Eastern Tn logging on the DG CC & W RR 1928

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
a video link





here is the link to #8 a heavily modified MDC shay on cave cove Creek bridge, below Terrapin Tn. on the Mountain Division of the Dead Grass, Crooked Creek and western railroad. the log cars are MDC shorty flats and the combine is a kitbashed (shortened) Labelle kit, I built more than 30 years ago.


Bill Nelson
 
Last edited:

Doctor G

Well-Known Member
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=In4dUQ1yPsk




here is the link to #8 a heavily modified MDC shay on cave cove Creek bridge, below Terrapin Tn. on the Mountain Division of the Dead Grass, Crooked Creek and western railroad. the log cars are MDC shorty flats and the combine is a kitbashed (shortened) Labelle kit, I built more than 30 years ago.


Bill Nelson
WAY TO GO Bill!!!! The movie was cool. Roscoe and Pumpkin saw the film crew and watched the whole scene from above the Gorge. They too were really impressed!!!!

Doc Tom:thumb:
 

Attachments

  • Roscoe and Pumpkin.jpg
    Roscoe and Pumpkin.jpg
    202.3 KB · Views: 31

Hoorhaylowe

New Member
Holy Smokes that was breathtaking. That bridge is a beautiful creation. I can't begin to express how realistic the slow speed makes the scene...I could imagine you could edit to black and white add some aged film effects and narrate the event! Could be the beginning of your film career Bill!announce1
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Thank you very much!

to quote Elvis, "Thank you very much!"

Copyright laws prevented me from using the Grateful Dead's Big Railroad Blues ) as a sound track..

There is a whirr from the camera, and some thing that looks like an intermittent bind on the locomotive, but those are digital artifacts . When Dr. Tom comes over to play trains, #8 is his favorite Shay .

#8 is so slow some operators don't like it . It's usual assignment is the switch engine for Crooked Creek, probably the biggest job on the layout. I have plenty of time to think about the next move.

I used to have that gear reduction motor in a Mantua General. It was so slow I could have the locomotive at a standstill, quickly give it full throttle, and as quickly as possible return the throttle to zero, and get less than a quarter of a revolution of the drive wheel.


I bought that motor from a guy at a table in the 1973 NMRA national convention in Atlanta , I wish I had bought 3 or four, slow is fun.

Bill Nelson
 

Hoorhaylowe

New Member
Bill I wanted to mention that the smaller spikes really looked great on the tracks just can't remember what thread it was this or the "excellent adventure" do you recall what drill size you used for pilot holes?
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Bill I wanted to mention that the smaller spikes really looked great on the tracks just can't remember what thread it was this or the "excellent adventure" do you recall what drill size you used for pilot holes?

The teeny tiny ones that break if you look at them. don't remember the #s right off the top of my head, I'll look at my sets, tell you the #'s that are missing, and that should be pretty close.

The spikes I'm using at the club ((Bill and Tom's excellent adventure). are micromark small spikes, and don't need pree drilled holes with the home made cedar ties on homasote we are using there . the micro-engineering spikes need pre drilled holes when used in yellow poplar ties on homasote, or on yellow poplar stringers for bridges, or they fold up like a lawn chair Necessary with code 55. some folks glue code 55 and avoid spikes except at critical points. another trick is to make every 3rd or fourth tie from PC board and solder the rails down.


Bill Nelson
 

Mountain Man

Active Member
Here's a trick I learned the hard way. Take your tiny drill bit and cut it short to a length that works for your project, usually about half. Save the point half and discard the shaft part. Then chuck it into the pin vise and start drilling. The shorter shaft is less flexible and therefore absorbs the torque forces better. for very tiny drill bits and/or drilling iton tougher mterials, I shorten the bit by two-thirds and use only the one-third at the point end.
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
Thanks,

that should help a lot, a little soap to act as a lubricant helps to. I will try that next time I need a tiny drill
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
SML CC EH nrh wl #1.jpg SML CC E H nrth wl #2.jpg North wall of the Crooked Creek engine house starts to shape up

I did some poking around on the North wall of the Crooked Creek Enginehouse/ shops building. between excavating under my bathroom and going to the Nashville Predators Ice Hockey season opener last night.


There is some errant glue on this, but the plan is to sand and file that off before painting the frame grey. I'll apply individually painted poard and battens to the framework someday, as well as a separate free standing post and beam framework to support the roof.

the east and west walls haven't been started yet, but they should be a lot less complex. I'm not really satisfied with my window choices so far, would like some windows bigger than any castings I have available right now . I have a nice wood floor in place for the enginehouse, with two inspection pits built in. with that, and the attention to the frame I have been making full interior detail is in order, and big windows will help show it off. If I go thith the smaller grant line windows I have in stock, I'll have to use lots, and have some big open freight doors as well


Bill Nelson
 
Last edited:

Doctor G

Well-Known Member
Like the engine house!!!

Bill,

I really like how this engine house is coming together! Please consider full interior detailing with shop equipment etc. You can really get some very dramatic "in the House" photos that way. Maybe consider part of a wall as removeable so a camera can poke its close up lens in to take some shots of your hard working machines getting serviced.

Picture below by Bob Boudreau.
Doc Tom:thumb:
 

Attachments

  • engine house interior.jpg
    engine house interior.jpg
    96.3 KB · Views: 51

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
enginehouse progress

I am about to tart the east (aisle side) and the west side (wall side). I will study and see if I can have the side walls removable without compromising looks or strength.

