Running Bear's Coffee Shop LXX

[IronBeltKen]

Oh yes. And Pray you don't pass any. Been told it's the closest a male will get to imitating childbirth.

Toot - I thought it was kidney stones that did that...

Anywhoo...the pain I was describing isn't severe, maybe a 2 on a 1-to-10 scale. I've seen what gallstones can do, my wife had them back in 2004. She had really crippling abdominal pain, and couldn't keep any food down!

 

[bnsf971]

Good morning. It's clear and 30.

 

[santafewillie]

Good Morning All. Mostly cloudy and 35° to start this day. I need to go out now and burn the "burn trash" before the wind picks up later this morning. Another beautiful day yesterday, mid-60's, sunshine and no wind. Note to ones self: Do not place leaf lettuce next to frozen turkey in the refrigerator. Outer leaves will freeze! By the way, frozen turkey's do not thaw out in the fridge, contrary to turkey manufacturers instructions. Three days later and it's on the kitchen table now.
Out in the train shed, I installed 12' more of blacktop roadway, and partially striped it before I had to go and fire up the grill. Earlier in the day, I drilled out a few more electric poles for eventual stringing of wire, and I made some more electric meters to attach to structures. In between, I dullcoated and added license plates to some vehicles that I am going to add to the road. Some will get drivers which will add additional detached legs to my growing collection. Off-layout, I have just about cleared all of the space that will soon (hopefully) be occupied by a workbench; a project that I started about two months ago. I've had the materials to make it for well over three years now, but those damn trains keep intruding on my projects! All that's left to move is a couple of boxes of old MR's and RMC's from the 70's.

Curt - That workbench even drives me crazy, but my computer desk really doesn't look any better. My workbench in the train shed, actually a cleared off section of unfinished benchwork, at least has an approximate 12" x 15" clear space. My new one (see above) will be 16" x 30".
Greg - I am only attempting to wire up one scene right now. Seeing how it goes will determine whether or not I do any others.
Garry - Enjoy the guests.
Toot - Quite the layout and it's refreshing to see so many young members. Thanks for the video.

Everyone have a great day.

Willie

 

[Raincoat2]

Good morning everyone. 36 and clear here in SW MO. Will hit about 62 today. Nice week in store, but we need some rain.

Chet - As others have said, very nice looking locos.
Willie - My workbench is not nearly as busy as your friend's, but I'm trying.
Toot - I enjoyed those videos, but you're right, mounting the cam behind the loco took some of the fun out of the ride.

Made good progress on landscaping and track ballasting. I have a love-hate relationship with ballasting right now - love how it looks, hate how hard it is to get a good-looking ballast. Trying different techniques on different parts of the track, so hope it doesn't look goofy. On the MR-V, I have all the outside walls painted and about half of the windows/architectural features painted with their 2nd and 3rd coats now, so that part is looking quite good.

Had daughter and her family over for dinner yesterday and as always ran the trains for our 15-month old granddaughter. When we ask her if she wants to go see the "choo-choos" she points toward the door to the basement and then leads the way to the door. I let her push the "horn" button this time and she liked that!!

Have a good day everyone.

 

[Boris]

Good morning, 40° and sunny.

 

[montanan]

Good morning. 41 Degrees to start off the day out here with the possibility of some showers. Was really happy top see Martin Truex Jr take the NASCAR championship yesterday.

I really have to consider myself lucky as I have no health problem as of yet. My son also suffers from occasional heartburn, but for the most part has it under control.

Toot - I really enjoyed the cab ride videos. Quite the layout. I am assuming that they were taken at your club. The second one does give a better view of the layout, but the Lionel speed almost gave me whiplash going through the curves. We have some members that run rather long trains at the club. It can be interesting as with the grades that are on the layout, they'll use a helper or two at the rear of the train to the top of the grde and then have to run the helpers back to the yard making for interesting operations.

Willie - Sounds like you're really making some progress on the layout. Will be waiting for photos. Now that the NASCAR season is over I can get more work done on the layout with Sundays being available to work on trains.

I appreciate the comments on the Northern Pacific Locomotives. I guess the main reason I was working on the North Coast Limited was because of all of the great memories that I had as a kid riding on that train.



One problem I have with the train is that it is a bit too long for my puney station. Oh well.



Here's a rail picture for today.



