So, if you're following along in here, you'll see Bob Suruncle's started building a layout. We've had a running bet for the last five years or so that the first one to finish a complete layout wins a bottle of something tasty.

Well, when I saw Bob actually getting serious about building, my weasel gene kicked in and got me thinking.... what exactly is a "layout"?

So, for your consideration I present the Weasel Flats Sand and Gravel Co. R.R.

Scale: On30
Size: 14" x 14"
Track: Code 70 Handlaid
Minimum radius: 6"
Control: Standard DC.
Operation: Continuous Run

First, the benchwork:


I glued the Mt. Albert O scale pine ties to the cork roadbed:


Once the ties were down, I stained them with washes of artist's acrylic thinned with rubbing alcohol. I used mixes of Burnt Sienna, Burnt Umber and black to get the colours I wanted, and applied several coats to different ties to get a mixed effect.


And the final result:


After sanding the ties level and touching up the stain, I ballasted with Woodland Scenics medium brown:


Then I spiked code 70 rail down, starting with the inner rail, then using 3-point gauges to hold the outer rail while I spiked it down. 2 spikes per rail in every tie make sure it's not going anywhere. I soldered a joiner to one end of each rail, and left a small gap to allow for expansion:


I weathered the rail by brushing on artist's acrylics. I just mixed until I got a rusty-looking brown I liked. I'll probably go back and tone it down with some black washes:


And here's the Weasel Flats Sand and Gravel Co.s roster:


I'm currently mulling how I'm going to detail the layout... I'm thinking a small loader of some sort on one side, and a truck on the other... although 1:48 vehicles aren't as easy to find as 1:87. I'm thinking a Ford Model A with a dump body, and maybe a front-end loader of some sort, or maybe a conveyor.... piles of sand and gravel here and there..... and maybe a victory bottle if I get it done before Bob!

What structure kits for under $80.00US have you seen that really stand out to you? You could include kits you have built or kits that you have been drooling over in mags or online. Maybe what you like will be just what somebody else has been looking for....

I will start the ball rolling with 2 kits:

From GCLASER....."County CO-OP"
I love the multiple roof angles! IMO, this is the best looking elevator kit out there
http://74.220.29.68/Merchant2/merchant.m...y_Code=HSS

From B.T.S......"Post Office"
I don't know, it may just be the picture.....but I love the looks of this little kit. I think that they just "nailed" it.
Simple...yes. But perfectly simple
http://www.btsrr.com/bts7233.htm

What kits catch your eye?

Happy Memorial Day. Here are some shots taken of and from the backside of the layout.
First up is the pallet dealer showing the platform,and a storage area.



Next up is the freight handling area which includes the front end loader that I was working on.



Last are the coal and oil dealers.I did a small revision on the coal dealer.Instead of having the tracked loader load trucks,I now have the conveyors doing that.



Enjoy the pictures and the holiday.
Bob

hi guys, i finally started work on my 2nd Walthers Cornerstone Series Red X Cement Plant. This will be the final silo structure on my 2'x8' cement plant module im working in. It will be part of a 24 silo structure for the main structure on the module. Here is what the Red X Cement plant looks like:

Fresh fro the garden - organically grown heirloom tomatoes! They look gnarly, but taste great!

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From what I can see, there are four people that will be awarded certificates for participating on this challenge:

Steamtrain for completing the challenge gets a "completed" certificate. Congratulations, a fine job
Ralph, also completed his challenge, and is awarded a "completed" certificate. Fantastic job Ralph.
MasonJar gets a "participated" certificate for his efforts in getting a good portion of his challenge completed. congrats.
Trucklover also got a lot done, but not quite all he said he would, so he also gets a "participated" certificate. Nice work.

Thank you all for your efforts, if you would please PM me as to what name you would like on your certificate, your screen name, real name, or both, I will then send you yours by email. For some of you I already have all the info I need, but just in case, let me know.

Our next challenge will be a bit less demanding, and I think, something you would be doing anyway, so I hope that more people will enter this time.

Hi guys, i just posted a thread about my new CSDU/CSDPU coal hoppers that i got. I have 14 of them, with one duplicate number.

After doing a little quick research, i found out that CSDU stands for Colorado Springs Department of Utilities. The reporting marks on the hoppers were CSDX and had the letters CSDPU on the sides of them in yellow print. The CSDU train consisted of 5-bay Rapid Discharge Hoppers that had a capacity of 110-Tons each and were a simply black body with yellow data, reporting marks, and CSDPU lettering with a lightning bolt on either side of the "CSDPU".

This long unit train served Colorado Springs' two coal-fired power plants, Drake (downtown) and Nixon (south of Fountain). It loaded on the Moffat branch near Craig, traveling loaded through Steamboat Springs and Bond, thence eastward through the Moffat Tunnel to Denver, and finishing its trip via the Joint Line along the front range. After unloading, it would return empty over the same route, to do it all over again.

