Running Bear’s August 2019 Coffee Shop


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An Atlas Gold (QSI Quantum) MRL low nose SD35 #702 has come up, used, on my ebay for auction, starting at AU$220. Of benefit is the $20 shipping price. Placed on watching, we will see in 6 days time. There are a few MRL'ers here. Would need the large white Lion's head logo decal to bring it up to current prototype. If it had been on BIN, it would be sold.
 
Yes, that one's been on offer for a while. He obviously thinks it's rareness makes it worth $10.05 over original MSRP. I have that SRY MP15DC with QSI Quantum that I bought, thinking it was MRL (MRL never had them, closest was SW1500's). In the NCE booklet that came with my system, there are notes on programming differences that apply. Wonder how easy it is to consist them with other decoders. Goes OK with NCE's silent ones. I have also a Genesis MP15AC (CP golden beaver logo) with the NCE in it , 'cause it appealed at the time. By chance they actually "play" together in BC.
 
Yes, that one's been on offer for a while. He obviously thinks it's rareness makes it worth $10.05 over original MSRP. I have that SRY MP15DC with QSI Quantum that I bought, thinking it was MRL (MRL never had them, closest was SW1500's). In the NCE booklet that came with my system, there are notes on programming differences that apply. Wonder how easy it is to consist them with other decoders. Goes OK with NCE's silent ones. I have also a Genesis MP15AC (CP golden beaver logo) with the NCE in it , 'cause it appealed at the time. By chance they actually "play" together in BC.
If this local listing hasn't taken a bid on it by tomorrow (Tues 13th) I'll make him the offer of a BIN at that $220. Cant do it today the 12th, as that would put it still within this credit card billing month. Tomorrow, I get another 55 days.
 
73F at 20:30PM. Got up to around 92F this late afternoon, but the temperature goes down quickly after the sun goes down.

Here are a few more photos of the trains we took this past Tuesday and Wednesday in Tokyo. The last two full days we were there before the day we left.

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Yes, a monorail, and yes, that is the Tokyo Disney Resort Line. It is actually a public transportation line, and has tickets you have to buy. It goes counterclockwise around the Tokyo Disney Resort and has 4 stations. One station is the main gateway station, which is also where the JR Keiyo line station is (to get there by normal train). At this station is a welcome center, a ticketing center, a big multi level shopping "mall" or indoor "street" called Ikspiari (run by Disney) similar to the "Downtown Disney" type shopping and dining stuff outside the Disney parks in the US. You can walk about 10 min to the entrance to Tokyo Disneyland, or you can take the monorail (Disney Resort Line) to the Disneyland station. At this station is the main entrance to the parks, as well as the Disneyland Hotel (one of the Disney run hotels). The next monorail station is back around the backside and is called "Bayside Station". This is the main monorail station for the official Disney Hotels (the ones not run by Disney but official resort hotels -- Hilton, Sheraton, and 3 or 4 or 5 Japanese brand hotels). Disney runs retro looking busses from the monorail station to each official hotel. In the Sheraton case, it leaves the station, takes a left, goes about 25 feet, and turns right into the Sheraton driveway. It is pretty funny. For the Hilton, it takes a right, goes maybe 100-150 feet, and turns into the Hilton driveway -- the Japanese Official hotels are a bit further but not by much.

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The next monorail station is the one at the Disney Sea park. Similar to Disney in California, the "Disney Resort" has two parks. In Tokyo, it is Disneyland (very similar to the one in California) and Disney Sea -- much different than any Disney park, though it does have some rides found in various forms elsewhere. They also have a way cool and very nice hotel at Disney Sea called the Hotel Mira Costa, which is a Mediterranean themed one (Venice, etc) that forms the border of the park at the entrance.

The next monorail stop after Disney Sea is once again the gateway one.

The reason the DIsney Resort Line monorail has tickets you have to pay for is due to Japanese transportation law. Since it runs outside the park (is not an attraction) and carries people in public (between parks, hotels, etc) it is considered public transportation and falls under the publics transportation laws, so Disney (or the legal entity running Tokyo Disney Resort) set up a transportation subsidiary to run it under the Japanese Public Transportation laws. The price is not unreasonable -- for adults we paid 800 ¥ for a 2 day all-you-can-ride pass for adults (800¥ is a little less than $8 at the current rate). Children are usually half the adult rate, rounded up if the number does not make sense.
 
