Running Bear's January 2022 Coffee Shop

[Patrick]

Morning all,

Cold 21° this morning in Doo-Dah. We may see some flurries later this afternoon as the bulk of any snowfall will be way to the west. May get to 30° later.

Thanks for the tips. I've decided I'm not going to run passenger trains as the are just too big for my layout. That said, the bulk of my railcars are freight type (box, tank, livestock, flats, etc.) So 33" it is with a smaller box of 36" for the odd car. I do have a couple of the Kadee height gauges, picked up along the way, and will use those as I have to change couplers on most from the hook\horn to Kadee anyway. I have a bulk pack of Kadee 5's and a couple of offset for an older Mantua tender. I'll need more of those as well.

I agree with Terry, the Ryzen series is a bit better than the intel counterpart, but your initial comparison is the same as "which is better, the i5 or the i3". That said, I had to have an i7 in the computer I bought in November. You won't be sorry on the Ryzen 5. We have 60 of them in desktops across the city and haven't had any issues CPU related. They are used in what I would call typical a typical business office.

BBL

 

[Bruette]

The newer-gen Ryzen 5 is much better than the Intel I5. The Ryzen 3 is generally better than the I3, depending on how the chip is spec'ed out.
The newer Ryzen 5 has either a quad-or-hex-core processor, and the 4th and 5th gen have what is known as hyperthreading, giving 8 or12 processing cores. The newer I3 has either dual or quad core and may or may not be hyperthreaded, depending on how it is spec'ed. The new Ryzens are also more power efficient than comparable Intel chips.

Brilliant! I read the bench marks, but I knew you would add depth in responding to my question.

Thank you!

 

[santafewillie]

Good Morning All. Clear and 37° here at Elev 820 ft, 33.37 °N, 97.18 °W. Cold front coming this afternoon; tomorrow's high only going to be 49°, but returning to the mid-60's by Saturday.

Thanks once again for all of those likes and comments regarding yesterday's post; James, Patrick, Tom O, Smudge, Louis, Steve J, Troy, Karl, George, Dave (PV), Joe, Justin, Sherrel, Hughie, OB Ken, Chad, Curt, Rick, Tom, Gary.

Mexican omelet for me this morning Flo. Spicy salsa on the side.

Mixed day yesterday out in the train shed. I added more ground cover, but I did not add any ballast to the last two turnouts, yet. I ran a lot of trains in an effort to locate the cars with the missing brake wheel and air reservoir. Found the brake wheel car, as the wheel that I had found was green, pointing to a BN car. So that one was easy. The black air reservoir is a bit more tricky, although chances are real good that the car is still on the lower level as I don't often move them from level to level. I was able to return all trains back to the staging yard though.

Steve J - $4500? Maybe! Easily! There's an additional 46 engines (in addition to the 19 pictured) spread out in the other two yards and in a couple of the passing sidings. Overall, there's ~800 freight cars. Much was bought quite a while ago. I haven't actually purchased a freight car since May of 2014. I have added nine ScaleTrains engines since then with four more on pre-order. Some of my 35 year old Athearn Blue Box engines are being phased out and retired.
Sherrel -

My money is on K.C. and S. F.

Like Karl, my money stays in my pocket...never bet on anything other than a slot machine. And then only on a two day visit to Vegas on business.
Tom O - I'm riding the market out. To appease my wife, I'll make a small change in allocations and she calms down when she sees the generic E-Mail confirming a transaction was made. She doesn't know if I bailed or what! I tell her later when things settle down.
Mikey - You're right about having too many construction workers in the same pose. I have many Preiser unpainted figures with jack-hammers.

Here's what I did with one.

Patrick - Most Athearn BB kits had 33" wheels.
Curt - Ugggh! That's a real drag regarding the corrugated siding. Good luck.
Louis - As the saying goes, "Whole Foods = whole paycheck". I have never been to one, I'm not even sure if there is one any where near. My son has told me that.

OK. I need some of you stock market entrepreneurs to start "buying the dip". Last week was brutal. I lost over $10K. I haven't bailed yet, but my wife is absolutely freaking out. She just looks at numbers and doesn't consider the actual minuscule percentage of the loss. I only have about 35% of my investments in stocks, the rest in bonds.

Y'all have a great day. Stay safe.

