Running Bear's Coffee Shop LVIII


BigE said:
Evening fellers,
On the way back from Matton (a nearby town) with Dad we go by this big grain elevator. For the past couple months (I suppose all of the harvest season) there is a little switcher hanging out. It's kind of in the RS line but I don't know. I was going to get a pic but was facing into the sun and had no idea what I would have taking a picture of.

Maybe someone can identify it without a pic if they have a way to look up active road numbers.
It is RCLX #1207 and is fairly bright yellow all over. It's B-B on the axles and that's about all I can offer. I'm pretty sure it isn't an RS-3. I have one and it doesn't really look like it. Maybe an RS-2.

PS: I didn't check in yesterday because... well because I was having an enormously bad day all around.

E.
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Eric,

Its an NW2. :D

IMG_8751.JPG
 
Holy crap Karl!!!
Given the name and number that would have to be the exact same engine - yes?
How on earth did something from Coles Station in the middle of nowhere, Illinois make it on the internet? Besides the grain elevator(s) there is only about 5 houses there.
E
 
tootnkumin said:
One can only hope, Louis, that the kids you are now training, grow up to be like the greats of the past and remember from whence it came.
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King Toot there is one thing I can't teach and that is a passion to be the best that comes from the love of the game. That is one thing every great player must have. I can teach the fundamentals and all the other little things that help you win, but I can't teach passion.

Over the years I have mentored some good players. Many who have gone on to play in high school and 2 that played in college, but none beyond that.

I do however have a young player only 5 years old that has the passion and natural ability to be a great player. He is as talented as any 8 year old I currently coach. Best of all he is very coachable. He is the only player I have ever had who can listen to me while in the batters box and make instant adjustments during the at bat. He makes me look like a genius. I may say to him "keep your head still" and he will and than hit a line drive. If I say to him "stay back and let the ball travel" and he hits a line drive to the opposite field (right field). On defense he is the same. He hangs on every word I say. All the while never losing concentration for the game at hand. I've never had a player like him.

Other players all you can do during the game is to encourage them "you can do it" or watch for this and watch for that. This 5 year old can take in depth instruction and make adjustments like a professional player. I am no genius, he is a true prodigy, but he has complete faith in me and everything I tell him.

When facing a big hard throwing pitcher I told him "swing hard at the first 2 good pitches you see" he swung missed them both. I told him "now start earlier, but cut down your swing to make solid contact" he hit the ball up the middle into center field, perfect timing. The big boy was shocked this little guy made solid contact and got a base hit. The big boy went through our lineup only allowing 1 hit. At this age they only pitch 3 innings so my little guy only got one chance at him. The next time we face the big boy I am positive he will hit one of those first 2 pitches hard and really shock the big boy.

My goal and his is to play in college. Who knows what he might do after that, but I'd bet he goes to college on a baseball scholarship.
 
Sirfoldalot said:
LOUIS That's just a REALLY BEAUTIFUL PHOTO!
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Trussrod said:
Say Louis: Sherrel is completely correct, that is a great picture of the Chessie Steamer, I don't think I ever saw that loco and tender and cars with that paint scheme. Really interesting indeed!
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Sherrel and David I am glad you both liked it!

David here is more about the Chessie Steam Special http://themetrains.com/chessie-steam-special-main.html and how is your left shoulder feeling?

and here is a Lionel model http://www.lionel.com/products/chessie-steam-special-loco-2101-6-31734/
6-31734_2705.jpg
 
E it's good to see you!

I look up locomotives all the time because I am lucky to be able to tell a steam engine from a diesel!

All I do is put in the Railroad and the road number into my Bing search engine and BANG! I am an expert diesel spotter ;)

I am glad you are having a better day today.

Hang tough brother, you are my hero!
 
BigE said:
Holy crap Karl!!!
Given the name and number that would have to be the exact same engine - yes?
How on earth did something from Coles Station in the middle of nowhere, Illinois make it on the internet? Besides the grain elevator(s) there is only about 5 houses there.
E
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Google is my friend (and yours) but not Louis's, cuz he uses that Bing thing!:rolleyes:

Here's a whole page of the little engine! http://www.rrpicturearchives.net/Locopicture.aspx?id=173662
 
Ok fellers,
Little help please.
I need a DVD/VHS player combo unit.
I see prices all over the freaking place.
Someone just point me to a decent one and I'll get it.
E.
 
