More Links

Today I've expanded the links substantially to help you on your way sourcing models, parts, scenery details etc for North American model railroads, which are not always that easy to find in the UK and the rest of Europe.  If there are any you feel are worthy of inclusion in this list, let me know and I'll gladly add them.

I will still add some more in the future as I still have more to put in the list, but this should get you going :-)

Western Union photo impressions

Links

I decided to add a column of useful links to the blog. I have loads more to add which I will do in the near future, but for now I hope you find these helpful. I intend to cover as many aspects as I can, and I do not endorse any of the commercial companies that you may find here, but having them in one place may help you find what you are looking for.

First run

Today, I continued with some wiring on my layout to the point that I was able to run the first loco for a few meters. I used the one with the shortest wheel base to find any spots where the power pick up isn't great, and I did find a few places where it's not too reliable yet, so more feeder wires to be soldered on still. This is the ideal moment to do so, as later when track is painted and ballasted it is a lot trickier.
On the picture, my Proto 2000 North Eastern SW1200 locomotive is heading straight for the camera lens...

Paints, airbrushes etc

Model railroading is a hobby with many sides, and you have to be a bit of a jack of all trades.  Modeling an American prototype comes with it's own challenges, particularly if you are based in Europe, like me.

There's all sorts of fantastic articles on the web and magazines and referring to several great products, only to find that they are sometimes hard to get on this side of the pond. My current task (among others) is trying to locate a few sources that supply the railroad colour range of Testors paints. More precise their Floquil Poly S paints. I found one shop so far that has a fair selection in stock, but as luck should always have it, there are a few not listed that I need. (not listed means out of stock in this case), this is Model Junction based in Slough UK. A great shop, but I'm looking for alternative sources, simply because I don't want to have to wait weeks for a simple bottle of paint for them to order it in the US I'd like to have a few sources so that if one doesn't have it, someone else may do and I can keep going with my modeling in a reasonable time frame. Seems only fair right? If you know of any others in the UK, be sure to let me know via a comment here, and share it with others. A similar issue I'm having currently with my airbrush. Mine is a DeVilbiss. I hadn't used it for years and now I'm preparing for that again, but what has happened here? DeVilbiss has specialised in paint guns for the automotive industry, and sold most of their airbrush production to a chinese company who still markets them under the same name, but the quality is reportedly not quite the same. Mine is a pre take over model. Anyway, so finding parts, hoses and other accessories for these is proving hard too, not in the least because there are several different manufacturers that use different fittings , couplings etc on their hoses and I'm not entirely sure what I have on mine...  So another challenge here.

Wiring up

As mentioned in the last post, I was in the process of wiring up the layout. One yard is now done. I've soldered wires directly to the rail, and used a little extra flux (available from your DIY store or plumbing supply) to make the solder flow easier and reducing the time the soldering iron is in contact with the rail, and thus preventing the plastic ties to melt. As ever with work like this, use caution, follow all safety precautions (solder is hot, flux is an irritant, so ventilate the space well) by their respective manufacturers, and I do not accept any liability. Rather than taking pics etc, here's a little video I found on Youtube, that explains it very well, and is very similar to my method, although I prefer using multiple strand wire as opposed to the solid strand used in this video, made by Paul Aziz from Lebanon, Oregon.   

Progress on the layout.

My California Northern layout is seeing some slow progress at the moment. About 90% of the track is laid, and I've started piercing holes through the roadbed next to the tracks to feed wiring through. I'm using PECO code 75 track with 'electrofrog' turnouts. This means that insulated rail joiners have to be used as these type of turnouts have a tendency to short out the lines if thrown. There are ways around it by cutting wires on the bottom etc of these, but then you'll need to wire up these turnouts and use switches etc. As mine are going to be hand thrown for simplicity and as they're all within my reach, I have decided to leave these wire bridges in place. It does mean however that a few additional electrical connection points are needed throughout the yards etc, making that job a little more tedious. Then again, it will improve electrical connections, and making it more reliable once I switch to DCC.
Here's a pic of one of the yards just before I started the wiring job.