Random projects

I have been all over the place on projects lately. I've made layout progress, as well as freight car =, and automotive

I finished the first of 5 HD flat cars. This one is QTTX 130725. I photographed the prototype on the Skally in December of 2012. This is an N Scale Kit. The load I scratch built. 

BNSF 651553 is a FVM model I weathered and added a Hays Brothers coal load too. This car will represent the occasional bad order the BNSF kicks onto the Skally.

I finally got CN 5421 finished. This SD50F was a Kaslo kit I have had half done for too long. 

Duke's suburban was a resin kit I picked up. It will be seen around the layout railfanning. 

The SCXY Section truck is a heavily modified showcase miniatures truck I built, decaled, and painted.

I also finished Corp. Auto in Hinckley. I still need to get more cars for the lot, and plant some trees. But it is mostly there.

The only thing I haven't been keeping up on has been this blog! I need to be more diligent about that. See you in 2019!

Summer Progress and Planning

As I make my way through the summer heat here in Vegas, I have been plinking away at different projects. I have a few more articles off to N Scale Railroading, they should be in the next few issues. I've been working on some freight cars for a friend (pics are coming soon), I've added few small details to the layout, and I'm planning for a year away.

As many of you know, the NMRA convention was this last weekend in Kansas City. I didn't make that show, but I am planning on being at next years show in Salt Lake City. The plan is to bring the entire Skally Line up to join in the MASSIVE FreemoN layout. I think the layout is already scheduled to be about 110 feet by 110 feet. To make the full scale ops work better, I am planning a few additional modules. I have already started prep work and I will pick up lumber next week.

The first module planned is Pine City. I will have the Depot, the Snake River Bridge, and a small MOW siding.

The next module is the South Siding Switch in Hinckley. This will extend the BNSF side of my interchange modules. I would like to get the BNSF siding up to 10 or 12 feet long for the show so it will be a good spot for meets.

The weather is cooling off already and I would like to take advantage of that for module construction. 

So much to share!

I know it has been a while since my last post (2 months, sorry about that). I've been getting an amazing amount of things done. I will break this into three posts, the first one will be layout progress. The second will be freight car projects and the third will be my latest magazine article.

I added another grade crossing, this one is 420th St. I wanted to add this crossing for the unique NP style crossbuck posts. I painted them myself and I added the switch stand for the sand plant.

 Here it was in the rough stages.

 I added more trees and a switch stand in Hinckley at MP 74.

Yesterday and today in Rush City I ran trains. Sometimes it can be therapeutic to have an ops session.

I was having some camera fun and shot this picture of Ivy Farms Trucking. I have a new special edition Prairie Shadows/TrainWorx James Bond Edition Kenworth coming that should look right at home here.

 I added the 415th St crossing to Zinpro and Titan last month.

 As well as signage and trees at Titan Lansing.

Zinpro progressed rapidly from foam core mock up to styrene structure. I still have a lot of work to do, but it looks better than an empty scene.

I also built the loadout shed for Zinpro. This really changed the look of the scene too.

So most of the progress has been scenicing. It is nice to be getting the layout to a more finished state. I hope to get back into tree making soon, that always helps.

More Skally Progress

I've been focusing my time on some engine builds. I've almost wrapped up the SD60F, I'm just waiting to get the decoder back from MRC (small headlight issue). While I was waiting I did add another detail to it, you may get to see that in an upcoming N Scale Railroading Article. I have also been working on some MILW GP20's that I am hoping to post pictures of when I get my next weekend.

Thinking I was going to be taking my Hinckley modules to Sacramento for the N Scale Enthusiast Convention, I have been spending a little time on them every day. As it turns out, there wasn't room for me, which may be a good thing for my time management right now.

I brought the 3 modules (yes, Hinckley grew by one module) out into the fresh air to check to see how they fit together.

The new South HIN module (old North end of Rush City) is re-ballasted and both tracks line right up to the Center HIN module.

Here is the Hwy 61 bridge over the Skally. I was primering some engines so I shot it with the same paint. Piers and bridge abutments are coming soon.

The fitment issue I ended up with was the joint between the Center and North HIN modules. It looks like I will have to do some work on the left side near rail. It broke loose from the PCB ties. The humidity and temperature differences between Nevada and MN took their toll. I don't think the movers were very gentle along the way either.