 

[Bruette]

Morning all,

Cold 21° this morning in Doo-Dah. We may see some flurries later this afternoon as the bulk of any snowfall will be way to the west. May get to 30° later.

Thanks for the tips. I've decided I'm not going to run passenger trains as the are just too big for my layout. That said, the bulk of my railcars are freight type (box, tank, livestock, flats, etc.) So 33" it is with a smaller box of 36" for the odd car. I do have a couple of the Kadee height gauges, picked up along the way, and will use those as I have to change couplers on most from the hook\horn to Kadee anyway. I have a bulk pack of Kadee 5's and a couple of offset for an older Mantua tender. I'll need more of those as well.

I agree with Terry, the Ryzen series is a bit better than the intel counterpart, but your initial comparison is the same as "which is better, the i5 or the i3". That said, I had to have an i7 in the computer I bought in November. You won't be sorry on the Ryzen 5. We have 60 of them in desktops across the city and haven't had any issues CPU related. The are used in what I would call typical a typical business office.

BBL

Thank you Patrick and forgive me. I did not intentionally overlook your valuable advice. In nearly 10 years of having Terry advise me on so many topics from bench work to computers and more I have become entrenched in my ways. Got a question, need advice ask Terry.

 

[Bruette]

Willie, I have heard that about whole foods. I have never been in one, not through the front door that is.
I have done some deliveries for whole foods. Their customers usually live in high dollar houses or luxury apartments.

 

[Boris]

Whole Foods, i don't think anybody mentioned that store.

Who can afford Whole Foods? Seriously, I've been in several, and they are not worth traveling an distance to patronize.

 

[NYC_George]

I did feel like going out yesterday to buy some construction foam, so I made the coupler for my 3D caboose project using a different method.
George

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Just about finished with installing a run around track on my staging lead. It has always been a problem to run trains down to the staging yard with the loco on the lead end. There was no way for the loco to get back up to the operating level. I installed a cross over between two of the staging yard leads so the leading loco can now switch over to the next track back and head back up hill. The staging lead is about 25 feet long and three tracks. Typically this is used during ops sessions to represent the outside world of this operating division. A second staging yard of 5 tracks feeds these tracks with assembled trains. A loco will pull the train from one of the five tracks down one of these tracks but will be trapped on the distant end. I installed a cross over track so a locomotive can uncouple from the train it just pulled into the center staging track then escape up the track that is closest to the wall. The control for that cross over is the slide switch that is embedded into the surface of the benchwork at the bottom of the picture. A simple slide switch that applies constant power to the tortoise machines. Now, I just have to finish up with putting the facia back up and cleaning up the saw dust.

 

[Alcomotive]

Who can afford Whole Foods? Seriously, I've been in several, and they are not worth traveling an distance to patronize.

Like Willie said.....Whole Foods = Whole Pay Check.

Some people just go there for the conversation or status quo....all the power to them for the craziness. I went in there once to just observe the prices and quality....no way could I justify paying that kind of money for that type of food. I saw no value in it at all. Nope. I call it a yuppie store or keeping up with the Jones'.....plain stupid.

 

[Alcomotive]

A reminder that this week is the Amherst Train Show! In Springfield, Massachusetts. The BIG "E"! Saturday and Sunday

I will be going as I mentioned a dozen times can you tell I am looking forward to it?

So if you are going PM me! I would love to meet ya there! It would be nice to put a face to the avatars! I will be there on Saturday only. From 9am to 5pm then afterwards I go to a local restaurant for dinner before heading home.

Railroad Hobby Show

Amherst Railway Society Railroad Hobby Show

www.railroadhobbyshow.com

 

[Alcomotive]

Just about finished with installing a run around track on my staging lead. It has always been a problem to run trains down to the staging yard with the loco on the lead end. There was no way for the loco to get back up to the operating level. I installed a cross over between two of the staging yard leads so the leading loco can now switch over to the next track back and head back up hill. The staging lead is about 25 feet long and three tracks. Typically this is used during ops sessions to represent the outside world of this operating division. A second staging yard of 5 tracks feeds these tracks with assembled trains. A loco will pull the train from one of the five tracks down one of these tracks but will be trapped on the distant end. I installed a cross over track so a locomotive can uncouple from the train it just pulled into the center staging track then escape up the track that is closest to the wall. The control for that cross over is the slide switch that is embedded into the surface of the benchwork at the bottom of the picture. A simple slide switch that applies constant power to the tortoise machines. Now, I just have to finish up with putting the facia back up and cleaning up the saw dust.

