My new Skemil Railroad, Western Division

I would say your enthusiasm is great. You have the same problem with painting that I had when I was younger. Build up your paint in light coats, If you try to put it all on at once it will "pool" on the model and obscure the details. If you want to try again just remove the tender shell and soak it in 91% Isopropyl alchohol to remove the paint. After that wash the shell in mild dish detergent and let it air dry. When you're ready to start painting keep the nozzle of the can about one foot from the model. Start spraying before the shell and stop after your pass is complete. Build up your paint in light even coats, it will pay off in the end. You could even try practicing on inexpensive freightcar body shells, if you don't have any I could look in my parts box and see what I could send you. Patience young grasshopper, with time your skill will grow like the mighty bamboo!
Mike

picked up an atlas shanty kit (fully painted), more ground foam and a roundhouse reefer in swift colors. plus a atlas turntable

i have painted more of the baseboards

however, i must inform you all that come april, the skemil project may be put on hold. i think that i should explain. soon after my grandmother passed away halloween, the group that she helped found (the South Uxbridge Community Association) decided to vote on disolving the organization. this came after a South Carolina buisnessman wrote to the group about disolving it with my grandmother's passing. based on what my grandfather could dig up on him (can't remember the guy's name) he owned a gated community near the old school in uxbridge that SUCA held private gatherings at. he wants to aquire the school and the Ironside schoolhouse. the community he owned is suffering financial losses, and this man sees SUCA as a threat, believing SUCA to be the cause of his losses. so come april 18, my grandfather and most likely me will have to try and keep SUCA going. real fun. so if SUCA is disolved, i will probably have to make it so the properties are transfered to my grandfather.

it also appears that this man had knowledge of my grandmother's work over the years, and may have watched her closely. seeing it would take to long to type, i'll post a link to her biography page on the website my family set up in her honor.
http://memorialwebsites.legacy.com/cynt ... aspx?mod=1

while i may not get pulled into this debate remains to be seen. i figured that i'd at least let you all know so if i have to put the skemil on hold, it dosn't come out of the blue.

now, i'm working on the most convoluted part of this. i'm designing a system to move trains to and undertable fiddle yard. this will enable me to have fully functional staging without not having a place to sleep.

daylight4449 wrote:now, i'm working on the most convoluted part of this. i'm designing a system to move trains to and undertable fiddle yard. this will enable me to have fully functional staging without not having a place to sleep.

i also realized i forgot to mention the layout is up on the legs, and about 70% of the ground cover is down

Update on #703:
Cab floor installed, working to fabricate smoke deflectors and skyline casing. The latter are on the end of the list, with work on the cab ladders and paint touch up on the tender taking precedence. I'm also looking into joining the quabog valley railroaders, so it would give me a reason to have 703 in better visual shape for operation at one of the open houses or the Big E show should i end up joining the group.

conrail71 wrote:I would say your enthusiasm is great. You have the same problem with painting that I had when I was younger. Build up your paint in light coats, If you try to put it all on at once it will "pool" on the model and obscure the details. If you want to try again just remove the tender shell and soak it in 91% Isopropyl alchohol to remove the paint. After that wash the shell in mild dish detergent and let it air dry. When you're ready to start painting keep the nozzle of the can about one foot from the model. Start spraying before the shell and stop after your pass is complete. Build up your paint in light even coats, it will pay off in the end. You could even try practicing on inexpensive freightcar body shells, if you don't have any I could look in my parts box and see what I could send you. Patience young grasshopper, with time your skill will grow like the mighty bamboo!
Mike

Chances are i will repaint 703 once the ladder is done. I want to get a feel of what it will look like with the new cab.

Dieter wrote:Question; Why would one building a new layout go DC, when the ultimate plan is to go DCC?

Suggestion; Though personally not a fan of DCC, save yourself grief, time, work and expense by going DCC from the outset, if your plan is to go DCC anyway.

What do you think of that?

Will your layout have a "Package Store"? You know, they do a brisk business on Sundays what with the laws in Taxachusetts!!

D/

Guess i'll have to start with DCC if i want to use 703 whenever i want.

steemtrayn wrote:http://www.soundboard.com/sb/crickets_sounds_audio.aspx

Thanks for the link from the peanut gallery...

Considering it's been a while, and I had nothing going on over the last week, I managed to lay the first sections of track, position the turntable and depot I got at the beginning of the summer, and start on the coal dealer. Pictures will be a while as my camera completely died last week. I also have acquired a Bachmann Niagara, but it is in inauthentic Union Pacific paint. That's just waiting to get work (I'm thinking about trying to make a tank engine out of it, but for the time being, it's staying in storage). Aside from that, nothing new.
Dylan