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+--- Thread: Happiness is a new layout ! (/showthread.php?tid=4899)
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - Tyson Rayles - 08-29-2012
Well he's half right I guess!
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - teejay - 08-29-2012
Yeah , Mike , but WHICH HALF ??
T
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - cn nutbar - 08-29-2012
[quote="Ralph"]You're a good man T. I hope you find a place that suits your wife's needs and also affords some modelling space. Best wishes with the house sale and the hunt for a new home.
There's an old saying:"when one door closes,two open"--- I hope everything turns out well for you and your wife
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - teejay - 10-31-2012
Looks like I'll be continuing with my little layout after all !
Yes the house was for sale , did my local research on price/comparables etc ...signed a 3 month contract with an experienced realtor that had been successful in my area . What could go wrong ? Hmmmmm......we had 15 showings , NONE by "my realtor" . The showings were scheduled for one hour ( they want you away for 1 hour ) except that after the third showing I started circling back earlier and earlier ,,,,,nobody here ! Curiouser and curiouser . Turns out they stay about 20 minutes .
One showing was late so we happened to be home to hear the so-called presentation ......."this is the kitchen , this is the bathroom" .....gimme a break , my DOG could do that . NO discussion of features and benefits , low taxes , schools , lake ,etc . I did get one low-ball offer and the realtor was trying to sell ME on that offer . I suggested they do their job and try to sell to buyer on the higher number ...like , who hired who here ??? :evil:
So I fired their ass after 2 months . Next time I'll sell my own house . Get to keep my trains
T
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - Tyson Rayles - 10-31-2012
I've always felt that real estate agents had a racket going T. Enjoy the trains!
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - teejay - 11-26-2012
Well , after cleaning and straightening the train room , I'm back at the layout . Tracks and turnouts are mocked up .
This is what you might call PHASE 1 ...sounds important , eh ? The second section will be the dock area . This area is the industrial end of a city . There will be a large factory at the far end . There are several small elevations and with the reduced size of the layout I have to be careful with elevation angles / turnouts etc .
T
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - Tyson Rayles - 11-26-2012
WHAT
No scenery yet????
Slacker!!!!!
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - teejay - 11-26-2012
...almost forgot Mike , thanks for reminding me .
....scenery all done , just finished it ( puff , puff )
T
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - Tyson Rayles - 11-26-2012
Much better T.
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - teejay - 12-10-2012
Well I decided to get my least favourite job done on the layout this past weekend ....tracks & wiring , since it won't get done on it's own . Remembering that I had to crouch under the benchwork to connect feeders on my last layout , I decided to string the busses a couple of inches from the edge of the benchwork . That way I can stand up to solder the feeders to the busses . I haven't soldered the rail joiners yet ...will leave that for the next job . I'll be hooking up the Digitax soon to see if everything runs OK ...that will be much more exciting than trackwork .
T
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - Tyson Rayles - 12-10-2012
T I hate soldering as well. I switched to using tap splice/suitcase connectors years ago so I only have to solder the wires to the rails.
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - teejay - 12-10-2012
I used suitcase connectors last time too and didn't have any trouble in the limited time I ran things . I've heard a lot of "cons" about them in the last few years from various people , so thought I'd burn the crap out of my fingers
for personal enjoyment , instead .T
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - teejay - 12-18-2012
Good news and bad news ....
First the good .
1 . Track and turnouts are down and secure .
2. Wiring done / feeders soldered to buss , didn't use suitcase connectors .
3. I decided against switch machines ...will operate them by hand , may install bell cranks at some point , may not .
4. FOUND MY DIGITRAX manual !!!! I was sure I hadn't thrown it out after thinking about it ....sure enough I had moved it to another area with all my empty decoder packages for some reason .
5. Hooked up the Digitrax according to the instructions ...there were various beeps along the way as per instructions . Readout seemed OK .
Bad news : Trains won't run... light goes on but loco won't move ...back to the drawing board !
I'll have to check the battery voltage in the throttle , maybe too low since battery is about 2 years old . 
The 6 sidings in the upper part of the pic haven't been fastened down yet as they may be adjusted as I place structures .
T
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - Ralph - 12-18-2012
Great good news. Hope the bad news improves!
Re: Happiness is a new layout ! - sailormatlac - 12-18-2012
Looking nice Teejay! I gotta love that little CP Alco switcher!
Wiring and electrical problems are always a pain to rectify, but once done life is so much easier.
Matt