Later

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Charles Manson died yesterday, which isn't really news any more. He was serving 9 life sentences for his murder sprees that he ordered or took part in. Only 8 life sentences left to go.
Only one person has said he will miss Manson. That's the guy who used to throw rocks over the fence at the prisoners.

 

[Sirfoldalot]

Morning All - 44 and sunny with SE wind of 1 - say it will be 77 for a high today.

TOOT- Really enjoyed the video's - echo Chets comments too! (neck hurts - lol)

Joe - Was it you who mentioned "blowing" the leaves down into a ravine last year?

Willie - HA, My workbench looks at least as bad as that one, but that person is soooo verrrry fortunate to have his wife. I think somewhere alone the way that I failed wife training.

Glad to see that everyone is "chugging along" as best as can be expected. Going to be a busy week around here - plus going to Arizona on Tuesday so better get packing.

Came on this this morning ... might be helpful to someone?
Locally a lot of the guys use a concoction we called Achie Goop to use as basic ground material on top of plaster cloth or paper. Dave Acheson is the progenitor of this mix and it works very nicely over just about any substrate.

Achie Goop
1 cup Celluclay
1 cup Mold-a-Scene plaster
1 cup latex paint (this sets the color of the ground surface)
1/2 cup Elmer's glue
1/4 cup Perlite (Miracle Grow sells it cheap) this can be crushed finer if desired
1/4 teaspoon of salt (improves conductivity for using an electrostatic flocking tool)
Mix well.
Water added while mixing to the consistency of creamy peanut butter.

Achie Goop spreads easily with cheap coarse bristle brushes and can be used to build up over broken ceiling tile to develop terrain. It can be wetted while working to add various forms of ground cover or flock.

Later gang!

 

[Sirfoldalot]

Chet - Love the F-3 in the lead along with the rest of the train. Your model looks really good too! Can't help you on the station length though ... very few stations were long enough for more than 2-3 cars. Even Grand Station, NY, and Union Station, LA, is a fer hike!

Ken D&J - I just think it is so nice of us to keep death row inmates alive for 50 years - NOT!

 

[BigE]

It's 39 with wind chill at 30. Just went for a walk outside and I don't think so. More like 20° on the wind chill.
Dam that bites!!!

 

[Greg@mnrr]

Clear and crisp in this part of Wisconsin. As time permits, I'm inventorying all my rolling stock and the cars placed in a spreadsheet. I can't believe how prices have changed for rolling stock and in particular my ore cars.

Going to spend some time either day or tomorrow in the layout room.

Chet: Again, nice looking engines. Please do another video of the passenger train. Don't worry about station size. I used to take the Hiawatha to Chicago for meetings and more than once, the station guys in Chicago made the Amtrak trains park way out on the platform since they wanted their Metro trains to take the lead. Almost missed some trains since I didn't think they would be so far out from the platforms. Or, I'll almost take the wrong train like to Madison!!!

Ken: Didn't Manson spend most of time in solitary confinement? That's got to be a rough way to spend 50 years in prison.

I can't tell an F-3 from a F-7.

Hope to see the CP Christmas Train this year.

That's all for now.

Greg

 

[montanan]

Greg - I am waiting for the Athearn observation car to arrive that I ordered in the Lowey paint scheme t make another video.

The difference between an F-3 and an F-7 - - - The number after the "F" ?????

The F7 differed from the F3 primarily in internal equipment (mostly electrical) and some external features. Its continuous tractive effort rating was 20% higher (e.g. 40,000 lb (18,000 kg) for an F7 with 65 mph (105 km/h) gearing, compared to 32,500 lb (14,700 kg) for an F3 with the same gearing.

 

[Sirfoldalot]

Greg - Chet explained in better detail. I just look at the upper carbody openings. F-3's generally were open with wire coverings while F-7's had the stainless grill, however, some railroads covered the F-3's with the stainless grill for appearance I guess.

 

[Iron Horseman]

I can't tell an F-3 from a F-7.

Externally, as someone pointed out is largely the chicken wire side grills. But also F3s usually have three port holes. Then on the roof, the F3 dynamic brake vents are simply two rectangular openings (also chicken wire covered) instead of a round vent. Speaking of round vents, the first F3s had four tall flat top exhaust fan shrouds.

After 1947 the chicken wire grill on the middle panel was replaced by vents and the third port hole went away. The top exhaust fans switched to the tapered type.
1948 the chicken wire grill was replaced with a grill.

