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1/87 Scale
Originally, the layout was illuminated with 75 watt incandescent bulbs. Over time, more energy-efficient bulbs were tried, but the lighting remained uneven and tough on the eyes. Finally, a solution was presented, using 3w LED bulbs housed in used cat food cans. The illumination is now consistent and yet does not strain eyesight when viewed for long periods.
1/8 Scale
I've always have liked Steam Engines and wanted to own on in 7.5 gauge. A new on was way out of my price range so I needed to build one. This is how it's going.
In Howard yard I have a narrow area to put in some side tracks to run some cars into to make the area more interesting to work. So I designed a building that would take three cars on one side and two cars on the other. This turned into a Z building that when using plastic kits ended up being 2 inches wide. Each of the sides ended up 8 inches long.
One of the main curves of the layout had a switch at either end of the single track which no one could keep straight, resulting in head-on collisions and derailments. The fix was to hand-lay and install a Gauntlet at that spot. This is how it went.
I needed to go from one height to another in a small area. The way to do this is to run the track back and forth on the wall or fold it over its self. The track is at a 2.3 % grade with the height between the decks at 4 inches in height. It took some planning to get the front tracks to clear the rear tracks going down the grade. Each on of the sections had to be leveled and set to 2.3 % grade.
I needed to go from one height to another in a small area. The way to do this is to run the track back and forth on the wall or fold it over its self. The track is at a 2.3 % grade with the height between the decks at 4 inches in height. It took some planning to get the front tracks to clear the rear tracks going down the grade. Each on of the sections had to be leveled and set to 2.3 % grade.
Glad we were able to make a trip to Florida for the Florida Live Steamers Winter Fest.
August 2023 Went to the Canton, St. Paul and Pacific Railway for the second annual family meet. Mike Robson and His Roo family. Some cleaning would have been nice, but the storm was coming quick to the area. Other trains that were there.
Packed up for two weeks to run down in Florida. Everyone just riding around the track. Second stop was at the Grand Concourse Railroad. I forgot my camera. Third stop was at Central Pasco & Gulf Railroad. After a short ride on a electric steamer I was hooked. Time to head home. Thanks for watching.
Several years a go. I was shown a car with brakes on it. Then one that was controlled by air. I didn’t want to get into building a air system to have brakes. In Florida there was a car that had manual brakes. Wow That’s the way to go. So I tried to make […]
Yes I went and picked up a steam engine. I went and looked at it in July. It has no power. Pick it up and bring it to the loading area. Load it up and take it home in November. I took apart the tender and rebuilt it. Next take the Engine […]
Traveled to South Carolina to ride the Mead 200. The layout had an open house the weekend we were there. Sept 20, 2021 Had to pick a rout to go straight off of the turntable. I picked the woods. I like a good tunnel. It sure was dark inside. It was also very long. I […]
What do I do now? I was asked if I could build some more riding cars. One that was half gondola and flat car. Well I started to work on a blue print of the car. Went and picked up some steel and started welding. Cut up the metal and put the rivets on the […]
I have built flat cars in the past. Second car I built on the left. A problem came up that it is hard to ride on a bench seat for any length of time. I have worked on building a car that can carry more than one person. Here I go… The […]
OK so it’s the end of summer and the temp is slowly going down. That means it’s time to start building again. I like my fish belly car so what about building more? Started with Two and it grew to Five cars. Three = 6 footers and two = 4 footers. Went and welded stake […]
After twelve years of having many operation sessions on the KK&L Railroad, the knobs on the Digitrax controllers have ether broken off, or the train will not stop when the knob is turned off. The Potentiometers are plastic that are in the controllers. I’m going to replace them. Click on any photo to enlarge it. […]
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