Craft Project

I continued working on some hand-made railroad cross bucks this week. I had previously cut and painted them, and this week I sketched the lettering on them. Just a quick update this week ~

Lettering outlines on boxcar wood

RR Crossing

This week I did some full-scale railroad work. A few months ago, I acquired a damaged railroad crossing sign that had been struck and abandoned. I gladly adopted it, and have given it a new home in our backyard. Much of the post was split apart from the impact, so I had to shorten it considerably, but with a deep hole and plenty of concrete, this sign should remain here for a long time! On the opposite side of the shed is the train whistle sign I installed last year.

In model train news, I haven't made substantial progress due to a very busy week at work, but I did test the CSS Interurbans in reverse, and they ran around Track 3 about 50 times without any issues. This is great news, and I can now proceed to modify the front truck so that the cowcatcher won't "catch" the third rail at junction spots.

I also performed more troubleshooting on the NP 0-6-0, but there is no progress to report yet. I did some shuffling of boxes in the train room as well, but that wasn't interesting enough to warrant a picture. So, enjoy views of our increasingly railroad-themed shed below, and until next time, keep those rails shiny!

The new railroad crossing sign in place

This whistle sign, found in Canada was placed here last summer

Grinders, Catchers, Wires and Tethers

This week I spotted the LORAM rail grinding train in the Billings yard for a maintenance stop. This was the first time I could see the entire unit in one view, and it appears to be an 11-car set. This is train puts on an impressive display when running – a set of cars equipped with grinders smooth the rails, assisted by lubricants stored in the tank cars, and spotters on the caboose extinguish brush fires resulting from the grinding with large water cannons, all without requiring the train to stop. It generates a lot of noise and dust!

Also this week I ran a few of the trains that we brought back from IL in July. I opened up the Chicago South Shore powered interurban to check the sound system and reaffix some loose passengers. The unit runs well and has good sound, but the front cowcatcher contacts that track at a few points, so I’ll do some troubleshooting to help it run more smoothly.

I replaced the battery on the Chicago Burlington & Quincy powered E8, and had the AA set pull the Bozeman Zephyr around Track 4. While replacing the battery, I think I inadvertently moved an internal wire, which is now rubbing against one of the flywheel motors. So, I’ll need to open that one up again and re-set that wire.

I also ran the Northern Pacific 0-6-0 switcher with a set of box cars. The engine was troublesome. At first it would not cycle out of neutral; this was resolved by re-sitting the tether between the engine and tender. After running properly for a while, the sounds stopped altogether, and then it got stuck in neutral again.

Meanwhile, the postwar Union Pacific FAs and postwar freight cars running around Track 1 ran flawlessly the entire week. Not a problem whatsoever!

I’ll let you know how the troubleshooting turns out next week – til then, keep your rails shiny!

The 11-car LORAM rail grinding train

Passengers and conductor inside the CSS interurban

Interurbans on Track 3

A new battery allows you to hear sounds from the locomotive when track power is off

UP, NP, CSS, and CB&Q

Train lineup with lights off

First Spike: The Sasaparilla, Cedar Sap and Pacific Railroad

Hello, we made it to September ~

In late August, we did a bit of ferroequinological archaeology along the former Northern Pacific's Park Line, which ran from Livingston, MT to Gardiner, MT. Specifically, we explored the Point of Rocks area, which is now a boat launch site along the Yellowstone River. The Park Line roadbed was carved into the rocks along the River, and there we acquired a specimen (a rock) from the carved area. The NP ran passenger service over this line from 1883 to 1948.

In other news, I set up a publicity photo shoot to celebrate the beginning of the Sasaparilla, Cedar Sap and Pacific Garden Railroad in our backyard. In the photos below you'll see the entirety of the garden-scale railroad's current assets, along with railroad model Amber.

Have a great Labor Day, and keep those rails shiny ~

Here I am "standing in the gap" of the Point of Rocks along the Yellowstone River, where the NP tracks used to be

Here's the railroad rock we acquired to add to our landscaping projects

Railroad model Amber and the SCS&P

Colorado & Southern reefer car, track (provided by Uncle Bill), and water tower planter (provided by my folks)