What did you do on your layout today?

M. Mitchell Marmel posted:

Spent some time repairing some gi-raffes...

https://ogrforum.com/...-re-coning-gi-raffes

Mitch 

I hope Fortescue was not watching you drill holes in Gi-raffe heads. He might get a tad nervous

TedW posted:

What I didn’t do on my layout today.
Wife’s good friend Therese drew this on a board to cover fireplace when not in use a few years ago. Nice.  We like it a lot.

Picking up on that theme I painted the 8’ fascia board with black chalkboard paint, and asked Therese if she would draw a steamer on the front. Boys and girls, what she created is a keepsake whether on the layout or not. Very, very nice, and beyond my expectations. While the photo lighting at night is dark, the detail she applied is fantastic.  I wanted to share with you as there are people outside our hobby who “get it” also.  Nice to have good friends who will prop you up when needed.

Wow! Wow! Wow! What a great friend. She even got the brake likes between the coaches.

Perfect finishing detail to your masterpiece Ted!

Bob

                                                   just ran some trains....

                                          started putting up some lights.....

TedW posted:

Picking up on that theme I painted the 8’ fascia board with black chalkboard paint, and asked Therese if she would draw a steamer on the front. Boys and girls, what she created is a keepsake whether on the layout or not. Very, very nice, and beyond my expectations. While the photo lighting at night is dark, the detail she applied is fantastic.  I wanted to share with you as there are people outside our hobby who “get it” also.  Nice to have good friends who will prop you up when needed.

 

Wow! That is amazing. She could probably sell that as a print and quite a few people would buy it. Very talented woman.

RSJB18 posted:

I hope Fortescue was not watching you drill holes in Gi-raffe heads. He might get a tad nervous

Fortescue:  "Nervous?  Moi?"  

Mitch 

Nice collection of EMD demo models Brian.

Looks like Izzy is dreaming of the goodies Santa is going to bring her

M. Mitchell Marmel posted:

RSJB18 posted:

I hope Fortescue was not watching you drill holes in Gi-raffe heads. He might get a tad nervous

Fortescue:  "Nervous?  Moi?"  

Mitch 

LMAOOOOOOO 

TedW posted:......

Picking up on that theme I painted the 8’ fascia board with black chalkboard paint, and asked Therese if she would draw a steamer on the front. Boys and girls, what she created is a keepsake whether on the layout or not. Very, very nice, and beyond my expectations. While the photo lighting at night is dark, the detail she applied is fantastic.  I wanted to share with you as there are people outside our hobby who “get it” also.  Nice to have good friends who will prop you up when needed.

 

Spectacular, TedW. That is a real treasure.

What we remember most is how people made us feel, and I can see your joy, right there.

FrankM

Ted that's a great looking Christmas layout, Just inviting you to sit and watch all night long!

Brian, with all the trains you have, if you just run them around the outside of your house you wouldn't have to put up Christmas lights!

Mitch, all I have to say is be careful, I don't know anything on a layout that needs that big of a drill, but I am sure there is! LOL

                                heading up to Clem's to run some trains !!! 

I went through three 022 switches to get them working properly.  I lightly oiled the moving parts and used some contact cleaner on the sliding contacts. Two of the three had broken solder joints on the curved control rail strap.  Other than that they are now working great. I have 5 more switches to go through then I will do all of the soldering that I'm expecting to need to do at one time. Baby steps...

I also got a little more paint down, just so I could revel in some visual progress.

I'm thinking about sliding some shingles under the track to simulate a roadbed - I'm not concerned about noise.  Good idea or not?

The green area to the right of the pink princess express is the future home of a 164 log loader, an American flyer sawmill, a cattle corral, and a milk platform...

TedW posted:

What I didn’t do on my layout today.
Wife’s good friend Therese drew this on a board to cover fireplace when not in use a few years ago. Nice.  We like it a lot.

Picking up on that theme I painted the 8’ fascia board with black chalkboard paint, and asked Therese if she would draw a steamer on the front. Boys and girls, what she created is a keepsake whether on the layout or not. Very, very nice, and beyond my expectations. While the photo lighting at night is dark, the detail she applied is fantastic.  I wanted to share with you as there are people outside our hobby who “get it” also.  Nice to have good friends who will prop you up when needed.

absolutely stunning!

   Sitting down to a big session of soldering is the best way to increase (or renew) your skill at it. One every once in a while doesn't really give you a chance to learn very well. You might want to inspect some cars roller wires for weakness/frays and throw them into the mix too.

Ted, that is a very cool mural, I missed it looking at the overall aesthetics of the room as a scene. (also easy on the eyes )

Mitch, I did not see that Spaghetti joke commin' at all Bravo.