Tokyo Disney Resort is not actually owned by Disney. It is a joint venture between Disney, which owns 49% and a Japanese company called the Oriental Land Company, which owns 51% and is responsible for running its day to day operations. The Disney company has 100% creative control and it really is Disney and not a knockoff. In the early 80s when Disney decided to expand outside of the US and decided on Japan, they were not sure if it would succeed , so they sought out a local Japanese company to split the risk through a joint venture. The Oriental Land Company was already the Disney licensee in Japan for Disney stores etc so that is who they partnered with for their first outside the US theme park. They wish now they owned the whole thing as, as I understand it, Tokyo Disney Resort has the highest per capita/visitor income or profit of any Disney theme park.

It was our first time in about 5 1/2 years to be there and it was great fun. My third time there (first time was about 10 years ago). I suspect it will be another 5+ years to the next time.
 
Good morning. It's cloudy (foggy) and 72.
Ray. if they don't want to ship to you, you can have them ship to me, and I can ship to you. Our shipping station at work ships internationally.
 
Good morning, 57 and sunny. Actually ran the heat on the way in to work this morning!

Spent the day yesterday first church, then brunch, then the module for most of the day; took a 4 mile walk and snapped these photos:

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These old beasts really rumble when they took off, I was on the Raymond ave overpass just when this work was happening (St. Paul, MN) on foot, of course.

Willie: I like your detail work around the windows.

Sherrel: Thanks for the words of support on the estate.

more later, Dave
 
Good Morning All. A pleasant 79° (yeah!) and partly cloudy to start the day here. Only made it to 97° yesterday here, but I think it hit 100° in Dallas, 65 miles south. Maybe that will satisfy the weathermen who have been forecasting it for two weeks now. Busy day yesterday, household chores, church, lunch and nap, rode the mower, visited the pool, shredded brush, showered, a few minutes out in the train shed and then out for dinner at Red Lobster with friends. Got off cheap since the wife didn't have any wine due to the Vicodin that she's taking.
Good Morning Flo, how about eggs over easy and a heavy handful of bacon today. Make that a double OJ as well.

Thanks for the likes and comments yesterday; Garry, Sherrel, Chad, Phil, Jerome, Dave, Patrick.

As posted, I only spent a short time in the train shed yesterday, Sundays are just that way, I painted detail parts and tested the new industrial spur. Checked it with a number of four axle diesels with no problems. I also checked it with several more SD40-2's. Athearn models had no issues, only the P2K models previously checked. I'll check the Kato and ScaleTrains ones next. I did have derailment issues with a Dash9-44CW, but I would never use such a massive diesel for switching work anyway.
Since I didn't take any progress pictures yesterday, I'll post a few oldies that I may not have previously posted before. This is a PikeStuff kit called Milton A Company. I usually buy these just for the many wall sections and make other structures, but I made this one almost stock. It represents a small plastics fabricator called American Plastics.

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Visible in these pictures are three of the very few remote operated switches on the layout. Most of the 110 others are ground throws. Also seen is the uncoupling magnet that hasn't been installed yet.

Sherrel - Regarding the signs on this building. I like using dry transfers on brick structures; it easily gives a painted on look. The only down side(s)(learned years ago) is that there is no forgiveness, no adjustments and care after the application is necessary until they are sealed with Dull Coat.

Time to go for my morning walk, my new schedule, if one could call it that, calls for posting before walking due to the later sunrise now.
Everybody have a great day and upcoming week.
 
Good morning everyone. 74, humid, and clear. Heading for at least 90 today.

Flip, Wheeler, Sherrel, Garry, IB Ken, Chad, Dave, Louis, Patrick, Willie, and anyone I may have missed - thank you for the likes and comments on my photos from Friday.
Willie - That Market building is looking really good. I like the paint job.
Garry - Thanks for asking about Dena - she's doing great!
Chad - Welcome back from your Japan trip. Looks like you took a good number of photos there - great memories.

