Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Drywater Interlude 2


     "See what I mean?" asked Lefty, "it's a nice little engine if you don't mind the rust coming off on your britches."
     Minnesota Pete grumbled. "Pile of junk,you ask me. And that lady,  one I see poking around on it, what's her story?"
     Meat Lonnigan lifted his head enough to see out from under his hat. "Aw, she's kinda nice. She works for the Panamint Locomotive Works, doing some kinda research on this old can. She says they're gonna get it running and put it into revenue service either on the Drywater line or over to Soda Lake."
     "Huh! That what she told you?  I heard she owns both the Soda Lake railroad and the Delirium Route. She just pretends about that historical preservation stuff. She just likes fixing up old engines and laying track. Revenue service, huh! That'll be the day."
     Meat took a swig from the jug and settled back down. "Well anyway, she don't seem to take no never-mind to the likes of us. In fact, I kinda think she likes us hanging around the yard."
     "What makes you think a damn fool thing like that?" asked Pete.
     "Well, she seems to like the state of advanced dilapidation that this here engine so perfectly personifies"
     The other men exchanged looks and scratched their chins.
     "I mean think about it. If she's worried about someone taking a paintbrush to this old can, then she's got nothing to fear from us."

Monday, August 20, 2012

Rusting Away

     I finally got up the nerve to start painting my little Mantua engine, and so far I'm really pleased with the results. After thinking long and hard, I decided a mixed media approach was in order.
     First, I painted Floquil reefer white everywhere I wanted rust. Second, I mixed Testors flat sea blue with flat black and used it for the primary color. The subtle blue in the black will make the rust really pop. Third, I went overthe white with Tamiya clear orange. the result you see here.
     Once I finish the orange, I plan to blend it in and tone it down with Testors rust. The bright orange should show through and give a great luminescence. The smoke box will be testors silver. Once it's done, clear coat and weathering to finish it off.



Saturday, August 18, 2012

Good To Be Back

It's been a while since I've posted, and this is mainly a test of my new fancy Google phone. It looks like I can post to my blog Ok, but typing ob the touchscreen is next to impossiblw. more to follow.

Sunday, July 22, 2012

Drywater Interlude

     "Wish we could crack that reefer," grumbled Minnesota Pete.
     Lefty Daniels sighed, "How many times I gotta tell ya, just cause it says beer on the outside, don't mean there's beer on the inside. Besides, we got four jugs of Topdown Lightning here, and a barrel of Merced River Pino. What else you need?"
     "Well, it could use a chaser, that's all I'm sayin."
     "Pete, you gotta be more philisophical about the situation, like me for example. I ain't been a hobo half as long as you, but I got it all figured out, you see.  I mean, take a look around, pal. Look at them pines in the smokey haze over cross the river. Why, that's a scene right out of one of them Burt Myers paintings of the Adirondacks. Boy, there's steelhead trout right in that river, and all we gotta do is go fish 'em out, cook em over a fire made out of pine cones. See what I'm gettin at? We collect pine cones and we ain't even gotta chop no wood. This is the life, y'ask me."
     "Yeah, you kids think you got all the answers, don't ya? Take a deep breath, smell the fresh air, and everything's right with the world! I used ta think like that. But some day you wake up, find yourself working a played out delirium mine, wonderin where it all went, and how come you never got your cut of the profits. That's a bucket of cold water in your bedroll that don't never dry out."
     "There you go again, gripin about the delirium all played out. We find a little vein now and again, enough to keep us in good with the scientists. They're happy with whatever little bit we can squeeze out of that old mine, so they keep us in pork'n'beans and we spend most of our time runnin our own enterprise. It's a good life, Pete."
     "Wonder what them eggheads do with the stuff? Looks like plain old fool's gold to me."
     "Well, I ast one once, and he said somethin about how there's deuterium, and there's tritium, but that delirium has it all beat over both of them."
     "Aw hell, he was half swacked by then. What you want to go listenin to them eggheads for anyhow?  Ain't I told you they're all hooptey?"
     "Hooptey or not, they buy more lightning than they do delirium, and that's the more reliable of our incomes anyhow. They got money, them scientists, and they like good lightning when they can find it."
    "Yeah, you kids with all the answers, eh?"
     "Aw, c'mon Pete, it's a beautiful afternoon, and not a watchman in sight. We got fish in that river, boxcars all around, and all the wonders of nature just waitin to be appreciated. Just look at this fine new ballast they brought in here this morning. Nothin spiffs up a railroad yard like a strip of fine new ballast, eh Petey old boy?"
     "Listen to you, goin on about a ton of gravel! You're hooptey, you know that? Too much of this mountain air and you kids go all hooptey! You're just a hobo moonshiner, and that's all you'll ever be, same as me. We dig the mine, we run the still, and where does it get us? Where the hell we ever going to go? You damn kids with all the answers!
     "Yeah, I guess I'm just talkin in the wind is all, and that's fine by me. I like my situation, otherwise I'd catch a car over to Soda Lake and get a job in the borax plant. Good money there, but no, I like it here just fine."
     "Damn kids, that's all I got ta say."
     "Who you callin kid, ya old fart? I'm fifty-three."

