Week 474

 Sun, Aug 27, 2023 thru Sat, Sep 2, 2023

Sun, Aug 27, 2023

Getting the RR ready for Monday's Train Day!

Putting all the UP locomotives back into their 
respective tracks at the UP Engine Facility.

Also returning all the CNW locomotives back to
their respective tracks at the CNW Engine Facility.

Next week I will try to get some lights wired up for illumination.

Mon, Aug 28, 2023

Train Day!

w/Rob Fair (6-8pm 2 hrs.) & Marcus Thorsen (6-7:15pm 1.25 hrs.)

For some reason the "Hawk" locomotive quit working.
Rob "opened the hood" to take a look. 
He took off the shell to see what was going on inside.

Marcus is still recuperating from his foot problem.
I'm still so glad he likes to come and visit.

Now Rob is at the workbench
still in trouble shooting mode.

We eventually called up JMRI to restart all the CVs.

Here's the "Hawk", without its shell,
on the programming track.

After we got the "Hawk" running again,
we found we had another bad switch!
UGH!

Rob replaces the switch with another switch from Marcus.
Thanks Marcus!

Here's a 33 second video of the "Hawk" back in action.

Click here to view the "Hawk"

Tue, Aug 29, 2023

Working on downloading videos I took this morning for the Aug 2023 Layout Update

It's a lengthy process just downloading the videos.

1st step is to download the files from Google Photos to the Dowload Folder on my computer

2nd step is to cut and paste those files from the Download folder to the KESU external Hard Drive RR Folder.

Next I can download those files to Power Director and begin my video editor.

Wed, Aug 30, 2023

I'm getting better at producing the end of the month layout update video ready for viewing.

Here it is after about 2.5 hrs. which includes recording the video, transferring the file, editing the video, exporting and uploading to Youtube. I'm pretty happy with that.

Click here to view August 2023 Layout Update Youtube video

Length: 6 min. 22 sec.

Thu, Aug 31, 2023

No train activity today.

I spent the evening with my son, Ben, cutting base boards.

Very rewarding.

Fri, Sep 1, 2023

Working on the RR today...

Last picture of the hour session.

Drone view of the new positioning.

Better view of the new entry.
You can kinda tell they enter more straight.

AFTER
This is the new positions of the UP Engine Facility
buildings. The locomotives enter the buildings
more on a straight section of track rather than on a curve.

BEFORE
This is the way the buildings were before the adjustment.

Readjusting these buildings so the entry is more
straight on than on a curve.

Sat, Sep 2, 2023

Lots of good progress on the RR today...

See the black tarp paper in the middle of this picture?
I'm going to make this "walk way" run thru the middle
of the tracks at the UP Engine Facility.

Middle track ready for gluing.
Also adding a piece of cork next to the switch
so I can extend the "walk way" over this section.

I put a piece of hard board to lay over so the weights
can lay over the cork evenly.

Now we wait for the weights.

While I wait for the weights, I cut out the sections
for each walk way.

I also filled in some rr ties to fill the gaps left over
from connecting the two track pieces.

I picked up Marcus Thorsen today and we stopped
by Hobby Lobby to pick up some supplies.

Breakdown of the purchase:

Hot Glue Gun $15.99 (for Marcus - he will give me his old one)

Glue sticks (20) 2@$4.99 $9.98

Acrylic Paint 2@$5.99 $11.98 Burnt Umber

Polystyrene square rods $3.99

Taxes $3.36

Total $45.30

Now that I have Marcus' old hot glue gun I can begin
work on gluing down the walk ways.

First three tracks completed.

Drone view.

Marcus gave me some landscape materials.
When I cleared space for them I found some gray
mortar to use for the landscape around the engine house.

Looks like I have a gap to fill and a little more work
to do next week. More to come...