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  Two junk plasticville stations= one tower
Posted by: Ralph - 02-28-2009, 02:07 PM - Forum: Scratchbuilding and kitbashing - All Scales - Replies (16)

I've had these two classic Plasticville small stations since I was a kid in the early 70's. They were originally white for a long time and then one day I painted them Jade Green to fit my Penn Central theme. As you can see I attempted to make one look abandoned. I removed them from the layout some time ago because I was dissatisfied with their appearance but I still kept them since I'm reluctant to throw away anything with decent looking windows. Smile
[Image: IMG_0755.jpg]

A few days ago I got an idea to salvage the stations by "bashing" them into a switch tower, placing one on top of the other. A staircase, some railing, and a few odd details completed the transformation that I'm now happy to place back on the layout. I'm making some cosmetic changes in the area where the tower will be located but I'll post a pic once its in place.

[Image: IMG_0756.jpg]

[Image: IMG_0757.jpg]

[Image: IMG_0760.jpg]

Recycle/Reuse! Just doing my part to be green...Penn Central Green, that is. Goldth

Ralph

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  Fifer personal Sale on Ebay
Posted by: Fifer - 02-28-2009, 01:19 PM - Forum: Swap Meet - No Replies

Fifer personal Sale on Ebay
This is a bunch of stuff I have had laying around and no longer need.
Mostly N but some Lenz HO decoders.
Pull up fifer on Ebay

Thanks , Mike

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  Unique prototypes
Posted by: nkp_174 - 02-28-2009, 10:37 AM - Forum: Upper Berth - Replies (2)

I wanted to create a thread to talk about unique prototypes.

The DSP&P, NKP, NYC, CSX, etc are NOT UNIQUE. But, a particular location along them may be unique (such as at a particular junction or abnormal operating phenomenon).

My idea for this thread comes from this:

The Crystal River shortlines were perfect for a model railroad. From appx 1900 to 1910, it consisted of a standard gauge line and a 3' gauge line, with a dual gauge engine facility, transfer trestle, and std gauge yards at Redstone. After 1910, there was a std gauge railroad and an electric railroad.

The std gauge railroad primarily operated with a mogul and a 4-6-0. The Spectrum 4-6-0 is a decent stand in for their Baldwin 4-6-0. The trains were usually short mixed trains. The narrow gauge operated with 3 big, outside frame 2-8-0s. The largest was as powerful as the original D&RG 2-8-2s. (these 2-8-0s became D&RGW #360, 361, & 375). The electric railroad operated with what appeared to be outhouses mounted on flatcars. The std gauge used foreign cars and a combine. The narrow gauge used ingoldsby dump cars. The electric railroad used shorty flat cars with curved spoke wheels. The std gauge operated a rotary snow plow, and the electric had an interesting double ended electric powered rotary.

Notably, the Lincoln Memorial was produced with stone quarried in the Crystal River region and shipped out on the electric and steam railroads. Later, the largest stone ever quarried, 56t, was shipped over the lines and became the tomb of the unknown soldier. This Yule marble was chosen for its reputation as the highest quality marble in the country.

HO scale Ingoldsbys: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.riograndemodels.com/Images/LargeHO/3116.jpg">http://www.riograndemodels.com/Images/LargeHO/3116.jpg</a><!-- m -->
S scale Ingoldsbys: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.cimarronworks.com/CRR-210-A-0754.jpg">http://www.cimarronworks.com/CRR-210-A-0754.jpg</a><!-- m -->
HOn3 small 2-8-0: <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://psc1.virtualfocus.com/MMI%20C-21%20HOn3.html">http://psc1.virtualfocus.com/MMI%20C-21%20HOn3.html</a><!-- m --> (would need backdating to be CR 101 or 102)
MDC's OF HOn3 2-8-0 is close to #103

The electric locomotives would be built with brass stock for weight, and with NWSL's PDT (or is it Flea?) trucks.