View attachment 139421

Awesomeness Ken!

 

[MilwRoader_Steve]

Alright guys (used in the universal sense). "My name is Steve ... and I'm ... a snob."

We shop Whole Foods a lot! Wifeykins is very ... meticulous ... when it comes to groceries. Only takes once or twice at a grocery store for someone to play the ignoranamous card for her to scratch that one off her list. Yep, they are pricey and yep, we shop elsewhere for deals ... But Praise the Good Lord, we no longer are feeding six people on $99 per week. We are blessed with combined incomes such that penny-pinching is no longer our raison d'etre. Besides, the eye candy is overall hugely better at WF than at Wally-world, and life is too short not to look at pretty females. Though I will say, I also like Trader Joes (except their NSDAP-like pandemic response). And the 'sights' there are generally of the same caliber. What can I say, I am a flaming heterosexual!

We have a local butcher for meats, and Hyvee is a three minute walk (except at -15F, like this morning, when it takes longer to don the suit of armor than it does to walk there). So of late, wife has been using "Shipt" online service for ordering basics from Hyvee and then we buy certain things at WF or like store.

I know, I know - - - using an online service is so ... New York ... but we have our legally-blind daughter on the same account so she can use the service and get her groceries delivered which is a Huge Boon to her.

We have an eclectic palate and often have more unusual dishes in our fare. Easier when cooking for two. And we enjoy good things. You should see my wine cellar and Liquor cabinet.

So I will quietly collect my things and skulk out the door ... ... carry on with your discussions on how you save six cents on the dollar. I'll not say a thing. Though in my defense: "I WILL drive 3 miles to save $0.19 per gallon (roughly $2.75 per tank)! Does that get me back in?

- - - - -- - -- - -

Took a break from working from home and remade the cable from SUnday. Meaning, I cut off the Anderson Power Pole connectors I put on Sunday when very tired and put on new ones with greater care. Now it works great. Should have run some more wires - but didn't. My new liquid soldering rosin arrived last night with the mail - will be putting that to good use in the upcoming ROW construction

Thanks, Tom for the SBS (Streamlined Backshop) lead - - never seen them before. They still have some Tam Valley Depot products in stock which are getting harder and harder to find. Though not what I need now. But I am kicking myself. TVD's auto-reverser/circuit-breaker is much cheaper than DCC Concept's . . . . but I already ordered the PSX series and had better stick to them.

Oldest dau for dinner tonight and then a 7pm meeting - my least favorite of the evening meeting cycles. Ugh - - maybe run some wires this afternoon.

Blessings to all and thanks for the read! Steve J

 

[Boris]

Good morning: Supposed to be "Fair" and 35°, but it looks cloudy and damp out there...The roller coaster weather pattern continues, as it is supposed to warm up into the mid 40s today, then stay in the high 20s tomorrow. No wet or flaky weather until Thursday night.

Yesterday, was a sad day in Baltimore, as Three firefighters were killed fighting a fire in a row of vacant row houses. They were apparently conducting a search when the the floor collapsed...Why were they inside??? The initial call was for a fire with "people trapped".

My phone "notifications" of the pre-market, are unusually silent, other than the initial report that the Dow was down 300, in early trading...Around mid day, I will revisit my watch list to see if there are any bargains to be had. Curious to see who or what gets blamed today. This morning it was algorithms....really???????

George: That coupler is awesome!

Caps lost last night 1-0.....really??????

I have been running trains the last couple of days. Lots of switching and rehandling...the truth is I have too many cars on the railroad, for the available space. At one point, my Reading switch engine was handling a draft of 15 mixed cars, and it took up space on three modules. The wife, thinks I have a very large railroad, she doesn't understand how small it really is. Point to point, it stretches, + or -, 54 ft.

Spent some time yesterday learning about coil steel cars and PRR class G28 covered gondolas. Unfortunately, I don't think there is a model of one on the market...have to re-read the article...the Athearn BB covered gond vaguely resembles one, but as we all suspect, Irvie Athearn probably used a Lionel gondola as his prototype.

B&O # 173, single car mid day Baltimore to Washington local, and connection for # 9, at Riverdale, MD W. Hakkarinen photo from 1964

 

[Boris]

Only takes once or twice at a grocery store for someone to play the ignoranamous card for her to scratch that one off her list.

