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The whisker couplers are a good idea - for a short time a few years ago I'd considered switching to McHenry's because they had a similar feature (and were a little closer to scale size). I gave up on that brand after coming across the problem of the couplers taking a set. I have a good amount...

I ran into a Kadee coupler binding problem on an Accurail Lehigh Valley single sheathed boxcar a couple of days ago. The culprit appears to be insufficient depth of the coupler pocket - the Kadee spring was taller than the pocket was deep. It can be made to work if the lid screw is loosened...

Maybe the issue is size? Gauge limits how big the image is - though I forget what that limit is. I've started linking to a photo hosting site so I wouldn't have to resize all my photos. Matt

Thanks for sharing the photos Larry! Although the mixed road consists are interesting, they're kind of befuddling from a marketing standpoint. The head end (and the tail, back in caboose days) were the one place you could "brand" the railroad, or at least the train. I understand some of this...

Ouch! :eek: Stuff like that puts a severe dent in planned activities...

Rio Grande had a letter classification, followed by a number indicating tractive effort. I.e. K-27 was a Mikado with 27,000 lbs tractive effort, K-63 was also a mike, but with 63,000 lbs tractive effort. Of course, this particular classification nomenclature gives no hint that one is narrow...

My layout is a double folded dogbone with dcc control (no serious "operational" capabilities, excepting a small yard). Occasionally I'll get the bug to run two trains until eventually one comes too close to t-boning the second at the lone crossover. Usually because I slow the crossing instead...

Champ Decals I was wondering the same thing, so I emailed Champ today. The owner's wife is in it for at least a couple more years. I've reprinted part of the email below: "We still carry ads in a couple magazines that "We are not gone yet". I am glad you are looking into this. Rich...

You might also have been observing a graphite based "paint" in those two areas. This finish was an oil and graphite mix used in place of paint in very hot areas (paints weren't yet up to the task), was flat and can very in color from a dull silver to a very dark gray, depending on how it was...

I have a couple more questions: Injectors, as I understand them, use live steam injected into the cold feed water (along with a series of venturis that I have yet to fully grasp) to give it the energy to overcome the check valve / boiler pressure. Do you have any idea how much this raises the...

Quite an inspiration, Dr.! Two questions; - What did you use to lag the various pipes? - I would think soldering a tube filled with lead to anything would be difficult due to the heat sink. How is this done? And 32 ounces - good grief! As an aside, how do you deal with rod journal wear - or...

I had an interesting conversation with a Marklin representative at the Detroit NMRA show this past year. Regarding production, Marklin at one point had some manufacturing going on in China, but would send the raw plastic they wanted the factory to use. Unfortunately, this high-grade plastic...

Lights on! Thanks again for all the comments! As for the detail (bigsteel), keep in mind that it took me 16+ months to build it! sgtcarl, no worries about the photos. I took a couple of "lights on" photos tonight; I wasn't quite able to get the environmental lighting I wanted; the tools I...

Fixed. I made a temporary re-connection of the red wire but didn't get any response from the decoder / lighting. I cut the old decoder out and temporarily wired in a fresh decoder and found, to my relief, that the lighting circuit / lights were working. Out of curiosity, I tested the old...

First of all, thanks for the kind comments! These are all great points, and as I'm struggling with flickering lights right now (more on that later), timely. The good news - the lights are now working! Matt

Ok, RonP, you've got me interested as well, but let me throw this out there... I was looking into getting a Mac machine for many of the reasons you are citing for Linux - more robust and lighter operating system, faster start up times, simpler configuration, etc. What are your thoughts on that...

Poof. DOH! I completed my touch up painting on the cab yesterday and put it on the track, thinking I may take some pictures with the lights on. Nothing. Lights didn't come on Checked to make sure the function buttons were on (they were), then clicked them on and off anyway. Nothing...

I found the wipers would tend to slowly rotate off center as the truck pivoted. These were pinned into place with .010" phosphor bronze wire on both sides of the mounting screw (somewhat difficult to see): The last major detailing was the brake cylinder and levers / rods on the underbody. I...

Thanks, and point taken, but I could stand to ramp up the quantity as well! I have some commercial decals for N&W lettering, but haven't yet decided if my railroad is N&W, a fictional subsidiary of it, or a fictional bridge route that has N&W as a customer and whom they share / buy equipment...

Downspouts and couplers and trucks, oh my. I've got to get a move on - Tetters has handlaid an entire yard in less time than this caboose has been in the project phase! Nevertheless it's getting tantalizingly close: A couple pages back I talked about lighting; the axle wipers I purchased to...