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Drivin' em In and Tyin' em Down!

I dug out my old digital camera and scrounged up a couple of batteries in hopes of getting a better close-up of my trackwork. And so, voi la!


     I'm learning a lot about spiking rail. Want to learn how to spike rail? Get the materials and give it a try. You will be learning before you know it. Rule one: spike one rail in straight (use a metal straightedge) and then gauge the second rail off of the first. Rule two: push the spikes in at an angle, so that the points of the spikes almost meet under the rail. Rule three: push the spikes in just a little back from the rail, rather than snug up to it. That way you can tighten up later when you fine-tune the gauge.
     I discovered that pre-drilling is rarely necessary. Push 'em in with the pliers. If the sleeper splits, then pull out and drill the hole wider. So far, only one split. Having them glued in makes the difference. And just like that, I'm laying track! It's great fun. So far, I give myself a B- in getting it right. It looks good to me, and the test truck rolls over it beautifully, but the gauge is tight in one spot, and it's too late to correct that section. Lesson learned. But seeing is how I've completed less than a foot of track so far, I'm quite chuffed at my success!

Staining Sleepers

     Taking a cue from our own Jim Lincoln, one of the great Jedi Masters of trackwork, I went to work on the sleepers with a stainless steel brush. If you lean in and go slow, it will gouge out some lovely furrows in the grain. Unfortunately, my little phone camera hasn't got the wherewithal to show that kind of detail, but it really does work. When you apply stain, it goes in the grain quite nicely.
     I experimented with alcohol thinned india ink, which gives a beautiful gray age to the wood, but still leaves it "blonde" underneath. Testors "Rust" thins down to a perfect redwood stain, but looks too fresh. The two together give a close approximation to what I had in mind. I had considered thinning Testors "Flat Green" to simulate a copper sulfate preservative that's popular out here in the west, but I think I'm happy with what I've got so far.
     In the picture you can see my various track gauges, tools, and materials. The bright sleepers are bare basswood, for comparison. I painted the rails with the same rust paint, less thinned. The spikes need to have the heads trimmed down, which you can easily do with your rail nippers. Takes a bit of time, but the way I see it this is a hobby, not a job. This is time well spent. Besides, I figure I'm about as fast as a scale chain-gang, give or take.

Friday, July 20, 2012

Gandy Dancing

Planning a layout is a lot of fun for me, but occasionally you gotta drop your pencil and build something, even if your plans have yet to be completed. And so it happens that I took a scrap of MDF baseboard mouldning, covered it in cork roadbed, measured out three lanes of track, and laid a row of ties (or "sleepers" as they're known in much of the world.)

     Before I tackle building stub switches, I want to get a feel for just plain "laying track." I have an abundance of Campbell HO basswood sleepers, a thousand Micro Engineering spikes, and a bundle of ME code 70 rail in 18" lengths. I'll need to pick up some Future floor wax for when it comes time to ballast (we MRR listeners know all about that) but for now I've got enough to get started: sleepers, rails, spikes, gauges, and endless patience.

     I used some old atlas HO sectional track to draw my guidelines on the cork (a sharpie works great) and sorted out a bunch of ties of similar dimensions. The old Campbell ties have a lot of variation, but I got them really cheap, so I don't mind a little fussing. In the future, I think I'll use match sticks instead. The dimensions are almost identical (though they're square in cross section) and they have a nice beat-up texture. Besides, they're soft enough to push spikes through without splitting. Basswood ties I'm probably going to have to drill. and at four spikes per tie, that's a lot of drilling.

     I glued them in with yellow carpenter's glue, letting it pre-dry a little, so as to get nice and tacky. Then I dipped the sleepers in one-at-a-time, eyeballing the spacing so as not to get them too perfect. In hindsight, I think I need to make an actual effort to jog them around a little bit, since I'm naturally meticulous. Once they dry solid, I need to sand the tops down to an even level. In some places, a lot of wood will have to come off.

     So far it's been a lot of fun and very relaxing, almost meditative in fact. The three-track yard is 31" long, and will comprise this stretch of straight track, a Fast-Tracks turnout or two, and right in the middle, my three-way, double stub-switch. In the end it will be a glorified test track, or maybe even a micro layout if I can surround it with some scenic backdrops. Mostly though, it's my practice yard for track laying. I'll keep posting as I go along.

Saturday, July 7, 2012

My "Layout Nook"

     In other parts of the world, people have Layout Rooms. Here in San Francisco, we make do as best we can with the space we have. I never complain about my tiny apartment, rather I accept it as the home I have had these past seventeen years, and embrace my limitations of space at the existential level. This is my little part of the world!

