long island jack

Not much done this week,run out of detailing bits,none of the traders at Millom had anything,but there again, did pick up my new toy at Millom show,one of the new Bachmann S4's, Erie #529, lovelly runner, and the turbo sound is brill,need some of the cv's tweaked a bit to cut the top speed etc. just need a caboose to go with it now Ray

Ian road clear, no more landslides (he says as it starts pouring down) got most of the small building on the front of the layout done today,just needs more crates and people done a different roof covering on this one and a vine climbing up the side and on to the roof Stephen The detail on the gp7 will be added sometime, got another layout to build (boards allready built) when this one is finished,then i can sit down and detail my stock at leisure. Ray

Hi Stephen The gp7 is a excellent runner,up there with your Atlas/Kato,just lacks the detail (on my"to do list) The o-6-oT it is a early one which has a Hornby R8249 decoder in,i added some weight (mouldable lead by a-line) to all the nooks and cranies,which has help with running and pulling,it runs ok 90% of the time,as long as you keep the pick ups and wheels clean. This is not the layout i'm taking to the exhibition,it's my other one called HELM,this layout won't be finished till some time next year (or maybe sooner if it keeps on raining) Ray

Got the small building in the corner finished,roof detail and a/c units done,need more a/c units from unit models Thanks to Dave 1905 pointing out about the date on the building, i've changed this,hope this fits with the style of the building? Took a photo of the pennsey local arriving today I've got to go now and start packing HELM in to it's boxes ready for the weekend at Millom,thats if the've got the landslides of the roads,and theres no more rain. Ray

Dave Thanks for that,your the first to pick up on the date,wasn't to sure when i put them on weather they would be right or not,the reason the building got that date was,i got a load of free numbers from my local craft shop but when i got home and opened the packets,they were all 7's,8's,9's and one 1,(so much for freebee's),isn't much of a problem changing them,can come forward till the 1920's or do away with alltogether and put company name there in stead!! (another job for the "to do list"). Thanks again for your imput,its always welcome. Ray

Decided to leave the buildings as is,got my bits and bob's i needed Sunday to finish the 2 fire escapes,painted, weathered and fixed, i like these better than the first one i built (no i'm not changing it) i think they really finish the buildings off Also got a couple of small hand pallet trucks to try out,like these, need more Ray

Chesh Book me in,should be finished by then!!!! Will be on my own this weekend,there's no one available to help, see you Saturday 8.00am Ray

Another nice summers day,at this rate i'll have all the buildings finished by the end of next week!! Weathered one of the small buildings today,just needs a fire escape built (hopefully i'll get the bits at Railex North East on Sunday) Still got a bit of a dilemma,can't make my mind up,weather to leave the buildings as is,or make them into rundown buildings like Nick said in a earlier post? They will only need some new windows printed off!!!! Did a bit of drybrushing to bring the detail out on the building facade. Ray

Well ,with this lovely summer weather (i wish) i managed to build one of my fire escapes for the smaller buildings yesterday,just needs weathering, bars may be a bit thick at 1mm square,but my eyes can't see anything thinner,and at a distance it doesn't show up that much! Set up a shot of the loading bay area for Pete,seeing he like my cobbled area there,still need more crates,pallets (are american pallets the same as british ones??,would anyone notice) other loads and people,going to use Woodland scenices forklift trucks,my local shop can oblige. There was a film crew on the layout yesterday filming a new movie called the "fly" managed to catch the main star as he was about to jump of the building!! Ray

Weathering done some detail added on the building,just needs name and fixed to layout, then i can hide the gap along the bottom of the building also did some roof detail on one of the smaller buildings thats it for a bit, got to check HELM's ok for Millom exhibition. Got a question for you's "what type of forklift can i use for loading my boxcars" period 1965-75 ish,would i be able to use an early one in 1975?? Ray

Pete,don't you mean wrapped in rubber!!!! (for dear monica!!!) Jack,great stuff that 2mm MDF,use it all the time,most of the buildings on the new layout were built with it,except the building fronts Got most of the detail on the last big building today,just the smaller ones to do now it just needs a water tank on the roof and some crates on the loading bay, then weathered up and were done. gon'na have to start thinking of names for my buildings soon,then they can be fix to the layout! took a couple of #9101 switching some cars,starting to look a lot better now,still lots of detail to add around the track,switch stands,rubbish,power poles (with cable!) vehicle for each period,etc what do you think so far???? Ray

Pete The cobbled area has come up better than i thought it would,betime i get the rest of the detail on, it'll look spot on. had a good afternoon today,built the fence that goes around Clinton cigars,made from card and matchsticks!! what do you think? i really happy the way it's turn out! Ray