Steve: Not for nothing, here in the Soprano State, you would probably scratch Whole Paycheck off your list, because ignoramuses are everywhere, and they have more money than brains. If we are going to drive 15 miles to shop, I would rather do Wegman's and contend with the Type "A"s racing through the store with their mini carts.

I am cheap, and I make no excuses for getting the best deal possible, but I have standards too. Frequently, we just mask up, and go to ShopRite, and avoid the most obnoxious checkers when our shopping is complete...It's the path of least resistance.

 

[Sirfoldalot]

NOT a good morning! Last night around 11PM I was awakened with my left lower back really hurting?
I thought I must have slept twisted in some way - NOPE - the hurting became worse.
It took me a while to realize that I must have a kidney stone?
Within a short time the pain was such that I wanted to throw up! I said to heck with the doctors and took Advil even though I take a double (2xday) blood thinner. I am pretty much out of the loop at this time!

NOTES: I love WM here - Our store here is clean, well stocked, and for the most part there are only a few weirdos.
This store is in the top 5 WM as to size and volume- if I remember correctly. There are 20 checkout lanes (generally no less that 6, or so manned, and at least 20 more self - checkouts.

WILLIE/KARL: I should not have said that. I never bet on sports - not even a dollar! All FOUR of my teams lost, and that is the reason I don't bet on sports. FADE ME-You will be rich!

I agree with STEVE-J -- Life is too short to NOT look at the girls! Dad always said - When I don't look - you might as well throw some dirt over me!

Back to bed for a while!

 

[TLOC]

Good morning global modelers, stock market gurus and grocery shoppers. Oh what a group we are and that does include the computer stuff written about.

Whole Foods, never have I been in one. Trader Joe’s is the place my sister buys from. Went in once with her and just laughed at the cheese counter guy talking about his artesian cheeses. Told him thanks, stop as being from Wisconsin I might know more about cheese then he did. Our normal store is our HyVee and mainly because of the money earned for buying gas.

Trains, if it wasn’t for sound equipped locomotives I might seriously think about going back to DC only. Sold off all 3 ProtoThrottles because operations on the layout have really ground to a halt. I sometimes have felt lately that I more enjoy the process of the layout build then i do operating trains. Maybe I should put the lift out back in and run trains in a loop while I work at the bench

Have a day!
TomO

 

[chadbag]

Whole Foods. There used to be one close to us (meaning within 5 miles). We would go there very occasionally when we had a special need. Then they got mixed up with Amazon and closed the store. I think there is one in or near downtown SLC. Even when we had one we didn't shop there very much due to the high costs for the same items as other places had for less.

 

[D&J RailRoad]

Doing the final checks before putting the facia back up. All track has power and a pair of SD40T-2s fit into the track beyond the crossover. The SD40T-2s are used as helper locos on the 60 feet of 2% grade up to the operating level.

 

[Patrick]

Louis: It's all good. I don't stay as current on PC's as I used too. Just too much to remember. I do servers and networking a lot more as that is my current focus in life. I do know I should have bought my computer long ago as I can almost do 90%+ of my job from home. Still have the hands on BS occasionally.

What do you guys prefer for paint? Enamels or acrylics? I've got to get some paint to touch up or repaint some locomotives and wondering which would hold up better. I do use acrylics (water based) on my buildings as once completed won't generally have to be handled like rail cars and locomotives. I do know prep is 90% of the paint job.

 

[Texas Hobo]

Good morning all! A very gray overcast damp day here in Houston. I believe they are planning on showing us some sun around Thursday, maybe.
Sausage and biscuits please, and a large cup of coffee.

Been in Whole Foods a time or two. If you are searching for gluten free food you'd be in heaven. I thought quite pricey. I will say their produce looked very fresh and good.

George - Showed the wife the picture of the coupler, she said NO.
Willie - 800 freight cars! I have 10% of that and can't really use them all. There are a few that have never moved since being set on the layout.
Sherrel - Many years back, I took my then 82 year old father-in-law to the airport to pick up his brother. A couple to flight attendants walked by, he turned to look after them as they passed. He said," I'm old but I'm not dead." Sure miss that old guy.


I did run a little switcher yesterday, spotting some cars.

STAY SAFE
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