      This sunny Saturday morning I cleaned out this odd corner of my tiny kitchen, which has always been a sort of "staging area" for incoming groceries, outgoing recycling, and anything else that I need to set out of the way until I can figure out where to put it. Before any of the clutter could jump back in, I moved in my stock of styrofoam sheets, my previously unseen N scale micro layout "test track," and the baseboard for my current project. And voi la! I now have a layout nook.

     It's a sunny window, and there's an outlet at counter-top height just behind the fridge.  Actually, I don't envision operating in this space, nor do I think I'll do much modeling in here. But it seems right to have a place where work in progress can sit level while I'm not working on it, but don't want to properly put it away. Having it "out" makes it available and inviting. So when I come home and see it sitting there, I can move it to my modeling table (just two feet to my right as I took the picture) and tinker away to my heart's content.

Stub Switch

     Here's an amazing bit of trackwork I found in an old MR magazine. It's a three-way stub switch that functions as a double slip! It took me a while to puzzle out just what happens when you throw it, but it's actually really simple when you finally see it. Here we see the turnout in its center position, acting like it's not  really there (upper and lower routes go their own way.) Pull the throw downward, and the straight line goes through. Push it upward, and the curving line goes through. Genius! I'm considering making it the focal point of my new layout!

     Of course, we all know why this sort of trackwork went extinct a long time ago. Any route that isn't selected is a perfect derail; both rails lead off into the weeds. From a modeling standpoint, I don't see that as a problem. I'm talking about a micro layout here, not a mainline run. Switching is much of the fun, and this makes switching just a little more interesting. You see, I'm of the school of thought that says it's bad form to run your trains through an open switch. Just because there's a spring in there that allows a train to back through without derailing doesn't mean that's the way it works in real life. If the train's a-coming, they throw the switch. (I know there are exceptions, such as fixed or sprung points, but that's another story.)

     This arrangement also gives the opportunity to build a signal system showing which routes are clear and which are dead. Also, there's the problem of how to index the three-way throw. Electronic and mechanical challenges, Oh Boy! It just gets better and better =)

Monday, July 2, 2012

Godzilla-Board!

     Having disposed of the "surf-board" benchwork of the first attempt at realizing the T&D, I cast about for the right place to begin anew, and at home. Listening to some of the recent MRR podcasts, I heard someone (Terry Terrance, if I'm not mistaken) muse on the possibility of making your own heavy duty Gatorboard. Since I have the materials readily available, I decided to experiment. The result you see below.

     While it's not proper extruded polystyrene, the foam dollhouse packing that I recycle is tight enough to hold up under a number of modeling situations. The standard thickness is 1 1/8" and the sizes vary greatly. I selected three matched blocks and lined them up to form a 16" x 39" slab.  I cut code 80 chipboard (available and affordable at the art supply store) for the laminate, and spread an even coat of yellow carpenter's glue over the entire surface. Laid flat on the floor, I set my drawing boards on top (to spread the weight evenly) and loaded up my 2 foot stack of MR magazines, plus lots of books, then called it a night and went to bed. Next morning, I did the same for the other side, and tonight my home-made Godzilla-board is ready to go!

     While the surface is sturdy, you could dent it with a knee or elbow. With my drawing board flat on top on top, I actually sat on the pile of magazines with no hint of compression. The whole slab weighs a pound or two, but I suspect it will lighten up a bit as the glue moisture works its way out of the chipboard (which feels slightly cool, as that's where the water went.) It's as flat as my hardwood floor, which is as flat as I need it to be, and perfectly rigid. I plan to use it as the baseboard upon which I will build everything else. No holes or openings are planned, as wiring etc. will be built into successive layers. In the end, I plan to finish the outer surfaces with chipboard, prime heavily with acrylic gesso, and paint in some sort of faux finish to suggest rusty steel.

     But first things first! The slab dictates the dimensions, so my mini-layout now has a specified area. Since I can't model a whole railroad, I'll focus on one scene from the T&D. This is my favorite part of the process, figuring out a track plan, designing the scenery, and fitting it to the narrative. There's room for a few switches, maybe a runaround, and a structure or two. With a layout this small there's no reason not to spike every tie, weather every board, and detail every figure.

     I drool with anticipation =)

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Unofficially Official

Bigger than the U.S. Capitol rotunda!
     It appears that I will soon be moving to a new workplace, above ground, in an executive office. I've seen the workspace for my group (which is still being corralled) and it's nice. View of the City Hall rotunda, brand new Mac computers, carpet, water cooler, and for once in my life, I won't be overdressed. Hooray!

     Unfortunately, it means that the Topdown & Drywater Railroad, as it currently exists (in the benchwork stage) must be abandoned. The shakeup comes at a good time, before I have spiked a single rail, and having laid only a few strips of cork roadbed. I did learn a lot about fine-tuning grades, so the experience is far from a loss. Besides, it was fun! And the fun doesn't stop just because I'm shifting digs. So I will take the 8' shelf layout to the junk heap (they have a great junk heap out back of the toy shop) and I will take myself downtown!

