Running Bear’s October 2020 Coffee Shop


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Good Morning Every body. Still dry, cool mornings, temperate afternoons. The feel of fall is definitely in the air!
A couple of raisin muffins' & a large oj please Flo.
This is the prepare for winter weekend, vents, spigots, hoses, final lawn mow, etc. etc.

Dennis, is that a can of CAFE' BUSTELO I'm seeing down there? Although be it probably an empty can........ Our preferred blend when desert camping. ☕☕☕
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EVERY BODY HAVE A SAFE DAY PLEASE!
 
Morning! 12° this fine morning with a paint-peeling high of 20° expected by afternoon. Of course, the paint will be blistering-n-bubbling due to the cold and frost, not the heat wave. For sure, the modeling season begins early this year. The gods must be cranky about something!

I have a mean feeling it is going to be lonely in here for awhile, and I can't quite figure out why. I thought most of us were an older, retired lot; just old farts playing with trains and models. - Oh well!

Last evening, I prime painted my DPM structure with a new white primer. That came after sanding down the beveled edges that seem inherent in DPM's, and then a Dove dish-soap wash. Today, it's ready for paint:
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I might let that set awhile, though. Right now, I seem to be in lawn tractor mode. Googled up a drawing of a JD tractor that I believe would be easy to build; so I might build another (truer to scale) tractor. I'd like a JD tractor to put out in the open on a layout. This drawing has measurements that I can work off of:
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Looks like it will be an easy enough shape to work with.

I also want to paint the compressor (red, I think) and the stool. I'd like to complete the hardware store. Still have lighting experiments to do; not sure if it will take one light, or a pair of 'Just Plugs' to light the place up. - A roof has to be completed, as well.

Coffee's done; time to get on with it. Have a wonderful day!
 
Good morning y'all. 61°, cloudy and damp!
Willie: Safe journey, and have a great time along the Gulf.
Guy: Another lawn tractor, eh? Must be inspired by your weather..Don't forget the plow this time. :rolleyes: I enjoy working DPM structure kits.
Karl: You get the weather first, no sun here.

Speaking of track plans, I printed several Micro Engineering Switch templates for #5 and #6 switches, to use to see how things will work out, before I commit the actual switch to the table. Look like I'm going to need a few more...

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Conrail GP15-1 at Enola in 1992. Warren Calloway Photo.
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BEDT Alcos in Brooklyn in 1976.
 
Good morning modelers and friends. Cool and wet in So. Central Wisconsin. The high today maybe 41.

The Wisconsin courts removed the limits to how many people can be in a public space yesterday. I understand the ruling but Health Departments should have leeway to mandate things for people’s safety in a health crisis. We still won’t eat inside a restaurant and will continue the curbside pickup.

All trees are done as mentioned the other day. Between the layout and the grandkids slot track all but 10 trees are plantEd and I will do that and some more bushes today. My wife suggested since the next tree building is planned for March that I should let the kids know for Xmas what supplies and where to get them would be helpful. Last year I explained to the family I wanted nothing but things for the layout. Finally they listened, it was great. My wife suggests like last year send the Amazon page with the info and I might get lucky again. Yes her idea of lucky and mine are slightly different but I know what she meant! And with her it’s not luck anymore it’s when...sorry lost the train of thought!

Willie safe travels.

The St. Point Brewery tours. A tour where they literally take you through the brewing and bottling processes. You walk the aisles and into the crannies between machines. The sample room was great if you are a beer drinker.

A very sterile but super educational tour for a Wisconsin craft brewer is the New Glarus Brewery in New Glarus, Wisconsin home of the great Spotted Cow and others. I also believe like there used to be a church or 2 in every town, Wisconsin has an unwritten rule there has to be at least one Brew pub in town. If you like bar food and enjoy a beer Wisconsin is the place for you. Our craft beer and pubs are every where and many are excellent.

Not since college have I had a tour of the Milwaukee big national brewers and I think it was the Schiltz one and long gone.

The tractor and hardware store brings back so many memories.

Enjoy the day
TomO
 
Thanks to Richie from the UK for adding some British scenery to our feed. I've got a suggestion if you're up for it: do you have photos of a favourite small station or platform?

I love some of the building work that is being displayed on this thread - wonderful guys!

TroyPhoto - any small station/platform in particular .. or do you mean my favourite? There are a few options of the latter!! Happy to oblige if I can.

Richie
 
I love some of the building work that is being displayed on this thread - wonderful guys!

TroyPhoto - any small station/platform in particular .. or do you mean my favourite? There are a few options of the latter!! Happy to oblige if I can.

