Running Bear’s June 2021 Coffee Shop

[Patrick]

Morning all,

Off to a late start as I had a lab appointment for next weeks physical that got me to work late. I have an early physical next Tuesday as well.
Currently foggy and 70° in Doo-Dah, with highs in the upper 80's expected. Supposed to be mid 90's by the end of the week. I still have the door to do Saturday at the boy's house, and then I have the rim work to accomplish, which I've been way overthinking about lately.

Work beckons...BBL

 

[chessie_system3]

Morning fellers. I hope everyone is well. I guess I can say Im the poster boy for sticking my foot into my mouth in regards to my throttle post from earlier. That being said. I consider my throttles to be more or less insurance. Should one fail I have one to take its place. Thats how I came about getting them in the first place. The Cab Control 55 was the purchase I made as soon as the Varipulse went down. The Tech 2 Cab Control intrigued me and at $20 shipped seemed like a small investment. I will say though that most if not all of my throttles have been picked up used with exception to my cab control 55 which was purchased as new old stock. It was still wrapped in the plastic. So when they give out is yet to be seen. Id say the first one will be my Tech 2 cab control. That thing has seen better days. Still a decent throttle. Almost impossible to use one handed though. I rank my throttles based on how they compare to my Controlmaster 20. Not really a fair assessment of them as none will put out the power of the CM 20. I like to see how they perform against it. They do fall short ofcourse but they do handle ok so I cant complain. I think thats enough on that. Moving on to other things here. The mail man brought me some more hoppers yesterday. I probably wont build these anytime soon. Im focused more on my scenery for the layout than anything at the present moment. Even with warping creating some unfavorable conditions hopefully here soon I can put some measures in place to counter act that. Otherwise I will have to work around it and accept it for what it is. With lumber prices being where they are I dont think I have too much of a choice in the matter. Thats about all I have for now. Ill stop by again when I get a chance.

 

[santafewillie]

Good Morning All. Cloudy and 74°, might be going up to 88° later today. Rain is again in the forecast for this morning. There's a pretty widespread area of showers to the west about 15 miles away, but it actually looks like it will skirt by just to the south of me today. That would be good after the 1.25" yesterday. The forecast for the next ten days presently calls for no rain and increasing winds from today until Friday which may finally dry things out. Mosquitos are out en masse right now. They don't normally bite me for some reason, but their buzzing around is really annoying. They will however land on and bite my wife at every opportunity. Maybe it's my diet rich in garlic, red meat and beer that keeps them off me.

Pigs in a blanket for me this morning Flo, make it a double order with a tall cool OJ.

Thanks for the many likes on the dual posts yesterday; Troy, Sherrel, Justin, Tom O, Gary, Guy, Karl, Chad, Patrick, Hughie, Garry, Tom, Chet.

I did make it out to the train shed yesterday for a brief visit. I did two things, run trains and paint detail parts for Woody's Country Mart. I discovered that the sheet of dry transfers was missing from this kit, so I have to contact them this morning. Hopefully I can get it before I need to have it. It won't hold up painting or construction., just completion. The detail painting didn't warrant any pictures yet, but instead of disappointing Guy, I will pull a few from the archive. Just a few random shots.

Patrick -

I don't completely understand old construction,

From someone (me) who was in the window and door manufacturing business for 43 years.
Years ago, windows and doors were manufactured full size, for example, a 3050 window measured a full 36" x 60", a patio door would be 72" x 80" for a 6068 door. This caused issues with builders having to make the openings "oversized". Along about the late 70's, that same 3050 window shrunk to 35 3/4" x 59 3/4" so builders could then make a 36" x 60" opening. Patio doors and entry doors followed along as well. It also meant less materials used for the same price to the builder. In the case of our company, saving 2 oz of aluminum from 2.5 million windows a year meant a reduction of 312000 pounds of aluminum a year at an approximate cost of $0.98/lb at the time. The savings varied after that depending on demand. Right now demand is low because automakers cannot build cars due to chip shortages and the price is just $1.06/lb. In boom times I have seen $1.35. That's why openings in many older structures need furring strips to make a snug fit.
Gary - Good luck with the garden, I hope that you have as good a luck as I have had this year.
Tom O - That 87° water temperature in the pool is about the upper end of my limit. I have shade on the west side, and rarely see 87°. On the other end, your temperature of 75° is about 3° cooler than I like. I tend to agree with you regarding the money out there. Each of my three kids all make more in salary with 12-18 years in the workforce than I did after 45 years. And each of their spouses either match or exceed that. Percentage-wise though, all are a bit behind in retirement savings than I was at their age. But I am more than comfortable and I have no debt.
Hughie - I have had to back away from some Bar Mills kits before. Not generally for too long.

