Some ho modelers being too rigid

[Jaz avalley]

Now I like to mess about and add my funnies…but I do strive to put them in context so that I can argue the fact
Ok….I came from down under music playing……my photos are fighting the software apparantly
So….
If you part turn the screen and do not have dementia (unless it helps)
The green thunderbirds can pass ok
The yellow can past at a distance if you don’t squint to focus
But even I accept the last one is a toy….

In the event my software gives up the higher gibbeees I will come and correct this for the future
Please be advised YOUR screen is working fine…..where’s the. Rubber mallet…..Iam going to scare my software…

 

[Colorado Midland Modeler]

Here's some more "un-prototypical" things on my layout.
My version of The Hulk battling a trio of Bigfoots. Or should that be Bigfeet? They get moved around the layout every so often.

My home made Rocket Raccoon and Groot.

And giant "Angry Beavers", Daggett and Norbert.

 

[Jaz avalley]

Sasquach a fellow modeller somewhere here and I made this
Apologies for my picture orientations
….I come from a land down under…Blair’s out in the background

 

[Kusojiji]

Here's some more "un-prototypical" things on my layout.

View attachment 240551

Is that a prototype can of tuna? haha

 

[Jaz avalley]

Is that a prototype can of tuna? haha

Or turn it right side up let it rust a little, add more if required and you have a watertank

 

[Kusojiji]

Hey, you fixed your picture issue? Or is this just luck?

I noticed on another forum that my pics are showing up sideways. I just leave it since they limit only 5 per post.

 

[Jaz avalley]

Hey, you fixed your picture issue? Or is this just luck?

I noticed on another forum that my pics are showing up sideways. I just leave it since they limit only 5 per post.

I think a software update by one company is not playing well with another, hopefully they will sort it, unfortunately I won’t hold my breath anytime too soon

 

[Gary B]

Big Foot sure gets around. He's been recently sighted in the hills along the Fox River Valley Railroad.

 

[Colorado Midland Modeler]

Is that a prototype can of tuna? haha

I just might be! It's actually going to eventually become a fuel tank.

 

[kgstakes]

I agree with your point on graffiti, i think it's disgusting generally and i very well remember the time on American railroads, when graffiti was really a New York subway thing.
There is much wasted talent though on many of these freight cars. This beauty was spotted in Wyoming about three years ago in the Powder River Basin area:
Maybe not technically all perfect, but definitely a lot prettier than Mona Lisa.

It's hard to believe that raw talent is wasted on things like painting railroad cars. If someone would actually give some of these talented people a chance (if they would want it) they could probably do pretty well as an artist in galleries. IMHO.

 

[KriegslokBR52]

It's hard to believe that raw talent is wasted on things like painting railroad cars. If someone would actually give some of these talented people a chance (if they would want it) they could probably do pretty well as an artist in galleries. IMHO.

Problem is these people don't want to. Most of the graffiti is gang related as in marking their territory. But if you think about it, yeah pretty stupid; i mean the cars will be picked up by a locomotive and taken away. Basically the graffiti is just a reminder how fast we as society are sliding down to chaos. Pretty much everything is so easy to get, that we are not taking care of what we have. I was raised in a communist regime, the only thing in abundance was the dirt on the ground, so i was raised to take care of what i had, keep it clean and in good working order. Most parents now have gotten in their minds that since they didn't have it so well, they have to get their kids what ever the kids desire in order for the kids to have better life. Well, our nature doesn't work like that, the more we have, the less we'll take care of it. I personally try to live beneath my means and there were times when i just didn't buy what i wanted even though i could afford it, it's a form of self discipline in a way. But it also keeps me on guard sometimes and able to see the world around me in more realistic manner; finite.

 

[kgstakes]

Problem is these people don't want to. Most of the graffiti is gang related as in marking their territory. But if you think about it, yeah pretty stupid; i mean the cars will be picked up by a locomotive and taken away. Basically the graffiti is just a reminder how fast we as society are sliding down to chaos. Pretty much everything is so easy to get, that we are not taking care of what we have. I was raised in a communist regime, the only thing in abundance was the dirt on the ground, so i was raised to take care of what i had, keep it clean and in good working order. Most parents now have gotten in their minds that since they didn't have it so well, they have to get their kids what ever the kids desire in order for the kids to have better life. Well, our nature doesn't work like that, the more we have, the less we'll take care of it. I personally try to live beneath my means and there were times when i just didn't buy what i wanted even though i could afford it, it's a form of self discipline in a way. But it also keeps me on guard sometimes and able to see the world around me in more realistic manner; finite.

Totally agree with everything you've said. Especially, live within your means. If everyone did that nobody would have a problem with money. I don't care if you have a $10.00/hour job that you're just making by or a million dollar salary that you think you can buy whatever you want. If you don't live within your means, even the million dollar salary money will not last very long.

I'm no advisor on money but if you can put just a tiny bit away every paycheck, it will help if one day you need some extra money to fix something or buy something. Forget about credit cards. They only get you into more debt that you will never pay off. If you do use them, pay them off every month. That way there is no interest and you use it as just another way to pay for something but you know when the bill comes that you have the money to pay it off each month. If not, don't use it or at the very least control your spending so you can get to a point to where you can pay it off and then control your spending on credit cards. Back to you live within your means, if you can't pay for it (either right then or when the credit card bill comes, then don't buy it. You'll be better off in the long run.