Looking down from above the old NP main line you can see the completed Skally Main Line and Interchange Track. Now that I know they fit I will finish the ballasting on the Center module. Then I will redo the ground cover and plant about 400 trees.

On the North Side of the North module I made the track that runs to the small BNSF MOW yard and to Federated Gas, which is served by the Skally. I was thinking of modeling the yard and Hinckley Depot that direction, but I am probably just going to run the track to the module edge and drop LPG cars behind the section house.

It's not much, but it's progress. I'll get the newly discovered problems fixed and be back to new stuff soon. Maybe next time I'll have one of my corners ready to show you!

Layout Progress

I've been bouncing between projects, try to get a little done across the board. I'm getting Rush City v3.2 ready for track. I gave it a coat of paint to seal the cork. Then I glues down all the PCB ties for the module ends. Next up is drilling all the holed for feeders, throwbars and so on. This 12 feet of modules will hold over 1 scale mile of track, the SCXY Corp. HQ, SCXY engine house, two grade crossings and the Ardent Flour Mill when they are done.

Up in Hinckley I'm getting ready to install the crossing gates. I picked these up from Azatrax for a good price.

Here is the north end of Rush City v2 getting ready for re-purposing. I pulled out my #10 crossover for use in v3.2. I saved as much track as possible for the new destination.

A short while later the track was pulled and this module became the South end of Hinckley. I grabbed some foam to rough up for the new Hinckley Hwy 61 overpass. I will be installing a #10 switch for the South Hinckley Switch. Then the SCXY interchange track will be in business.

Over on the old South Rush City module (now Rock Creek) I got the cork in and smoothed out the land forms. I need to build the bridge piers, but I am short one #10 RH switch for this module, so it will probably be placed on the back burner until Atlas gets more switches in the U.S..

Well, that's all for now, I'll be posting more layout and locomotive progress soon!

Citizens of Hinckley Rejoice!

After a year of not being able to get across the tracks, the Hwy. 61 grade crossing over the BNSF Hinckley Sub. is in use! On another good note that means more customs for Slims Service, the BP station that sits on the south side of the crossing. It sounds like the crossing gates and signals are enroute and will be in place soon, ensuring a safe crossing for motorists.
A truck driver heads to cross the tracks:

The old dead end is a favorite spot for railfans to watch the interchange action in Hinckley. I still need to get a nice grove of trees planted here and the "Welcome to our town" sign.

An overview of the scene: Slims in the lower right corner and the BNSF section house up top. I will be using NJI crossing gates and signals to finish the crossing. The color differences in the rocks and ballast are due to them still being wet. I just glued them down a half hour ago, but I couldn't wait to photograph it. Once I finish the scene I will repaint the facia.

 A close up of the gas station. Prices are still high in Hinckley.

This station started as a Tomix kit. I tore it apart, resized everything and turned it into a BP station to match the real Slim's. I still have a lot of work to do, but it is a step in the right direction.

Hinckley Watertower

In preparation for my upcoming ops session (third week of December is my plan). I have decided to make things a little easier on the operators. Both the operators know the prototype line, one knows it almost as well as I do, but I want to make it easy for any operator. I have decided to mark the north and south ends with the respective water towers of the towns that sit there. Lucky for me, both towers are close to the tracks, so it will add to the scene.
The first tower I make will be the Hinckley, MN tower. This sits just north of the junction of the SCXY and the BNSF.

I picked up a Walthers Modern Water Tower and was I ever let down. DOn't get me wrong, I can make it work. This is a prepainted model, I had to sand off the horribly done seam on the side.I will probably remove the cast on light at the top in favor of some more appropriate details. Here are the pics after I finished the sanding. By the time this post goes public, I should probably have my compressor back up and running and will start painting this to look a little more like the real thing.

I think it will be nice to be able to tell operators that Hinckley is North and North Branch is South. They will be able to glance to that end of the layout and see the water tower rising above the rest of the scenery. I hope it helps!

Out and about

I had some photos I got while I was out and about. Over Easter weekend I ran to Duluth for some time with the family. On the way home I stopped in Hinckley. The Skally units had just left town to the south and the ILSX leasers were both sitting on the interchange track. I don't know if these are on the line anymore or not.

