JAMO

These gondolas are really nice! I like the weathering!

A photo modified with a real backdrop scene on my son's layout and one of my Alcos

Sorry, no time to work on my layout from a while because of other work: HOn30 for a friend, On30 for another one... But I have welcomed two new "old friends" from a kind Englishman One of the gears of the RS-3 (on the wheelsets) was cracked but I don't pull a lot of cars, so with only 3 geared wheelsets it's ok. These two locos run very well and smoothly.

<< Electronic components and electric pick-ups aren't reliable for the life >> always says my old father. He is an electronics from the end of the 1940's (with lamps at that time, TSF, and only 1 channel black & white television). I have a NCE too. I find it very reliable. I bought it in England from NGTrains during an exhibition there is a long time ago. This controller sleeps all the year in my basement. The conditions aren't the best but it's always "ready to run". But we have to know electronic components aren't built to resist for a long time. One day, the capacitors and else components like that begin to change and to modify their possibilities. And especially potentiometer which need some cleaning from time to time. But we are lucky with the digital devices we can buy: they are reliable! There is several components'quality: - the lower quality: that we can buy as a classic human of the world, - the professional quality: that the big companies use for their professional devices, they are extremly strong, long-life and more precise valued, my father has a possibility to use this category of component to make an automatic block-system to protect trains movements from 1982 and these components are still in use despite they were installed in a bungalow during 24 years. Now he still uses them in a warm room on his last layout. They are still in use. No problem. - the military quality: the best of the best: undestroyable. I use Kent Panel Control KFS 3 amps with feedback (exhibition reinforced components) controllers from more than 20 years (from N scale to O scale). I just had a broken one. The others are still in use. I think NCE and others brands use professional quality. We are lucky!

Thank you Jordan, you're right, my model needs a big tidy-up. The gers aren't splitted. I'm lucky.

my Plymouth is running slowly with my KFS controller but it's noisy. The motor isn't good. I think a new drive and a new motor will help a lot. At this time my locomotives are still DC controlled. I have to spend money for sound decoders. About the beacon, a slower rotation will be perfect. Covid-19 is a big sh... !

Jordan, your Plymouth is running fine and smoothly! Nicemodel. My son likes the light on the roof

What a nice atmosphere with this small short line. Thank you Jordan!

The third module is another switching location.

An important thing for operation: the fiddle yard. After tidy-up the space under the stairs, I've built the shelf.

Something I haven't shown: the ladder

I've made a system to help painting the wheelsets for my son

After an electronic parenthesis, let's come back to the layout building. The second module makes the L shape of the layout. My son is making the scenery: he installed kraft paper with glue and fine sand to make the ground.

I've done this: I've drawn that with my old Photoshop software. It's printed with a thermic sublimation printer for photos. I weathered using AK/Mig and Vallejo paints.

Yes something generic. Somewhere in Iowa I've fund that:

The wooden bin is now finished. Not exactly.... I need to make an advertising plate on it. Maybe Kent or I don't know The roof is made of card. The paint is acrylic and weathering washes from AK Interactive and Vallero.

Thank you! I had an advantage that this decoder didn't have wires like the others. There are only circuit board locations where to solder the locomotive wires.

Another locomotive I've given to my son after adding the DCC/Sound decoder. He likes it!

I've worked on the galvanized grain bin

Today, no work, only cleaning track and switching I've run a RS-3 which was in its box from a long time...

I've started to paint the third silo: 1st stage

The two first DCC sound locomotives arrived on the layout are Alcos. The RSD-15 is an "out of the box" model from BLI. My father has given it to my son. Nice gift, isn't it? The second one is an old but "as new" Atlas RS-36. I've installed a QSI TitanU sound decoder I had in stock from a long time ago. After a battle against space, I succeeded. The "Arkansas & Mississippi" lettering will become "Waynesville Terminal" on another day.

My son has decided to convert his layout to DCC because the sound adds another dimension and life to his layout. I wasn't enthusiastic with sound/noise but now I'm convinced by the realism of sound. Especially with Alcos locomotives. A little rough video with the arrival of a new locomotive: a RSD-15 from BLI. At the same time, you'll discover the next module after the yard. http://www.youtube.com/embed/_i3Py5hIitk?list=UU3lydS9FctqkUO7zIQjCzBg

Hello there, News from my son's layout: