What did you do on your layout today?

Brian, Great photos! I don't know how you have time for such big projects & trains! All I can syay is both look great, weather it be trucks or trains you do a wonderful job!

Mark, Well Said! But a funny story at one point we sold out house here in Washington state and moved to AZ. 10 months later the wife said she couldn't take the heat and was moving back with or without me. Needless to say here we are back in Washington waiting for the snow to fall maybe! LOL

Bob, thanks for the weight information!

Chris a. Once again wonderful video! I watched it again this morning and loved it! I can see & hope that one of the model Rail Road Magazines will reach out to you for an article on your layout!

Jim, Your river banks look amazing! Can you tell us what rock molds you used and the process you used?

Bill, Nice job on the engine repair, and Sparky is perfect name! It's only 56F here this morning! LOL

I hope you all have a great day! Please find time for your trains and Layouts!

What'd I do today? I thought more about transient suppressor diodes, these widgets:

I installed one yesterday across the posts on the Z 1000 power brick to protect against voltage spikes harming electronics. But shouldn't it be IN the locomotive immediately down-circuit from the $$ electronics we are trying to protect? So I looked under the hood of a PS3 SW1500 and wa la: the power and ground leads from the pickups and truck-frames are wire-nutted to the circuit board power leads. Easy-peasy: I just added a protector diode between  the two wire nuts:

BTW, a tip: if you need to remove the cab/hood from an MTH SW1500 removing the truck frames gives access to the front two cab screws so as to not scratch the paint on the truck frame. Don't ask me how I learned this 

briansilvermustang posted:

 

                  UH - OH...

                                 

 

 

Camel back Day???????

Geysergazer,  As cheap as it is for TVS, I put them on every set of outputs.  Four on my Lionel VW.  Four on my Lionel ZW.  Two on my American Flying 8B.  I'm covered.

Johan,  Tama on hyva lampotila marraskuuhun.  My keyboard does not have A or O with two dots above them.

Mike,  I've heard rumors of a state called Washington.  Google will not translate that to Left Coasteese.

Brian,  How many engines do you own?  Looks like about 40-11 (that is a number down here).

Y'all excuse me while I go play trains.

Bill H.

I set up two platforms on my Christmas lay-out.  I had to leave empty space on the Coca-Cola display because this year's items haven't come out yet.

          I think it was 40-12 something the last time we checked...

               have a good time running trains

          really like your truck Bill,   nice,  looks GREAT !!!

Odenville Bill posted:

Geysergazer,  As cheap as it is for TVS, I put them on every set of outputs.  Four on my Lionel VW.  Four on my Lionel ZW.  Two on my American Flying 8B.  I'm covered.

Johan,  Tama on hyva lampotila marraskuuhun.  My keyboard does not have A or O with two dots above them.

Mike,  I've heard rumors of a state called Washington.  Google will not translate that to Left Coasteese.

Brian,  How many engines do you own?  Looks like about 40-11 (that is a number down here).

Y'all excuse me while I go play trains.

Bill H.

 

Bill. Very nice, thank you. Your Finnish language is fluent. Toivottavasti talvi on lyhyt ja lämmin. 🇫🇮🤝🇺🇸

Johan

Vincent,  I believe premature Christmas decorations cause early cold weather.  Well done.

Brian,  Two thumbs up. 

I went out to run a prewar consist.  Somehow, I started changing out more O27 track for O gauge.  I still do not like geometry problems.

Odenville Bill posted:

 

Brian,  Two thumbs up. 

Bill, I have heard of 40-11 too!  I can tell you Brian has way more than that!! 

Mike, I wouldn’t know where we would move.  Certainly, it is not a decision to be taken lightly.  It needs lots of looking into!

I spent a good part of the day wiring the lights and accessories that I recently relocated.

While under the board I also fixed some "what was I thinking when I originally wired that" issues that I found

Speaking of cold weather, it is 4:40 PM and 68 degrees here in Mexico.

Better put on a few more logs tonight, Vincent!

The Parade float has a voice!  I hooked up an air whistle to a compressor.   At about 40psi she is pretty loud.  I tried at 100psi and she is loud but has too much air and doesn't sound well.   

Here she is at 40psi.

I plan to hook up a rope to the lever so the scouts can walk up to the float and blow the whistle during the parade.  

Took a final photo of the Starkweather Street Station......

BAR GP7 #63 posted:

Very nice Johan 

No work just Freeeeezing here in the Ozark Foothills 

Christmas is coming to Palms to Pines R.R...

John

COLD in Cleveland, Ohio. Spent the day assembling another Sauder four-drawer dresser for my back study/guest room. Organized clothes and placed some trains on display on bookcases.  The side-by-side dressers will give me a good surface for taking listing photos when I thin my collection. I need to find some ceiling spots to highlight the trains on the bookcases.  Mom hibernated in her room, giving me time to do some work today.  Going for a drive for lunch was out of the question.