CSDU first started in 1979 being served by the Rio Grande, then the Southern Pacific Line, and later the Union Pacific. When the CSDU Coal train first started, it was originally a 73 car train but later increased to a 105 car train in the 1980's from the purchase of a number of second hand cars. Before the equipment was sold in April of 2000 the there were a total of 125 cars for the CSDU, 115 being run and 10 being kept as spares.

Originally the cars were lettered with a "P" making them CSDPU with the reporting marks CSDX, but around 1986 the "P" was deemed problematic by the legal department so the cars had the "P" removed from the sides. This also made the CSDU centered better on the car.

6 Of the cars had no large CSDU lettering, and only reporting marks and data, they were 79113, 79120, 79121, 79122, 79123, and 79124

Quote:This train was so large that it traditionally required helpers. In Rio Grande days, that might have meant a couple of GP40's tacked onto the rear, and in the later 1980's included a swing helper cut in about 70 cars back. Up to 1995 it was common for the train to run east with three or four 6-axle units on the front, two or three in the swing helper, and even a rear helper of a couple more SD's.

After that, with AC locomotives, it usually ran with distributed power both ways (remotely-controlled locomotives)-- two on the head, one or two mid-train, one or two on the end.

Hi guys, i finally got a chance to snap some pics of my new SP AC6000 and my 14 Roundhouse CSDU/CSDPU 5-BAY RAPID DISCHARGE Hoppers. The hoppers required ALOT of work, and i spent about $60 to fix them and make them work right, this was ontop of the $80 i paid for the set of 14 LOL. I had to drill out the holes in the metal frames, tap them with a 2-56 tap, screw some new screws in to mount the trucks and couplers, and put lock tight in the screws to keep them from turning. Good only Roundhouse tooling i guess.... Have had a problem with every single roundhouse kit i have ever built, yet i keep buying them

Anyways, here are a few pics that i just snapped off





































Just thought i would share with ya guys

I'm pretty excited. Tomorrow, my wife and son will experience their first ride behind a mainline steam locomotive. It'll be the NKP 765 along with a string of Jerry Jacobson's (Ohio Central) coaches and then Jerry's FP-40 (it will be a push-pull deal). Its in North Judson, IN...which is in north of Lafayette...between Chicago & Indy...there will be a couple weekends of excursions there...followed by the run to Train Festival. While I have seen the 765 run in the past few years, I haven't ridden behind her since before her big overhaul...I rode the tool car on her way back from Hunington, WV in the early '90s.

I'll post some photos...

Here's what's happened in the past 10 years...

Bye bye to the cab...from the ex-Virginian 200ton wrecker. It is a diesel...it was built as a steam crane.


The big lift


Look at those drivers! The most expensive part of the overhaul. The jacking pads were installed when the building was completed...1991(?)...and the 765 spent the previous two winters in the Lima Locomotive Works...I clearly remember Tom Stevens working on the boiler...he was engineer at least 50% of the time back there as well as CMO...he's a darn good guy.

Here are a few of the other special people whom have made it happen:

Glen Brendel is the current President...and he's been an active member since the founding. While most railfans have never heard of him, you could say that he managed the most recent overhaul.


That's Steve W. and Gary Bensman admiring the Syphons. If you've ever been up to the shop, you've seen Steve. He's there every week...despite the fact that he lives a couple hours away. And Gary was a volunteer many years ago. He grew up with the NKP's St. Marys, OH wye in his backyard. My father and him used to stay in the wooden NKP caboose 141 every weekend so that they had two full days to work on the 765 during the initial overhaul (the 1970s). Of course, he's now better known for his full time work...I can recall when he had the Burlington 2-8-2 #4960 outside the OLD 765 shop back in the 1980s.

I don't have anywhere close to enough photos of the many good people whom have helped on the locomotive...I've contributed very little (I also live 4 hours away...and get up there around once a year). A major overhaul of a mainline steam locomotive such as this requires excellent leadership, plenty of dependable volunteers, and a Brinks truck.


That's me...


after she was once more sitting on her own wheels


The glorious test run 3 years ago.

Soon, I'll post photos of tomorrow's excursion.

Hi guys, in case anyone is interested, i have re-listed all the stuff that did not sell from last time. I have not grouped items together and placed them at LOW starting prices for the lots:

1. Walthers 20', 40', & 48' Container 10-Pk. - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204446138

2. Walthers Gold Line 4000 CU-FT Coal Hopper 6-Pk w/loads - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204897595

3. Walthers RTR and Gold Line NSC 53' Well Car 6-Pk (SIX (6) 3-PACKS OF 53' WELL CARS - 18 CARS TOTAL!!!!!) - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204898240

4. Walthers RTR 16K & 23K Gallon Tank Car 6-Pk - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204912485

5. Athearn RTR Boxcar 10-Pk. - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204915430

6. Athearn Blue Box Boxcar 3-Pk. - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204916450

7. Athearn/Rounhouse 54' Covered Hopper 9-Pk. - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204917791

8. LBF & E&C Shops Boxcar 5-Pk. - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204919007

9. Accurail/Athearn/E&C Shops 55' Centerflow/Gondola 5-Pk - http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...0204920217



Thanks for looking!!!