Computer Crashed!!!!!!!!!!

My laptop crashed a few days ago.  Tech came out, hard drive wouldn't start.  Checked it out in another computer and contents are there.  I went out and got a rent to own to tide me over until I can decide which way to go.  Pics will be few until I get the contents moved over.

Good news!  The hits just keep coming.  3,386 today.  I hope they find something useful.

The great thing about modeling as a hobby is that it is wide enough for all of us to find something interesting to each of us that lets us excel to what ever level we desire.  I like to see what I can make out of leftovers.  I say I am frugal, others say I am cheap.  In the near future I will be spotlighting the efforts of others rather than my own.  If you have an area of modeling that you really enjoy add a comment or click the email at the top of the heading.

Armchair

WOW! Hits running wild! * * * 3044 * * *

Sometimes things just happen.  Maybe it is the response to train gifts that have spiked the hits, but I won't argue.  Thanks to all of you who have dropped in from time to time to see what I have been up to.

That Ebay mistake buy (thought it was HO scale), turned out to be On30 and really turned me on to the larger scale narrow gauge.

And now we have two new followers, makes a total of 12.

I owe you more news and happening so I am digging back into earlier writings to bring to light.

 Armchair

Copper Hills Show - A Saturday Happening

One of the goals of our model railroad club, Rail Roadrunners of Yuma, is to take the hobby to the public in schools, homes and fairs.

This afternoon, Marv, Ron and I took two layouts to Copper Hills Assisted Living Facility.  This is about our fourth visit and we shared 4 scales, N, HO, O and G.

Ron

 

 

Here Ron sits comfortably, overseeing his domain, an N scale layout on a 2'x4' Homosote board obtained from Marv, in a wood frame made by me, running on track relaid by Marv.  Encouraged by my Clinic, Building a Diorama, available elsewhere on this blog, Ron and his wife are adding scenery and structures to the small, portable, layout.

 

 Glen

This was Camp Swampy, after the first major changes, removing the flex track and turnouts that seemed to cause derailments.  I had bought a batch of Bachmann EZ Trac and made a simple 22" radius circle.  The white shows where the old track was.  The dark green spot in the center was where the old flagpole stood.

After a week of work I ended with this, a double track, two level circle layout.  The upper level is  1" extruded foam cut to fit inside the 22" radius circle and able to still hold a circle of 18" radius.  Most of the buildings are card models downloaded from the internet, printed on 110# card stock and assembled with glue.  The log cabin and several buildings were scratch built by me.

Another Glen, a Snowbird from Canada, brought this G scale battery powered model to one of our meetings to see if we could help him get it running.  With his permission I took it home and worked at rounding the plastic bearings on the driver axles to allow it to start and run in forward and reverse.  The tender has four orange buttons you press to make different calls, bells, whistles chuffs and running sounds, quit an attention getter.  On a sorry note, I opened the rear door of the SUV in the rain and the box with this and other items fell out.  I have not had the nerve to look yet.

This colorful little train is On30, O scale train running on HO track.  The coach painting is based on Thomas Kincade paintings.  I let this run on the upper level for the entire 2 hour show.

Marv

Marv had a relaxing day, working mostly to help Ron and me move everything in and out.  He also pushed the orange buttons on the G scale engine to create sounds and motions to attract attention.

 

Come join us Saturday mornings from about 9 am till noon for our regular weekly meeting at the Community Christian Church, 6480 East Highway 95, Yuma, AZ.  Pull around back, we are in the South building.

This is an earlier shot of the 5'x10' HO layout we are presently working on during the weekly meetings.  It will be a 2 level layout with 23" minimum curves and 2% maximum grades.  We have the lower level sub-roadbed finished and supported well.  The upper level starts on 12-17-2011.  Be there!

Armchair

Some NEW model railroad and Club news.

I have been finishing the water tank I started a couple of years ago.  I started with a small, 4" diameter peanut can, wrapped it with scribed card material and secured that with 11 bands of .020" wire with 2 twisted "turnbuckles" each.  The support legs are hefty to support the estimated 500,000 pound load of the 60,000 gallons and tank.

The 8 sided roof is covered with hand cut shingle strips.

I still have to attach the spout, ladder and top finial.

Our Model Railroad Club

Added to the pages on the right side.

Armchair

For the Robotic, Geek, Techies

For those of you who may find my postings a little shallow I want to introduce you to my oldest son's site, http://henrytherobot.com  .   Tim is designing and building a robot of a puppy that thinks and acts like a puppy.  It is beyond me, but I hope some of you will find it interesting.

Armchair

Dark and Not So Hot in Yuma

As many of you (in the USA) may have heard, we had a MAJOR power blackout Sept. 8, 2011, in the Southwest USA covering San Diego and Orange county California, Northern Baja Mexico and Yuma county Arizona.  With temperatures in the low 100's F we lost our NEEDED (for modern society) air-conditioning.  Much of the business community shut down with no electricity for lights and operations.  People, like me, were driving miles around looking for ice, gasoline, and a place to eat or stay for the night.

With the gas pumps out of power it reminded me of my years in Sierra Leone, West Africa, 1978-1979.  Over there the power was questionable but you were always able to get gas.  The stations would attach a crank to the pump and have a young boy crank.  People get ingenious when they have to and when the governments don't get in their way.

Summer must be about over as we are looking forward to 4 or 5 days of below 100F temps.  The winter visitors will start coming back in October and the rest of you can "eat your hearts out" come January when we have days in the 70'sF.

Armchair