Running Bear's January 2020 Coffee Shop


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7° clear and calm. Got the inner loop done on the 2nd table and spent some time actually running trains. Had several derailments, mostly involving tank cars. Trying to figure a way to weight them; I'm thinking pin vise and hypodermic. Had to stop for the evening when I noticed I was knocking more cars off the track than I was putting back on.

Got to go meet my mother at the doctor's this morning. She's got a 30-yo ulcer on one shin that this guy has got almost healed.

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Good Morning All. Clear skies and 31° to start the day. Mid-50's to low 60's for the next ten days except for Wednesday with low 40's and rain. Picked up my first ever pair of eyeglasses yesterday, wearing them is an interesting experience. They do help and wife says that it will take a week or so to get used to them.

Morning Flo. A double order of bacon and french toast this morning, skip the eggs.

Thanks for the likes and comments regarding the layout pictures yesterday; Bob, Tom, Karl, Sherrel, Phil, Jerome, Bill, Chet, Justin, Mikey, Jim.

Working my way around the corner with the quarterly layout cleanup project. What better time to give a brief tour of parts that I haven't been posting, as someone requested last year. So here it is.
Separating the staging yard from the scenicked portion is a highway overpass made from Rix components.
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We first come to the hamlet of Budville, named after a late friend. The near tracks are Frisco (SLSF) tracks leading to the interchange; the far tracks are the ATSF tracks. This part of the layout is unfinished for now,
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Pay no attention to that stack of lumber temporarily stored on brachets above the layout.
Lone Star Feed & Fertilizer is the first industry. Along with the grain elevator to the left, they ship out both bulk grains in covered hoppers, and bagged grain in boxcars. They also receive bagged grain in boxcars.
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Next over to the left is the infamous Majestic Hardware and Feed store, It is non-rail served. This is a tentative location while I decide whether to keep it here.
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That phone jack is for my walk-around memory throttle.
Next over to the left is Midtown Consolidators. More on that tomorrow.

Terry - How is Marie doing? Has she recovered from the infection? Has she been doing the PT for the knee? That's an important part of recovery no matter how much discomfort it gives.
Tom - I fully agree that getting rid of the plastic shine on railcars really enhances the effect. Although I haven't weathered all that I want to, I have hit everyone with the Dull Coat.
Sherrel -
Sirfoldalot said:
Willie -- I'll take that pair of CF-7's on the back wall -- that will free up a siding for you?
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Good eye there spotting the CF7's. However they are my primary switching power for many industries.
I thought of you last night while dining at Pelligrino's. Wife told me the Green Bay score and I thought that you probably would have rather been with us instead of home with the TV.
Concrete rivers duh! Only in CA.
Greg - I also like watching those cab ride videos. However the effect is ruined in many of them by modelers that don't finish the back sides of structures. I may not detail all of them, however I do finish them.
Mikey - Life has not been hard on me. Aging body has!:) I'm still here and enjoying life more than ever. Compared to that scene, I have aged better than my wife...BIL is still the same skinny punk as he was 50 years ago.

Everybody have a great day.
 
Sirfoldalot said:
Before I became a GB supporter, I was living/working out of KC.
I was a Chiefs fan back then and even attended a few games at the old stadium shared at that time with the Athletics baseball team. Always have a soft spot for the Chiefs - hope they go all the way!
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My how jump ship so quickly. :)

Good morning...15 and sunny.
Willie - Sometimes a little mud and grimy black can change the look to give a weathered look to a railcar.
 
Cold monday morning here in WV. Some snow flurries but nothing extreme. Didnt do anything on the layout yesterday as I was doing dad duties. Normally I'd run trains for my kids. However I'm still working maintenance on my layout. So I just camped out on the couch and got in some tv time. More than likely I'll work on the layout some more tonight. My efforts have paid off in a very big way. The performance from my locomotives is something I've never experienced. So hopefully I can stay on top of my track cleanliness. It's been hard to stay on top due to me having to take long breaks away from the layout. Its perks to having kids. If I can work time in where I can itll be easier to stay on top. If not well I know what to expect going forward. Anyways that's all I have for now. I'll try to stop by later.
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Good Morning....mostly sunny.

Intended to go to the train room but the main TV went off the air with a error that I've never seen before and it doesn't makes sense about a HDMI cable being bad.

Just try and contact your cable carrier.