Had a good weekend. My wife came back from CTCA Chicago on Friday, so my meals have improved greatly!! Over the weekend I was bouncing back and forth between the woodworking shop and the train room. Got several items ready for sale at a craft fair - mostly magazine storage bins and birdhouses, plus the usual assortment of decorative horses, cats, ducks, etc. I'll post a photo if I can remember to take one. Ran trains a lot and got the updating done on the lake area. Here are a couple of photos:

Trees, pier, fishermen, playground equipment, more cars - have all been added. Check out the kid (right center) with his bike against the tree and drinking a coke!
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A couple of close-ups. The couple by the red 'n white car look like they're having fun! Is that a '50s look or what?
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Good morning all. A pleasant 76* to start with clear sky. Scattered showers due later.
Waiting for the courts in CAL. to open. Need them to bury s o b s-i-l.
Thanks to all for posting your pixs. Chad-thanks for the TOUR.
Prayers,
Phil

DON'T MAKE ENIMIES WITH ANYONE IN RECORDS.
 
Morning all,

Sunny hot and very humid today in Doo-Dah. High of 99 with heat index 105-110. Heat advisory through tomorrow night.

It was a decent enough weekend. Friday afternoon I picked a bushel of peaches and the wife and I took them 2 hours to her younger brothers house as the do a lot of canning and we had more that we were going to use. This was just off the smaller of the 2 trees I have. The larger spends a bit more time shaded in late afternoon by the house, so I suspect it has them delayed a little. I got the first auction package on Saturday instead of today. I went through the kits to verify parts and found the purchase receipts for several. The oldest was dated 1975. I popped off to the wife, who keeps a kit unbuilt for over 40 years? She replied, "Don't you still have several kits you haven't built when you traded your Lionel stuff for HO?" She has a point. I have some that I bought 20+ years ago and are still in their packages. The 2 sets of homes of yesterday and today threw me in the pictures. But as I find they are 2 different complete sets of houses. Not sure about 2 of the kits as they

Several issue I'm looking at:

I had train time yesterday. I am redoing the lift section as I cracked the fancy bridge and I'm afraid that I won't be able to make it work. I took pictures of the damage, but like everything I've taken lately on the work phone, they're too blurred to be any use. So the new cross structure is being built a bit more solidly. I am taking advantage of the now longer base to hit both ends square instead of off a curve, like it did before. Should be complete again fairly quickly.

I have about 2/3 of the inner loop figures and marked out, some addition cork base down, etc. While I have been using NS track, I need some additional turnouts, but only have older brass switches. Ok to mix and match? What do I need to watch for? I have heard that the brass may need to be cleaned more often than the NS type of track. Downside is they're #4 instead of #6, but I can make those work.

What do you guys use for paint on your buildings?? Several of the structure kits I got need to have paint applied prior to assembly. One of the 2 main kits I wanted is actually a Timberline card stock that gets embossed paper bricks applied. Called the Gruber Mint and is a model of the predecessor of what is now the Denver Mint. It looks like a fun kit, but I want to get it right. I'm going to actually start with some of my older kits and relearn how to paint them. I created a feed store with fuel oil tank and outhouse for the Lionel trains I had years ago, but it has been a decade or 2 (or 4) since I last did anything of that nature.
 
Morning folks -- Supposed to be 88* today - only topped out at 86* yesterday - and the record for this date is 98* in 2000.
Will be on the road for Laughlin in about an hour. I think I have all the necessary paperwork for my "highfalutin" CIA, NSA, TSA, and whatever else xxA ID drivers license. What a PITA this all is.
I looked at the wait times locally to get in the door at the local DMV - they are saying 150-180 minutes ... I can almost be to Needles in that time. Just hope that I have retained enough smarts to pass the written again? I took some f the "practice" exams on the computer yesterday and averaged 80% without looking at the handbook. Tonight, I will try and at least glance at the written word ... there may be some "new things" in it from years ago?

Willie - nice building, but too modern for my taste. I really like that tractor/trailer rig though.
CHAD - When I looked at the first pic you posted - I thought that it looked just like Disneyland monorail. HA, I was right! Nice photos all and great narrative!
Johnny - Nice additions to the pond - neat scene.
RAY - You are pathetic! LOL ... Be caution - His rating is only 97% on not very much traffic.

I may not post for a couple days - I'm sure you all will miss me - RIGHT?
 
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