Everybody have a great day. Stay safe.
UPDATE: The rain indeed passed by to the south, clear skies and sunshine finally.

 

[ShermanHill]

These will save me the trouble of trimming off legs on figures to use in automobiles as well.

That's scarey.. How will they operate the brakes?

 

[TLOC]

Good morning from our last Arizona morning till 6/22 when we will be back. Decided to fly home when we were notified that the lady who babysat the daughter for her 1st 8 years and the son’s first 5 passed away. Funerals are open again in Wisconsin so we will attend.

I have the trip of a lifetime opportunity available to me. Terry says she will not come but my brother is going. He has a childhood friend who sells yatchs for a living. He has to deliver 3 from Miami to Sydney, Australia. They will travel together, transit the Panama Canal and into the Pacific. I want to go but not sure I want to ride the Pacific Ocean for so long. Thinking big time (yes it hurts) on this one.

I am in search of, E&C wood chip hoppers, HO scale. If you can sell them for $22USD or less plus shipping I would like to see what you have, any road nameView attachment 128908

more music, congrats on the vaccine shot

Karl, that seems crazy but Terry when I just asked said ours went up a few thousand when our kids got on board. Good luck searching

dakotalove39, Steve, saving the engine is easy. Pay the scrap price. The issue is moving it and a place to store it. That movement can cost many thousands of dollars. Good luck and great pictures

guy, a great picture of a beautiful engine

Chet, great pictures, loved the Milwaukee Road and those trees look great. Wonderful pictures of the garden and family

Garry, love engines coming through bridges like your picture, well done

Hughie, love the blue building

to those I missed, hello!

The new A/C machine on the deck is much quieter then the few in Austin we saw. The install guys told me yesterday that they install about 100 a year in private settings. It works fine and then is a definite feelable difference.

enjoy the day
TomO

Good Morning All. Cloudy and 74°, might be going up to 88° later today. Rain is again in the forecast for this morning. There's a pretty widespread area of showers to the west about 15 miles away, but it actually looks like it will skirt by just to the south of me today. That would be good after the 1.25" yesterday. The forecast for the next ten days presently calls for no rain and increasing winds from today until Friday which may finally dry things out. Mosquitos are out en masse right now. They don't normally bite me for some reason, but their buzzing around is really annoying. They will however land on and bite my wife at every opportunity. Maybe it's my diet rich in garlic, red meat and beer that keeps them off me.

Pigs in a blanket for me this morning Flo, make it a double order with a tall cool OJ.

Thanks for the many likes on the dual posts yesterday; Troy, Sherrel, Justin, Tom O, Gary, Guy, Karl, Chad, Patrick, Hughie, Garry, Tom, Chet.

I did make it out to the train shed yesterday for a brief visit. I did two things, run trains and paint detail parts for Woody's Country Mart. I discovered that the sheet of dry transfers was missing from this kit, so I have to contact them this morning. Hopefully I can get it before I need to have it. It won't hold up painting or construction., just completion. The detail painting didn't warrant any pictures yet, but instead of disappointing Guy, I will pull a few from the archive. Just a few random shots.
View attachment 128911View attachment 128912
View attachment 128913
View attachment 128914

Patrick -

From someone (me) who was in the window and door manufacturing business for 43 years.
Years ago, windows and doors were manufactured full size, for example, a 3050 window measured a full 36" x 60", a patio door would be 72" x 80" for a 6068 door. This caused issues with builders having to make the openings "oversized". Along about the late 70's, that same 3050 window shrunk to 35 3/4" x 59 3/4" so builders could then make a 36" x 60" opening. Patio doors and entry doors followed along as well. It also meant less materials used for the same price to the builder. In the case of our company, saving 2 oz of aluminum from 2.5 million windows a year meant a reduction of 312000 pounds of aluminum a year at an approximate cost of $0.98/lb at the time. The savings varied after that depending on demand. Right now demand is low because automakers cannot build cars due to chip shortages and the price is just $1.06/lb. In boom times I have seen $1.35. That's why openings in many older structures need furring strips to make a snug fit.
Gary - Good luck with the garden, I hope that you have as good a luck as I have had this year.
Tom O - That 87° water temperature in the pool is about the upper end of my limit. I have shade on the west side, and rarely see 87°. On the other end, your temperature of 75° is about 3° cooler than I like. I tend to agree with you regarding the money out there. Each of my three kids all make more in salary with 12-18 years in the workforce than I did after 45 years. And each of their spouses either match or exceed that. Percentage-wise though, all are a bit behind in retirement savings than I was at their age. But I am more than comfortable and I have no debt.
Hughie - I have had to back away from some Bar Mills kits before. Not generally for too long.