 P.S., I found something old that accompanied the "deliverance" of that conveyor. But it's also adult-y and censure fodder, so you would have to request and watch your inbox for it.  (If it will fit data wise.....I might have to link it to somewhere)

TedW posted:

What I didn’t do on my layout today.
Wife’s good friend Therese drew this on a board to cover fireplace when not in use a few years ago. Nice.  We like it a lot.

Picking up on that theme I painted the 8’ fascia board with black chalkboard paint, and asked Therese if she would draw a steamer on the front. Boys and girls, what she created is a keepsake whether on the layout or not. Very, very nice, and beyond my expectations. While the photo lighting at night is dark, the detail she applied is fantastic.  I wanted to share with you as there are people outside our hobby who “get it” also.  Nice to have good friends who will prop you up when needed.

Ted, that is marvelous!!  What a facade to show off your great layout!

Ran train a bit then took some photos.  Of course it was all BIG FUN!!

Miggy (Scott) remember him? Been a while since he's posted. He came over Thursday and we started to identify the detection wires. While I was under the layout with my Ohm meter, he was topside moving a car around. I just clipped one lead to the track ground of my power supply, power off, and the other lead to the detection wire I wanted to test. Car hits the right section, beep, beep, beep. I put a piece of tape on the wire to label it, and it was on to the next. I explained to him, it was like doing a puzzle. Every time you make a match, you reduce the possibilities, and the whole thing gets easier, exponentially.

Scott took this one of me under the layout.

Second time this week I've had my picture taken while working.

After Scott left, I labeled part of two panels and connected the newly identified wires.

The other project I've been working on is trying to figure out a schematic of the layout so I can use JMRI's layout editor to describe it to the computer. This is where it all comes together!

What you see here is every track and switch that is part of the mainline system, and will be controlled by a human dispatcher remotely via C/MRI.

Bottom row are the two hidden yards. Middle is the main level, and top row is the upper level. East on the right, west on the left. Along the right edge is the track of the big helix.

Click on the image to enlarge it.

Spent time today putting new smoke unit in old #2037. Took about ten minutes to install and an hour or so to find a short that had nothing to do with the new smoke unit. I pretty much finished a raised third oval on the small 5x10' layout. Now have two lines for running my postwar stuff and one for my command engines. Just didn't want to keep the larger layout because for the amount of running I actually do it took up too much room. Along with that I seem to be getting back to the postwar stuff.

Adriatic posted:

   Sitting down to a big session of soldering is the best way to increase (or renew) your skill at it. One every once in a while doesn't really give you a chance to learn very well. You might want to inspect some cars roller wires for weakness/frays and throw them into the mix too.

Good advice, for me it would be increase.  First time I soldered was a couple weeks ago on some 022 controllers. I know I have at least 1 tender that needs a new pick up wire. You're right, I should fix that at the same time as these switches. Thanks for the input. 

Started setting up the trains under the tree last night and realized I swiped a few of the pieces of Fastrak for the engine yard on my layout. Fortunately I have a excellent LHS five minutes from the house (one of three within 10 miles ). So on the way to pick up a pizza I mentioned to the CEO that I was going to stop and pick up the missing track pieces (two 036 1/4 turns). She didn't even blink.....I think I'm starting to wear her down

                                    one or two sections of track at a time

And the next thing you know I'll be building a layout like yours Brian!

RSJB18 posted:

Started setting up the trains under the tree last night and realized I swiped a few of the pieces of Fastrak for the engine yard on my layout. Fortunately I have a excellent LHS five minutes from the house (one of three within 10 miles ). So on the way to pick up a pizza I mentioned to the CEO that I was going to stop and pick up the missing track pieces (two 036 1/4 turns). She didn't even blink.....I think I'm starting to wear her down

Now that's a great ploy! I have a pizza place 10 minutes away, but the nearest hobby store is an hour and a half away! I don't think the wife would wait an hour and a half for a pizza! LOL

                                        super elevating my curve sections...

                                               well, maybe a little to much...

radar493 posted:

Spent time today putting new smoke unit in old #2037. Took about ten minutes to install and an hour or so to find a short that had nothing to do with the new smoke unit. I pretty much finished a raised third oval on the small 5x10' layout. Now have two lines for running my postwar stuff and one for my command engines. Just didn't want to keep the larger layout because for the amount of running I actually do it took up too much room. Along with that I seem to be getting back to the postwar stuff.

Where was the short?

JD2035, it's more important for brazing and welding, but try to look close and watch how the puddle forms and moves along always following the heat; move the heat, the puddle bulk changes direction. "That tiny puddle is all you see, nothing else; a close up".  Thin solder is easiest to work with to watch closely too. Some real eagle eye's and you can even note the flux streams.

trumptrain posted:

Ran train a bit then took some photos.  Of course it was all BIG FUN!!

