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    angle of slope

    Oops! My bad.:oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops: :oops:
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    angle of slope

    Building track at a 2% slope I have found that 2% is a good all-round maximum slope. Here's a handy way to build track at 2%: Tape a small wood shim (track ties work well) EXACTLY 1/4 inch thick, under one end of a two-foot long carpenter's level. 2% is two units high in 100 units long...
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    Sand and trains?

    More comments about sand. Just to add a bit more info about sand. Just any old beach sand won't do. Railway sand is clean, screened, sharp, hard sand. Above all it must be free-flowing in all types weather, temperature and humidity. To achieve this, it must be dried and kept dry. In the...
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    Joke of the Day

    What was the cause of the French train derailment? Too loose la track! (Toulouse Lautrec, get it?:D )
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    Have you heard of the Hybrid on Rails? ~the train of the future!

    Loco Shop Photo in Popular Mechanics Re the cool picture of the locomotive shop at the top of the Popular Mechanics article. Looks impressive until you realize that they just placed a mirror behind two unpainted locos in the background to make it look like more.:D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D
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    New Track Plan any suggestions\opinions

    Some quick thoughts Just some quick comments for what they're worth. 1. The waterfall idea is a good one. Why not make it a major focal point of the layout, in which case it should be the first thing visitors see on entering the room - it'll draw them into the room. The NE corner would be...
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    Problem with Kadee pushbuttons.

    I have been having switch machine problems and traced the problem to non-functioning Kadee pushbuttons on my control panel. (If I go under my control panel & touch a wire to the PB case and the PB "stinger" the switches throw fine. Pushing the button with my finger however results in erratic...
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    Do your guests put their drinks on the layout?

    I haven't seen this discussed before, but I was finding it a bigger problem than cats on layouts. When guests come over you naturally opffer then a drink, pop, coffee, beer, whatever. aussie You go down to look at the layout and sooner or later the drink container ends up on your layout...
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    Duckunders are evil.

    Duckunders - OOPS attached the wrong photo Here is the correct photo. :oops: :oops:
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    Duckunders are evil.

    Why does science refuse to recognize the strange physical properties of duckunders that cause them to lower themselves one inch per year? Probably something going on at the sub-atomic level. :) I know this to be a fact; 20 years ago I would plant one foot under the duckunder, bend, turn and...
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    how to figure elevation question.....

    Here's the easy way to construct track roadbed grades (I assume that's what you wanted to know for) :-) 1: Design all your layout grades to be 2%. (I say this only partly tongue-in-cheek; 2% is a good layout compromise grade). 2: Tape a 1/4" thick shim to the bottom of a two-foot long...
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    Too soft insulating track joiners

    Hunkiedoo Here's another idea that has worked for me. Carefully slide the tie strip off the end of the flex track. This takes a while! I cut the 3' strip of flex track ties into 3 or 4 sections to make the removal job easier. Take one of the now loose rails and, holding it sideways, slide...
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    Laminate car cards & waybills

    I passed a sports card kiosk in the mall the other day, and was intrigued by the neat little plastic cases they sell to preserve your treasured sport cards. There's a heavy-duty plastic case, almost a thin box. but there's also a lighter plastic envelope. It would seem that there must be some...
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    Calgary Supertrain Feb 14-15

    Supertrain is an excellent show. Took my grandson there a few years ago. (Hint: take a little plastic chair/stepstool for the kids - does wonders) I hope the Calgary Model Trainmen still have their 2' x 8' Timesaver switching layout that the kids can operate. My handiwork from about 15++...
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    Layout Lighting Idea and Questions

    Layout Lighting Lemmee just add to all the previous valid comments. You should check the local electrical code re attaching 110V wires to portable modules. ':(' Most codes frown upon stapling some extension cords onto your layout. The light fixture has to be in a proper receptacle, splices...
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    PRR & NYC Rivalry

    Train Paintings Thanks Ralph! With my dial-up connection, loading pictures is s l o w . Looks like I've got a full enening ahead of me :).
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    PRR & NYC Rivalry

    Years ago I recall reading about an informal daily "race" between New York Central's 20th Century Limited and Pensy's Broadway Limited, when departing Chicago's Central(?) Station. This took place in the late 1930s or perhaps the post-WW2 1940s. This seems like a pretty dramatic event...
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    Plexiglass - where to buy in Toronto?

    Plastic Suppliers Val: You might try Model Builders Supply, 1140 Englehard Drive, Aurora. Phone: 905-841-8392 They're not a hobby shop although there is some overlap with LHS scenery - more supplier to architecture model business. Worth a trip just to see different stuff. OR Park...
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    What detail parts would you like to see?

    Caboose Steps I woule like to see brass caboose steps for wooden CN & CP cabeese. The lacy see-thruough kind. Have seen good brass coach steps, close...
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    All sorts of Bridges

    Monster bridge Did you notice that there are actually two bridges! Each track is actually on its own separate bridge, with the piers of one bridge falling between the piers of the other. I often wonder if the railway planned it that way or if the 2nd track was required later & had to be...
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