Ian Still pondering on a name,though i've a couple in mind "Cooper Ave" and "Evergreen" "Cooper Ave" which was at the Bay ridge end of the defunct LIRR Evergreen branch "Evergreen" was what Penn Central crews called the Bay ridge branch Though i'm thinking of have changeable name boards to go with each railroad theme! Managed to get some sky scenes from my local model shop,went with Peco,though not 100% happy they will do,thought the Gaugemaster one's had to shiney a finish. Also cleaned them out of crates (2 packets!!) still gonna need a load more. The left end of the layout is starting to take shape(photo below),the other end still needs a lot of work,will after wait till after my hols? Ray

Just for a bit of daftness!! Ray

Got quite a few a/c units of Dave (unit models) at TVNAM,he does large and small one's,i stuck a large one on the back window of clinton cigars. Going to have a shop about for crates and sky backdrop etc( which i really need up ASAP ) next week while i'm on hols. Pete,there's a lot more weathering to do on the tenements, when i finish the detail off Ray

Jack Thanks for the link,was thinging about getting some crates a little bit closer to home,there are quite a few different sized one's in OO,don't think it will matter! Being playing about tonight ,trying to find away to finish the road end at the back of the layout,this is what i've come up with,nothing glue down yet,got to wait till sky paper is fixed,i'm quite happy with the result,with a little bit more detailing in front,road signs etc,think it's gonna look ok! what do you think?? going shopping next week while i'm on hols for some sky paper,it's been a bit of a bu***r get on here lately keep getting SQL,don't know if it's me or what?? Ray

Managed a little bit more over the weekend,mainly weathering and a little detailing to two buildings,still a lot more detail to do, need to build a woodern fence for the back of clinton cigars,then i'll need a bucket full of crates. i'm gonna try one of Gaugemaster N gauge sky papers behind my buildings,just to see if it will help make the scenes have more depth!,done some of the background buildings at a smaller scale,not to sure about it,may look better with sky behind them. Ray

All buildings have windows now,started adding detail and weathering to buildings,first done was the concrete building,needs a bit more detail around the door area also needs water tank painted, then will after think of a name for it and what it ships out,crated stuff probably? Don't think it looks to bad so far,maybe a thin brown/black wash just to tone it down,not sure?, will leave it till the rest are done. It's starting to look like somewhere now!!,took a photo of #9101 running passed with a cement extra may start another one tomorrow night,though progress has slowed up a bit with all this sunny weather, it will probably rain now i've said that! Ray

Next building done last night,with opening lights!! One more to do tonight!! Ray

Nick bit of modellers licence i'm sure there would have been industrial buildings in the 60's/70's converted somewhere there is only one of the buildings that is actually a warehouse,the rest are suppose to be like tenement blocks,which you see by the railroads in down town areas (i think he says,having never been there!) Ray

Got another building done to day,the one to the right of the pictures Then had a bit of a play to check clearances and that (any excuse to play trains) took a couple of photo's of #9101 going up the spur to the cement plant,then coming back with a string of PS2 hoppers Next up is the windows in this factorys,gon'na try them with opening lights Ray

Prof klyzir we aim to please,here's a couple of shots as low down as i can get.(knee high to a grasshopper) These shots show up the gap under the build,once all the detailing/weathering is done the buildings, i will be fixing them down and the gap fill/covered up Nothing technical about the flangeways,good old filler/pva/grey emulsion mix,when its about set i run a old lima coach bogie back and forth (lima wheels have deep flanges),once its dry clean up with small pointed blade/screwdriver Then paint and weather, when everything is dry,i float pva in the grove and cover with grass,think it look reasonable,may be to green,but i can add another colour when i putting the final details on the layout Ray

Got a roll on now SWMBO didn't need my service to night after all, so did the other buildings,seeing the layouts suppose to be based in the late 60's early 70's,thought i do some sixties psychedelic coloured blinds and curtains there are a couple of empty appartments,which i will have for "let signs" hanging out of the windows,the bottom floor warehouse windows, will have boards across the bottom half of the window now to design the window for the last 2 factories,might have them all done by the weekend!!! Ray

Cheers Ian I'm slowly coming round to the windows, did another building last night,which i thinks ok,be time it gets weathered and detailed,maybe a couple of window boxes with flowers or weeds or even a marij**** plant,if i can find photo's of one!!! these are suppose to be flats/appartments in old converted industrial buildings!! I'm starting to get the bug again,may do the other buildings tommorrow night Ray

Been playing about designing windows for the buildings on the new layout (gon'na have to think of a name) They look ok when there in the computer,but there a lot lighter when printed out,you can't see the window blinds that well,but then again betime i get the rest of the detail on and weather the building you probably won't notice anyway, not sure the jurys still out!! May do another building to see if it makes them look any better,suppose if they all look the same,it might not be so bad. Tried printing on acetate wasn't happy with the results,because i made the window bars so thin you couldn't see them,plus light colour looked crap,at least this way you can see the window bars,will play about a bit more.