Great shots as always Patrick! I especially like the mountain division photos.

Bob

mike g. posted:

RSJB18 posted:

Started setting up the trains under the tree last night and realized I swiped a few of the pieces of Fastrak for the engine yard on my layout. Fortunately I have a excellent LHS five minutes from the house (one of three within 10 miles ). So on the way to pick up a pizza I mentioned to the CEO that I was going to stop and pick up the missing track pieces (two 036 1/4 turns). She didn't even blink.....I think I'm starting to wear her down

Now that's a great ploy! I have a pizza place 10 minutes away, but the nearest hobby store is an hour and a half away! I don't think the wife would wait an hour and a half for a pizza! LOL

Just order the pizza on the way back from the hobby shop Mike. That way it will be hot when you get home.

Now....you may wind up wearing the pizza but at least you won't go hungry.

trumptrain posted:

Ran train a bit then took some photos.  Of course it was all BIG FUN!!

Patrick, I always want to say something about your photos, but everytime I do I am just at a loss of words for such a great layout! Seams like anything I would have to say pales the detail of your layout and would not give you just honor!

I do really enjoy your layout and am very impressed! Thank you for all the work you have done and for sharing with the rest of us!

RSJB18 posted:

mike g. posted:

RSJB18 posted:

Started setting up the trains under the tree last night and realized I swiped a few of the pieces of Fastrak for the engine yard on my layout. Fortunately I have a excellent LHS five minutes from the house (one of three within 10 miles ). So on the way to pick up a pizza I mentioned to the CEO that I was going to stop and pick up the missing track pieces (two 036 1/4 turns). She didn't even blink.....I think I'm starting to wear her down

Now that's a great ploy! I have a pizza place 10 minutes away, but the nearest hobby store is an hour and a half away! I don't think the wife would wait an hour and a half for a pizza! LOL

Just order the pizza on the way back from the hobby shop Mike. That way it will be hot when you get home.

Now....you may wind up wearing the pizza but at least you won't go hungry.

LOL I try to stop at the hobby shop when I go to the VA to have my hearing aids fixed! Sometime its way to long between repairs!

I added a cemetery to my church building scene.

Set up the trains under the tree 😁

After shoveling off the DECK; Ran trains!  MBTA Genset passenger run.

Mike Wyatt posted:

I added a cemetery to my church building scene.

Mike - I'm planning to do a cemetery next to my church.  Did you make your own monuments or buy ready made?  Any pictures?

Yesterday I modified the raised floor so I could get better access to one of the detection panels. The red line shows where I removed a chunk. It was under the layout anyway, so it was rather useless.

Then I took the piece of plywood that I removed and used it to fill in a corner that could have been dangerous because it was in the walking area.

Now that I was able to get in there and sit on the concrete, I started connecting my wires. It was actually kind of comfortable. Good thing too, because it's going to take a while to get this done. No, I don't have to fill the whole board, just the top two and a half rows.

The Post-it notes in the next three pics are part of what Scott and I did last Thursday. They told him which detection block was which, with its number and the color wire so I could narrow my search.

decoynh posted:

After shoveling off the DECK; Ran trains!  MBTA Genset passenger run.

  Hey Matt, at 82 years old after shoveling the deck I came in and collapsed on the sofa. However. later today I'm going to be doing the initial run of a beautiful train I bought from Allan B on the forum. But in the meantime a little relaxing and watching football. 

Jim

Elliot, your work ethic is remarkable and your layout shows it.

Matt, I really like the look of your town and the placement of your station.

pennsynut posted:

Elliot, your work ethic is remarkable and your layout shows it.

Thanks, I'm on a mission to get a lot of things done before April when the final decision will be made whether I'll be included on the National Narrow Gauge Convention layout tour. You'll be seeing a bunch of scenery work after the first of the year. BTW, I haven't missed a day since October 9th. Last week I put in 44 hours. Too bad I don't get overtime. Labor of love!

Elliot, you have some skills! I don't think I have it in me to go the distance you have! Love the work!

Matt, sorry about shoveling, but sounds like your going to have fun later, and you sure have the layout to have it with!

mike g. posted:

Elliot, you have some skills! I don't think I have it in me to go the distance you have! Love the work!

Thanks Mike, I'm not sure how much more of that I have in me. It was a real wrestling match with that floor. I started with the saber saw, but ended up with the Sawzall to get through the bottoms of the 2x4's. It was awkward to say the least, and I couldn't get any leverage on the base of the Sawzall, so it took forever. I have no upper body strength anymore.