Photos from Photoswest:
ng 2-8-0 under trestle at Redstone:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?11005337+Z-5337">http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?11005337+Z-5337</a><!-- m -->
early photo of std gauge:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?10012281+X-12281">http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?10012281+X-12281</a><!-- m -->
Unknown soldier:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?10012283+X-12283">http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?10012283+X-12283</a><!-- m -->
Electric in snow:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?11006662+Z-6662">http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?11006662+Z-6662</a><!-- m -->
Loading at Quarry:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?00138456+GB-8456">http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?00138456+GB-8456</a><!-- m -->
Quarry:
<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?00071995+MCC-1995">http://photoswest.org/cgi-bin/imager?00071995+MCC-1995</a><!-- m -->
(These pictures don't always load the first time...refresh a couple times and they'll work)

I am aware of one book on the subject: Sundance's Crystal River Pictorial

Michael

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  BB "business" cards
Posted by: ezdays - 02-28-2009, 09:24 AM - Forum: Big Blue ID Badges & Cards - Replies (1)

We've had requests to be able to use our logo for business-type cards to hand out at train shows and the likes. I have made up a few sample cards that work, so in order to get some consistency, we would prefer that you follow these examples. The top half should remain the same, what you put down below is up to you. You can have your address and phone numbers, your club name, email address, web site or whatever you want. I will post a jpg blank so that you can download it and add your own details. The card size should come out as 3 1/2" wide by 2" high, that is the most common size. For those of you that do not have the ability to do that, I will make a card for you and put it on an 8 1/2" x 11" sheet, 10 up, (10 cards per sheet) that you can use your color printer to make them with. You can print them on card stock, or even photo paper and cut them to size. I will include crop and cut marks to make that a bit easier. You can also buy sheets of business card paper where the cards are already perforated and break apart easily, but those sometimes are hard to get to line up exactly in your printer. I know, I've wasted a lot of paper that way. Nope

Anyone wanting me to do this, please PM me with the information you want on the card, then give me a few days to make them up and email them to you. And yes, send me your email address as well since I cannot PM them as an attachment.



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  Something I always wanted to know about the West train shows
Posted by: tomustang - 02-28-2009, 09:10 AM - Forum: Upper Berth - Replies (3)

In the East every train show has them older bachmann Santa Fe locos you know the ones in the train sets, no one whats to buy because we mostly model our areas trains and well santa fe is not our area.

I remember when I was in sacremento, ca all the hobby stores had only UP, SP, BNSF trains, said it wasnt worth buying others like conrail, csx, ns etc.. because no one wanted them

So I was wondering if all those santa fe F's and GP's, the union pacific GP's, that red MKT hopper, the SF cabooses, etc.. do they actually sell in the western shows? because they just sit over at ours and no one will ever buy them.

Also at our train shows everyone that comes looks for area specific trains, and not much is bought for the UP, SF and other western trains but there is a 50/50 of mixed US trains. I wonder If I go to a western train show will I find the eastern trains, and without the markup since it's not area specific..

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  Highwheelers...Train show
Posted by: Sumpter250 - 02-28-2009, 08:03 AM - Forum: Sumpter250 - Replies (1)

The Fox Valley Division has their annual train show at Harper College, in Palatine, Illinois, this weekend, Feb. 28-March 1. I plan on going today. The show is open 9:00-5:00 today and tomorrow.

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  "View New Posts" area
Posted by: Charlie B - 02-28-2009, 07:15 AM - Forum: Forum Problems and Requests - Replies (3)

Is there any way that the posts could linger in the "view new posts" area for at least 24 hours.
I rely on this area to read the new posts and often they must come and go before I even see them.
A separate link to "today's posts" would work, but the former would probably be better and less work.
Charlie

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  A Questionb About Wheels/Trucks
Posted by: MountainMan - 02-27-2009, 10:09 PM - Forum: Upper Berth - Replies (7)

Apparently, I'm not in synch with Google. Where might I find a simple listing of the types of freight car trucks in use and the time periods?

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  Weathering a Athearn 53' Trailer with Bragdon Powders
Posted by: Trucklover - 02-27-2009, 04:42 PM - Forum: Weathering - Replies (7)

Hi Guys, just in case some of you may be wondering how i am weathering my trucks in this thread here is a quick tutorial on how im doing them

Materials

  • 1. A set of Weathering Powders, i use Bragdon Weathering Powders. I have a set that has black, light, medium and dark rust
    2. Cheap Gray Primer Spray Paint
    3. Large Round STIFF Brush
    4. 1/4 soft bristle brush (thats just the size i use, yours can be bigger or smaller.....)
    5. Cheap Brush that you can cut the bristles off so its a short and stiff brush, see the picture
    6. 70% Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol (not pictures, for cleaning whatever your weathering before you start to remove grease and fingerprints)
    7. A can of Dullcoat or bottle of Flat Finish sprayed from an airbrush

[Image: 49a71285.jpg]



Cleaning Your Models

It is very important that you take a paper towel and rub your model clean of any fingerprints or grease that may be on the model due to handling. Take the paper towel and put a little of the 70% Isopropyl Rubbing Alcohol on it and just wipe the model down with it.