Our street was a sheet of ice and the snowplow did not come until 5:45 P.M. last night.  I did not see the rock salt spreader working on the back of the truck.

Sincerely, John Rowlen

Thanks for all the compliments folks. The rock work was done with Bragdon Enterprises geodesic foam rock casting methods. I used molds 82 & 83 for the entire scene flipping the casts differently to create a non repetitive look. I used Smooth Cast 300 and Foam It 5 from Smooth On products. The following photo is of the two products. You can get this in smaller quantities on Amazon.

I also used their mold release which simplified the process. If you go to Bragdon’s web site read the instructions thoroughly including the preparation and painting steps. and watch Eric’s Train 8 part video on casting tunnels you can achieve similar results. I will also add that you need to experiment with the amount of casting materials to mix so the casting isn’t too thin. My first couple castings crumbled up into flakes because I was being too conservative with the amount. The castings can be heated with a hair dryer to match curvy contours. Hot glue is used to secure them and softens them as well for press fitting seams. All the materials used were found on Amazon, Model Train Stuff, Scenic Express, Bragdon Enterprises, and eBay. Do a little research and save a few bucks!

I work from the top of the scene down which leaves me at the river. The hard shell is simply pink foam, rigid wrap, and sculpta mold. The  next photo is from the first upper layer after casting and painting rocks.

The road was made with 1/8” masonite by free handing the road on my foam base and transferring it to heavy brown paper with a tacked onto the Masonite and cut with my saber saw. Grey primer, Red Lion vinyl transfer lines, a little chalk and some construction adhesive does the trick. I put numerous weights on the road and let it set for two days to maintain the contours on the base.

Here’s a shot of the road and the unpainted castings. Keep in mind I did all the details on the road at the dining room table before installing. This photo was before final install. I may add some cracks later. 

Finally, I got a lot of encouragement from CSX Al including tips on using photos of natural scenes as inspiration. So, everyday, weather permitting, I walk a couple miles out of the Niagara Gorge, where my office is, and take in the beautiful fall scenery.

lee drennen posted:

No work just Freeeeezing here in the Ozark Foothills 

Yes, it was down to single digits here I Western Pennsylvania this morning.  Looking forward to a warming trend.

@Mark Boyce, I think you would enjoy our warm Southern California climate. If you ever visit out here, I'll give you a tour of the fire lookout tower at 7000 ft. where I volunteer. And also a tour of the Palms to Pines R.R.

John

Mark,  Just the thought of temps below freezing makes my dangling partisipples draw up.

I pulled up a bunch of O27 track and put down 13 pieces of O gauge.  I am too tired to cut another piece of wood for the upper level or a short filler bit of track.  All in all, it was a constructive day.  I have a cat scan on tap for tomorrow.  They didn't say which cat I should bring.  Last time I got scanned showed nothing but hot air.

Gudnite Y'all

Temps cold here in MI. Tried to hook up tortise switches today. Then went over to friends house and ran trains for a few hours. Had fun today back with the trains after the crappy week me and family had last week with the loss of my father. he was  the one that got me started with this great hobby.

John Meyncke posted:

Christmas is coming to Palms to Pines R.R...

John

John, that's a nice-looking house. And it is definitely a sharp-looking car.

Nothing, but had a great day at NJ Hi-Railers. Great layout, great guys. Arnold

lee drennen posted:

BAR GP7 #63 posted:

Very nice Johan 

Lee. Thank you. 🤝

Johan

I know I am a day late! Seams like that's been my life lately! LOL

Lew, Great tips! Where did you get the diodes?

Bill, LOL I checked and were here! But I could not find Bald Rock Moutain! LOL Sure sounds like you have been busy! Good luck on your Hot Air Scan!

Vincent, your Christmas layout is really coming along!

Johan, beautiful city scene ! Love all the weathering on your cars!

Mark, I don't care what the CEO says were done moving! LOL

Jim, The whistle sounds great! How do you plan to power your air compressor?

Howard, I hope the Final Photo is because its done and not coming down! I think it looks great!

John, Perfect! LOL

John R, With the cold weather sounds like a good idea to stay inside and work on warm projects!

Jim Thanks for all the information on how you did the rock walls on your river bank!

Rick, sorry for your loss, But its great that you will always have memories of you and your dad running trains!

As for me I have to go back down to the store to do some repairs, then it will be time to hang more Christmas lights! If I am lucky I will have some time later today for trains I hope! LOL

I hope you all have a great day and find time for your trains and Layouts!

Mike, I got the TVS diodes on eBay. I paid about a buck apiece to get Motorola diodes sourced USA (so I didn't have to wait for the slow-boat-from-China). 

Brian, heh   

I see what you did there 

  " As for me I have to go back down to the store to do some repairs, then it will be time to hang more Christmas lights! If I am lucky I will have some time later today for trains I hope! LOL"

                         hopefully you will get some train time today Mike !!

            and check your mail,  hopefully you will have a surprise there today...