I'm getting long winded now so Have a great day !!!

 

[KriegslokBR52]

The other thing I see and am fascinated by it, an example is on this thread,
is the could have been rail company (steampunk but with more realism)
in as much as a person likes the idea of a time,a place and a livery, and they enact it. I personally think that is totally cool.

There is such railroad company; Waldenburg Midland. It is located on a huge island on the Atlantic Ocean, but the satellite pictures show the area to be cloudy most of the time. The island is called Atlantica...now where did that name came from . Anyway the huge island is very rich in coal deposits and the island government was able to source some eclectic locomotive power for their transportation needs. And we're talking about locomotives thought to be scrapped long time ago.

They will not disclose where did they find the huge decapod with powered booster truck, thought to have been scrapped back in 1950.

But my guess is, it might have been hidden in the abandoned roundhouse in Pen Argyl of the former Lehigh and New England fame:

The former Conrail electric units were burried deep in General Electric Erie plant and found during recent house cleaning, when GE was closing it's Erie Works plant. They were quickly snatched up by Waldenburg Midland envoy which was visiting the US.

Their only roundhouse is packed with steam, which is obviously rare in this time and age. Some are in working condition and some need attention.

The black E44 closest to the photographer was among the electric locomotives found deep in General Electric plant. The former Pennsylvania Railroad L1 (the furthest from the photographer, was buried in Pittsburgh area and you can read about that in one of Railroad Museum of Pennsylvania brochures about the L1 class). The boys at the roundhouse did a wonderful job rebuilding that steamer and it's been performing almost flawlessly. Of course the management at Waldenburg Midland doesn't limit itself to finding railroad equipment in North America and this Polish build ET21 "Sputnik" was brought out for official photos after purchase from PKP Cargo:

The old electric which happens to be the same vintage as the former Conrail E44s will need some attention like fitting in missing windows, but it's in running order.

 

[NorthBrit]

To me anyone can operate their layout anyway and fashion they wish. They are not hurting anyone.

A person deriding another person's layout etc. is a no-no as far as I am concerned.

 

[Jaz avalley]

Edit..should have linked my reply lol, check top of the page…
I agree, I have clothes over 40 years old I still wear, I repair them if I can, what I cannot I use as rags,
Early 1990s we lost a home to mortgage rises, (I got pregnant and no maternity cover) when we got back on the house market,we needed a large deposit, and every spare penny paid off the mortgage early.
We no longer borrow money, we had old cars until we could buy better for cash and trade in, friends were like oh you need to buy better furniture better this better that…we made do, we have no mortgage, we have learnt skills to repair and maintain rather than pay tradesmen, and several friends who had to spend sone spend have lost their homes - usually after losing a job to redundancy but not always. We can but nice stuff now but we use it until it cannot be maintained. I have leather furniture (Italian) over 25 years old , the large settee sags a little but I add cushion and a throw and no one is the wiser.The small sofa and chair saw less wear - husband walks up to furniture and collapse onto it lol,
He fitted both our kitchens, he replaced 2 showers with like for like, he taught himself plumbing and carpentry.Wherever possible we go self sufficiency.


Live within your means teach your kids to repair.
Stay out of debt, a bank over draft is 39.9..40 percent per annum…..how does borrowing help you!

 

[Jaz avalley]

The shame is we no longer have a live and let live mentality, plus some of us well meaning may think another is capable of trying a different approach and may be a bit enthusiastic in encouraging them to do so (I think I have been guilty)
Some others have evolved and believe only their way is good, it is …for them, but we all need to let a person enjoy their hobby their way, and applause when we also like it, other wise just scroll past.

 

[trailrider]

"When your outgo exceeds your income, your upkeep will be your downfall!" Moelmann's Law (Late Colonel Jack Moelmann, USAF (Ret). A buddy of mine.

 

[DeaconKC]

"Use it up, wear it out, make it do or do without."
An old Scots proverb

 

[KriegslokBR52]

Do you know anything about the roundhouse in Pen Argyl? I would like to buy it.

The land belongs to some company which has their equipment on the grounds. They recently tore down the small building between the roundhouse and the locomotive shop. They also made an absolutely hideous looking extension to the locomotive shop. I was hoping to get together few guys to try to get the roundhouse registered as a historical building, but good luck nowdays to find people who have time for that. If you have the funds, then we could get together and attend the city council about it. I'd be glad to have that roundhouse saved somehow and maybe in the future set some kind of visitor center in it.

 

[KriegslokBR52]

Wed 3-18-2026 9:17 p.m.

I have been looking all over the US for a 100,000 sq ft steel pitched roof facility with a bridge crane. I would like to turn an older industrial facility into a re-purposing plant for discarded items. Roundhouses have been on my bucket list for a long time. Many sites have been designated as brown field sites by the USEPA. It is almost impossible to get the facilities through Phase II approval. The State of Pennsylvania is equally challenging to work with on older buildings. Perhaps that is one reason that there are 434 shuttered industrial facilities in Pa. I keep hoping and searching.

Best Wishes

Generally there are no traveling cranes in a roundhouse, or bridge cranes. The only sort of crane you would find there would be a drop table to drop driving wheels of a steam locomotive for servicing. You would have to find a rectangular building to get a bridge crane in it.