Spraying Your Model

Take your can of cheap Primer Gray Spray Paint and spray your model with a light mist. I use a can from Wal-Mart just because the stuff is $.99 a can and its decent enough to get the job done in most of my projects lol.

I set my trailer (or whatever im weathering) on the fence with a piece of newspaper under it out on the side of my house (this way it is basically eye level with me) and spray from the bottom of the model pointing upwards. This concentrates most of the spray on the bottom, and this is where the heaviest amount of dirt, rust, grime and grit will be found on just about anything that travels down the road or rails.... I spray all 4 sides of the model this way, then turn it on its side and spray the roof and underside with a light coat of mist as well

Be careful not to overdue it, if you overdue it, your screwed... :oops: all you want is a nice light coat of mist. If you want to weather the model more, then a little thicker mist coat is okay....

The purpose for the mist is to help the powders stick to the model. Bragdon Powders have a friction activated bonding agent in them, so the harder you rub them, the more they will stick.

Here is what the trailer (in this case an Athearn 53' Wabash Duraplate trailer for Swift Transportation) looked like before and after a mist of the primer:

[Image: SL372589.jpg]

[Image: SL372590.jpg]



Applying the Weathering Powders

I always apply the powders over a piece of paper or the top/bottom of a Athearn Blue Box, this way you can save and pour back the excess that comes off. I also take a little of each of the colors onthe tip of my brush and dab it off onto my piece of paper so i dont have to reach into the container for more each time. Often times when you reach into the container you get way to much powder on the tip of the brush....

Begin with one side of the model and brush from the top down. Now the advantage of the Bragdon Powders is that they stick right when they are applied, and the harder you rub them, the more they stick. If you apply to much, you can take a wet corner of a paper towel and rub in a downward motion to remove the excess, but again this wont work with normal chalks, they will just wipe right off....

I applied the powders pretty heavy to the trailer as you can see below, in this case, i only used Black Powder to weather this trailer:

[Image: SL372592.jpg]



Activating the Weathering Powders

After you have applied the powders, weather it be heavily or light, take your large round stiff brush and rub the model with some pressure, but being careful not to rub with to much pressure that you break off detail parts..... By doing this, you are activating the friction agent in the powders, therefore making the powders stick to the model better.



Wiping the Excess Weathering Powders Off the Model

After you finish applying the powders to all four sides, take a small piece of paper towel and soak it then get most of the water out of it. You just want the paper towel to be damp, not dripping with water. Wipe the trailer or whatever your working on in a downward motion starting from the top and wiping down to the bottom. This will remove alot of the powders, but your model will also start to look better and will not look so dark (like in my last pic above). It might take a little elbow grease to get some of the dark spots out if you dont like them, but they will eventually come out. This is what my trailer looked like after wiping the excess off:

[Image: SL372594.jpg]




Highlighting the details

After you have wiped off the excess powders, take your brushes and apply some of the powders to the various small details on the models (wheels, couplers, landing gears, underframe and whatever else....) use the small cut stiff brush for tight areas and your other brush for the larger details like the landing gear and underframe. Here is my trailer after i applied excess powders to the underframe, trailer boogie/wheels, landing gear, mud flaps, and rear bumper/door:

[Image: SL372596.jpg]

[Image: SL372597.jpg]

[Image: SL372598.jpg]

[Image: SL372599.jpg]

[Image: SL372602.jpg]



Sealing your Models

If you would like to seal your models because you will be handling them alot, you can seal them with Dullcoat or Floquil Flat Finish using an airbrush (or whatever you prefer). I prefer not to use Dullcoat because it takes away from the details in the weathering and hides a considerable amount of chalks and highlights. If you use the Bragdon Powders, it is not necessary to seal them, but if you are going to handle the model alot, i would suggest sealing them....


Continue to highlight the details until you are happy with the outcome, and your done. An easy lesson on weathering with the Bragdon Weathering Powders

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  Sarge's Weatherd Engine Thread
Posted by: Sarge - 02-27-2009, 01:05 PM - Forum: Weathering - Replies (4)

I will use this thread like Josh's thread to show all my weatherd engines. Big Grin

Just have these two done for now. Much more to follow.

For these two I sprayed a lite coat of gray over the unit and then used pastel chalks.

[Image: 100_0360.jpg]

[Image: 100_0361.jpg]

[Image: 100_0362.jpg]

[Image: 100_0363.jpg]

These were the first diesels that I have done.

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