More fun than dealing with DCC issues.

Later....

Greg
 
Sherrel: I'll still keep my Packer socks, underwear, shirts, flag, mail box, sweat shirts, window flags, stock ownership, eight Brett Favre autographs, tons of past programs...to name a few items.

Where can I buy some KC clothing in Wisconsin?

Greg

PS: Wait until next year when the right Packer team shows up.
 
Sirfoldalot said:
TOM -- I don't see any "jump ship"?
My team lost ... Am I supposed to stick my head in the sand and not support the team that I hope defeats the team that defeated my team?
The Chiefs are in a totally different league from GB.
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There's been a lot of upsets this year. I thought the conference finals would be SF and NO and Ravens and Chiefs. Don't know which way to go just happy the Pats are out. Nice to see different teams get in.
BTW if you stick your head in the sand it'll be hard to watch the game.:)
'
 
Howdy everyone!

Thanks to everyone who liked my stuff!

Flo - I missed breakfast and lunch, so I'll have a tuna salad sandwich, a bowl of clam chowder and coffee.

Mikey said - "I guess I will take down the christmas tree and build some more flatcar loads while she is gone".
You understand by that statement, you'll have to post some photos? ;):p

Willie - thanks for the beer story comment. As usual, your layout photos are outstanding! I never tire of viewing them.

Tom - I do like your car weathering. You've developed a perfect style.

Karl - nice little switcher. Good job on the new chassis exchange.

Justin - another great pair!
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The sun is shining bright and with the new 1" of snow is very inviting, but it's still only 23° :rolleyes: I stayed inside
yesterday and will postpone going to the store again, until tomorrow. It'll be there when I get there. ;)

I accomplished a lot yesterday and this morning on the layout. Nick's Garage is completed and awaiting final
placement. West Penn Hardware's warehouse is near completion and I started on Hagerty's Market (or maybe
A&P, as we shopped there when I was young. I'll decide at the end of construction), which will also have a
scratch-built addition, tripling it size.

I know when the weather warms and the grass needs mowed and other outdoor requirements, my layout
construction will slow down. But in the mean time, I'm enjoying every minute. I've waited 17 years to be
where I'm at now, so it's full speed ahead, at least until spring! ;):)

Everyone have a good day!
Jim

Here's a pair of Nick's Garage photos . . .

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kbkchooch said:
Tom, my 2 cents is as follows. 1/2 to 3/4 inch foam is ok for any layout wherever the track is not supported. Under the track it must be supported , Otherwise it will sag over time. There needs to be some sort of structural support (plywood, spline, etc.) As far as roadbed is concerned, I much prefer cork vs the newer foam roadbeds. Again, more rigidity.
My last set of modules used spline, with 1/2 inch foam, then cork roadbed on top. They were built to be as light as possible, and have been exhibited since 2005 at various train shows with no structural issues in the trackwork at all! Here is some pics of the "bones". The tracks run over the spline/foam/cork sandwich and can support me!

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They are 12 ft long (2 6-ft sections) and made almost entirely out of Luan plywood, masonite, 1x1s and 1x3 legs.
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FWIW, in my opinion, With the proper blue or pink dense foam you shouldn't need the splines. You should not get sagging. Maybe on 1/2" foam but on 1" + you shouldn't, FWIW.

We use the blue and pink foam for glider wings for RC and just use a simple wood spar and then fiberglass vacuum sealed on with resin and they are stiff and take a lot more pressure than some trains running on them and they are no where near an 1" thick.
 
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Good Afternoon Everyone....

I took a couple of photographs of my weathered SOO caboose that is a Athearn BB with custom lettering for the Soo Line.

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Like Locomotive #4441, this caboose is headed towards the junk yard as well. The original, large SOO lettering was wiped off when I was cleaning the body sides with alcohol (never use alcohol to clean a model before weathering) and I replaced the SOO with decals, but liked the name Soo Line better and changed the caboose's number to "4". -Greg

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The reverse end has a operating, flashing warning beacon, caboose has interior lighting equipped with a stay alive capacitor and a figure standing on the platform.-Greg

I used oils, Pan Pastels and acyclic paints to weather the caboose. This is my first real attempt to weather a caboose and in the future the weathering will be lighter.

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This is where modeling mistakes end up in the Omro Junk Yard.-Greg

Miller Time....

Greg

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