Corked

This week saw new visitors to the Train Room, and the start and completion of a rather substantial track project.

My folks visited the house for the first time over the weekend, and my in-laws also visited on Memorial Day. We also had a couple of guest engineers.

My parents took the Amtrak Empire Builder from Chicago to Seattle, and later from Seattle to Essex, Essex to Havre, and finally from Havre back to Chicago. They had fun, but it was a lot of Amtrak in a short amount of time. While in Essex, they stayed at the Izaak Walton Inn, which is a must-visit place for any railfan (www.izaakwaltoninn.com). They got me a neat tin sign for the train room too.

Head to Essex, MT and enjoy this place!

Over the weekend I purchased rolls of cork from the hobby supply store. Cork is placed under the track for a few reasons. It softens the ride for the trains, which lessens overall vibration and lengthens the life of locomotives and rolling stock. It decreases the loudness of the trains when running on the table. It is also used when adding ballast to the tracks for scenery purposes.

For this Layout, since it is not being scenic'd, I only require the cork under the already existing metal ties of the track. My wife and my mother both graciously helped cut the 300 pieces of cork required for this project on Saturday. They also cut a special piece of cork for the 45-degree cross-over track. My assistants also carefully removed all of the trains from the track and parked them on the floor for the project to proceed. My bride ran the trains around the track with the ZW to accomplish this.

Amber at the throttle!

On Sunday I installed cork on all of Track 1, and some of Track 2 and 3.

On Memorial Day, the trains were run for our guests (my brother-in-law helped me replace the trains on the track for the demonstration.) My mother, with some instruction from me, operated all four trains with the ZW transformer.

Yesterday I completed the cork installation and ran all trains successfully. Thank you very much to my helpers Amber and Joyce who made it possible to complete 100% of the track work in just a few days!

Joyce sends the trolley around Track 2

Cork installation in process

Also a very happy shout-out to the Steam Department at the Illinois Railway Museum (www.irm.org), for the successful running of the Frisco 2-10-0 locomotive for the first time in 10 years! It has undergone a complete refit. It is wonderful to see the engine running again - we watched it on the webcams on Memorial Day.

So, from the Midwest to the Pacific, and everywhere between, keep your rails shiny ~

Cork complete!

Semi-Success

Welcome back ~

This week resulted in some mixed results for the Granite Canyon. This is a K-Line Heavyweights series passenger car I purchased at an auction several months ago. Upon opening it, I found that one of the trucks had come apart at a weak spot. Later research found that a very large number of these passenger cars suffer from a similar problem. After finding that soldering would not work, I tried using some super glue instead. In the process of fixing it, the other side of the truck fell off, and one end of the piece snapped off as well. Nevertheless, I rejoined everything with the super glue, and it ended up being rather stable.
 

Trying a super glue solution

Super glue seems to have worked

 Next, I reattached and enhanced the wiring as needed, running from the wheels and roller pickup to two lights on the car frame. I used a combination of solder and twist joints for this, and got all of the lights to work on the track.
 

Lights on!

 I manually tested the wheels, and reattached the shell. When I tried connecting the car coupler to the C&NW E4 Hudson, I noted sparks and electrical arcs emanating from the coupler! I have not encountered this before, but noted that it is probably bad. Some more fiddling did not resolve the problem, so I looked for an easy way to deactivate the roller pickups under the car. Surprisingly, they are designed to toggle up inside the truck frame and rest there. Basically, it is a toggle function to easily turn the interior car power on or off. After doing this, the car operated fine, although without lighting. I ran the car around Track 4 behind the Hudson about 20 times with no incident, so I concluded that the rebuilt truck itself is working properly. So, welcome to the Northern Range, Granite Canyon ~

Granite Canyon behind the E4

In real-train activities this week, I happened across a maintenance train that was placing ties alongside the track across the street from my office. I was taking a lunch stroll, and noticed an MRL locomotive heading EB at a very slow rate. After a while the reason for the slow speed became apparent. The train consisted of about 10 gondolas filled with new railroad ties. Riding the train was a special crane contraption that was picking up the ties and placing them alongside the track as the train slowly advanced. The crane has the ability to ride along the rims of the gondola cars, and has wheels spaced so that it can "jump" between cars while the train is in operation. My bride and I had seen this train sitting on a siding in Laurel this past Sunday, and it was neat to see it in action yesterday.

Tie placing train

Have a great Memorial Day weekend, and until next time, keep your rails shiny ~

National Train Day 2014

Greetings again!

I hope you all had a fun National Train Day on Saturday. To celebrate, I finished the under-table wiring. I soldered the final 2 connections, connected all wiring loops, drilled holes for main lead access to transformer, and cut transformer leads to length. I tested the E4, and it now has more consistent power around the track, and while activating the whistle.

On Sunday, I bought 10-gauge wire loop connectors. On Tuesday, I crimped the connectors to the feed wires by the transformer, and connected Track 3 and tested it successfully.

On Wednesday, I connected Tracks 1,2 and 4 to the ZW. And, earlier today, I experimented on repairing Granite Canyon truck with super glue.