Everybody have a great day. Stay safe.
UPDATE: The rain indeed passed by to the south, clear skies and sunshine finally.

Willie, same here with the kids. All earning more then me at the 36 and 39 year old ages they are at. Same here, no bills, great retirement income for Terry and I. I have pounded into the kids heads about savings for emergencies and retirement. I think they are finally listening.

Pool temps, when I first got the lap pool it was too cold. Took a couple months to dial in what felt good when working out. Great explaination on the Windows. When Crestline Windows went from extruded Aluminum to just a Aluminum clad they looked the same but were lighter, easier to build and of course less money but sold for the same! 11 years at Crestline and 5 years at Hurd (wood and extruded Aluminum) and 2 years running a glass plant at Cardinal. The last 22 years were spent in the consumer collections business working for the brother.

TomO

 

[GarryCBQ]

Howdy ....

Thanks for likes and comments about my photo.

Chet ..... Your family photos in the garden are precious. I certainly like seeing your layout photos with the MILW switcher.

Karl ..... Good luck with car insurance shopping.

Sherrel .... Hopefully you catch up on sleep.

Tom O .... Sailing on a yacht from Miami, Florida to Sidney, Australia would be quite a trip. I like your photo of your industry. Thanks for commenting on my picture.

Guy .... I agree those are neat looking buildings.

Steve .... It is sad to see locomotives being scrapped. ..... I think of the EMD E7 passenger locomotive. Only one has survived. All others were scrapped. The E7 was the most common passenger locomotive.

Willie ..... Thanks for posting your great layout photos. Car wash scene is nice. Nice variety of activities.

 

[chadbag]

A city in Cameroon got its first shopping mall, complete with escalator. Most had never before seen or used an escalator in real life. It is pretty funny to watch, but you have to give them credit for going head first and trying it. Pretty soon it will be second nature for them!

(Not posted to be rude or laugh at these people, but rather laugh with them)

These shoppers in Cameroon used an escalator for the first time and it went exactly how you'd expect

Apparently, the city of Douala, Cameroon got its first shopping mall late last year and people had a hard time adjusting to the modern oddity known as escalators.

notthebee.com

 

[Jaz avalley]

The decoder, engine, and DCC system are all pretty much new. This engine has always had a "rattle" in the speaker, it had suddenly gotten much worse. I had popped off the shell, and had the speaker out, trying to see if there was a loose something in the assembly, when I dropped the (metal) speaker directly onto the decoder.
At least the speaker doesn't rattle any more...

I choked on my drink,still laughing,but I am sorry for your misfortune....nope still sniggering.....

 

[Jaz avalley]

Good Afternoon all! A rather nice day with sunshine and a pretty good wind. Maybe the ground will dry out a little as I'd like to mow before the grass gets to long.
Thanks to all for the likes on the photo. I continued on with the Majestic Hardware project today. I need a little more patience. The parts are very small, quite fragile and not to forgiving if you make a mistake. I'm especially unhappy with the windows. I will probably need to revisit them later.
View attachment 128882

STAY SAFE
LATER

Yes they are not the straightest,lends some character,needs some hilly Billy’s outside - no offence to anyone - as you sort of imply the fixer up does not have the greatest of skills
that said I had trouble with a wills kit so I sympathise, I eventually treated and added clear p,attic stabilisers on the inside...well okay strips of bacon packaging which were not too visible

and stuffed filler in the gaps

final results - not too shabby - but there was ahemmm a bit of swearing in the process

 

[Jaz avalley]

A city in Cameroon got its first shopping mall, complete with escalator. Most had never before seen or used an escalator in real life. It is pretty funny to watch, but you have to give them credit for going head first and trying it. Pretty soon it will be second nature for them!

(Not posted to be rude or laugh at these people, but rather laugh with them)

These shoppers in Cameroon used an escalator for the first time and it went exactly how you'd expect

Apparently, the city of Douala, Cameroon got its first shopping mall late last year and people had a hard time adjusting to the modern oddity known as escalators.

notthebee.com

I bet wherever they were new peop,e went through the same learning curve over the years I have seen escalators and swing dorms beat people up,luckily the London Underground no longer has the wooden version - too many people dropped cigarette butts and started fires! I joke thee not.