I got back to the office later that week and was fortunate enough to be in Vegas as UP Big Boy 4014 was pulled through town. I stopped to see it early in the morning before the crowds arrived. 1.2 millions pounds of awesome:

Skally Vehicles

I've been working on some vehicles to make the Skally Line look a little more inhabited. You may have noticed a few of them in earlier posts. I want to thank Showcase Miniatures for really stepping up in the N Scale market to bring us some cool kits.
The one I have completely done is this BNSF "I" Type MOW truck. This one makes Hinckley look like BNSF is keeping an eye on the trackage of the Subdivision.

I modified another of the "I" Type trucks to be used my the BNSF mechanical department. I built a traction motor for the back, so it looks like they just swapped an idler axle under a locomotive.

The cab-over semi is used in grain hauling service in Rush City. I'd like to decal it for the Peterson Mill at some point. The trailer is a modified kit I cast myself in resin. The axles, landing gear and mudflaps are from Trainworx.

Another vehicle is in the works for Hinckley. It will be a BNSF signal maintainers truck. The box is from Shapeways. It still needs paint and details, but it is a start.

Just like so many of my other projects, these are started, but not done. They will work as fill-ins until I get a little more time to blast out the detail items.

Two Train Day on the Skally!

On Monday I made a run up and down the Skally, I was a little pressed for time, but I had a couple shots I wanted to get. I waited for a bit in Hinckley, but the BNSF Hinckley Local was running behind schedule thanks to a bunch of slow orders on the subdivision. I had enough time to catch the St. Croix Valley bringing todays interchange cars up and putting them on the siding. The clouds broke as ILSX 1345 and 180 came under the Hwy. 61 overpass. These are the higher HP engines on the line and the larger car counts are certainly letting them flex their muscle.

I headed South and got to see a wonderful thing. It was a 2 train day on the Skally! SCXY 1352 and 1363 were switching out Tiller and Zinpro on the south end of the line.It looked like they would have the cut ready to run to Rush City shortly, but I couldn't hang out any longer. I am happy business is going so well on the line.

Hinckley Part 4

It has been almost 3 months since I posted any real layout updates. With a little time to spare over the holidays, I'm getting the modules ready for a big show in St.Paul the last weekend in December. I got Hinckley set up in the garage and I went to work. I finished the facia, wired the track (I still have the frogs to wire up, but you know how that goes), got the switch machines in and wired to the keyed switches. I laid a little more track, got some ground cover down and ballasted a little more track.
Here is a shot looking South. The BNSF Hinckley Sub is in the foreground, the Skally is away from the camera. You can see the keyed switches in the not-painted-all-the-way facia. All the ground cover on the closer module went on today.

Here is a little BNSF section house I made. I did paint it after I took this shot. Hopefully tonight I can find my BLMA A/C units and get those installed. I'm also working on some awesome Showcase Miniatures MOW trucks that will be stationed here. Keep an eye out for those in the next week or so.

This is looking North (NE by compass) on the BNSF line. The ballast is still wet in this shot. The track behind the section house is the north end of the Skally Line. I transitioned that to Micro Engineering Code 40 track. That line will terminate at the facia for now. Other than a bone yard, there is a LPG dealer that can take one car. For now I will spot that LPG car toward the edge of the layout.

Here is another shot North. The un-green area will get a road with grade crossing and a gas station. I hope to have more of the smaller details ready by the big show. So you can see progress was made. For the show the Skally Line will be set up as a branch line to the main FreemoN layout. That will let me test out the operations and help me decide what I want to build next.

Hinckley Part 3

More progress, and BAMM! I'm stuck. Let me explain, I got the BNSF main line through Hinckley laid, 3 #10 LH turnouts. This shot is looking "North" on the BNSF side. The first switch is for the boneyard by the Hinckley depot and Lakes Gas, I'll model those someday later. It will get code 40 when I lay the curve, just for good looks. The second switch is the NSS Hinckley, the third is the switch to go south on the Skally Line.

The Skally turns through the swamp (static grass is down. This is a 36" radius corner. I got all the track I had laid painted up and even got some ballast down.

I put a couple engines and a car on the curve to give it a little scale. In the background you can see the old NP main.

Here is where I ran dry. The North End Skally interchange switch. I cannot find a #10 right hand switch to save my life right now and Atlas doesn't have any due for months. I don't feel like investing in a track making jig for one switch. Do I spend the time and build one freehand from scratch or hunt on for a pre-made switch. I have a couple weeks to mull it over. I'm open to suggestions...