Richie
Any and all. Love looking at British architecture. Especially out in the countryside. Villages and town seem to have unique styles
 
Good afternoon. Winter is still here as we had about another foot come down over Friday night into Saturday. What they have been doing as an experiment here on the roads is to put a rumble strip down the center line of the road and on the fog line on the edge of the road. They did come in handy coming home from bowling last night. With out the strips, you would have no idea of where you were on the road. Won all four at the lanes.

We did finish up the trim work at my friends house and all I have to do is to pick up the tools. Table say, compound miter saw, jig say, compressor and nail gun. I'll get them next week. Temps are forecasted to be in the 50's next week.

McLeod - I am going to try to reduce the size of that Ace Hardware sign as I do have an Ace Hardware store on my layout. 2nd from the right.
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Garry - Another nice photo of the new track addition. Thumb up.gif

Troy - You are making some good progress on the layout. Hope you have access into that tunnel in case of a derailment.

Willie - Maybe Murphy will stay in the bar and leave Terry alone.

Curt - You are also making some good progress. Moving right along.

Richie
- Welcome aboard. Scroll down and as soon as I saw that first photo I pretty well knew it was from the UK. Being retired I have to time to waste watching railroad videos.

Joe - Like those Alco switchers.

It looks like I'll have to post some old photos from the archive again.

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Gotta get the laundry out of the dryer, Later
 
Afternoon All,

We were supposed to go to daughter's house to remove carpet but there was some kind of mix up and we rescheduled for tomorrow so I did the normal Sunday chores then the wife said daughter called and her family removed the carpet on their own. That means only layout time tomorrow :). Since there was no job at daughters house I spent several hours "planting bushes" and got the vertical portion done but have more to do tomorrow.

Thank you to everyone for the likes. I'm watching UCF play. I hope they don't blow it in the second half like they have the last 2 games.

Guy- Nice scratchbuilding on those 3 items.

Joe- Isn't that always the case when building a layout? Nice photos.

Garry- Nice photo.

TomO- We tell each other whatwe want for Christmas. I have zero ability to understand hints.

Chet- Thank you. Great layout scenes. Did you get more snow?

I hope everyone has a good night.
 
Willie - Maybe Murphy will stay in the bar and leave Terry alone.
Chet: Murphy is too busy expounding on his Law, here in Jersey, to be bothering Terry...he should get a break for a while...😷 BTW: I like seeing your layout photos.

Health Departments should have leeway to mandate things for people’s safety in a health crisis.

Tom O:
I have mixed feelings on this subject, since our Governor likes to impose rules for the greater good, whether they make sense or not, but in general I agree. Problem is that most of the population has to buy in to make it work, if not it won't.

Joe- Isn't that always the case when building a layout? Nice photos.
Curt: That is so true, isn't it?

Garry: Nice photo! Amtrak isn't always boring, eh? Nice to have the computer back and running.
 
Any and all. Love looking at British architecture. Especially out in the countryside. Villages and town seem to have unique styles

Hi Troy,
These are Dunfermline Town in Fife, Scotland .... not particularly a favourite (although its a nice station for photography, angles and the position of the sun in the morning) but just the first I came across. There are definitely better ones that I'll dig out for you!

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Dunfermline is on the Fife Circle line, basically trains depart from Edinburgh and head north over the Firth of Forth (and the superb Forth Rail Bridge) to a place called Inverkeithing, (think of an analogue watch face, we are at the 6 o'clock position) where the line splits in a 'Y' formation, taking the left hand we pass through a couple of stations and arrive at Dunfermline Town (now at the 9 o'clock position) ... continuing on through a place called Thornton (12 o'clock position) the line splits again in a triangle, left goes to Dundee and the north of Scotland, right brings us back down the east side of Fife (3 o'clock position) back to Dunfermline to return to Edinburgh over the Forth Rail Bridge.

Talking of the bridge, the Forth Bridge is a huge cantilever railway bridge, almost 8,100ft long and 351 feet high ... amazing to see. It opened in 1890 - so 130 years old today and very much off limits to the public - it is an operational railway bridge on the main line linking Edinburgh with the north of Scotland. But for VIPs there is a scaffolding/plastic floor viewing deck right at the top, accessed by a small and very bouncy feeling lift! I had the opportunity a couple of years to go up here, so thought you may appreciate a few views you probably haven't seen before.

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Looking north off the bridge over North Queensferry station , with Inverkeithing in the far distance.

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Looking south towards Dalmeny and Edinburgh, across the Firth of Forth - with the old uninhabited island of Inch Garvie, which was a fort completed in 1514, and used as a prison from 1519 and 1671. It survived with defence guns until the 1930s, since when it has been relatively unused.

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Proof that this is a live and operational railway bridge ... looking down through the north tower. I am 351 feet up in the air at this point!

A very privileged visit that I shall remember for many years!