     So what's to become of The Delirium Route? It will simply have to be realized in a smaller space, that's all. I can manage a smaller shelf on a foamcore base, something that can be moved around the apartment and stood up in the closet when needed. I'm sticking with HO, so I can continue to build my roster as I have begun. I think I'll focus on operations at the Topdown Delirium Mine No. 3, and include some switching in the Drywater yard. I've been re-visiting Carl Arendt's Micro Layouts Website for inspiration, and there is much to be found.

     Another benefit to the shake-up is that I will receive a substantial pay raise. In future, the T&D will be much better funded. Not that that means bright and shiny new engines--far from it. Dilapidation and unchecked rust will still be the uniform of the day.


Saturday, June 16, 2012

Live Rust!

     It occurred to me that although I can't copy the "Best-Ever Photo Of A Rusty Locomotive" due to the photographer's chosen settings on Flickr, there's absolutely no reason why I can't provide a link to the photo in its home location. And so, here it is!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/joorgawt/3162865216

Hopefully, this respects the photographer's wishes, which I fully support, while providing me with an easy shortcut to the photo any time I need a reference. Not that I'm using it as a "prototype," (it's a really different engine,) but I really love the rust patterns and colors. Great shot, Mr. Photographer!

Friday, June 15, 2012

Rust Never Sleeps

I'm having fun planning the rusty finish on my tank engine, searching out photos, and thinking just how I can best approach the task. In my navy days, I spent hundreds of hours combating rust with scrapers, wire brushes, pneumatic tools, and lead based primer. Rust was the insidious enemy, that gradually ate away our ship! So it's with feelings of mischievous transgression that I conspire to rust my locomotive.

     This is not the best photo I've found (that one is fiercely copyrighted) but it has many of the qualities I'm looking for. I love the combination of white oxidation, remaining traces of paint, and lots of rust. I'm thinking I'll use a more orange rust, and add considerable blue to the black, thus setting up a complementary contrast that will make both colors blaze with life. Maybe I'll show evidence of recent attempts at restoration, such as polished bare-metal, or freshly painted patches. A spectrum of (bare metal / rusted metal / pure rust / paint clinging to rust / rust under paint / solid paint) seems like a good palate. Once I get finished filing the body shell, I'll start rusting!

     In other hobby news, my Fast Tracks order finally arrived! Looking forward to building my first turnout, but first things first. Rust never sleeps!

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Express From Lyon

     It's been a while since I've played with my trains. Big things happening in "life" right now have intruded into my placid world of  chuffing choo-choos, and diverted all my energy and attention. Not to worry, as it's all good. This week I'm interviewing for a nifty new job!

     But a care package has arrived from Tom Brown over in Lyon, France. Tom read my earlier post about missing out on the little Mantua camelback, and offered to send me an extra one he had lying around. Even gave me a choice of which of a group I preferred! So here you see the latest addition to the Delirium Route stable, a spectacular, like-new, Mantua camelback. It's a beautiful engine, nicely weighted, and appears to be wired for DCC, based on the bundle of wires running between it the tender.

     I'll designate her Delirium #3, as the caboose is #1 and the tank engine #2. I doubt I'll have the nerve to try weathering her yet, better to wait until I've had practice finishing and weathering the tank engine. She has great details too, with metal handrails, directional lights, and a brass bell. Thanks to Tom for his generous gift, which is greatly appreciated and will be thoroughly enjoyed! In appreciation, I will be sending him some "transfer traffic" in the form of a T&D car to run on his On30 layout. It will be my first time building anything as large as that, and I'm relishing the idea of unlimited potential for detail. In O scale, I can build board by board, stain and weather to my heart's content, and do all the lettering by hand. And since it will have a place to run, it won't just sit idle on a shelf.

     Regarding the possibility of a new job, I am slightly torn on one account. Leaving my basement workbench means abandoning my current layout plans for the Delirium Route. On the other hand, it's consolation if I should end up staying. Should I be moving on, I will follow the example of our Prof Klyzlr, and go micro! Foam blocks, kitchen cabinet magnets, I have an abundance of great ideas to draw upon. No room for an eight-foot surfboard in my apartment, but a couple of sections that go together? I can work it out =)

Saturday, June 2, 2012

Heavy Metal

     All during tonight's call-in Model Rail Radio show, when I wasn't typing, talking, or going out for a burger, I was happily filing away at the steam chest on my new engine kit. What was a lump of dull gray metal with flashing and mold marks all around is becoming smooth, bright, and shiny. In fact, it's hard for me to believe that Zamak (the zinc alloy used by Mantua) polishes up this brightly with just a file and a brass brush, but here's testimony. It's good, solid, metal that takes filing very well. And I'm even happier to find out that this alloy is immune to "zinc pest," which plagues and destroys early zinc castings. So three cheers for the New Jersey Zinc Company for their contribution to quality die cast trains! And if you should be thinking about bidding on older Mantua kits on eBay, I recommend them highly, based on this experience.