Main leads from under the table

All 4 pairs of leads are connected

Amber's Graduation Party

Hello, thank you for checking in. This past week was a lot of fun! My bride graduated from college (again) this week, and we had lots of friends and colleagues come to an open house.

Very late Saturday night I completed some connections for Tracks 1 and 2. I spent an hour troubleshooting a short caused by two wires that were touching from one of the leads under the table on Track 1 (grrr). The good thing that came out of this is that I discovered that the ZW circuit breaker works successfully. While testing the trains, I found that the ZW right-hand controllers are sticky (moving Track 2 or Track 4 slider causes the other to move as well). Also this week, Amber finished sewing and installing a table skirt. It looks really snappy and fits in well with the room (especially the floor color.) I cleaned the Train Room floor, and placed the metal green chest on the floor for kids to stand on to view the trains. I placed signs in the stairwell and the Train Room for visitors. These signs directed people to the room, warned them not to touch the trains, and provided some brief information about the layout (and this blog.)

On the big day, I hosted approximately 20 visitors to Train Room. This is the largest number of guests to date. Track 1 was a short train led by the  C&NW 0-8-0, Track 2 sported the Trolley, Track 3 ran the "blue" train led by the MRL SD9, and the Northern Range graced Track 4 headed by the C&NW E4. There was lots of fun for all, and it was very loud! The equipment ran splendidly, and the room did its job well too.

On Tuesday I made 3 more connections under the table - 2 for Track 4, and 1 for Track 3.

Have a great week, and keep your rails shiny ~

4 Trains running with the ZW - note my wife's spiffy table skirt in place too

Your host poses for a pic while at the helm

Grad Prep

Hello all. This week was mostly devoted to prepping for my bride's upcoming graduation and party. But, I did spend a few hours crawling around on top and beneath the train table. The electrical schema I'm trying on this layout requires several feeder wires on each track loop. This translates to a track wire, about 5" long, which is soldered to the track. The other end is fed down a hole in the table to main power lines for each track loop. The main wires need to be stripped, and then joined to the feeders. This connection is covered with electrical tape. In total, there are about 40 of these feeder wires and corresponding connections. And yes, it does take a bit of time to do each one while bent over on top of the table... But, the project has gone relatively smoothly thus far.

A completed solder connection on Track 4

Note the shiny feeder wires hanging down

Other projects which took some time away from the railroad were the completion of the concrete wall rebuild, new baseboard trim for the living room, a railing for the interior stairs, yard maintenance, and helping my wife prep for her final week of school.

Next week will prove to have some more interesting content! Here is a hint:

A hint...

Keep yer rails shiny in the meantime!

The Gray Wall

Did You Know? Out of the nearly 650 Railroads operating today in the United States, the Brownsville and Rio Grande International Railroad sports the longest name, at 44 letters long.

This past week was devoted to prepping for Easter, and for a monumental project: rebuilding the listing concrete-block retaining wall along our driveway. The wall was originally built incorrectly by a previous owner, and the roots of the apple tree have been pushing it outward for a number of years. Bill, Andrew, Amber, and I tackled the demolition and reconstruction project. Obviously, this took away from time to work on the railroad.

I cleared the train table, and vacuumed up the sawdust from all the hole-drilling last week. KevinG from work got to see the room on Friday while he was helping deliver concrete for the wall project. On Easter the whole gang came down to see the Broadway Limited riding around Track 4, along with Edgar's amazed looks each time it passed by. Bill also managed a win against me in a dual of the Rail Baron board game. 

Happy train time

 Appropriately, the fourteenth in this series of future passenger train topics is the Pennsylvania Railroad's Broadway Limited.

Along with its competitor (and future fellow member of Penn Central), the New York Central, the Pennsylvania Railroad ran a flagship passenger train between New York and Chicago. The Pennsy's Broadway Limited began its run in 1912 and continued through 1995. This train was not named after the theatre-lined street in New York, instead it refers to the "broad way" of the Railroad's 4-track main line. It changed its appearance and motive power many times during its 83-year run. It began as an eight-car steam-powered heavyweight set. In 1938, it was upgraded to a streamlined train, pulled by electric GG1 locomotives or various streamlined steamers on various parts of the route.

The PRR had unique engines and cars - they were a railroad of experimentation. Of particular interest, since meeting my wife and experiencing her theatrical dreams, is the Theatre Scenery Car. These 45 baggage cars were designed to carry set pieces from one venue to another, as shows toured throughout the country. Currently, there is one O-Scale version of the "Shakespeare", made by Weaver Models. Other Theatre Scenery Cars included the "Hamlet", "Caesar", "Richelieu", and "Pinafore".

My fictional version of the Broadway Limited is an early MTH 5-car heavyweight set, pulled by the massive Williams GG1 electric engine. The real GG1 received its power from an 11,000-volt overhead catenary system, and this did not stretch all the way to Chicago. The peculiar devices on the top of the engine which collect the power are called "pantographs". But, on my railroad, my custom GG1 can be powered by catenary or a unique internal quantum singularity, which will allow it to travel anywhere on the layout.