Rich
 
Afternoon.
Chet - Glad you like the Ace sign. I hope you post a quick photo after you make it.

I've been playing with miniature modeling again. Painted a-bit, and made a small check-out counter. Still have to paint that, and make a counter top for it. But, I very nearly have the whole hardware gang together, and near ready to install into the hardware store:
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A small issue with depth-of-field in that photo; and Harry has a bug on his head.

Rich - Fantastic photos brought into the shop. Not my type of train, but, the scenery is wonderful! Well done!
Garry - Nice to have you back with a working means of communication. Betcha the photos will be coming full force now!

Have a good one!
 
Good Afternoon from Gulfport MS after an uneventful trip across three states. We made a small detour in southern Louisiana due to a total stoppage in IH12 due to an accident. As a result, we went through on IH10 through New Orleans. While there, we stopped off at my childhood home 60 years ago, 1959-1960 and took a picture. Camera is still in the car, so I'll post it later. During Hurricane Katrina in 2005, water was over 4' up on the walls. Gotta go right now as my wife wants to go to eat Mexican food.
 
Afternoon.
Chet - Glad you like the Ace sign. I hope you post a quick photo after you make it.

I've been playing with miniature modeling again. Painted a-bit, and made a small check-out counter. Still have to paint that, and make a counter top for it. But, I very nearly have the whole hardware gang together, and near ready to install into the hardware store:
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A small issue with depth-of-field in that photo; and Harry has a bug on his head.

Rich - Fantastic photos brought into the shop. Not my type of train, but, the scenery is wonderful! Well done!
Garry - Nice to have you back with a working means of communication. Betcha the photos will be coming full force now!

Have a good one!
Looks great!
 
Here's that picture of my one time boyhood home in New Orleans in 1959-1960.
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Looks like it still has no a/c. To the right side of the door, you can see the water mark from Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Otherwise it hasn't changed except the solar panels on the roof. IH10 is about 500 yards behind it, which didn't exist when I lived there. Back then it was an overgrown corridor of trees with quite a few poor squatters living without utilities, and catching their daily meals from the canal just down the road a bit. Turtles, crayfish, snakes, bullfrogs and catfish were in abundance there. Being a boy from Brooklyn, it was quite eye-opening and fascinating to me. While out exploring that area, unsupervised in those innocent times, I discovered that was where some of my classmates actually lived at the time. They asked that I didn't reveal that to other classmates. I now know that the Catholic school administration knew it and accepted them without prejudice or fees. That's also where I was first introduced to vegetable gardening as well. I never told my parents what I had found back there.
Fast forward to today, well tomorrow. Headed to the Mississippi Coast Model Railroad Museum, where I will be taking a lot of pictures. Then off to Gulf Shores AL for a few days.
Good Night.
 
Morning Rant:

Lets see what's on TV Sunday morning .....Paid Propaganda ....Paid Propaganda ...Paid Propaganda . Geez. Everybody wants to sell you something you don't need. Do I really need a cap full of LEDS to put on my head for the low low price of $700? What's next ?LED suppositories to grow hair on my A$$?
 
Greetings! Just coffee Flo, I scraped out the bottom of the first jar of apple butter for my bagel at home. Wife might have to make more.

Willie, Safe travels. You better leave the snakes and frogs behind your old house. Wife might not appreciate you collecting them now.

I had a fun day yesterday. After training, I had an online gaming session with three friends back in California. Of course, they've all got big screens with podcasting mics since they play RPGs online. I'm on a 13" laptop, with a cheap headset mic, and I've tapped into the 42 inch TV via wi-fi for a second monitor. But the time-lag has me three commands ahead of the display and frustrated. However, much fun was had. We got two turns into a six-turn game of Bolt Action (WWII miniatures). My partner and I have one platoon each. His is American, and I've got British Paras. For once, the arty and airstrikes have done some good! (In this game, they're usually very wonky.

Prior to and after the gaming session, I spent some time finishing up the gluing of risers, then sanding (and vacuuming) to get the joints smooth. Had a couple of problem areas due to uneven foam joints on the benchwork. A bump there is still a bump to be sanded.

One issue I'm struggling through the learning curve on is getting the turnouts figured out. And I'm just track planning as I go. ;) At first I kept telling myself I needed a fourth turnout in this section to get back onto the far right line. After the gaming session, I went back, slapped my forehead, and did a Homer Simpson. DOH!

The first turnout just keeps that line going straight. The curved turnout part joins in with the mainline in the center. No need to come back. It's not a yard.

Here's a fun valley shot. I'll try to post an update to my still untitled thread today.

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Looking at this, I've got some more foam work to install in that corner where I can see the white foam of the riser for the upper line (left side).
 
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