Hello everyone. Looking forward to a weekend of great photos that you folks post. Some day I need to go back and re-scan some of these old slides to get better resolution and less grain in the digital image. This one shows part of the sugar refinery on my NTRAK modules.
Here's my finished crossing, code 55, dual gauge. I had to take a picture. REMEMBER, SCRATCH BUILDING IS FUN Wolfgang
Here, I had a ball putting this together. I've had this GE 25-tonner in N built for years, got the video camera much later and really only got into Win7 and Movie Maker (which had compatability with the camera that XP did not) much more recently. http://www.youtube.com/embed/-KYPCfBCJcU It's a ticklish little beast. After I tore it down, cleaned it, and got the track clean enough to serve as medical instruments I was able to get it to run long enough to at least get a few shots of it!
Wolfgang, I didn't get in to model railroading until I was 60 or so. If I thought I could live forever I think projects like this would be fun. Jim
I was driving towards Hruman when I saw this off in the distance climbing the grade towards Barclay. I quickly pulled a quick U turn and headed towards Thompson Canyon to get some pictures. Here was the surprising moment, 2 Santa Fe U36C's and an Espee Tunnel motor are on the head end of a long manifest. The U36's were fairly common around here, not near as common as the UP power that traverses this area but still, something I had seen time and time again. The Espee SD40T-2 on the other hand was a really rare bird. I saw them occasionally on run through's with the UP, but never before with the Santa Fe! I glanced down at my watch and saw that I still had time to catch it a few more times before I had to get to Hruman, So I drove to the canyons to the north of Barclay to get some shots. I attempted to beat the train to Denver but I missed it, I did however catch a D&RGW passenger train heading over Thompson pass before I headed back towards Hruman. I turned around and headed back towards Hruman, once again something caught my eye in Thompson Canyon, a southbound Santa Fe intermodel train headed up by 2 GP30's and a GP35. I raced towards the bridge I usually caught pictures at to get some shots. However I heard the drone of approaching EMD 710's as I setup the camera. I turned and saw another manifest being lead by an A-B-B-A set of GP60M's and GP60B's. They had almost perfect timing as they crossed the bridge, I snapped away. I stuck around to see the tail ends roll past before I got back on the highway towards Hruman, I had an appointment I didn't want to miss.
Wolfgang, I am very impressed that you obviously were able to isolate, yet power every rail segment successfully. In truth I am assuming both of these conditions since you have yet to provide a YouTube video showing this crossing in operation....:tb-wink:
Running Bear: Love the sign! Carl: Great tanks! Wolfgang: That's right between awesome and crazy. Just the way I like it. Randall: All of your critters are just excellent! I love those little things. Geep_fan: Great bridges and scenery. Now back to figuring out why one of my trucks isn't getting power...
Groovy stuff so far! Wolfgang: someday I want to get into Nn3 / N interchanges, so thanks for laying the ground(track)work for us! Some more picts of our N-scale Alameda switching layout, showing the added ground cover and some photo buildings, flats and fence: Thanks for looking.
As is always the case, we seem to have some dedicated and highly talented modellers posting to this wonderful thread each week. Thanks to all of you for keeping it at such a high caliber. I have not imaged my layout in many weeks, but I finally got a hankering to try taking a photo. So, here is an NYC 2-8-2 trailing a mixed freight as it enters Seneca Yard.
MC: I love how that layout is coming along. Crandell: Great shot. And your track looks excellent! How did you do the ballast/dirt in and around the ties? And what's your secret for weathering the rails? I really like how that came out and my layout will need tracks that look like this scene.
Thanks, PW&NJ! The yard surface is a mixture of sifted garden soil and plaster of Paris. I have quite sandy garden soild with some tilth added over the years to improve it. I used an old pair of pantyhose to screen it when it was bone dry. I mixed it with the plaster powder on a ratio of about two parts soil to one part plaster, sprinkled it over and around the rails that had been previously positioned and wired, and then used a small baby foot jar on its side to roll it all flat. between the rails and ties I used my finger tips to dab it to get it compacted. Once I was done, I merely spritzed the whole thoroughly with a mixture of alcohol and water so that the plaster would set. In some indentations I painted the bottoms black with full strength craft acrylics for a sealant and to impart an oily look. Then I filled those indentations with two part epoxy to give the appearance of oily water. Later, I used diluted black craft paint washes to simply blackwash the ties and between the rails to make it look oily and grimy. The uninstalled rail segments were painted with Floquil's "Rust", and the installed rails were all done with Poly Scale "Railroad Tie Brown." In both cases they were done by hand-held artist's brushes. One in which the bristles are cut to stiffen them, and perhaps 4 mm wide, is the best. Longer bristles and wider brushes just waste paint or don't get to the rail surfaces properly. I hope that helps.
Jim, with my new diagnosed Cholangiocarcinoma I need such projects. So I've started my Pueblo & Salt Lake RR, it's a project for the next ten years! I hope, you can see the crossing in operation next year. For now, I'm busy with room preparation. Wolfgang
Boxcab switching the Wellington spur on the PW&NJ. And thanks, MC. The dry brushing on the wooden supports of the water tower worked perfectly!
Some steamy shots from both layouts to go with the 100+ deg. heat in my garage today: Hope you guys are having a chill weekend!