 

[TLOC]

Hi, sitting at the gate for the airplane ride back to Wisconsin. The flight crew is on board but it seems the flight attendants or Stewart’s are landing in a few more minutes. They will get them here as quick as possible!

TomO

 

[bnsf971]

That's scarey.. How will they operate the brakes?

They’ll simply emulate the people around here—they won’t!

 

[BigGRacing]

final results - not too shabby -

Good morning JV, is that styrene that you cut the bricks in yourself? It looks great!

 

[troyphoto]

Well, Howdy there internet MRR peeps.

Need a tall cuppa joe (dark roast) and some honey for it this morning.

Good to see JazA using one of the filters from Citadel. I've picked up the matte medium and flow aid, along with acrylic inks to start mixing my own. There seem to be two broad methods for making your own filters and washes. One with Matte Medium (basically uncolored acrylic base) and the other with a large dose of isopropyl alcohol

Note: If you find a video that recommends using alcohol as part of the mix, be leery of using that on figures or painted rolling stock. It might work. But the alcohol is likely to mess with any acrylic paints. Definitely test it out before slathering it on. I'd probably use the alcohol mix for doing scenary (rock walls and such).

I'm on the recovery from the great Cat Dish incident. Spent a morning icing the back, then using the heating pad. I did spend the night in the recliner to keep the heating pad going in cycles. which the cat enjoyed. If I got up, he was on the heating pad in about 1.2 seconds.

Wore the back brace belt yesterday and didn't do much. Taking it easy today, but may head to costco. And up to the trailer hitch place...

Anyone ever get just the hitch installed on a car? Wife wants to start taking the bicycles around to state parks and such. They don't fit well in the Toyota Camry, so I'm thinking one of those slide into the Hitch slot bike racks for behind the trunk. Not sure what such a thing installed will set us back.

Here's a pic of the first three ships of the Royal Navy to be close to finished in my paintyard. HMS Duke of York, Dido, and Belfast (Battleship and two cruisers). Just need to finish detail painting a few bits and bobs, then hit it with filter/wash and highlight. Ships are 1:1800 scale. The electron microscope is still on backorder, so the crew is still unpainted, Willie.

 

[TLOC]

Good morning from the weary traveler. We are home in Wisconsin until 6/22/2021. The weather is humid at 72f degrees with the humidity clocking in at 88. Low 90’s today but other then some exercise in the pool and my normal Wednesday vacuuming session that is the plan for the day.

Got in 2 hours late yesterday as the flight from Phoenix waited for the flight attendants. They were nicely cheered when they got onboard. It is good to be home for awhile even though we hadn’t planned to.

I will head to the train room later and decide the next step. Right now I am relaxing on the deck. Have a great day

TomO

 

[bnsf971]

Troy, for those Regia Marina stripes, you could probably use nose stripes for an N scale FEC road diesel.

FEC 436 (FEC #103)

FEC 436 (FEC #103) Two days after being photographed on #226, the same duo return back southward again on #103.

www.rrpicturearchives.net

 

[santafewillie]

Good Morning All. Feels like Houston here, with partly cloudy skies, 74° and 93% humidity. Sticky just sitting here. Supposed to be much more seasonable weather with the temperatures in the lower 90's for the next four months! No rain in the ten day forecast, finally! Speaking of finally, I finally was able to remove the pool cover yesterday evening. Temperature is 78°. Water is very dirty though, I need to get the traveling vacuum going ASAP, after going to the hardware store this morning to replace a hose clamp on the water return line that broke while I was tightening it. Something to do while I wait for the dew to dry on the green bean plants.
I'll most likely pick the first two yellow squash this morning as well as the beans. They were close yesterday with a half dozen close behind. Interesting that the zucchini squash haven't put out any female flowers yet.

Just a bowl of corn flakes and milk for me this morning Flo.

Thanks as always to all who like or commented yesterday on the archive pictures from 2013-2015; Rick, Justin, Karl, Chad, Tom O, Garry, Patrick, Sherrel, Gary, Tom, Troy, Guy.

I did more detail painting yesterday out in the train shed, but didn't take pictures as I was too involved with the pool filling and cover removal. I'll go out after I make the hardware store trip and post a couple later this morning after the daily (for now) green bean harvest.
I hope that Guy can make it that long!

