Running Bear’s September 2019 Coffee Shop


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Scott Gwynn - ‎Railroad Images of Bygone Days
A Western Maryland Challenger leading an eastbound wartime freight. Photo by my father.
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Good morning everyone. 72 and clear. Supposedly yesterday was the last hot day (this year?). Cool down begins today, with rain chances every day for the next week or so. Time for coffee, please, Flo - and scrambled eggs and bacon.

Not much to report from the train room OR the woodshop - spent last evening hanging out with our son, eating out, shopping - got home late but did run trains for a short while.

Louis, Chad, Patrick, Chessie, IB Ken, Garry, Sherrel, CCoffran, Chet, Willie, and anyone I may have missed - thanks for the likes and comments on the barn photos.
Willie and Chet - Great photos from your layouts. They always give me ideas and inspire me to better work on my own layout.
Louis - Thanks for all the historic pix you've been posting - Love the vintage '40s cars!

Forgot to post this yesterday - it's that barn in its new home on the layout. Actually there was a barn there just like the one I just finished (but not as nicely done ;) ). I decided to put the new barn there where it is more easily seen and featured, and put the other one in a less prominent place on the layout. Just have to place some grass to cover the edges of the base of the barn, and it will blend in nicely.
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Have a good day everyone.
 
tootnkumin said:
The N scale market doesn't appear to have caught up to that yet, but then, when I've compared prices between the two in the past, N has always seemed out of balance (high) with HO. Volumetrically, it is only a 1/4 the size.
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I don't follow the N-scale US market but the European N-scale are a lot more detailed now than older examples I've seen. A lot of the Japanese seem to be more detailed than older examples as well.

Remember that doing things small is more expensive than doing things big. Decoders and stuff need to be smaller and more compact as the room you have to work with is less, so it takes a lot more engineering effort to pack features in. I am not comparing H0 to N detail, features etc. Just commenting on how miniaturization is expensive. The actual materials things are made from is a very small piece of the cost. There is probably little difference in the cost of basic materials between N and H0. Plastic, pot metal, etc. are cheap so twice as much is 2x cheap, which is still cheap.

The cost to make an H0 decoder and an N decoder is probably very similar. I've had boards made in China and a small one and a large one were about the same price for the basic board.

The real cost is the R&D and engineering to make it work, and then the ability to sell enough to make a profit. I would assume that in the US that H0 is more popular, ie, bigger market, so prices will be lower, comparatively.
 
Good morning, Happy Friday!

Bruette said:
he fact is deep down many of us are bigots and misogynists.
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Political Correctness, is the method used by one group of bigots to regulate the behavior of other bigots.

Today, we brave the Mall, I get to pick up my new glasses, and the wife gets to return a few items s Then we stop and get a spark plug for the lawn mower and finish up at the grocery store. Maybe some more work on the cattle pens. I also resumed work on the warehouse for the marine terminal.

Boris
 
chadbag said:
I don't follow the N-scale US market but the European N-scale are a lot more detailed now than older examples I've seen. A lot of the Japanese seem to be more detailed than older examples as well.

Remember that doing things small is more expensive than doing things big. Decoders and stuff need to be smaller and more compact as the room you have to work with is less, so it takes a lot more engineering effort to pack features in. I am not comparing H0 to N detail, features etc. Just commenting on how miniaturization is expensive. The actual materials things are made from is a very small piece of the cost. There is probably little difference in the cost of basic materials between N and H0. Plastic, pot metal, etc. are cheap so twice as much is 2x cheap, which is still cheap.

The cost to make an H0 decoder and an N decoder is probably very similar. I've had boards made in China and a small one and a large one were about the same price for the basic board.

The real cost is the R&D and engineering to make it work, and then the ability to sell enough to make a profit. I would assume that in the US that H0 is more popular, ie, bigger market, so prices will be lower, comparatively.
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Yes, I was talking from my observation of N scale of a few years ago and more or less, when HO got more detailed and better electronically provided, which is when I took much notice of N. Making things smaller is always more challenging, how they make them to run on 3mm gauge baffles me (do they actually have separate wheels and axles, e.g.) So I agree in that regard. HO, having, so far, still the larger market, retains that advantage.
 
Good morning. 45 degrees and overcast. The high temp for today may get into the mid 50's with scattered showers. I do have a fire going.

The F-7A should be here today checking the USPS Tracking saying it is out for delivery. Suprise, Suprise. cheer.gif

Terry - I tend to agree with Ray as the amount of detail that is put on recent HO scale has increased dramatically. When I started my fleet of Atlas Alco units, I had to shave off cast on grab irons and installing my own along with many other fine details that are now included on todays models.

Ray - I also still have my first car, a 1951 Hudson Hornet.

Joe - I am jealous that your taxes have decreased. Out here they did new appraisals and upped every ones property taxes. Many long time elderly people are being taxed out of their homes and the county just doesn't give a crap. The packing plant is looking good. Excellent thought on political correctness.

Ken - Thanks for the comment on my photos (along with everyone else). Waiting to see yours.

Willie - You have a safe trip and enjoy yourself. Hope that high waters are not in your path.

Louis - Again great photos. Lots of Alco shots. I always have enjoyed sausages. When I was going to electronic schools at the Naval schools in Great Lakes, IL, I enjoyed the festivals they had up in the Milwaukee area with sausages of all kinds available especially with all of the German people. Also enjoyed my trips over seas sampling food of all kinds, especially sausage.

Had a busy day at the club yesterday. Took some video, but haven't figured out how to stitch them together into one video. I imagine that there is probably a video editing program available somewhere on line.

Here are some photos. Here the F-7's heading downgrade pass a Northern Pacific steamer heading up to the summit.

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The next two photos were taken in what we call the East Subdivision. This room was the old coal bunker at the depot. In the first photothe train passes the lumber mill scene and in the secopnd, the train passes the coal mine and is about to go through the hole bored through 2 feet of concrete into the main layout room.

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Here is the first of a number of videos taken going through the East Subdivision. Later I will post videos of the train going around the layout. The silver car behind the diesels is the track cleaning car that we want to have on all trains running on the layout.


Later
 
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