N Scale Model Railroad Build

[pmmjarrett]

Why It reminds me of Michigan

I am NOT moving back to Michigan. Born and raised in that beatiful state but got spoiled with temeperate climates in Virginia, Italy and North Carolina while in the Navy and Army. I ain't moving further south or north.

I don't even think I own a snow shovel anymore..... I just wait for our annual couple inches to melt in a couple days.

 

[pmmjarrett]

What a nice job you are doing.
We went yesteray to a "G" gauge model train showing and it was fun. Hubbie came home and spend many hours researching them. Hum - wonder how that will fit in the coach????

Thank you.

G scale in the coach would have to be suspended from the ceiling.

Of course I'm sure there's someone out there that sets up an outdoor layout around the coach wherever they are. Wouldn't be too hard to do with the sectional track offerings from Aristo-Craft or USA Trains and the correct Split Jaw rail clamps

 

[Bighurt]

Thank you.

G scale in the coach would have to be suspended from the ceiling.

Of course I'm sure there's someone out there that sets up an outdoor layout around the coach wherever they are. Wouldn't be too hard to do with the sectional track offerings from Aristo-Craft or USA Trains and the correct Split Jaw rail clamps

My wife would kill me if I brought trains on the road with me...

Although if I was full time it wouldn't be half bad. Noticed you linked to RLD hobbies, great service excellent products, if only I had a bigger budget.

 

[pmmjarrett]

My wife would kill me if I brought trains on the road with me...

Although if I was full time it wouldn't be half bad. Noticed you linked to RLD hobbies, great service excellent products, if only I had a bigger budget.

You could sneak an 0-4-0 switcher starter set.

He's top shelf. Great prices too. Split Jaw's website is down so if I can point someone in the right direction for the products, it'll be with someone I would buy stuff myself.

I've spoken with him a several times and purchased stuff from him. My Aristo-craft Dash-9 locos, USA trains centerflow hoppers and Aristo Craft track. When I was into "G" about 6-7 years ago he was still working full time and running his hobby shop and taking calls at nite. He had a 7.5" gauge layout around his property back them but was selling some of it. IIRC I originally found him on evilbay.

Another I have had good dealings with in "G" is Hogtrainz. I bought an Aristocraft 2-8-2 Mikado just days before the 2-8-8-2 Mallet came out and UPS litterally crushed it and broke it in half during delivery.. They even gave me a note that they might have damaged it. There was no fixing this one. He jumped right in to help when I filed a claim with UPS, allowed me to change the order to the Mallet and I had the Mallet in my hands within a couple days.

 

[Bighurt]

Most of my G is "modern mainline", I frequently purchase his clearance items as they are great buys. I do have an LGB porter that would be a great tag along item. Aside from it the smallest I have in G is my USA trains S4 for the Christmas tree. Although with all the commemorative reefer's, It's not really a under the tree train anymore.

Thanks for the HogTrainz link, I'll have to check them out. However I'm a big USA trains fan for which they don't seem to be a dealer. I do have a fair amount of AC.

 

[SilverRhino]

I have really enjoyed following this post! When I was a kid, my Dad made a two level HO set up that I have fond memories of.

All my "train" time now is spent with my Grandson......wooden Thomas the Train sets are really great!! I'm not sure who has more fun!

Keep us all posted on your progress!!

 

[pmmjarrett]

Thomas trains are great fun for kids...... and Grandpa There are some cool Thomas layouts out there.



Moldes a bunch of Hydrocal rocks last night and installed a few this morning. Also put together 2 culverts that I have no idea where I'm gonna put them.

The rock pile. It's OK to break them into smaller pieces or to reshape them.

It's also OK to cut into the plaster cloth to press them into place.

Glue it in place. You can use Hydrocal for a cement, hold them in place with plastercloth around the outside edges or use a little construction adhesive. I use the Construction adhesive and then put small strips of plastercloth around the edges to blend them in and fill voids.

Finished placing rocks in rock cut area.

Finished adding 1/4" to 1/2" wide strips of plaster cloth around edges.

Time to find something else to do while the rock area dries and glue sets. I put together the culverts.

And mixed my paint washes. Yellow Ochre, Burnt Unber and black. They give you tiny amounts in the woodland scenics kits so make sure you get it all out of the container.
I'm likely going to need more as I have molded 4 times as many rocks as the kits supply of haydrocal made.

 

[pmmjarrett]

Now to make that white snow on the mountains melt.

Leopard spotting the rocks.

Use a sponge and dab spots of Yellow Ochre over 1/3rd of the rock. don't worry about it running, the mix is very thin.

Repeat the same with the Burnt Umber

The spot again with the black.

Now soak the sponge with the black wash and cover everything. Let that black flow and bring out details. Repeat until you are happy with the results.

Once it's all drie and I have the rest of the rocks in place I will spray them with diluted white glue to set the color.

 

[Bighurt]

Looks great! What did you use as a wash base?

 

[irvin56]

GEE you do really great stuff
and you don't need a welding rod to do it

 

[pmmjarrett]

Looks great! What did you use as a wash base?

Not sure if you mean what was mixed in the pigment or used under the wash so here goes.

The pigment is mixed with water, these are Woodland Scenics earth color pigments.

The washes are applied directly on the bare hydrocal. If I don't like what I did I can add more pigment or even remove it with hot salt water if I havn't sealed it yet. The saltwater trick works on these pigments even if they have been on there for a few years.

There is a ton of information and videos on modeling scenery on the Woodland Scenics website. I'm a big fan of their products. The stuff is a bit spendy, but to me the results and ease of use are worth it.

Coloring the rocks like this is so easy it isn't funny. A newborn baby could do it. It takes longer to mix the paint than anything else. Here's the Woodland Scenics video on how to color the rocks.