In that photo I like the big windows (I got to look for the ancient leftover stuff and see if I have any of the City Classics skylights that I used to kitbash the windows for my sawmill and car shops.

one thing, there won't be all those visible cracks, the guys maintaining these 30 and even 40 year old locomotives need to be kept warm in the wintertime.


Bill Nelson
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
SML E & W W #1.jpg SML Sth Wl up.jpg SML eng facl.jpg more

I started the east and west wall, but this is as far as I can go until I get my window and door openings figured out. This is the first Engine House I have built in 20 years. the two others on my railroad are both holdovers from previous railroads, a fine scale miniatures backwoods engine house (which was to small to hold a 2-4-4-2, and a scratchbuilt single stall engine house that was built specifically to hold a 2-4-4-2. This building doubles as the engine shops for the railroad, so it has to hold a 2-4-4-2, the largest engine on my system.


I test fit the South wall, and it looks good. this did bring up a problem, as the frame for the west wall will flush with the sheetrock. I had originally, when I was thinking of making yet another foam core building, planned on just having a blank wall back there. As this become a building with a build up frame, interior detailing became a consideration, so I need a back wall. I was going to completely finish the building as if it were a stand alone model; so that if it survived this layout and went to another, it wouldn't be limited to an against the backdrop location but If I have much thickness to the back wall it will push it forward into the enginehouse. also there can be no roof overhang on the back roof, so I have to make some compromises.

a quick search of my materials did not show any better door/window options. I have one more place to look, and then it will be time to run with what is on hand , or to try to learn how to scratchbuild windows.



Bill Nelson - Time to go do some real carpentry
 
Last edited:

Sawdust

Member
Looking good there Bill. When you go working on that bathroom of yours make sure you make the transition well between an Engine House & real BR. You know a BR in the theme of an engine house may not be a bad idea, of coarse the Misses might not like it too much. I know the pain when it comes to windows, & doors. I get in the mood some times & make a variety of doors. Of all the items it takes to scratchbuild buying windows & doors isn't what I enjoy, too expensive. Most of my modeling is built around the windows & doors I have on hand. I have been looking at some wire(rabbit wire & others) & some plastic screen baskets that holds the fruit & veggies at the grocery stores. Some of these would make good window pane material & build the frames around the screen. I have one of those minds that thinks trains know matter where I'm at. I like your platform in the Engine House.
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
I like your platform in the Engine House.


That was easy, as I use Homa-Bed. they sell blocks of homasote to use to build switches on. so the shape is squared up out of that material, which is the same thickness as the roadbed. I floored it with material just as thick as the ties (after painting the Homasote concrete color) and boom-- I got a perfect base for the engine house, which has caused problems on some of previous enginehouse


I actually found one sprue of the city classics skylights, enough to do one wall if I modify them the same way I did my sawmill and car shops windows. I'll want to get more though for the back wall and the skylights


Bill Nelson
 

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
SMLSstwlfrd.jpg SML glue blobs.jpg
Yeah, that's one drafty looking engine house!
Tom:cry:


Mine will be drafty enough, I'm sure those six big double doors aren't going to close too tight


I cut up the city classics skylights to make windows (the short ends (I didn't try to split the mullions, will go on the back wall, and will need some fixing)

I'll need to get mote of these to do skylights, and maybe when I have more I can get fancier and have some of the windows open . Right now thy fit tight enough they might stay in place without glue, so it may be easy to set it up so I can go back and work on it later.

I set up the window placement to fit the cut down skylights, and used the calipers to space the windows evenly. trying different spacings until something came out even, and then locked the calipers in place , and used them for stud placement.

On this project I used white Gorilla glue. It foams up and expands, which gives it a very strong joint, but requires some cleanup. It sticks to the wax paper some, enough that I can take out the pins around anything that is dry. after each wall is done, I peel away the wax paper and sand both sides to remove the bumps of glue, and to even out the differences in the thickness of the home cut stripwood. then I use an exacto knife to cut the blobs of glue out of the corners of the joints. That is considerable work, but the joints are amazingly strong and flexible. This probably wouldn't work well If I was staining this project, but since I'm going to cheat and use spray paint, I'll do the extra work for the extra strength.

Three walls framed, one left to finish. Getting the window and door placement was the hardest part, and I have the east wall to work from, so it is possible I might have 4 walls framed soon

Bill Nelson
 
Last edited:

Bill Nelson

Well-Known Member
SML CC EH WLS pntd.jpg walls framed

I got the walls framed for the crooked Creek engine house.

Time to select planking for board and batten walls. At least near the big locomotive doors, I'm going to use poplar to help support the scratch built working hinges I'm planning. I'll also start planning the post and beam structure that will support the roof, and keep these walls up. I think the ceder I cut for the bridge timbers and the cribbing at the club will work very nicely, but I only have scraps here, most of the stock I have pre cut is at the RR club.

This photo was taken outdoors in intense sunlight, under normal house lighting, or the daylight florescents in my RR room they look more grey, without the blueish cast that they have in the photo; perhaps the digital camera is compensating strangely for the green treated plywood form my bathroom project.

Bill Nelson
 
Last edited:
Top