     Here you see a close-up from the original picture I took of the pieces. The sole plate is next on my list, especially the flat surface where it mates with the chassis. Brass bearings drop in, and everything gets bolted together . . . but I'm getting ahead of myself. Then again, I'm already thinking about how I want to paint it! Engine black? Faded, weathered, gray? Or do I want to go the rust route?

     I saw a picture in one of my magazines (and I'll find it again someday) of an engine entirely done in bright orange rust, as if had been polished bare, then left out in the rain for a week. The effect was amazing, and I'm tempted to try it. The metal on the sides of the boiler and tanks shows some surface imperfections that I cannot file down without razing rivets, and they look a little like corrosion marks that rusting might make. Besides, it would be fun to have a "forgotten" old soldier from a competitor railroad alongside the regular company engine.

     Bottom line: if everybody does it a certain way, then I'm strenuously tempted to do the other thing. Since I was a kid, that's how I roll. And anyway, for me it's all about having fun. But can I bring myself to do it? Build a bright polished engine, then rust it all up?  We shall see.

Thursday, May 31, 2012

New Engine!

     I just opened my latest eBay treasure: an old Mantua "Little Six" 0-6-0T kit, still in its box! All the little bits are still in their baggies, and the metal die cast is solid and clean. As if that's not good enough, I got it for almost the opening bid. Yay!

     For those unfamiliar (as I was until today) this little guy weighs a ton. The boiler is hollowed out to clear the worm gear, but the side tanks are solid metal. There's flash all over everything, which makes me drool with anticipation at the thought of all the filing I have to look forward to.

     There is one thing conspicuously absent: the instructions. I'm not too worried, as I'm a pretty smart cookie when it comes to things mechanical. I can pick out what most of the bits are without opening the bags. The valve gear looks a little imposing, so I may consult the council of Jedi masters for advice when that time comes. For now, I have plenty of prep work to do until then.

Click to enlarge!
     Although I've been absorbed in non-train related activities lately, my hands have not been entirely idle. I turned a little barrel and a couple more jugs for the spirit wagon. I even managed to carve a little bung for the brown jug on the far right. Turning the barrel was easy, but the test will come in the detailing. How much detail can I reasonably paint on? Hoops and staves? Recessed ends? We will see. I'm thinking it will be best used as a chair or in a pile, and get some nice castings to use center-stage. It just doesn't hold up next to the jugs.

     But getting back to new engines, I have more wonderful news on that front. Since it's a good story, I'm planning to tell it live on on our Saturday night call-in session. Looking forward to chatting with the gang, so I hope you all can make it =)

Friday, May 25, 2012

Micro Layout

     I came across an interesting item in my toy shop inventory and just had to share it with everyone. For all you micro-layout enthusiasts, I give you the ultimate in micro model railroads.

     It's a 6" x 9" modular layout with scenery encompassing an urban center, rural farmland, lakefront, and mountains. The track plan is a double-twisted single track mainline, with lots of tight curves. Minimum turn radius is approximately 3/4", but the little 0-4-0T navigates them handily. 

     No DCC to worry about here, as the engine is powered by a clockwork that pushes the little engine around at breakneck speeds. Track detail is a little understated, having no rails, ties, nor ballast, but the little barnyard details are quite realistic. The water effect on the lake is nice also, shining like the clearest of plastic.

     The engine boasts working side rods, excellent rivet detail, working rear coupler, and room to add an engineer and fireman. Available colors are red, yellow, and blue, but the only roadname is "Western Express" and all engines are numbered 108, so forget your dreams of building a basement empire with these little critters. 

     Slow speed operation is a little jumpy, going from a standstill to about 60mph instantaneously, yet still the little engine holds fast in the turns and derailments are rare! And with a retail price under $9.00(US) model railroading has never been more affordable =)

Thursday, May 24, 2012

N Scale Roots

     Since they have been recently discussed on Model Rail Radio, I thought it was time to re-post the pictures of my little block of N scale shops. I found the IHC kits in the bargain box at my local hobby store, and knocked them together in a little over a week of evenings.

     The kits are molded in multicolored plastic, with brick walls, dark gray roofs and details, and a colored trim. The left-hand building had white trim, which I colored blue. The center had yellow trim, which I embellished red and green. The right-hand had gray trim, which I made a dilapidated white. Some of the measurements are a little wonky, particularly the windows on the right- hand building, which are too close between stories, and the mail box, which is almost HO scale. Since they are intended to be mid-ground models in a crowded district, the little flaws should disappear into overall setting. If the colors seem unrealistically bright, then you've never been to my neck of the woods. Chinatown, the Mission, North Beach, the Richmond, San Francisco has no shortage of colorful districts! I do hope to someday model a Chinatown on an N scale trolley layout, and these will fit right in.

