Looked over the fodder tonight...some really tight brick work on an HO LifeLike 'Fairhaven Bottling Company' No. 1355, and similar dimensions (but more crudely cast brick) on LifeLike's Engine House, No. 1354.

I'm going to stick with the bottling theme, but just what they're bottling up in the Blue Ridge, well, officially it's 'Spring Water' or Tonic Water. And cleanliness is naturally the reason the loading area is enclosed...and trade secrets the reason the whole place is fenced...and just coincidence the county assessor and plant manager are cousins...well, you get the idy.

I like South River Model Works stuff. Their NE themed mills built on different vertical levels sited on a fast moving river are neat to look at, and knowing they base their stuff on prototypes as much as possible is nice. I'm borrowing inspiration from that style of structure, only a bit more Antebellum in geography and style. Maybe even a little Haunted Mansion (DisneyWORLD Florida version) thrown in for fun.

Galen

I am getting into this scratch building stuff. Now I have a problem. I am trying to cut 2 1/4 inch half circles into sheet plastic. I have tried an exacto knife, small very sharp scissors and a drimel tool with a small mill tool in it. HELP I cant get a smooth even cut. What works here?

Well, here is the start to my Kitbuild challenge for the Summer '09 Contest

Im going to be building and weathering the new Walthers Cornerstone Blast Furnace. There are over 400 detailed pieces in this kit!! I estimate this will take me about 60 hours to complete, and im exited! Can you believe it? LOL

Well here is the kit: http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/933-2973



Not sure when i will get a chance to start this build, but im hoping soon when things start to calm down a bit lol

More than 30 years old...I think it's time this barn gets built...



My plan is for something in good repair that is being used as a roadside antique store or indoor flea market.

I have the Bachmann Walt Disney train (Lily Belle). The original Bachmann couplers are giving out -- the springs no longer hold the knuckles closed. So I decided to replace them with Kadee. Being adventuresome I bought the scale head with integral spring that will stick in your finger. All seems fine but the couplers don't swing back and forth. A couple of seconds with the micrometer shows that the Kadees are thicker than the Bachmenn and are binding in the coupler box. A check on the old #5 suggests that they'll only fit if I leave the spring out -- not a geat idea.

Any suggestions? Does this happen with other models?

Secondary question: when I undid the screws the screw came out with plastic in the threads -- not good. What solution for this?

Well, as said in my other railway thread - Im starting fresh, the current layout will be torn down and a new one constructed.

I've been working on this plan since Christmas, and am finally ready to begin construction. Several people new this railway was coming, but only one person knew remotely what the plan would be like. Other than that, its planning has been a complete secret, until now of course.

Here it is:

Basically the layout itself is 1900mm long and at one end 270mm wide, at the other 600mm wide. On top of this there is a control panel and 4 track traverser which will measure 475mm long and 270mm wide - the control panel can be positioned in one of 2 places, on the end (above where my computer is on my desk) when at home, or coming out of the back when the layout is at an exhibition (to save people at the exhibition space).



The design is on three levels, rising up by 100mm over the zig-zaging mainline, with the control panel being about 20mm above ground zero. There is a hidden track which runs beneath the layout from the top inside the mine, to the bottom exiting out of the powerstation. This allows for full cars to be taken into the PS and then slighly taken up to the mine. At the same time empties are taken into the mine, and can then be bgrought down out of the PS - in effect gondolas go in full at the powerstation and come out empty, and vice versa at the mine.

There is a large tipple on the top layer - a Walthers Cornerstone Concrete tipple thingy, along with a large Helijan 120' turntable acting to create both a runaround for trains, and also access to the spur industries. A large passing loop in the middle makes up the final main scenery element.

Most of the scenery will be dusty rock strata - Inspired alot by Paul's logging layouts. This along with a semi industrial theme, coloured to make it look like the place is old, but expanding (hence the original "lower mine" - once that became unmineable, they extended the line upward).

Haveing tested running the design in xTrkCAD and ironing out the kinks somewhat, I'm finally ready to reveal it. It has alot more operating potential, and much more of the scenic elements which i like - much more of a "what i want layout."

Hopefully you will all enjoy watching it grow as much as i will enjoy making it.


Tommorrow i shall head to Shef. Insulation, to collect some blue foam, and then on Saturday i can start work (I have an exam Friday afternoon, so wont, annoyingly, be able to start then).

Enjoy.


EDIT:

The numbers reprisent height measurements. Around the turntable area they get confusing. The turntable and spurs are at 9.5cm. The 2.7 is the height of the track that runs under it. A larger version of the plan can be found [url="http://www.bobbobson.co.uk/flash/Post%20B&O%20Windowsill%20Mine%20large.jpg"]here[/url].

Hi guys, i have alot of stuff listed on ebay right now. if anyone is interested, there are:

Walthers Gold Line Tri-Level Auto-Carriers
Walthers Gold Line Centerbeam Lumber Flat Cars
Walthers Gold Line 69' All-Purpose Husky Stacks
Walthers Gold Line Trinity 100-Ton 2-Bay Cement Service Covered Hoppers
Walthers Gold Line Open Aggregate Cars (40' Ortner and Greenville 100-Ton 2-Bay)
Walthers RTR Tank Cars

All HO scale and all LOW starting Bids, check them out if your interested

http://shop.ebay.com/merchant/maderscustomtrains

I intend on making a reasonable representation of the Arizona Copper Company store in Morenci, Arizona. Neither the building or the town still exist, but luckily I have found lots of photos. A scale model of the actual building would be too large for my layout, so I am planning on building something that captures the feel of the building without duplicating it exactly. I also want this to be a relatively simple build rather than a lengthy scratchbuild, so I have elected to use a combination of walthers and DPM modular kits, with scratchbuilt elements to fill the holes.

Here is a photo of the building I am making:

OK, to start with, I've got an idea, but no pictures. I'm going to build a Denny's restaurant. Yep, we all need a place to go to get those free grand slam breakfasts, and my layout is no different. I've search in Net and looked around town at different style Denny's and found there are several reoccurring building types which can be dated to a particular decade, and several others that come from refurbishing an existing building or one of a more recent era. In other words, there is no longer a specific look to a Denny's, just like there is no longer one for McDonald's, Taco Bell or Burger King. With that in mind, I'm going to create my version of a Denny's restaurant. My layout era is "today", so whatever I design and build will work, but there are some similarities that I will want to keep so it is recognizable as a Denny's. I will post some sketches as soon as I come up with some. Just don't hold your breath, it might take a while.

Just a preliminary post, not that I'm sure of what I'm going to be doing, but here's what I have in mind. I've got three kits, a Model Power Lumber Yard, an MP U. S. Customs and a Cambria City Warehouse kit that I'm planning on turning into some sort of furniture factory. It should look like they added to the building as their needs grew, probably around the 1900 ear when the first building was built and was added to in a hodge-podge manner a few decades later. It will still be a functioning factory, although I'm not sure what they'll be building there seeing as how most furniture is built off-shore now days.

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