complete video is available for purchase on our website under our Scenery Videos selection from our store. www.shorthillwestern.com Let us know what you think. You will need to find the other videos and feel free to do so. Also, for good quality and focus of the picture it may be necessary to bump it up to 360 pixels. I liked the video right off the bat with the introduction. Nothing like the Durango and Silverton Railroad. May I be so bold as to suggest you can take one technique from one video and use it with other's from another video. Make it your own, if you get my drift.
We've covered bridges, buildings, lighting and other things you can do to rehab or revamp your layout. How about tackling some new technology and seeing what it can do for you. DCC, oh no not DCC? You've been working with analog DC, and the performance is less then you had anticipated. Kind of like watching a silent movie. Here is a video that illustrates what DCC can bring to your model railroad table. [video=youtube;82JBSvaXnKE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=82JBSvaXnKE[/video] Model Trains with DCC Sound, Smoke and Lights Courtesy of: pauliebanger Published on Jul 9, 2012 Three 4mm scale British Locos with sound smoke and lights controlled by DCC. I use Zimo Sound decoders. They have the greatest range of features available. Here I have used them to control smoke generation. Even in the small J94 saddle tank loco. Zimo allows a whisp of smoke at idle and when drifting, maximum flow when accelerating and medium flow when cruising. This is all available on the basic decoder, no add on boards needed. Synchro chuffs too if you can get a fan driven smoke unit in your model! There are other decoders available and I plan to bring some of those to this discussion. In the meantime check out what my good friend George, fellow TB participants and I have been talking about. http://www.trainboard.com/grapevine/showthread.php?159213-Sound-or-No-Sound
[video=youtube;gcPX8iEgauM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=gcPX8iEgauM[/video] HO Walthers American Crane - DCC and lights challenger3999 Uploaded on Aug 21, 2011 I converted my Walthers DC powered American Crane to DCC. Well, this was very easy, adding lights are not! I used a Zimo MX621 DCC decoder and 0603 pre-wired LEDs for lighting, drilling holes through the the searchlights and the body to thread the wires from the 0603 LEDs. Voilá - it works!
Certainly DCC has the potential of bringing a lot to your layout. How about something simpler. Do you have any auto rack cars? Do you need some cars, trucks and the like to put in them? This is without over weighting them. This next video could be the answer. Got Auto Racks, CHECK THIS OUT ! banjol4595 [video=youtube;qCsJREEbE2c]https://www.youtube.com/watch?list=LL9AGYKN-CzNFNOnNgTAEa4A&v=qCsJREEbE2c&feature=player_detai lpage[/video] Published on Sep 6, 2013 I'm only going to say,, ANOTHER GREAT PRODUCT FOR US MODEL RAILROADERS FROM DIGCOM DESIGNS,,,THANK YOU DIGCOM DESIGNS ! As submitted by Steve aka Banjol4595. You may need to bump the pixels up to 360 or 480 in order to get a clear picture. Just one of those things You Tube is working on.
Your buying brand new equipment and to your horror there are items broken or missing. It could be you just found out the wheels are out of gauge. Couplers are less then you had hoped for. Well, it don't matter what scale although this presentation is HO. You can do the same thing. Rolling Stock - Repairs and Upgrades PennCentral99 [video=youtube;SAigOjoQJV4]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SAigOjoQJV4[/video] Published on Sep 8, 2013 Even when you buy something "new", there's still some simple and minor things that need to be done before rolling stock goes on the layout. Most of us participate in model railroad forums and we see questions asked about couplers and wheels, hopefully this may help someone.
I just learned that Banjol's Videos may end up being deleted. banjol4595 aka Steve. I want to wish Steve well and hope that everything comes together for him. Thanks for taking the time to make the video's.
I'm finding it harder and harder to find videos that fit in here. There are a bunch out there but keep in mind I said earlier, "Some of these homemade video's can be a source of real frustration". I also said, "Like newbies helping newbies make the same mistakes". So, I haven't quite found what I want to present here. And, "Yes you can make mistakes", "Brush them off and remember what you learned", All Ahead Full Throttle. None the less I respect someone who takes the time to make a video for the purpose of helping other modelers. Thanks for the videos. Do, feel free to add in here your own How To's when it comes to Rehab or Revamping Your Layout. Thanks again for tuning in here and the best of luck with your model railroads. In the meantime my model railroad is under going some major revamping. Sorry, no videos. Maybe some slide shows...much later. Have fun!
Boxcab aka Ken, I'm not going to embed his video here on TB. You'll understand why when you visit You Tube. Here is a link to his announcement. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDrkIH8VVdU There may be more to this... then what surfaces here in this "Last Video". He has been good enough to share with us the practical side of model railroading. Appreciated by this TB participant. I respect those who are mentor's, who help those who are getting started in the hobby. Those who share their experience. So a shout out of thanks to Steve for giving it his best shot. Lack of recognition by one's peer's can be the worst kind of insult and source of embarrassment.
Good grief. Well, I've been around this hobby for many decades. There are indeed too many arrogant a--holes out there, and although few in numbers, their bloated egos have driven many away and done far more damage than any good which might have accidently come from them. We need home spun guys like Steve. They know what this is all about. We need to flush the others down the sewer of good riddance.
Tell Steve that, right about now that might be appreciated. Message received and acknowledged in the affirmative.
What About Operations? Moving on. We are talking about Rehabing or Revamping your layout. In the next video you will find where one fella looked at his railroad and said ...well...let him tell you. [video=youtube;AL-xnVSPExM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AL-xnVSPExM[/video] LAYOUT TOUR - N scale - Norfolk Southern - Pocahontas Division - Modern Day Layout NSTrainFan Published on Jul 18, 2013 WATCH IN 1080pHD!!! LAYOUT TOUR - N scale Triple Deck Layout - Norfolk Southern - Pocahontas Division - Modern Day Layout A in-depth video tour of Scott Teague's Triple Deck N scale Norfolk Southern Pocahontas Division, full basement, double deck layout. As submitted by NSTrainFan.
L Girders Moving right along. The old layout just doesn't work anymore. You find yourself bored with it. It's to small and the curves are to tight. Never mind those quick turn switches as in the diverging curve swings out to far or the curve is to tight. The layout is starting to warp and the box type construction just isn't doing it anymore. Take a look at this and drool. Sorry, no sound that I can detect. What? What? Hunnnh? Did you say something. Ok, so I can't hear so well. Sigh! [video=youtube;J_wB5QJJ5Sg]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J_wB5QJJ5Sg[/video] Courtesy of: N Scale Tehachapi Pass Large Layout Tour/Progress Report ckrailvideo Published on Jan 12, 2014 I took the opportunity of being stuck at home with a cold to do an updated progress video of my home layout, which represents the Southern Pacific Mountain District (Tehachapi Pass) from Mojave to Bakersfield, California in the spring of 1993. The layout is a combination of single, double, and triple decks and occupies 600 square feet in my home near Las Vegas, Nevada. Visualization: The real trick here is to visualize in advance what you want and to be able to have a mental picture of where everything, is going to go. If you aren't blessed with such abilities and I know of many modelers who aren't. Not a curse. Then you need to have a friend draw up a plan and explain it to you thoroughly. If you still can't see it or understand it. Then may I suggest you leave it alone and go back to something simpler. Why, you ask? Experience talking. I've built layouts for individuals thinking they understood what it was, I was building for them. Only to learn a simple loopity loop, was what they were wanting. As it turns out it was a real waste of my volunteer time. Incidentally, as a follow up, the last two layout I built for friends... Looking back, I can safely say all the layouts I ever built for family and friends, are currently dust on the floor. The owners couldn't operate them, maintain them and I don't think you have to guess, they were extremely unhappy and frustrated with them. A source of consternation, as one owner admitted. Lamenting: One fella after having a friend design a layout for him. Let's just say, what would of been a winding railroad up the sides of mountain canyon walls to a small yard on top. He put a flat top over the whole thing and totally disregarded the plan. Today, you can look under it and see a winding railroad. What should of been a gorgeous mountain mainline....all but useless. He could of used a helix to accomplish the same purpose and have it pop out on top. Giving him a work area under the layout. Ie., for a staging yard and much more. Now it's nearly impossible to access the lower deck. He did install a staging yard but it's hard to get to. He also has a short stub end yard and a mainline that isn't visible. He (the owner) admits he couldn't visualize what the designer was talking about. Sad to say, I doubt it will ever be the layout, as originally designed. Sigh! Getting back to the video, the layout design and construction. The kind of layout illustrated in the video requires the ability to visualize in advance. Mr. ckrailvideo has done just that and he has a well designed replication of the Tehachapi Loop and Pass. So a shout out to say, Well Done! Can't wait until he gets the scenery in.
