Well we survived the trip and are back from the NMRA convention in Hartford. While away I was not able to do any updates to the site, at these shows there is rarely enough free time to do a proper blog post.
I usually do a detailed post after these larger shows, and will do so again this time. When we did the first train show in Cincinnati, I came home with a 100 or so pictures. This time I have 1500.
Over the next few days I will post collections of images grouped into categories. After the train show we spent a few days in New York city which apparently is quite photogenic…
Oddly, I didn’t shoot much video. I had the camera but just didn’t get many opportunities to shoot anything interesting. What I did shoot I will edit up and post it.
Over all we spent about 2 weeks away at the show. It was quite intense but lots of fun as usual.
I have a pile of emails to sort through and need to spend some time getting the layout set back up. If you have sent me an email over the last few days be patient, I will be responding to them all shortly.
Believe it or not, all the stuff shown in the booth was brought down in the back of a mini van…
-T.
About the Author:
I'm your host, Tim Warris, a product developer in Port Dover, Ontario. Since March of 2007 I have been documenting the construction of the former CNJ Bronx Terminal in HO scale. For my day job, I design track building tools for Fast Tracks, a small company I own and operate. Fast Tracks makes it fast and easy to hand lay your own trackwork. Stop by our website to learn more!
I was going to wait until the start of the Train Show on Friday to post some video of the layout operating but figured why wait. Today I will be dismantling the layout, packing it up and stuffing it into the van. We leave tomorrow morning. I suspect I would not get time to do it otherwise so I decided to post it now.
I shot this video last evening so it is very current. It is the boxcab switching the freight house and loading some cars onto the carfloat.
Youtube has a tendency of making model railroad videos look jerky when they play. The boxcab is a very smooth operating engine, any jerky motion is in the video. Youtube also has a tendency of making cars derail, but I got lucky on this video.
If you really want to see it running, stop by the Train Show next weekend! If it doesn’t fall out of the van, it will be set up and running there.
-T.
This is the most recent construction related post.
Check back soon for an update! In the meantime, the category links to the right are full of interesting content.
I'm your host, Tim Warris, a product developer in Port Dover, Ontario. Since March of 2007 I have been documenting the construction of the former CNJ Bronx Terminal in HO scale. For my day job, I design track building tools for Fast Tracks, a small company I own and operate. Fast Tracks makes it fast and easy to hand lay your own trackwork. Stop by our website to learn more!
I managed to get a mock up model of the round freight house built. What a monument to geometric lunacy that thing is. It took a day to design, and a day to build. There is no detail on it at all, no doors or windows, just the basic shape of the building to fill in the empty space. The cars just clear the walls, just like the original. Its pretty cool to watch.
It was well worth the effort to build it, what a difference it makes on the layout even though it has no detail on it.
Its a 30 sided oval with two ends of 14 sides each and two straight sections in the middle, plus the cut out to gain entrance into the centre. To make it more fun, the roof tapers into the centre. I had the luxury of a CAD system to help with the design, how they did this originally is a testament to the designers!
On the weekend I built a temporary model of the float bridge. Again, this is a stripped down version of what will eventually be there. The proportions are correct, it is built to scale, but all the detail is missing. I wanted to be able to connect the carfloat to the terminal as unloading it creates a lot of visual interest.
A shot of the model and the original. The prototype photo on the bottom is a bit distorted, it is stretched out a bit making the freight house look shorter than it actually was. The model I built was measured from the original builders drawings and I believe it to be accurate.
Well, that’s enough fun for one month. Now, I just have to cram it all into the van and drive it 500 miles east.
I will try to get some video of it running posted before I take it apart.
I'm your host, Tim Warris, a product developer in Port Dover, Ontario. Since March of 2007 I have been documenting the construction of the former CNJ Bronx Terminal in HO scale. For my day job, I design track building tools for Fast Tracks, a small company I own and operate. Fast Tracks makes it fast and easy to hand lay your own trackwork. Stop by our website to learn more!
