jim
New Member
I am again reminded of my place and it not here.
Posts: 41
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Post by jim on Sept 13, 2024 20:19:56 GMT
Steve, looks great! Wondering if you took any intermediate pictures of your progress?
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 13, 2024 21:04:41 GMT
Steve, looks great! Wondering if you took any intermediate pictures of your progress? Mmm, just a few:  This was my first attempt at the base color, with Mod Podge on a few areas to see if it made any difference to my initial reaction that it was "too blue" (spoiler -- it didn't!). I did a second coat of paint over the first (and over the Mod Podge), which turned out a bit greener/browner, and then added a couple more coats of Mod Podge over all of the new color, as shown below. I also completed the bulkheading and the wiring for the navigation lights on the bulkheading, and added some navigation signs:  Finally, I tested the lights, w/o camera flash:  I have a few more pics of the earlier swing section build -- here's a video of an animation test, with lights powered on one side -- but I'll save most of them for another post!:
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Post by Adam on Sept 13, 2024 22:04:54 GMT
That is really neat! Great work!
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 13, 2024 22:32:58 GMT
That is really neat! Great work! Thanks, Adam! It's been a challenge, on many levels, but this and other projects have given me a great chance to play around with a range of materials and concepts related to trains. If we can just manage to find room for it on the RFC train garden, I'll be a very happy camper! 
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Post by patapscovalleyrr on Sept 15, 2024 19:48:18 GMT
Steve,
This looks amazing. Great Work!!!
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 15, 2024 20:48:09 GMT
This looks amazing. Great Work!!! Thanks! I just received some Plastruct railing stock yesterday, and fabricated, painted and installed the railings on the water-level bulkheads, and today got the connectors I needed to finalize the wiring. Pics to follow . . . 
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 16, 2024 21:55:14 GMT
Nearing completion of the center span modules, with lights and motors wired up to accessory power through two buck converters: The control switch is still in breadboard form, which is the way I may leave it until I do the two traffic control modules, one on each 'bank', and figure out how to coordinate control of all three modules in one panel . . .  |
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Post by Adam on Sept 17, 2024 12:16:12 GMT
Thats going to be a great feature of your layout.
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 17, 2024 14:41:13 GMT
Thats going to be a great feature of your layout. Actually, if everything goes as planned, it'll be a developing feature at the RFC train garden, modeling a portion of downtown Cambridge, MD. The prototype bridge is within a couple of blocks of the old train station, which I modeled earlier:  I also added holiday lights to the existing model of the old fire station, which is the location of the train garden itself:  We're not sure it'll be up for this December's train garden open house (more likely they'll be scattered around the very large layout space this year, rather than featured together), but eventually the plan is to represent the community, either at an earlier time or in fantasy projection. Stay tuned . . .
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Post by Adam on Sept 17, 2024 16:14:13 GMT
Great plan! Cant wait to see it!
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 18, 2024 18:22:56 GMT
Update: while reading a thread on an unrelated matter (material to repair a whistle lanyard), I realized the braided fishing line being recommended might be perfect for one of my loose ends: depicting the steel cable wraps around the piling bundles protecting the bridge bases. So, when the commenter offered to send the OP a sample, I sent a PM asking if I could get one, also. He refused my offer of payment, and lo and behold, the line worked perfectly!:  Note: the bundles are temporarily held together by rubber bands around the middle, which will be removed when the bundles are Mod Podge'ed to the 'water' -- the new line is around the top. For comparison, here's a shot of the prototype. Other than the model pilings being a lighter color (less 'creosote'?), I think they are fairly close:  Thanks again, Millstonemike! |
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Post by Country Joe on Sept 19, 2024 3:01:18 GMT
Steve, the cable looks really good, just like in the prototype photo. 👍
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 19, 2024 3:11:12 GMT
Steve, the cable looks really good, just like in the prototype photo. 👍 Thanks, CJ! Yeah, the braided fishing line was spot on in both color and texture, and the only real challenge was trying to juggle the center pole and the six surrounding supports while trying to tightly wrap the line around the bundle at the top, and then secure the end with CA! Talk about all thumbs . . .
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Post by healey36 on Sept 19, 2024 12:26:53 GMT
Those pilings look terrific, Steve, especially the painted-on sheet copper caps. You've replicated the patina of aged copper perfectly.
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Post by steveoncattailcreek on Sept 19, 2024 15:35:50 GMT
Those pilings look terrific, Steve, especially the painted-on sheet copper caps. You've replicated the patina of aged copper perfectly. Thanks! It was helpful that all I had to do was look out the window to see a prototype to copy!  [The pic is old enough that only the older caps on the bulkhead pilings had acquired their full greenish patina, while the (relatively newer) pier piling caps were still in the process of oxidizing . . . ] As it happens, I had previously used our pier as a model for a pier I scratch built for the fishing pond on the layout, using dowels and coffee stirrers purloined from the local bagel shop: 
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