Multi-tasking

Over the last few days I've had a lot of time to spend on model railroading. It's cold and rainy here so indoors is the place to be. I've also been multitasking, jumping to another project while waiting for paint or glue to dry. I think I have three or four going right now.

While waiting on the Canon motors I started on the boxcab body for the Hustler. It's being fabricated from plastic. I'm going slow. Don't want to rush and create something for the trash can...

Boxcab Hustler

Still got a ways to go. So I jumped over to the viaduct and bridges for Quotidian. I assembled the viaduct parts I already cut out. While the glue dried I started on the trusses for the bridges....

Bridge Trusses

I didn't follow any particular prototype for the truss. The design is also freelance. I decided it's a Web truss, designed and built by the Web Truss Company. There was a real company with that name, and they made trusses. not necessarily for bridges, but trusses nontheless. I need three in all. They are going to be identical.

So now I waiting for the glue to dry on two projects. I move over to another task I've been working on for some time, making decals. I make the original in Microsoft Visio and print it out on transparency in an ink printer. To make the artwork really dark I run it through the printer two or three times. What I end up with is an 8" x 11.5" master for creating stencils...

Master Transparency

The gizmo in the image above is a 100 watt light clamped to a post. The light is for exposing a photo-emusion material called StencilPro. I lay the master over the sheet of StencilPro, turn on the light and wait 4 to 5 minutes. Once the exposure is done I develop the StencilPro by putting it in water for about 10 minutes. I then VERY carefully wash off the excess emulsion and let it dry exposed to the light. When all this is done you get this...

Silk Screen Stencil

It's essentially a screen made out of a high resolution weave of silk. You lay it over some clear decal paper and squeeze some ink over the screen. If all goes well you get a decal you can apply to the side of a railcar or anything else you need decals for. I chose to make a decal for a Gorre & Dephetid boxcar, you know, the ones you see on E-Bay for $40 or so...

Gorre & Dephetid Decal

Had to play with the gamma on the image a bit. Hopefully you can see it. It's still a work in progress. I don't have the development down cold yet.

I made up a bunch of masters, most for northeastern amthracite haulers. There is however one master for railroads that never existed except in minature. You might recognize a few...

Freelance Model Railroads

Some of these model railroads no longer exist. The builders are gone and the layout dismantled or in John Allen's case, destroyed. Two are layouts I've built or planned at one time. I want to create at least one car of each. It's one way to beat the rivet counters.

The glue on the viaduct dried so I positioned it on the layout. The roadbed was cut to make a place for it...

Assembled Viaduct

Not finished by a long shot. Still needs arch liners and stone paper among other things. Still, it will support a train even though the branch line isn't operating yet. It's more of a storage track at this point.

The final project I took on was painting and adding a sound decoder to the new 4-4-0 we found in Louisville. Like the other steamers it's made by Mehano in Slovenia and imported by IHC....

Mehano 4-4-0

 I used the same Digitrax SDH166D decoder on all three. It's affordable (less than $50) and comes with a speaker. I'd like a louder whistle, but other than that I'm fine with them.

Regards
Frank Musick