Wow I’m really bad about updating this blog. I sit at a computer all day so I guess I just don’t want to do it when I get home too, although I probably do spend a fair amount of time at the keyboard there too… Oh well.

So what’s new since February 09! For lower staging I created a panel that will allow crews to hopefully see how things are lined up in staging. I am using the pusbutton functionality of the DS64 on the panel, but crews during an op session will generally not need to line the yard themselves- dispatch will do it. This was one of those fun projects that took way longer than it should have. I wired led’s in line with the tortoises to show how the switches are alinged so that the light will be green on the leg the points are lined up for, and red… well you understand. For this type of wiring I usually buy some round 6 conductor telephone wire and strip out the individial wires inside the insulation. This has worked well for me in the past, but the wire I bought this time was very brittle and any little nick from stripping the wire and it would break. Unfortunately I think I am going to have to rewire this thing at some point as I already have two pushbuttons that are not working. As long as dispatch can line things up and I can use the throttle when I’m operating by myself I will probably live with it for now.

Another thing I worked on over the summer is setting up RailOp. I decided to use this program to generate switch lists based on the experience my friend Bob has had with it. I am not a huge fan of car cards, but now that I’m trying to set up the software I understand their appeal. I pretty much have all my data in it and have run one op session using it which went fairly well. It will take some time to work out the kinks and get traffic to move the way I want, but it is useable already.

The engine facility at Woodcrest is taking shape. I have the tracks in and have started on the engine house. The actual Woodcrest shops is a huge facility and I am just doing a representation of one small building where minor repairs were done along with refueling and sanding.

Here’s an overview of the Woodcrest area:

Here’s a closer shot at the engine house:

Here’s a link to an image of the prototype.

The track is down in the area I call Riverdale as well. The main industry here is the Interlake Basic Oxygen Furnace and Rolling Mill. I have some stand in crude buildings made from foam in place for now. There is also a lumber company here meant to represent the lumber yard the IC served just north of the Calumet River in Chicago. I have a long stub track in place meant to suggest the power plant which will go in the area I call “Calumet”. A friend of mine is working on an operational rotary dumper for the power plant which I’m looking forward to installing.

Here is a view of Riverdale looking South:

Here are my stand in buildings for the Interlake BOF. Scrap aisle on the left and hot metal aisle on the right.

Here’s the beginning of the rolling mill.

I have also spent some time getting my motive power fleet in place and am about where I need to be as well in that arena. I do have some new Intermountain F3’s in ICG orange and white coming, as well as some Atlas GP40’s in orange and white on order. My friend Rich Bourgerie was nice enough to put together a few kits for me including four of the Walthers Parkview Terrace kits. My next goal is to continue to do some more ops sessions while starting to install some building kits here and there any maybe do a little scenery. I have a pretty big project to get the track work done for the high line in the Blast Furnace area. I am trying to figure out how to have a two track high line and leave room for some partial flat buildings behind it. The blast furnace kit that is in place is also a stand in until I can build the model I really want to have there but that could be a ways down the road.