Large Scale Central

Cleanup day on the westover line

Track and Trestles
#1

My wife and I went out this morning–a cold, gray, damp day–and started spring cleaning. Bulbs are coming up, some green is starting to return. It still looks pretty dreary. We need to change out my wife’s seasonal ice rink for something else. Not sure what yet. That’s what the ECLSTS is for! Maybe a produce stand? She made a ice rink with a rental shack/snack shop. So now we need something seasonal.

On the plus side everything is tracking right and not derailing, as long as there is nobody watching.

Just started raining, so we’re knocking off. Most of what we did was clear oak leaves. Our neighbor across the street has two big oak trees. Where do the leaves end up? Nice folks, can’t really complain, but sometimes I want to.

#2
mike omalley said:
On the plus side everything is tracking right and not derailing, as long as there is nobody watching.
:lol: Mine will run an hour and a half as long as nobody is watching. With an audience it seems to drop to a minute and a half :o Ralph
#3

My brain causes more derailments than my track. I’m continually going across open switches. Seems to happen more when I’m running live steam :o

Oak leaves seem to be persistent. I have one at the end of the cul-de-sac. I can have my yard and the street completely free of leaves and the next day it will be loaded with oak leaves.

#4

WE did our clean-up last weekend. Now waiting on the tree guy to show up and take down 2 trees behind the barn. Got a BIG pile of brush and debris to burn once that’s done. The one small oak tree I have still has brown leaves on it.

#5

I didn’t even bother venturing outside today after I caught the forecast this morning. Busy working on the secret project inside :wink: . Much nicer weather coming this week! :smiley:

-Brian

#6

Mike,

You’ll have to check out john Snyder’s “Just Plain Floks”. He’s always got great diorama’s made out of his figures. Of course, there is a lot of good brain fodder on all the layouts to give you ideas for different scenes.
Tis a great time of the year, makes for good sleeping.

#7

My wife just said she wants to do a playground. Does anybody make G scale playground equipment? I’m guessing no. I might try to talk her into a ballfield, maybe a little league baseball game. That’s a lot of figures though. didn’t LGB make playground stuff? Maybe modify some playmobil stuff The trains are almost all in the bastard 1:29 scale, but she likes the figures in 1:24 or even in some cases larger. I keep pointing out that in real life, you could not see into the cab of a Pacific if you were standing at track level. She doesn’t care! brian, looking forward to you secret project being revealed at the ECLSTS I did snap a picture of my kitbashed 0-6-0. It’s probably my favorite now even though it’s a little goofy

(http://www.lscdata.com/users/lownote/_forumfiles/lettered2lg.jpg)

#8

We have the nice weather here. Yesterday I Took a light train over the line for inspection. Ballast is severely washed out on Coal Dump curve, several Hillman’s Clamps failed, and there is a mighty frost heave induced vertical curve at Walk Crossing where the track transitions from encased in concrete to trench/fill construction. Overall it’s in pretty good shape and trains ran with no incidents observing 5MPH over the broken rail joints. Even ran the steamer both Friday and today! Sent the MOW train out later today to replace the failed Hillman’s with Split Jaw clamps then ran a couple more trains. Surprisingly with the exception of the frost heave, no tracking problems at all :smiley:

#9

Mike,

I like your 0-6-0. I hope you are bringing it for drag and brag / show and tell or the modeling contest? If its got Kadee couplers we can put it to work on the “Timesaver”. :wink:

#10

I went out on the railroad to prune the moss but the rain returned (resumed?) and I had to postpone my 15 minute “gardening” session until a later date. :wink:

#11

mike omalley said:
I might try to talk her into a ballfield, maybe a little league baseball game.

Just Plain Folks does have a little baseball guy set -

(http://shop.silvergatedistributors.com/img/category_images/394/x01_83983.jpg)

http://shop.silvergatedistributors.com/index/pg=1/394.0.27701.26901.0.0.0 -Brian

#12

Thanks Ric and Brian–those just plain folk figure are great

Pola makes a playground set, or did. Anyone know what scale Pola worked in?

My wife wants a gazebo in the playground. Hmmmm…

#13

It snowed this morning, here in beautiful downtown Deer Park. :frowning:

#14

I think POLA works in the 1:22.5 to 1:24 range, but items in parks can be almost any size, except maybe the bathroom doors. :wink:

Gazeebos and stuff like that can sometime be found in garden shops. Bird feeders are often modeled as band stands. Woodland Scenics has somew old guys playing checkers, dog using a fire hydrant and others. At York, you and your wife will need to spend some time with Bob Temper. He’s in the Alcove with us. He has made and modified a bleacher full of people watching the activities at a circus and modifies the figures with Sculpy.

#15

Hobby Lobby has a gazebo about the right size, in their unfinished wood section.

#16

Jerry, I’ll look for that. My wife has fixed on this birdhouse

(http://www.maplehilldesigns.com/upload/productimages/20071217080710.1_fly_away_cafe_solar_bird_feeder_MHD.jpg)

It has solar lights built in. The company makes nice looking stuff in cast resin–it’s extremely tough and durable. But the thing is 15 by 12–it’d be a honking big gazebo. Expensive too. I’d have to add some steps. Hmmm

#17

That is a nice looking Gazebo. And at 6 pounds, you shouldn’t have to worry about it flying away.
Ralph

#18

Don’t forget the ADA approved handicap accessable ramp, if going with a modern theme. :wink:

It’s time when all the stores and shops are stocking up on that type of stuff. I only think they order once a year. A coat of paint before it ever sits in the sun will preserve it for a long time and make the higher price not so awful.

#19

Ric Golding said:
Don’t forget the ADA approved handicap accessable ramp, if going with a modern theme. :wink: It’s time when all the stores and shops are stocking up on that type of stuff. I only think they order once a year. A coat of paint before it ever sits in the sun will preserve it for a long time and make the higher prioce not so awful.

LOL! fortunately we’re roughly based in the 40s. We can have life-threatening metal sliding boards and kids without helmets on the playground Although it’s not the style I would pick, I like having my wife involved. She likes the “cute” end. I want everything rusty and worn looking, she likes cute. We have some other stuff made by this company, and it’s held up extremely well–this little barn came painted, and we just stuck it outside. It’s shown no appreciable wear or fading

(http://www.lscdata.com/users/lownote/_forumfiles/barn.jpg)

Probably that’s because Brian is always out there on his tractor

#20

My railroad is in front of the house. “Cute” is one of the requirements I had to concede.
Time is another. It has to lose the “under construction” look and be “cute” soon!
Ralph