Good evening guys,

After my prior post I hurried out to the back porch and put my Knee pads on as I needed to grab the bag of 21 more patches I cut yesterday and climbed the extension ladder to get on the roof and managed to use all 21 patches up in various spots attempting to correct the minor leak I had at the dinning room ceiling vent. So now I have to wait and see if I corrected the leak during the next rain.

It seems like there is always something to do here, glad I know how to take care of most of it.


Say Ray: That was very good advise you gave the guys on soldering as well as posting the video. About the only thing I do differently is that I pre-tin the wire, rail base as well as the PC strips where the rail is going to sit based on the template for the switches so it just a matter of heating the rail adn PC strip for a good electrical & mechanical joint.

Oh, I will mention that the inexpensive soldering station I got from Micro-Mark really works like a champ and I only have heat dial setting at the end of the segment next to the beginning of the start of the highest segment bars. This way I'm attempting to keep the temp down as best possible. Even so though, when I solder the power feed wire to the outside rail web if I'm not careful it will tend to melt or at least warp the plastic tie strips from Central Valley.

What I've done is to place a couple of thickness of business card stock under the rail first before soldering and that seems to help. Another trick is to attach some type of metal clamp to the rails or just lay a pair of flat sided pliers across rails when soldering to soak up the excess heat.


See you guys later.
 
Sounds like you are back on the bounce E. Very nice to see! Got up and running something to show the folks at the gatherings and as a celebration did an "unboxing" of my OTHER SDP45/SD45M #6670 in CONRAIL colors! The plan was/is to use em in a consist so I got the same #'s. Now that the grades have appeared the added power will be needed! The mighty DD has pulled 15 up the 3.33% average no problem. Coupler issues must be addressed before any real "pulls" can be done. The "new" SD has been sitting in the box since I bought it a couple years ago with the others and it ran very smoothly forward and reverse through all speeds, nice slow speed action, the sound and detailing is awesome on these "models"!
DSCF4359.jpgTsunami came in it and I have no complaints with em, I don't do much but change the number and adjust the momentum, other than that I just run em.
DSCF4362.jpgIt looks lonely on what passes for "the mountain" right now but it has "mates". My "GT" rollers almost match the colors so apologies to the purists if I'm making a "boo-boo" I don't know who shares em and who don't "out there" but "in here" it's what I got.
DSCF4363.jpgTHERE it goes! The "old" one is my "prima donna" and is snicky as can be, the new one eats whatever I throw it on, electrical pickup seems to be the problem. I might have to learn some basic surgery soon.
 
BigE said:
Ok fellers,
Little help please.
I need a DVD/VHS player combo unit.
I see prices all over the freaking place.
Someone just point me to a decent one and I'll get it.
E.
Click to expand...

ERIC- We have a Toshiba DVR630KC DVD Video recorder/ Video cassette recorder and player. We can play all our DVD's or VHS on this machine plus we pre record movies and stuff on our PVR and and load them onto this recorder and make DVD's from it. We have hundreds of hours on this machine and works flawlessly. You can buy one of these for about $120.00 to $150.00. It is well worth the money.

Mel
 
BigE said:
Ok fellers,
Little help please.
I need a DVD/VHS player combo unit.
I see prices all over the freaking place.
Someone just point me to a decent one and I'll get it.
E.
Click to expand...

E I have a Toshiba, but now that all VCRs are out of production the prices have sky rocketed! I found these at Walmart https://www.walmart.com/search/?que...&wl13={store_code}&wl14=dvd vcr combo&veh=sem

And more at Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&k...qmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_59z16p4tj8_e

I don't know which one to recommend, If it were me I would choose the cheapest new one.

VCRs are mechanical and if something goes wrong with the mechanism you are counting on a low paid technician to properly fix it.

On the other hand refurbished units are often just open box returns with no problems.
 
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Eric, something else to do is check with your local pawn shops. At this point, they would be happy to make a deal to get rid of them, as nearly everybody has switched to DVD, or Blu Ray.
 