Guy - The pictures yesterday certainly resemble layout structures. They all make good candidates for scratchbuilding.
Steve - Good luck with the remodel. Those trips to the hardware store can be killers for me, as the closest one is 12.5 miles away. I always buy two of anything and I have a pretty good inventory of spare household parts in the shed. But no hose clamps as I haven't bought one in at least 15 years. Man! You have to remain hydrated. I found it harder to do after retiring, but I managed to get into a good routine with a minimum of 100 ozs/day even in winter.
Tom O -

The new A/C machine on the deck is much quieter then the few in Austin we saw. The install guys told me yesterday that they install about 100 a year in private settings. It works fine and then is a definite feelable difference.

At least your brother is doing his part to combat global warming.
I like those E&C woodchip hoppers. I have two but I am not letting them go. I will keep my eye open at shows around here.
Patrick - Your post yesterday reminded me to check my calendar for upcoming medical appointments. Much to my surprise I have none for the month of June! I truly believe that the medical industry as a whole, takes advantage of the Medicare system.

Everybody have a great "hump day". BBL

 

[Sirfoldalot]

Garry - The steamer crossing the "high bridge" is an awesome photo. Your entire layout is amazing to me!

CHAD = You have me sitting here trying to remember the first escalator that I "stepped on"?

More kudos later ... Supposed to reach 79 degrees later on with partly cloudy; it was 79 for a high yestersay.
I managed to get in close to 8 hours of sleep last night, but the pups decided it was past time to be up - I could have a couple more hours, but not according to them?

 

[McLeod]

Good Morning!

It's a dark morning with solid overcast and cool at 46°F. Don't seem to be raining; more like a light drizzle coming down. Just enough moisture to wet the streets.
I turned off the gas fired furnace two weeks ago, and was tempted to turn it on again just for today, as it's quite cool in the house. It's comfortable enough if we just put on a sweater, though. I don't like burning gas in the summer.

Jaz avalley - I really like the paintwork on those rock walls of the blue-doored structure. Well done, indeed. - We don't have a-lot of rock walls around here; mostly studded wood frame. If there's any rock walls around here, the government had it built on tax-payers money.

Willie - I've never seen a clock installed into a churches bell tower, not even in the monolithic city churches; so I'm not certain that the model in you're photo is entirely realistic. - The garage is a very fine looking model, and I like the car-wash scene! - Willie, I hope you're not offended because I made a joke about no pictures in a recent post; I was just kidding, and wasn't picking on you.

Troy - Well done on the tiny ships! Weren't they supposed to be done in a WWII 3-color splinter pattern!

Tom - I've never even thought about chip-hoppers on the rails. They're not used here at all, perhaps because the chips don't have that far to go and are transported by truck. I admit, though, I've never seen a chip-hopper car in real life. - A chip facility is an interesting layout idea.

Since it's crappy weather today, the wife wants to go to the city and buy a new door for our homes front entrance. This has created an argument, because we don't need another new door. Changing out another perfectly good door is extremely low priority, in my books. - She wants the new door mostly for modernization and looks, not that there is anything wrong with the old one.
We need a couple of new windows, which are higher priority. Right now, the kitchen window can't be closed from inside because the handle broke off.
I just don't know 'why' I've never been able to make sense with a women. - Suppose she'll be getting her new door!

I only have one photograph today, of a moving SD70-M2, and it's a poor photo.

Have a good one, folks!

 

[MilwRoader_Steve]

Good morning to all!

The new counters are in!! They look gorgeous. I was mistaken though, I have to wait until today for plumbing as the sealer had to cure without getting wet. Tile crew is here ripping out as we speak (type), so won't start until the afternoon some time. We'll see how far they want to go. Untrained eye says the rip-out might be done before 1200 local.

Willie - I imagine you do keep a nice stock of parts. A 12.5 mile run is enough to be detrimental. Mine is about 1/2 mile - makes for a nice break from the action. Sometimes, I'll 'need' something just to get away for a few minutes.

Went to LHS yesterday (Scale Model Supplies, St. Paul) and looked at a few things. Got some paints and did a mental inventory. They have a really nice selection of rolling stock, both RTR and kits. Great selection of paints and 'raw' materials (styrene, wood, metal) for modeling. I have my eye on this:

But I have heard that they are intricate models and tough to complete without breaking some of the finer parts. Does $18 seem a good price?

Does each model railroader have a particular style of car with which they infatuated? For me it is probably ice bunker reefers. Can't explain why, I just think they are the cat's meow.


One more pic. Rainbow came out when we were up north having a bite:

That's me and wifeykins!

Well, to work, as best I can with the noise. Cheers and God's blessing to all! -----Steve