Showing posts with label Atlas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Atlas. Show all posts
Tuesday, 6 May 2014
Layout in a crawl space - Part 2
This is the second part of Dennis Rietze's article about his model railroad, the Silver Springs Railway and transportation Company, which was written for Canadian Railway Modeller magazine. Reprinted with the permission of the publisher.
Another aspect of DCC is the option available through a stationary decoder which will allow the remote control of turnouts. With limitations in moving around in the layout room, the remote control option is a big bonus. At present I am still in the connection and wiring stage and once they are all installed, throwing switches will be done from the throttle.
The layout scenes are that of basic flat prairie due to the low ceiling, with yards and industries for switching. Most all of the structures are Walthers kits along with others that I have kitbashed to my liking.
As I proceeded with construction and operating trains I discovered that there needed to be more double track sections to allow for better operation and interest; I therefore added extra sidings and plan on adding more as needed. The track is code 100 Atlas with Peco switches.
The most recent work on the layout was the completion of the backdrops. After looking at different methods and ready made products, I chose to use backdrops from SceniKing. The company produces backdrops in a variety of scenes which match up with each other and can form a continuous scene with no duplication. One can choose the scenes that suit an era, too. Each backdrop is 16 x 72 inches and they piece together nicely. It takes two
people to install the backdrops and my wife kindly helped me hang the nine sections I needed to complete the backdrop. I am extremely pleased with the effect of the product � the layout has come alive with the use of this type of backdrop product.
As my father had worked for the CPR, it made the choice of roads to operate on the layout easy. Initially I ran with Union Pacific and CPR but have changed to CPR as my main road with some SSR&T �clones.� I began with just DCC with no sound on my locomotives but as sound has become more common and the quality of the decoders has improved, I have begun to change more of my locomotives to sound equipped. I favour new locos with Soundtraxx Tsunami Systems decoders.
Prior to dealing with other aspects of the layout, it is my intention this year to complete the ballasting of all the track. Then I want to proceed with planning and building a staging yard and additional industries that will require sidings and switching opportunities. Future plans on the SSR&T also include the installation of the remaining stationary decoders to permit remote control of turnouts � maneuvering in a crawl space to change turnouts is not quick and easy, even on a wheeled mechanic�s stool!
Signalling on the layout is not really in the plans at this point but, with my somewhat fascination for the electronics end of operation, I�m sure it will happen once all other aspects of the layout are complete. Yes, the SSR&T is a fun work in progress!
Using his laptop, Dennis programs a locomotive on his isolated program track.
Monday, 28 April 2014
Model Power going out of business
Their closing is a reflection of the sad state of the hobby industry, which has been gradually losing its client base over the past decades. As fewer and fewer people have taken up model railroading as a hobby, the once strong base of customers companies like Model Power depended on to sustain their business has been steadily eroding away. As hobby shops continue to close, their distribution base has crumbled.
Many model railroaders think of manufacturers of model railroad equipment as big businesses, but they are no more than cottage industries. As the actual manufacturing is now done overseas, companies like Model Power have been reduced to being small staffed distributors with extremely small profit margins.
If Model Power can go out of business, who's next? Atlas? Athearn? Bachmann? Lionel?
For more information on the closing of Model Power, please go to their link by clicking here.
Sunday, 23 February 2014
Ron Einarson's first February model display entry
This month Ron Einarson submitted the South Madisonville Extension, which is by far the longest entry the monthly model display has ever had! It took up the entire length of a six foot long banquet table! Ron had three out of the four entries in this month's display. With odds like that on his side, it's no surprise that he won the hobby shop gift certificate! Ron has been enjoying himself immensely since he retired last year. Outside of modelling full tilt, he has just become a grandfather for the first time, and he'll become a grandfather for the second time later this year!
South Madisonville Extension
By Ron EinarsonThe South Madisonville Extension was built exactly as the prototype around the 1950's & 60�s, following construction methods at the time and with all the associated equipment and transitions from Madisonville to points south. The display is typical of those along the L&N lines built during that period. The display was built with the idea that it was getting towards the time when repairs & painting might be in need.
I started with a 1'x8' pine board and added track, scenery and a line side MOW facility. I added a turnout that connects the mains through town with the single track southbound. The area is set as a rural area with pastures for cattle and some scrub brush land paralleling the right of way. I used a piece of 1'x8' lumber six feet long for this section with a 1'' piece of Styrofoam glued on top that I painted brown. Next I laid the Atlas flex track and one #6 Atlas turnout on top of cork roadbed. I carved out ditches using a cordless Dremel tool, various files and knives. All this was done outside with my Shop Vac handy. I touched up the exposed Styrofoam with brown paint.
Next came some ballast and ground foam glued down with diluted white glue. I used coarse foam and foam clusters to add a rough look to some of the area. On the right side I fenced off an area for cattle, using bamboo skewers stained with my steel wool stain and cut them to size. Next I strung the nylon thread along the fence using fine fishing line, which I stained by dragging a cloth soaked in Polly-S Rust along the line. I added the cattle, an old bathtub with resin water in it for watering the cattle, trees, some junk parts & pieces plus a still.
At the turnout I added a shed, vehicle, motorcycle (custom built & painted), Acetylene tanks (hand painted) and a parking area with gravel and added lots of junk parts details and a MOW crew. Telephone poles (bamboo skewers made with RIX cross arms) were added along the right of way as well as trees and bushes. Also added was a gravel country road with a wood board crossing.
I'll be adding a backdrop created using personal photos I stitched together on the computer to create the 6 foot long rural mural. I printed it on a colour plotter. I'm going to mount it on a 1' x 6' piece of Masonite and paint it sky blue. Lastly, I added some junk parts and pieces around the area to give it more of a lived in look. Besides the fenced cattle area, I added a forest area with scratchbuilt trees from Spirea & Sedum bushes, dirt from the garden covered with various textures of ground foam (both homemade as well as commercial). I added lots of underbrush details with broken twigs and piles of rocks, etc. to add depth to the area, plus a moonshine still that I built from an old cast metal kit. I crushed up some fine shale I had found along the road at the lake, sprinkled it in one of the ditches to add support to roadbed. I then took some Poge material my daughter Louise had during her younger days and applied about 10 coats to give an appearance of water in the ditch.
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