You've worked hard on a plan and you've done your best to visualize it. Maybe you drew up an artist rendition of what you hope it will be like using pictures of various locations as a backdrop. Anything your creative mind can do to capture the intent. Let's say, It's finally coming together but wait the stock couplers are all wrong. Yeah, those anything but knuckle couplers, just don't cut it. Lacking the realistic railroad appearance. Oh they work well enough but it's time for a change... to Rehab the equipment by Revamping the couplers. Here's a How To, Courtesy of Mike Fifer. [video=youtube;JO4j5Ztsnao]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JO4j5Ztsnao[/video] How To Install Micro-Trains 2004-1 N Scale Couplers on a Kato NW2 by Fifer Hobby Supply Mike Fifer Published on Sep 14, 2013 Today we will show you how to install Micro-Trains 2004-1 N Scale couplers on a Kato NW2 switcher by Fifer Hobby Supply
This next video comes in a six part series. I won't provide all of them here as you can find them by clicking on You Tube in the frame and find them easily enough. [video=youtube;Ojv_G7k0_Yc]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ojv_G7k0_Yc[/video] Colley's Curve Refurbishment Harry Southern Uploaded on Nov 3, 2011 This is the first of a multi part series on the refurbishment of an HO free-mo module. The next video shows the module in it's final stage of completion. A quick review and the end product. It's not as difficult to do as you might think. [video=youtube;RyGUHqSCemM]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RyGUHqSCemM[/video]
I've been looking for this next video for sometime and finally found it. How to cast your own mold of a rock. I have a number of rocks I've picked up over the years and would like to reproduce them on the layout. Check this out. [video=youtube;PCYVZlTV1WA]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCYVZlTV1WA&list=PLcIXKM_8A8xGnmjIWMT0qDOa SOsR3p65l[/video] Courtesy of: Making a Basic Latex Rock Mold Jim Elster Published on Jun 22, 2012 Dave Frary demonstrates how to make a latex rubber rock mold for your model railroad scenery, military display, or miniature diorama.
Did I hear you say you got your mold and now your ready to use it? The procedure followed here is excellent. It is as close to what I do, as you can get. There are others you can look at and I'd recommend you do that. I'll leave you to choose but this video should get you started in the right direction. [video=youtube;A7G88lyWTUs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A7G88lyWTUs[/video] Making rocks and installing on Railroad layout.wmv Landrel Brown Uploaded on Dec 31, 2011 This is my method of Making rocks and installing on Railroad layout.
There is one more video that is making a big difference for a number of model railroaders I associate with and myself. [video=youtube;6Bbg2yrAdXY]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Bbg2yrAdXY[/video] TerranScapes - Bragdon Enterprises Rock Mold Review - latex mold casting Terranscapes Published on May 18, 2014 Information - TerranScapes.com Keep in mind the presenter is reviewing the latex mold casting. His comments are worth hearing and what he shares with you works out to be a pretty good How To. Although, I noted some oop's. Bragdon's products if you buy the kit comes with complete instructions. It's important you follow them. Oh, and it doesn't hurt to be a bit messy. I should add here that in some ways this really speeds up the process. Have fun!
Bragdon is local up here so we. Always get to see his spiel at the International Railfair. Host stuff is expensive but fun.
