Follow Up to a Previous Post

I think it was 3 weeks ago that I posted this picture (below), and commented that I needed to do some improvement to that side of the fence on the right.  You can't see that side of the fence from the front of the layout, but it does make for poor scenery in photos taken in that area.

So my filing system actually worked (imagine that), and I found my copies of the paper corrugated siding that the fence is "made" from.  The siding is printed paper images made by Paper Creek Model Works.  They were given to me years ago by Bruce Peachey.

So, after a couple hours of cutting and gluing, the back of that fence looks like this now:

Much better. Now I'd better put some ground cover between the track and the fence.  I'll have to be careful do that though, because of the paper gets wet at all it will discolour the printed image.

Just another similar view, but with a Conrail gondola in the picture.

Another view from just a bit farther back.  Guess I ought to ballast that switch and the area in the left of the picture also.

As for that gondola I mentioned above, I got started on making up a couple of scrap loads this week.  A piece of styrene sheet cut to fit inside the gondola, some rusty chips from a milling machine, and some scrap styrene bits and pieces that I've been saving  just for this kind of thing.

All glued down with diluted white glue.  Just need some drying time for the glue and then they'll be ready for spraying with the primer.

That'll be all for now.  Happy Labour Day Weekend everybody.

Berlin Mills Boxcar 2nd Side

The weathering on the (Rapido) Berlin Mills boxcar is complete, so here's a few looks at the 2nd side, and a couple of views of it out in the wilds of the layout.

Just a refresher photo of what the boxcar looks like straight from the box.

A really nice shade of green. 

Portrait style picture of the 2nd side to start with:

This is how things are looking now.

And so out on the layout

Set out on the lead into the paper recycler which is to the right but just out of the photo.

Same location, different angle.  Looking at the roof in this one, I brushed on 4 layers of Vallejo Rust Texture to cover the silver roof.  But I'm still deciding on whether or not to paint on some grey sealant across the roof panel joints.

The weathering makes the Berlin Mills car blend right in in this short train.

 

This is actually the same side as we were looking at last week, but I just liked the picture so I thought I'd pop it in here too.

So that's it for now.  Have a good week everybody.

Berlin Mills Boxcar

Last week's post I referred to weathering and patching a GONX gondola to an HPJX gondola.  I didn't get to that project yet, but did get a start on a Berlin Mills PC&F 5241 cu.ft. boxcar I bought from Rapido a couple of months ago. It's certainly not finished yet, but weathering on one side is complete so I thought I'd show that progress.This is the boxcar as new and just out of the box

Boxcar after fading with thinned acrylic Concrete Gray sprayed through the airbrush. With the paint cup on the airbrush filled about halfway with water, I added and mixed in 2 drops of the paint.  I sprayed each side of the boxcar with about 6 layers of the mixture.

I then sprayed the whole car with Testors Dullcote to seal in fade layers before spending the next hour or two adding the rusty and grimy weathering.

So now that nice shiny boxcar looks like this.

And here's a look at it and the stuff I used to get it this way.

Left to right we have: Pan Pastel Burnt Sienna and Burnt Umber  powders, Winsor & Newton acrylic Burnt Sienna and Burnt Umber paints, Tamiya Panel Line Black, Folk Art Barn Wood acrylic, and 2 fine tip brushes and one flat brush.

I expect to be able to get more accomplished on this freight car in the coming week.

I had a birthday on Wednesday, and my late sister's birthday would have been today (Friday).  Here's the two engines together that I've numbered with our birthdates.

Side by side in front of the maintenance building at the JSSX.

And the two on a different day working along the shortline.

That's it for now.  Have a good week.

JSSX This Week

Trains are back in action this week here, after cleaning the track (again) last week and having everything cleared off of the rails to do that.  I spent a good couple of hours cleaning, using one of those grey Peco eraser thingies and running the track CMX track cleaner all over the place.

Nothing like a photograph though to help us see things that just don't look "right" on the layout.  So here we are, along the GTW tracks that run behind the scrap metal yard.  This angle of view is captured by reaching across the layout and laying the camera down on the track.

So the problems here, as I see them anyway, are the switch in the foreground isn't ballasted, and the back side of the fence on the right is just plain white styrene sheet. So there's that. But the tracks themselves look kind of cool with some dips and dives.  That diamond there on the left is Code 100, everything else is Code 83.

A closer view at the spur at Tri-State Paper and GTW 6212

I came across this gondola photo.  I like the weathering and aged graffiti on this one, and I've got a pretty similar, but clean gondola that maybe I could try to make look like this one.  It would fit in nicely on the layout here.

Photo credit goes to Dustin Faust.  Not sure, but it looks like Altoona, Pa.

And here's the car, maybe manufactured by Roundhouse, I could try to use.

This gondola is pretty close to the prototype one.  At least close enough for me.

That'll be it for the trains on the blog this time, but I've got this one other picture to show.

I know that's not much from the layout, but I want to show this picture that I took last summer of the lake freighter Cuyahoga as it passed beneath the Bluewater Bridges here at Sarnia.  This freighter was built in 1943, making it the oldest vessel on the Great Lakes.  It was here through the several winters for maintenance.

