The proof is in the plywood

I know I have had a lot of plans for layout and modules that never made it past the design  phase, but I am happy to report that the Madras Switching modules have been built and are standing in my office. The next step will be to get the track plan transposed to the plywood tops, then I can start laying down cork. Once the cork is in place then it is on to track and electrical. I will be posting the build photos in the Projects in Progress section.

Building a layout...yes really I am!

I have started building a switching layout based on Madras Oregon using most of the Free-mo standards. This will be a three module set that will reside in my office that I can take to different locations and show people how to stereotypically switch cars. There are a number of features I wanted to include to show off some of the hazards of switching in the real world. Some of the things I wanted to show were, spur tracks, road crossings, crossovers, close clearances and the handling of haz-mat. Here is the plan as it stands, I will update soon with some build photos. To read more about this project click HERE

Distraction progress

My Had's McCulloch Chainsaw shop is moving along at a good pace. The only thing I am having a hard time locating is HO scale chainsaws. A few companies have made them in the past, but they do not look currently available. I have a few hobbyshops I plan to try in the next few weeks and I hope to find some sort of solution. In the mean time I have got all the windows and doors in place on the model and now plan to finish the interior detailing. I also need to figure out my wiring plan for the LED interior lighting. I plan to use Nano LEDs, now I just need to figure out how to get them to work right. I have a few more shots of the build under the Projects in Progress page, or you can click on the link HERE.

 

Getting a date

I have been narrowing my focus down on what time during 1968 I wanted to model. As I have looked through traffic patterns and observed some of the other happenings on the line it looked like fall was a busy time on the Trunk with the added Potato harvest traffic . It also appeared that building materials and other products continued to move in the autumn months so I would have lots of cars to move. I am still trying to narrow down the exact date of the start of the potato harvest, but did find a good article about how the harvest was off to a slow start. So as of now I am looking to model some time between mid September and mid October. One thing I found was that on September 10th 1968 a steam engine from Rayonier was taken down the Oregon Trunk and stopped at the shops for servicing. It was dead in tow, but would make for an interesting move. Here is a clipping from the September 11th 1968 Bend Bulletin showing the unique move.

More distractions...

I saw a posting on one for the Facebook pages that Monster Model Works was having a sale. I spent some time looking through their products and after looking at one of their new offerings, which was a medium size auto shop, I found they also had a very tiny building called Triple J Repair. I really have no use use for the building, but had heard Jimmy and others talk on a few different Podcasts about their innovative products, so I bought it. I am currently working on a house for my Free-mo modules that I was going to try to have completed by April 1st, but it just was not keeping me motivated. Not sure what my problem is, but the project is just annoying me. I grabbed this little kit, put the walls together and spent the evening painting it. I was also able to use some of the excess material to build an interior wall. If you look at any of my other projects you will see I have a weakness for super detailed structures. While the paint dried I went through my various boxes of stuff and found enough parts that I am going to change the building into Had's McCulloch Shop, chainsaw sales, service and rental. So here is the building as it stands, if you want to see more "in progress shots" click HERE.

A little more organized...maybe...

In an effort to help organize my projects a little better and to help keep track of them I have modified some  of my pages to show all the none SP&S stuff I am working on. Most of these projects go hand in hand with my efforts to model the Oregon Trunk, but a few are just because I want to have them. As I get more information and complete more models I will update each page under the specific railroad heading it belongs to.

So if you are interested in seeing what other projects I have in the works check these new links out:

SP&S Locomotives

SP&S Equipment

Great Northern

Union Pacific

City of Prineville Railway

Modeling on the Road

With my new job, I have lots of time to sit around hotel rooms and waste time. I decided that my time would be much better spent actually building model railroad stuff. So I dusted off an old wood toolbox I had, loaded it up with tools and gathered a project. I took the show on the road and so far I am happy with my decision.

Here is my tool box, opened up and ready to get some modeling done in my hotel room. The only thing I am going to change is the lid of the box, I plan to make it taller so I can store my glue and paint upright. I also plan to add some dividers in the drawers to maximize the space.