I was even playing around with the rocks I just colored this morning, lightening up the big rock and making the light ones darker and more weathered.

 

[pmmjarrett]

GEE you do really great stuff
and you don't need a welding rod to do it

My best masterpiece was created without a welding rod.:angel:

 

[pmmjarrett]

I almost forgot. I poked my head into a hobby shop on the way back from the Doc today and found a layout almost any one of you could sneak into the trailer. I had forgotten about these. The hobby shop owner pulled it out of the display case so I could snap a pic and share with Y'all.


That's a quarter on top of the 4" x 7" "TY" 1:900 scale Santa Fe Super Chief layout by Tiny Trains. These are hand built and yes it is operational. The train is attached to a belt that moves it around the tracks. Plugs into a 110 outlet. Can even get sound.

 

[pmmjarrett]

I'm going to be offline for working on the railroad and posting pics for a couple days.

2011 is already a year I want to forget. FIL in near fatal wreck Jan 1st, no alcohol involved, got T boned by a couple teens and flipped. (he wasn't driving, his friend was, got hit on passenger side doors about 50 mph, no skid marks at scene) Teens were OK. Wife and her sister have been up at the hospital in Virginia Beach since the 1st. I'm home baby sitting my 13 yo and 3 dogs.

He was dead on the scene and resussitated. Had to be cut out of the upside down crushed mini van. Doctors and social services say he is unable and not allowed to live on own, has to come here or go in a nursing home, he has 2 broken ribs and a cut on the forehead and diagnosed with dimentia when they were checking to see if he had a stroke. Wife has POA and she should be bringing him here tomorrow or friday.

I gotta get the house ready now, good thing it has an inlaw suite. It's one of the reasons we bought this place.


Yep, this just tops off my own recent medical problems (gonna need to go under the knife for buldged disks and severe spinal stenosis in my neck) and probably going to have to go out of business and sell the Freightliner, the Dodge dually and the camper because I can't work.

Yay, I'm so thrilled there are only 360 days left of this year ......... Hey, can I get some Valium to go with my Vicodin, Nerontin, Naproxin, Prednisone, Methotrexate and Omeprazole so I can hibernate until 2012.

 

[jbeletti]

Mike,

So sorry to hear about your FIL. Same for your own medical situation. May as well go for the surgeries - you're still a young man and it just may give you back some strength, and provide significant pain relief (after the healing).

Your adopted Heartland family is here for you if there's anything we can do. Emailing you my new number too.

Good luck getting the in-laws moved in and hire the neighbor kid to do any lifting of stuff moving them in - you don't need further muscle aggravation.

Jim

 

[jimtoo]

Mike,

So sorry to hear about your FIL. Same for your own medical situation. May as well go for the surgeries - you're still a young man and it just may give you back some strength, and provide significant pain relief (after the healing).

Your adopted Heartland family is here for you if there's anything we can do. Emailing you my new number too.

Good luck getting the in-laws moved in and hire the neighbor kid to do any lifting of stuff moving them in - you don't need further muscle aggravation.

Jim

What Jim said above for sure... Just wish we were closer so maybe we could help out some. Stay off those pain things unless you really got to have them... they are not easy to get away from. I hope things work out for you and your family.

Jim M

 

[pmmjarrett]

Thank you gentlemen. This forum and my trains are great therapy.

No worries on the pain meds. I havn't taken Vicodin since a week before Christmas. The Nerontin, once they found a good level for me, is working well now at 400 mg 3 x a day for the neropathic pain. I don't like taking narcotic drugs. I've gained a lot of strength back and can move my arms now. I'm even sleeping good at night too which I havn't been able to do since I went to Afghanistan in 2002.

Fortunatly, moving the FIL back in is a fairly easy move. He sold his house and moved in about 5 - 6 years ago after his wife passed away. About a week or 2 later he ran off with his wacked out new girlfriend and left everything but a few cloths, his fishing poles and a couple boxes he never took out of his mini van.

The biggest headache is going to be dealing with his delusional, manic 84 yo 2 faced girlfriend and her constant ranting, raving, verbal attacks on my family and chronic lies. She's one of those manipulative control freaks who always has to be right and thinks she's the best thing since sliced bread. And I'm being very nice here. She is NOT moving in and is NOT welcome here.

My FIL is my fishing buddy, he'll go fishing every day if he can. She wouldn't let him go fishing because she swears a doctor told him "if he gets a fish hook in his finger, he'll bleed to death". And always has an excuse why would couldn't come to visit him, which we ignored and went anyways which always T'ed her off. Her latest line is "the doctor told me I'm a full fledged nurse now"....... She's never been a nurse or went to school, she told that one to my SIL who is been an LPN for about 25 years and is the Charge Nurse at a nusing home in front of me and my wife (who recently graduated from a CNA course) while we were eating lunch together before Christmas.

OMG I can't wait for that woman to be out of our lives.

 

[ncrebel8]

We are praying for you PM!

 

[pmmjarrett]

Thank you North Carolina Rebel.

Mabey I should start a new build thread. "How to trash your house and blow the budget setting up an inlaw suite in a day" Oh what a pain in the 4th point of contact" LOL

Ohhh Yea, I've had my meds (NO NARCOTICS), did a little forum support group therapy here this morning, had a few laughs playing with the puppies, kicked the kid off to school, scarfed a sausage egg and cheese sammich on white toast with mayo and pounded a Starbucks Doubleshot Mocha ( got one in reserve too). Time to crank the rock and roll and get busy, I feel like superman now.

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[irvin56]

Take care of your self FIRST. the rest will fall into place, wherever and however that is.

Best of luck in your medical problems