Anyway, my reason for posting it is that while sailing in Lake Erie in May, Cuyahoga suffered an engine room fire.  As a result, it was towed last week across Lake Erie from Ohio to Port Colborne, Ontario where it is slated to be cut up, likely for scrap.

Not a Train to be Seen

Things have been pretty quiet around the railroad here.  This weeks post will serve as a case in point...

Nothing happening at the grey warehouse.

And no freight cars at the transload either.  I've got to come up with a name for that place.  I've been thinking of calling it Affiliated Transfer, or something like that, and making just a small sign to place here.

Over on the GTW, the spur at Midwest Plastics on the left is also vacant.

All the gondolas are "gon" from Ferrous Processing

And Tri-State Paper as well as the GTW main and run around siding have no trains either.

Truth is, I've just got all the freight cars cleared off so that I can give the track a decent cleaning.  Again.

Have a great August 1st long weekend.

A Potash Covered Hopper

It'll just be a short post this week.  It's summer and I haven't been spending much time at the trains.  I have been working slowly on a Potash covered hopper for Brian.  I say slowly because the white artist oil paint that I've been using has sure been taking it's time drying.  Like, 2 or 3 days of drying time each time I add a little bit.

The only "before" picture I took of the covered hopper was this one below. I don't really think I've ever seen this happen before...opened the Intermountain/ box to begin weathering of this cylindrical hopper for Brian and had a bit of a surprise.Found both of the air hoses laying loose in the box, and one of the trucks had completely fallen to pieces.

Anyway, here's a couple of looks at what I've done so far to the Potash hopper.

I just used tacky glue to hold the broken truck together.  It seems to be holding at least for the time being.

I don't think I really like the graffiti too much, but it's a decal so I might just lift it off by re-wetting it and then lifting it with a soft flat brush.

That's all I've got this time.  Have a good week.

Chain Link Security Fence is in Place

I finally got the chain link fencing that I posted about here a couple of weeks ago (June 27th) in place in front of my Tri-State Paper industry along the GTW line.  I'd imagine that management at the Tri-State plant feels the place is much more secure now.

Anyway here's how things are looking as far as that little project goes.

Here's a look at the place without the fence.

The whole thing can be lifted out to be taken over to the workbench, leaving quite a gap along the backdrop

Might as well have a picture of the industry as it sits on the bench.

Still on the bench, and sorry it's so hard to see but the fence is in place.  I've dropped some scrap paper along the spur too, mostly in front of the loading doors.

So here is my Tri-State Paper industry back on the layout right where it belongs, and with a couple of boxcars in place.  I know it's pretty hard to see the fencing, but it's there.

A better up-close look and the fencing is actually visible in this picture.

And a close view from the other end of the spur.

Changing gears now to our 1:1 world, I happened to be fortunate enough to be on the platform here in Sarnia last Saturday July 12 to catch NS engine 7692, an ES40DC, leading Train 716 eastbound just after it run out of the St.Clair River Tunnel

Except for the buffer cars, the whole train was black.  On the near track, the track inspector is in his truck waiting for 716 to clear so he could continue on through the tunnel.

Have a good week everybody.

CP Cylindrical Hopper Weathered

Thought I'd just show photos of the freight car weathering project I worked on this week for Brian Smith.  Brian provided the car, but inspiration for the weathering on this one definitely came from a similar car that was done by Rob Arsenault.

Although not a copy (well maybe a bit), I offer thanks and appreciation to Rob Arsenault for this one.

I faded the whole car first, then masked off most of it and sprayed SP Red for the large patches.  Then faded the sides again, including the patches.

The walkways are done by brushing on a couple of different AK Interactive rust colours.

Walkways turned out well

B-End

The other end.

The dark streaks are Burnt Umber and Burnt Sienna

And I set the car out on the layout for a few photos too.

I like this picture the best

That's about it for now.

New Scrap Load

I bought this nice Chooch Industries cast resin scrap load for a gondola from a modeler in BC last week.

Doesn't look like much here, but some rusting will fix that.

I brushed on this assortment of AK Interactive weathering colours.  I think it looks more orange and quite a bit brighter here than it should.

I've darkened it down somewhat here by brushing on couple of applications of an India ink/alcohol mixture I keep around now.  That's a weathering technique I learned from George Dutka at his White River Division blog.

The new scrap load (bottom in the picture) along with another different Chooch Industries load that I've had for quite a while.

And so with a dirty and rusty looking scrap load in ZVBX 97337, the GTW has arrived to switch it out from the Ferrous Metals & Processing site.  Looks pretty good in the gondola.

Generally in the summer I try to post a picture or two of freighters passing by here in the St.Clair River.  This is self-unloading bulk carrier CSL Laurentien (723 feet in length), downbound from Lake Huron as it enters the river.Laurentien on its way to Becancour, Quebec on July 2, 2025.  Not sure what the freighter is carrying.

Have a good week everyone.