Good Morning All. Overcast and 63° here in North Central Texas this morning. Made it up all the way to 71°, with rain and drizzle yesterday, supposed to be the same today with no rain. Fall must be approaching in this neck of the woods. I saw part of the annual snake migration going on yesterday. They come in from the fields and wooded areas on my property and hibernate under the floor and elsewhere in the barn. Saw three different ones. They tend to avoid the house as the cats bother them under there!
Grocery/beer trek and lab-work took up lots of time yesterday, but I did get to the train shed after lunch/nap. Added some more track and wiring yesterday. I'm running out of blank benchwork, so I'll have to clean off the last remaining wall and continue to build some more. About 40' more (20' on each level) and I will have completed the original rough plan. Much of that space will be staging.

Chet - In a similar fashion, I do like the trains running through and even behind the scenery, even though I do also have some parts where I'm close to the front, such as turnback loops as shown in some pictures I posted about two months ago.
Eric - Here's hoping that today goes better for you. I use rrpicturearchives.net a lot when I am looking for a particular loco or freight car as I am weathering or detailing. Another site is http://www.railcarphotos.com/
David - Stay safe on that roof.
Bruce - Isn't it wonderful to open a box and find something from a couple of years ago? Like Christmas, even when you remember that it is there.

Everybody have a great day.

Willie
 
I was holding it back until I needed the consist power and now I surely do! It runs MUCH better than it's mate which I think was damaged in shipment or it's a factory mistake, the performance has been spotty from the start. I don't know where to begin in diagnosing the problem and less about the fix that may be needed. Visual inspection shows what looks to me like an electrical pick up not quite the same as the other loco of the exact same make and model. Getting inside to see may or may not happen until I get advice or the gumption to sacrifice a loco in the interests of personal edification.

Slowly I'm figuring out what this will eventually be. A big yard in the middle and long lines around it. I really liked the four line main that I had before and I will have it again. "Scenic" on the outside loops and a large yard in the center. The torn up ground and piles of material in a yard area is something I believe even I can "model" with some accuracy. The outside loops I can ballast and practice grass and trees on. Getting there is half the fun!
 
Good morning, all, from Springfield, MO. Starting out foggy around these parts, but it's already burned off and turned into a nice sunny morning, with a beautiful weekend around the corner. Like Willie in north central TX, fall is beginning to show up, but summer is sure hanging on - love it!

You'll remember that my wife (the "land baron," according to Chet) suggested I move our layout from a 17X14 basement room to the family room (19X30), so I've finished moving other stuff around (home office, a modeling center where I work on the kits, workout equipment, etc), and for the past two evenings I've been walking around there figuring out how to best use the space for a redesigned layout. Got a basic idea, drawing things out on a grid - - been looking at layouts on the SCARM website, looking in books, etc. I'm combining planning with not-planning - any of you do that?!?

Will start taking photos and sharing occasionally. Want to keep an album of this build.
Take care, all, and God bless. Have a good day.
Johnny
 
Good morning. 27 degrees to start off the day. We have been getting into the low 60's for the past few days with the same expected for almost the next week. No complaints from me.

Got some outside motion sensor lights with solar panels in the mail yesterday. With no homes or street lights around, it is nice to finally have lighting on the front steps to the house. Darker than the inside of a cow out here at night. I do have outside flood light and a porch light, but the steps aren't lit that well, especially when my wife leave to go to work in the morning and turn off all of the outside lights. They're pretty cool. The doge like them too when we send them out at night to take care of their business. Doesn't take much to activate them and they'll stay on for about a minute with no activity close by. Happy wife, happy life.

Justin - Enjoyed the V&O video. I have really enjoyed all of the articles on the V&O over the years. I hated to see his first layour torn down, but the second is another great layout. Forgot to mention Allen's layout in the posts of great layouts. He sure captures the feeling of the area. Thanks for posting.

Toot - Do like the mellow yellow switcher. I do have a couple of small switchers already but another wouldn't be a problem.

2034.jpg

I found a very old photo when I was first starting the layout and saw an EMD SW1500 that I had painted for my LV railroad. I have no idea of what happened to it. Old timers disease Old.gif must be setting in. I'm wondering if I had used the chassis for the Milwaukee Road switcher I custom painted.

Willie - Liked the comment that you had made about the trains going through the scenery. You are right about having to have track at the edge of the layout. Real estate is at a premium on layouts. I also have tracks at the edge of the layout, but I tried to avoid it when ever possible.

David - Be careful up on the roof. There's no age discrimination when it comes to gravity. It always works.

Johnny - Waiting to see photos of what you're going to do with the space you have.

Catch you later.
 
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