                                hope you have a great day !!

jgtrh62 posted:

lee drennen posted:

No work just Freeeeezing here in the Ozark Foothills 

Same here up the road from you in St. Louie, Lee. Some really good photos and videos posted here today!

John

John

I know it’s cold there I drive there to work every day 

Yesterday late morning I ran trains and took a few photographs of the layout.  Good times!!

I have a couple photos ( photos 5&6 ) of my recent York purchase from Richard Kreig of the Railroad Crossing ... The " Little Tavern " was a small chain of burger places around Washington DC.... open 24/7.    The burgers were cheap and tasted quite fine  Folks would buy them by the bag full.  There was one located on Route 1 in Laurel, Md. ( Building is still there ) and one on Rt. 1 in College Park, Md. serving the University of Maryland community. ( others were scattered throughout the DC area )  When I was in school at UofM our nick name for the Little Tavern was " the Club LT"  I ate lots of LT burgers and drank lots of their coffee over the years for sure!    

trumptrain posted:

Yesterday late morning I ran trains and took a few photographs of the layout.  Good times!!

I have a couple photos ( photos 5&6 ) of my recent York purchase from Richard Kreig of the Railroad Crossing ... The " Little Tavern " was a small chain of burger places around Washington DC.... open 24/7.    The burgers were cheap and tasted quite fine  Folks would buy them by the bag full.  There was one located on Route 1 in Laurel, Md. ( Building is still there ) and one on Rt. 1 in College Park, Md. serving the University of Maryland community. ( others were scattered throughout the DC area )  When I was in school at UofM our nick name for the Little Tavern was " the Club LT"  I ate lots of LT burgers and drank lots of their coffee over the years for sure!   

Patrick, always enjoy pictures of your layout.   Great find at York and love the "Club LT" story and connection.   Thanks for sharing!   PS:  I'm amazed you found a place to add it!!

Cheers, Dave

John Meyncke posted:

@Mark Boyce, I think you would enjoy our warm Southern California climate. If you ever visit out here, I'll give you a tour of the fire lookout tower at 7000 ft. where I volunteer. And also a tour of the Palms to Pines R.R.

John

John, Thank you!  My wife’s brother and our niece and her family have lived in the LA area for a long time.  We have never been out that way.  The thought of us going brought Jed Clampet to mind. LOL

Bill, I too pray your scan goes well.  I had a couple brain scans earlier in the year, and they found absolutely nothing!!  Wink

Mike, we do want to move someday back into a ranch.  Taking my mother-in-law’s deal on Kim’s grandma’s house was a financial blessing, but we dislike the split entry.  Now that Mum-in-law bought a house across the road, we are stuck as long as she needs us.

Pat, I really like The Little Tavern!!!  It reminds me of lots of great buildings that are fast disappearing.  That is on of the great things about our layout.

Not much going on here.  I’m still in the ‘constant uncomfortable state’ my wife described from her knee replacements.  I have been contemplating a little temporary  Christmas scene on the Blackwater Canyon Line layout once I’m able to get around a bit more.  I have plenty of buildings and material with easy access, while others are packed away in the attic with the suicide pull-down ladder in the hall ceiling.  Won’t be going there got a while

geysergazer posted:

What'd I do? The Postman stopped by with an eBay item which I immediately installed:

         

As recommenced by the experts here, it is a two-way transient suppressor diode across the track buss at the output terminals of the Z 1000 power brick. This is to protect the $$ electronics in the PS3 Sw1500 from voltage spikes. Don't want something bad happening to this:

      

An MTH Z-4000 supplies track power to my layout.   I operate DCS in a WiFi environment.  Do I need this added protection or is the two-way transient suppressor diode mainly recommended for older power sources?   Thanks!

Cheers, Dave

John Meyncke posted:

Christmas is coming to Palms to Pines R.R...

John

John, what is the yellow car?  Kind of looks like a Chrysler turbine but to best of my knowledge  was never made into a convertible.

Ron

Mike g, yes, a lot more track to put down and tables to still build.

Patrick, nice buys at York. They added to your scenes.

Johan,so many great pics of the layout, your weathering techniques and your engines and rolling stock and engines.

Chris a, enjoyed the video a lot. Has to be a great feeling of accomplishment to be able to now run trains around the layout and through that great looking scenery. 1ST class operation.

Mark, from the sounds of it you are progressing very good and well on your way to a speedy recovery from your surgery.

 And to all the rest who have posted so many good pics of what you have gotten done........."KUDOS" to all.

This morning had a chance to work on the backdrop a bit more. Ran out of double faced tape so I have to get to Menards to get more and a few other things too. Maybe later this afternoon I'll jump to laying out some more track to figure out how I want to do this area. Still not sure as to what type of building flats I want to along the bottom. Plus I have two packages coming this afternoon ( hopefully but at least one ). Pics........Paul 2