     I'm particularly proud of my mortar work on these buildings. The IHC kits have great brick detail, and thinned Floquil wicks its way through the traces like wildfire. The rooftop details are mostly finished on the nearest building, but the others still need work. One of the included detail pieces is a little clothesline with laundry hanging on it. I've already placed a washtub by the door, so I'm halfway there!

     IHC has a few different series of kits in this style, covering residential and commercial blocks, with five kits in each series. Each has its own sidewalk section, so they go together wonderfully. Unfortunately, they're hard to find, so for now my little district is under a building moratorium.

Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Pass The Jug!

     I gave the spirit wagon a coat of Testors "rust," which looks good to me, but has a bit of a shine that I'll have to deal with later. I also decided that it looks better with arch bar trucks. Thinking ahead to furnishing the car with its eclectic load, I broke out the Walther's "wish book" and turned to the section on super-detailing parts. Barrels galore, and I'll be buying a few of them, but no jugs to be found. No problem, I can always turn my own!

     I scrounged up a bamboo chopstick from the kitchen, which seemed a good size and density for carving. I cut a rough cone shape on the end, then laid it flat on the table and rolled it back and forth to get the turning action while holding the blade to it. I cut down to the bottle neck, then switched to a small flat file to smooth it out. Bamboo has a great texture for carving, and the work went fast. Turning the file at an angle, I smoothed out the slope of the jug top until I had the basic jug profile. (I have several prototype examples for reference.) At this point, all that's left is to cut it off the end of the chopstick, which is easy to do by the turning method.

     Painting worked out very well. I simply stuck them on the end of the knives and dunked them in the paint. Floquil "aged concrete" for the body, and Testors "rubber" for the top are a dead-on match for salt-glazed stoneware jugs. I'm stymied as to how to make the little finger loop that goes beside the neck, and this bothered me at first. Loop of wire? Tiny bead? Nothing I can think of works out. But the more I look at it, the less it bothers me. The overall look screams out "moonshine jug!" just fine as is.

     I'm very pleased with the result, and made both jugs in under an hour. I'll finish out that chopstick and have a nice less-carload of jugs. Barrels are trickier, so I'll buy them. Now as for the still, well, I'm really looking forward to making that!

Monday, May 21, 2012

Bundle Of Sticks

     Much has been said for and against "box of sticks" kits. I have avoided this controversy by embracing the "bundle of sticks" method of car building. I select strip basswood of appropriate size (1/16" square) and Shaun (one of my hobby shop dudes) bundles them for me at checkout. But before that, I stop off to see John (the Owner) and ask to rummage through the bin of old trucks and wheel sets. Some really great treasures in there, as you can see on the rip track behind the car. Anyway, I pick my rollers, grab some #158 couplers, and my bundle of sticks kit is complete!


     The base is actually a sheet of 1/16" basswood, and the rest is built up log cabin style. I sand the stripwood enough to knock the corners down so that you can see the individual boards. Since this is the "Spirit Wagon," and not a revenue car, I wanted to keep the construction simple. After all, the original was built from recycled mine timbers by inebriated moonshiners. It had no couplers, since it was just rolled down the grade into Drywater, and eventually pushed back up to the Delirium Terminus by any available engine. I think I'll include couplers, so that it can be more conveniently handled.

     I'm completely up in the air about how to paint it. Festive and colorful? Railroad red with white lettering? I do want to letter "DE LI RI UM" on the side in R.R. Roman, but maybe by hand rather than the press-on letters. Inside will be barrels and jugs, a still, a little shack or tent, and a few riders. I'll fashion a banner of some sort, advertising whiskey and rye. All of this in a 24' gondola! As I said before, I love short cars. On my agenda: 26' tank car, 28' boxcars (1860's era,)  and a little ore car or two to fill with my delirium ore specimens.

     The bobber caboose is still in the works, but I felt like a diversion from the cardstock cutting.  I like to indulge my modeling whims, and a bundle of sticks was just the thing to break up the monotony.

Friday, May 18, 2012

Oh, Well . . .

   So I didn't get the little camelback engine. A last-second sniper got the final bid, and the engine. Oh well, I sure gave him a run for his money. In the end, I decided that paying full price for an old engine (that's still in production) didn't make much sense, so I set my maximum bid accordingly. Maybe it was the roadname he wanted so bad, in which case he's probably happy. Me, I'll find another little engine =)

     Heading for the train shop Saturday morning to see what wonderful things I can find to spend my hobby allowance on. It's my favorite almost-weekly routine, chatting with the owner, looking at all the pretty engines, and buying myself something. Just like when I was a kid, only now I have money. And there's nobody to say "You spent all your allowance on WHAT?"

     If I allow the allowance, then I set the limit. I pay the bills, I make the rules. Hey, being a grown-up is great!

Thursday, May 17, 2012

Wish Me Luck!

