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+--- Thread: Charlie b's layout (/showthread.php?tid=2463)
RE: Charlie b's layout - FiatFan - 06-19-2023
Very cool, Charlie. Thanks for posting this.
Tom
RE: Charlie b's layout - TMo - 06-19-2023
Roger on the dust! Ferry or Fairy works equally well. It's good to have something fun to run. My dad always wanted to have a Camelback in HO scale... I'm thinking I might go on a hunt for one to run an excursion train....
My grandparents place backed up to the Pennsy main in Edgeley (Lower Bucks county) running from Philly up to New York. Used to love seeing the electrics hammer down the tracks at high speed.
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 08-09-2023
I recently got a great buy on a pair of NS SD80MACs and an Amtrak F40 that needed some work. The one SD80 was missing the detail parts but the seller had cabbaged together some side handrails. He also included a bunch of detail parts that had been acquired from Kato when they were available. Both however were the same numbers so I would need to renumber one of them and I elected to do the one that was lacking all the details.
So last night I decided it was time to make some decals and I thought I would try scanning the locomotives to see if I could get something I could use. I scanned it at 800 dpi so the results would be suitable for a good print.
As it worked out the size was very close so I took it to photoshop and made the numbers for the cabside. The NS font is available as a free download so I used it to type over the image so I could get the size close. I could adjust the type layer until it matched the scan, then I flattened the image and cropped the area from the photo .
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 08-09-2023
Next I scanned some number boards left over from another SD80. Front and rear are different but Kato supplies 4 of each incase one goes flying while they are installed
I then changed the number to the one I needed and added that to my sheet to print
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 08-09-2023
Next was the Amtrak F40PH that had no side number and a badly repainted stripe. I scanned the locomotive and took the scan into the PS program so I could straighten the stripes and add the numbers, and also get color samples.
I cropped the section that I had repaired and added it to my decal sheet to print.
I added several other number board numbers that I need and this is what I finished up with. I made extras in case I mess up installing them I printed them on white decal paper with my Canon printer.
I hope to apply the decals tonight so I will put some pictures of the results
Charlie
RE: Charlie b's layout - ezdays - 08-09-2023
What are you using to get white decals? I have white decal paper, but to try to match the black background to the engine shade is a feat in itself, especially from a scan. Great job.
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 08-09-2023
I am using a white decal paper I bought over 10 years ago and it is holding up well. I used the scans and for the black I actually used athe blackest black setting and that on the white matches the locomotive well I have used solvaset but when it has hardened I will add a dull coat on both locomotives. The red and blue do not match as well on the Amtrak unit but it works for what I am doing and may look better once completely dry and coated. The number boards are great IMHO.
Charlie
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 09-20-2023
I haven't updated here for a while. I have just been doing some minor repairs to rolling stock so nothing worth talking about. I will have some projects coming soon that I may do some photos for ya'll.
I did run into a unique one with an Atlas -8-32BW. It quit responding so I did a decoder reset several times and nothing worked. I finally put it on the program track and I found it addressed as 51 which is the consist address I had set. Using that address it would run but the directions were reversed. I thought I had reset the consist address to 0 but it read 173. I set the cv19 to 0 and all is well, but I was hours figuring it out. I think the problem came because the locomotive address was reading the consist address. Normally I address the locomotive address and set the consist cv (19) to 0 and it clears. I had to address the consist address to clear that CV this time. It's the first time ever I have read the values in a decoder and I would have saved a lot of time had I done that in the beginning. I still learn something new every day.
Charlie
RE: Charlie b's layout - TMo - 09-21-2023
Happens to me quite often, Charlie - sometimes I forget that I'd run a different consist. The "Read on Program Track" is really my go to. I wish there were an option to run through all of the relatively common CV values in order - say pause for 5 seconds between readouts. Alas - not on my Prodigy Express2.
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 09-21-2023
(09-21-2023, 05:00 PM)TMo Wrote: Happens to me quite often, Charlie - sometimes I forget that I'd run a different consist. The "Read on Program Track" is really my go to. I wish there were an option to run through all of the relatively common CV values in order - say pause for 5 seconds between readouts. Alas - not on my Prodigy Express2.
I never had this problem before. Normally place it on the program trak and set cv19 to 0 no address needed, The address for the locomotive is 505 but some how the only way to set cv19 in this case was to address the locomotive at the consist address. This is the only Atlas decoder I have and it works well. I have no idea why this happened. I need to play with decoder pro and my computer interface, everyone seems to swear by it, I just haven't run into a real need for it yet.
Charlie
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 09-21-2023
I ran some trains for a while tonight. I had 4 up front with 3 pushing.
Of course I have a tree down and a wheel off, That's show business.
. https://youtu.be/Ijn9hl4aAvc
Charlie
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 10-14-2023
My first try at casting resin. The top is original. I used a mold making material that you soak in hot water then you press the part into it to make your mold. I used a 2 part resin for casting. It isn't perfect but it costs 36 dollars to buy a set of these which is ridiculous. It looks fine on the locomotive. The locomotive is one that one of my granddaughters "fixed" 30 years ago, now I can return it to my son for the next generation to "repair. the casting needs some more black paint, It looks like some missing parts in the picture but it is just lack of paint.
Charlie
RE: Charlie b's layout - TMo - 10-14-2023
Great idea! Gotta keep that one in the bank for the future.
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 10-16-2023
I recently got a good buy on some ALCo Centuries, 2 were Reading and one was a BN. The Reading units will work for early Conrail but the BN 636 was of of place.
I taped off the roof and windows with regular cellophane tape (if you can actually call it that) and used my little portable air brush and some Testors black and sprayed in a downward direction. I will have a tiny bit of brush touch up but this will get a Conrail patch and new numbers.
That little air brush is just so handy and I can have it on paint and clean in less time than it takes to get my Pashe out of the box.
Charlie
RE: Charlie b's layout - Charlie B - 10-16-2023
I also added one more capacitor to each coach so the lights remain on a little longer. I also had some cheap IHC seats that I cut to fit inside. Far from perfect but after I get into Dahmer mode I will add some people. The lighting project has been fun and I made some pretty nice wheel wipers that have very little resistance. I have closed up the train room for the night and forgot to take a picture of the wipers I will add the photos very soon. I have several more coaches to light so Maybe a short write up on how I did it.
I have one car that needs the decals installed as you will notice.
Carlie