My impression of the passengers on the original Broadway Limited is that they were mostly traveling for business or upper-class pleasure in New York or Chicago. Not so much the type that would fancy the dusty streets of Red Stone, or the tent accommodations of Iron Horse National Park, or the company of gruff lumberjacks and miners of Cedar Falls, or the quaint-to-bizarre agro-tourism options of the town of Pinecone, or the north woods hideaway of Fence Lake. I think these folks may take this train to have a relaxing en route lunch or meet with fellow businesspeople in the parlor car before returning to Silver Falls for cocktails and a show. Or, maybe the local theatre troupe will commandeer the train and bring their gear to the Lodge at Iron Horse National Park for a special weekend show, performing for the other passengers as they travel down the line :) 

Keep your rails shiny ~

Theatre Scenery Car "Shakespeare" from http://passcarphotos.info

A GG1 pulling a PRR heavyweight passenger train.
Photo from Bob Coolidge's site at http://www.bcoolidge.com

Underground Wires

Happy Palindrome Week to all ~ 41714 ~

On Saturday, I met with Cal and discussed options for selling the assessed train collection. I provided him with a spreadsheet showing the value of each item, along with notes, and the potentiality of selling said items through various means. For the time I've worked on the project, he very generously gifted me several items I was interested in! He is analyzing the data and will advise if he needs further assistance from me.

Cal owns a company called Billings Bronze, and you can learn more about the business here: www.billingsbronze.com
I had the pleasure of seeing many monuments in various stages of completion during my many visits to complete the train collection assessment. Cal and his team do exemplary, award-winning work. Please consider Billings Bronze for all of your bronze sculpture needs!

These are the new additions to the collection:

• Yellow & Green House - this was an item my wife thought was cute, so I was sure to acquire it for her. It is an old Plasticville house with little monetary value, but it is solid and will last for years to come.
• ZW Transformer 250W - I have been seeking out a ZW transformer for many years. Lionel made two versions of this model, a 250W and 275W edition. This was the most powerful train transformer on the market for several decades, and should be able to operate 4 trains at once. I am looking forward to hooking it up and testing it out!
• Complete Service Manual for Lionel Trains - this is a hardback book that has seen a bit of use. It has a plethora of useful knowledge for servicing and repairing Lionel Postwar trains.
• Personal affects - these include a binder of notes and some photographs from the original owner of these trains. I find it to be historically interesting, and will archive these.
• Several tubes of paint - I'm not really sure if these were used with the train set, but they may still have use for crafting purposes.
• Lube Kit - this is a Lionel maintenance kit (missing grease) made in the 40's and 50's. All of my equipment is due for service, so this will really come in handy.
• Bag of realistic logs - most model trains come with "logs" that are made from dowel rods. These actually look like O-scale logs and will make great scenic details or lumber loads.
• Pike Place Fish Market Truck - this is a really cool vehicle made for the 51st TCA convention. It is a 1950's era truck which has a load of several large, frozen fish in the bed for Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle. The logo paint is a bit worn on one side, which decreases the collector's value, but I plan to display this on the train set, not keep it in a box :)
• Misc scale details - the collection contained many details, but most of them were not truly O-Scale. These seem to be the few that would be at home on the layout of the future, and include things like a wheelbarrow, hand truck, pop machine, and table.
• Misc parts, wires, electronics - the collection, which included over 20 operating accessories, had LOTS of wire running about. This pile of wire includes a bag of distribution blocks, which are really handy for sending power throughout the train layout.
• Misc metal, possibly for loads - a bag of real-life scrap metal, which will look great in a gondola car. We are not really sure what it used to be.
• Vertical fuel tank with extra lid - this is a plastic storage tank of some sort. I'm not sure if it is really O-Scale, but it would seem to fit in on the layout.
• 4 metal sheds - these were probably HO structures originally, but will fit in quite well as O-Scale switch, signal or electric boxes.
• 2 double outhouses - for the rural inhabitants of my train layout communities, these will solve many problems...
• Semi-scale playground set - I believe this is a Plasticville set of accessories that has been painted by the previous owner. These are not scale items, but they will bring a child-like cheer to the toy train layout.
• Pile of people - there are about 40-50 people, of various types and scale-accuracies. People really do help bring a layout to life, so the more the merrier!
• Benches - some of these are scale, and will provide a place to take a break for the citizens of the layout.
• Box of evergreen trees - some of these were purchased, and some appear home-made. Regardless, they can all be used to add some greenery to the layouts.

Amber's house

This is a REALLY HANDY book

Some spiffy metal sheds

New citizens of the layout

Over the weekend I screwed all of the track to the table and drilled access holes for track power wires.

Screws

Wire holes

On Tuesday I labeled each access hole with the track number under the table. Then I drilled horizontal holes through the under-table supports to hold the wire for each track. I labeled these by track number as well. I routed 10-gauge wire through all the holes - two continuous wires for each loop. On Wednesday, I installed hooks under the table for wire management, and successfully tested all four outputs on the ZW. Wow it feels good to use one of these! Smooth acceleration and lots of power to boot.

Keeping track of tracks under the table

Wire management, with Red and Harold

Keep your rails shiny!