 

[tootnkumin]

Glad y'all (thought I'd put that in to show how well I'm assimilating) liked the 2 club vids. Pardon for the UK trains, those guys are much more "into" passenger steam and like to try and exceed 126mph, but far as I can find the only ones with camera views. There is that one I posted many moons ago of Brett Johnstone's 107 car UP train behind 2 Big Boys. It tends to stretch the layout quite a bit because of overlapping of the scenes to cover the length of the train.

Chet mentions that they use helpers on the Livingston layout. I have in the past used mid train ones and once added a rear one as well. Where in the real world, I'm sure they have means to adjust the amount of thrust each group or individual loco is providing, but because of the confines of a layout, even a reasonably sized one like the club, speed matched models, don't react quite the same. Having the lead group climbing a grade, whilst the mid ones are going down and the tail single still around the corner coming up, was tricky to say the least. A crawl was the best that could be achieved. I've found that getting a better balance requires an equal number in each loco group, with as good a balance of car weight in between and then behind the middle group, to be the most practical. A bit of rule of thumb though.

Tried the, what NCE calls, Nesting consisting, where you can cut in/add a consist of helpers as needed, operate the train as a whole, then cut them out again. Still got some head work (my head) to do on that yet.

 

[Boris]

Good afternoon. Cloudy and 45°. The good news, didn't have to remove the leaves, the wind took care of that for me. Couldn't replicate the current leak on my new staging area. Leave well enough alone for now. Got my annual property assessment today, appraised value went up $28k in one year...It's supposed to be market value... If not, I have until January 2018, to file my appeal....

Chet: Your NCL, does dwarf the passenger station . Then again, a full sized NCL, would be too long for most platforms in Penn Station, NYC. What you need is another set of F7s to run a second section, or a "Mainstreeter". with the overflow cars. I'll make a passenger train guy out of you yet . Guys: by the 1960s, most F3s looked like F7s, even on Maintenance Free Zones like the PRR/PC.

Even though I "thought" we had all of our Thanksgiving Dinner shopping completed last Friday, we ended up venturing out this morning to buy the stuff we forgot. Hopefully, we got it right this time.




Unusual Sign displayed at the restored Reading Company Station, in Schuylkill Haven, PA. (RBM&N).

 

[tootnkumin]

Yes, they used to hang the mail bag on an arm that swung out off the side of the mail car and was caught in a net on the station platform. Not the sort of thing you'd want to be walloped with at express train speed.

 

[Sirfoldalot]

Yes, they used to hang the mail bag on an arm that swung out off the side of the mail car and was caught in a net on the station platform. Not the sort of thing you'd want to be walloped with at express train speed.

Where I grew up- the outgoing mail was hung on an arm for the RPO to grab, but the incoming mail sack was simply tossed out of the door at 60+ MPH.

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Greg - Yeah, I think he was in solitary for a long time at the request of the other prisoners.

 

[GarryCBQ]

Howdy. ... still busy but I’m checking in anyhow.

Where I grew up- the outgoing mail was hung on an arm for the RPO to grab, but the incoming mail sack was simply tossed out of the door at 60+ MPH.

Sherrel. ... I wonder if the Post Office still does that when I see a package marked fragile with damaged contents.

——
Evolution of EMD F-units ..

FT ... Four portholes on side . Screened air intakes in upper sides. Box-like dynamic brake grids in center of unit .

F2 ... 3 portholes. Screened air intakes in upper sides. Tall roof fans. Rectangular dynamic brake grids.

F3 Phase 1 ... Same as F2

F3 Phase 2 ... A units had 2 portholes with screened vents between them . Screened air intakes. Rectangular dynamic brake grids . ... B units looked very much like Phase 1 B units .
F3 Phase 3 ... looked like Phase 2 except the screened vents between portholes .

F3 Phase 4. The air intakes were covered with louvres the full length except at cab of A units. Roof fans were lowered than early F3’s.

F7 early .... dynamic brake had a smaller size fan instead of rectangular grid. Low roof fans.

F7 late... dynamic brake had larger size fan.

F9 ... looks like a late model F7 except there is an extra louvre on the side.

Note. ... Railroad shops modified F units over the years. Spotting features were changed and it became difficult to identify many of the F units

Have a good evening