     I'm bidding on a lovely little engine on eBay. I know Camelbacks didn't really make it this far west, but I think they're far more interesting than the standard steam configuration. And since shortness is a quality I admire in rolling stock, this is a natural for the T&D. I will have no problem designating a freak vein of anthracite somewhere in the vicinity for this little puff-horse to burn.


     It's a Mantua, and has markings for the New York Central & Harlem River, which I may or may not not change. It suffers from an exposed drive train, which is a problem with many steamers, but I'm willing to overlook. If you're bidding against me, I wish you luck (you'll need it.) If you're not bidding, wish me luck! Either way, tonight is the final showdown.

     Experiments with water putty continue. As one might guess, the more water you add the longer the drying time. I think the best application for making cobblestone street is to mix it fairly stiff, and spread it on the base in place, rather than make separate carved castings and placing them later. The putty dries slower (days) but the plywood base holds it firm and prevents it from warping. When it comes time to pave Drywater, I'll build the entire scene from the street up as a separate diorama. Tracks will be laid, forms built in, and putty spread. That way I can work on it slowly and with all around access.

Saturday, May 12, 2012

Experiments With Putty



   I bought a can of Durham's "Rock Hard" Water Putty because I need something to cast my street with, but also because I like the design of the can (reminds me of the "Pep Boys.") I have used plaster of paris in the past, but wanted to try something different. So I am currently experimenting with Durham's, and initial tests are quite promising.

     The greatest asset of Durham's is its natural color. It dries to a perfect California desert yellow. The info on the can says that it won't take a stain after it dries, but that's not an issue for me. The desert color is exactly what I want for a base color. The setting time seems about average, firming up in an hour or so, and drying out completely by the next day. The hardness is good also, being soft enough to carve, yet very durable. I'm quite excited about the possibilities!

Flexible enough to crack without breaking.
     My first test was to mix up a stiff batch and spread it into a form made of 1/8" balsa strips pinned to a plywood slab. I smoothed it out as best I could, but the surface was still a little irregular (this turned out to be a plus, as it dries resembling a flat rock surface.) After it set up, I took away the forms and popped it off the plywood. Overnight it acquired a slight curve, since one side dried faster than the other. I pressed it flat, and it cracked from a corner to the center without breaking in half. Another good sign, and the crack looks quite natural. I scribed a few grooves in the face, and carved out a few bricks. As far as I'm concerned, the effect is absolutely amazing.

Wet carved bricks are at the top, dry carved below.
     I carved a few bricks while it was still damp, and several more when it was dry. The difference is slight, but noticeable. The softer you carve, the rounder your brick corners will be. Personally, I think the best thing is to carve while dry. You have better control. I'm using a bookbinder's bodkin, which has a sharp but substantial point. Scribe the courses with a ruler, then  cut the courses into individual bricks by hand. Then scribe around each brick to round off the corners and break up the regularity. 

     So for the initial test, I'm absolutely thrilled.  I have now poured an identical slab of much wetter mixture, and a thicker slab of wetter still. Stay tuned for further experiments.

Engines

     Eventually, I'm going to need an engine for my railroad, but for now I have time to consider my options. For a steamer, smallish six-coupled drivers will be needed to negotiate #4 turnouts and still have tractive power to make the grades. SP's saddle tank yard goat is a hum-dinger of an engine that checks all the boxes for me, in addition to being funny looking, which is an added bonus. I've always been fascinated by utilitarian industrial designs, and this is a perfect example of that genre.

Electra in San Francisco, 1906
     But I'll undoubtably want an electric as well, just so I can have the fun of stringing live overhead. The Electra was built in 1902 for the North Shore R.R. in Marin County, but I remember her as the little red steeplecab that my brother and I played on as children. Since before I was born, she has lived at Travel Town in Griffith Park, Los Angeles. A great part of her life was spent as Pacific Electric 1544, and she worked the Torrance Shops. Today I live in San Francisco, Electra lived in Marin; I one lived in Hawthorne, Electra lived in Torrance. Seems she's always been in a town adjacent to mine.
     I could build her just as the original was made. A recycled cab unit, with two chopped-off tender tanks welded on, formed the superstructure. A couple of power trucks, and she's ready to run. Oh, of course I'll need to add a pantograph, instead of the trolley pole. For yard and switchback operation, it's a must.

     But I'll need a diesel just to round things out, and a boxcab is just the ticket. This one I could really have fun scratchbuilding, with all the rails, grab irons, chains, and bells. I could even model the cowboy too!

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Benchwork

     Here is a glimpse of the layout so far, perched atop my desk at work. For the record my desktop is 10' x 4', though it looks smaller in the picture. Oh, if only I could build on the entire 40 square feet!


     The shelf is 8' long and 1' wide, made of 5/8" plywood with baseboard trim stiffening it front and back. Slabs of 2x4 close the ends. The backdrop is masonite, which I plan to paint by hand. It rests on recycled fish crates, which I have stained in festive colors, and sits at a very good height.

     The near end will be Drywater, the far end Topdown. Blowtop Mountain will rise in the center, pierced by three switchback tunnels and any number of delirium mine shafts. Starting from Drywater yard, where my beloved Santa Fe Hi Cube stands duty as a height gauge, the first grade leads up to lower Topdown. Switching back, the train will go through Blowtop and roll into Drywater's main street. Tracks will be in pavement, possibly cobblestones if I get ambitious. The final switchback will lead on up to the Topdown delirium mine, known as the "Delirium Terminus." I owe my delirium mines to John Allen and his "lugubrium plant."

     Uncle Cosmo left me a specimen of Topdown delirium. It is sparkly, heavy, halfway between gold and silver in color, and looks suspiciously like iron pyrite.

     Oh, and the bins you see on the end are work related, and have nothing to do with waybills or car cards. It's how I justify all this to my boss; my railroad is just there to hold up the document trays!

Sunday, May 6, 2012

The Long and Short

     While 8' seems like miles to my N scale sensibilities, it's not very long for an HO switchback layout. My trains will be limited to a tank engine, one or two cars, and a caboose. Although, since the T&D never willfully discarded any of its outdated rolling stock, I can model 36' boxcars, a bobber caboose, and even Civil War era 28' cars without sacrificing accuracy. My next car will be a 24' wood gondola, the spirit wagon which Uncle Cosmo mentions in his journal.
     "At various times residents of the Topdown terminus, in a haze of intoxication on the products of their distilling apparatus, would clamber aboard the spirit wagon, being built up out of lumber salvaged from the delirium mine shafts, and set it to rolling down the grade and into Drywater. These episodes would rouse the towns temperance league into a raging fury, and since they could not push the car down the switchback, owing to the brake being set by the moonshiners, a moral battle would ensue. Prayer, speeches, banners, and song on the part of the temperancers, against a good natured revelry of illicit commerce and no small measure of a different sort of song on the part of the moonshiners. In time, someone would be dispatched down the hillside to the Drywater yard to implore the tank engine crew to come push the revelers back up the hill."
      The wagon contained a still, a few raggedy tents, and assorted barrels and jugs, not to mention a handful of besotted occupants. Lots of opportunity to add interesting  detail!

     I got the other end on my caboose. From the short end, the pug face is even more apparent. I painted the inside black so that I need not add interior details. The cupola inside is wood brown, since the eight windows will let some light in. The sides will have two windows each, with a blank space between, plus two smaller cupola windows.
     The doorknob on this end I painted with a dab of zinc chromate, which gives it a brass appearance. Once the roof is on, I plan to make railings and grab irons of brass wire, and figure out how to make lights, chimney, and a whistle. I want to have a conductor and maybe a brakeman riding on the platform. It seems the T&D was a great railroad for hangers on, owing to the steep grades up and down the mountain, and unauthorized riders were treated with indulgence.

Welcome to the T. & D. R. R.!

Cosmo Van Pelt in front of the
 Drywater candy shop, 1915

A Little Known Chapter of California Desert History

     Although barely a trace of the original road remains in place today, and contemporary source documents are rare as hen's teeth, I feel uniquely qualified to model this fascinating enterprise. My great great uncle Cosmo Van Pelt worked "The Delirium Route," as it was colloquially known, from 1897 to 1933 and kept a wonderfully observant and introspective journal throughout his career. From the pages of his journal, I will try my best to faithfully recreate the history, setting, and operations of this quirky little railroad.

     Rather than set out to create an orderly and scholarly history, I plan to keep things more or less anecdotal. Uncle Cosmo's journal is a hodge-podge of opinions, reflections, sketches, and conversations; historical details are many, and interspersed throughout. His random approach sets a relaxed standard that I hope to recreate here. I will relate his experiences when appropriate, chronicle my modeling efforts as they progress, and above all, enjoy the process. Uncle Cosmo was an aficionado of fast cars (for their time,) slow trains, snowshoe racing, and exploration in the Alaska territory. And as you can see, he was always a sharp dresser. My mother tells me we met once, when I was a newborn and Cosmo was long since retired, and that we got along famously. I like to think that I inherited from him not only his journal, but my tendency to overdress for the occasion. As Cosmo says, "the paw-paw never flings far from the patch."

     My latest modeling project is the bobber caboose for my rendition of the Topdown & Drywater. Uncle Cosmo's sketch doesn't show the entire caboose, but rather shows a detail of the unique sad-eyed expression of the cupola windows, which derives from the reverse-curved roof.

     The siding is cardstock, or more properly 140lb hot press, 100% rag watercolor paper. I scribe with the back side of a hobby knife and paint exclusively with solvent based paints, which soak in wonderfully without any tendency to warp the paper. The little window trim is scale 2x2 lumber and the doorknob is the head of a pin.