Throwback Thursday - CN Test Train

CN 5358 is heading up the Test Train at Barrie, Ontario on August 30, 1990.

By Peter Mumby.

On August 30, 1990 CN 5358 South was operating on the Newmarket Subdivision.  When photographed, it was occupying the siding in front of the 1905-built Allandale station in Barrie, Ontario.  Its trip towards Toronto would resume as soon as Ontario Northland 1987 and its train, the Northlander, cleared the south siding switch. 

The short train consisted of two cars belonging to the CN Engineering/Ingenierie Department.  Both cars were relatively recent additions to the roster, having been reconfigured from older equipment in 1988.  Ballasted box car CN 15007 was ex-CN 60 foot box car CNA 794704, while CN 15008 was ex-VIA number 1082.  This latter car had been built in 1954 as CN 1082, "Cape Rosier."   

CN 15007 is a ballasted box car belonging to the CN Engineering Department.

Bringing up the rear on this short train is CN 15008.

 

Wordless Wednesday No. 412

 

         

H.W. Myers & Sons - South River Modelworks

The mill is now set in place on Don Janes Green Mountain Division. I took this trackside photo using my cell phone on my last visit to Don's in late 2019. With covid we have not been able to visit each others layout in a year.

I took some photos over the years of Don Janes version of the H W Myers & Sons. The prototype stands in Bennington, Vt. and a kit by South River Modelworks was available about 10 years ago. Since I am currently building this model it is good to have a lot of reference photos. I will be posting views of SRM display from when the kit was released and some prototype photos shortly...George Dutka 

I took this photo back in 2015 on Don's peninsula when not a lot had been set in place yet.

A closer up view of one end during 2017.

A roadside view of the mill taken with my cell phone.

Hindsight 20/20 - February 20th

 

As one can see from this posting Hindsight 20/20 is happening once again on Saturday. There is a nice lineup of clinics...George Dutka

CN #434 Power

 

CN #434 power 9579 and 9618 on March 23, 2009 on the shop track London, Ontario. Don't recall what job I was working that day but it was my last year working before retirement in November...George Dutka  

Another finished FOS kit

This FOS kit was not a hard build. I changed out the roofing with Northeastern metal roofing.

About a week or two ago I finished another FOS kit-of-the-month. Not sure yet about a location but it will eventually find a home on the layout...George Dutka 

I added a bit more details than are included with the kit. This is one of few kits I modeled the doors closed.

Engine Graffiti

 

There are some artists working on the railroad too. Engine 2575 leading train 434 during March 2008.

Some interior engine graffiti. Thought this was worth a shot...George Dutka 

Throwback Thursday - B&M Heritage

CP 4652/4655 still wear their patched ex-Guilford paint on September 25, 2002.  They are occupying the shop track at Quebec St Yard in London, Ontario.

By Peter Mumby. 

CN acquired well over 250 GP40-2 locomotives from GMD, and for more than twenty years these served as the line's premier freight haulers.  CP, on the other hand, purchased no new GP40-2 units, preferring to standardize on 6-axle power.  CP inherited some GP40s of SOO/MILW lineage, but, as of 2000, its  only GP40-2 units were the 4650-4657 group purchased in 1999 through Helm Financial.  These engines arrived on the property wearing heavily patched Guilford paint with HATX markings.  In various locations patches of blue showed through and hinted at the B&M origins of the locomotives.  Today's images illustrate half of the units in the group, and their background is as follows:

CP 4652 arrived as HATX 506 and was ex-GTI/BM 310

CP 4655 had been HATX 511 after GTI/BM 302

CP 4656 had been HATX 513 after GTI/BM 301

CP 4657 had been HATX 514 after GTI/BM 306. 

CP 4656/4657 are wearing a relatively fresh coat of the company colours on January 08/01.

 

A New Hotel In Waterbury

The finished hotel set in place against the backdrop

 A Building Flat From Nick and Nora Designs....by Don Janes

          Back in November 2018 George and I attended the Model RR Expo in Albany, NY.  One of the things I always look forward to at these shows is the nice variety of vendors that set up shop for the show. This particular show didn't seem to have near the vendors or model displays that other EXPO's I have attended had. One of the kits I picked up was this neat looking hotel building flat from Nick and Nora designs.  I had bought it for use in my Waterbury Vt. scene.  Well, a little over two years later I finally  finished the kit..  Waterbury is the last big scene I have left to do on my layout and most of the structures along the backdrop are building flats.  I thought this hotel looked very suitable for Waterbury and since it wasn't that far from the front of the layout I decided I would add some interior details and lighting.

 

This is the kit from Nick and Nora Designs

      Construction of the kit went quite smoothly until I got to the roof.  This unique style roof was one of the things that I really liked about this kit.  It is basically fiber board formers over which you add cardstock roofing. When I went to do the roof nothing fit the structure.  I called Nick and Nora's and he explained there were two kits with the same style roof but with different dimensions and that I must have got the wrong roof.  He shipped me the correct roof parts and I was able to finish the building.  He also threw in a couple of Adirondack chair kits for my trouble which I thought was very nice of him.  They have excellent customer service.

     For the room interiors cardboard rooms that came with a Roomettes kit I had bought at Trainfest in Nov.2019 are folded to fit in several of the hotel rooms in this kit.  I also added lighting to these rooms.  For the curtains I ordered some City Classics window covering sets which are various curtain designs and colours printed on clear plastic sheets.  They are very good looking curtains and I feel they added a lot to the structure.

     The kit instructions called for building up the porch railings and posts from individual tiny pieces of stripwood but I elected to use Tichy railings and posts which was much easier to build and much better looking. The porch steps were built from Builders in Scale stair risers and stripwood steps. I added Tichy posts and railing material to make the step railings.  Pretty well everything else was built following the instructions.  

 

This photo shows a closeup of the porch and stairs.  There are two LED lights over the front door on the porch.

     One thing that I thought looked to plain was the top of the roof.  I felt it was just missing something so  I looked through my parts box and found some fancy etched brass roof trim I had bought for my Wells River station and thought it would add a nice finishing touch to the roof edge. It made a big difference and is something that would have been quite common for this style of structure.

    Before I closed in the finished rooms I added some figures in the lobby and some of the bedrooms.  Waterbury is a year round tourist spot so I figured the hotel should look busy.  Being right across from the train station people are always coming and going. 

    One other thing I added was some brick paper around the foundation to add some interest rather than a stark looking concrete foundation.  This is about as far as I can go with this building until I figure out the final location for the hotel.  Once that is done I can go back and add some more finishing details.  This is one more structure to help finish the Waterbury scene.  

 

Here you can see some of the people inside the hotel rooms and lobby. I think the curtains add a nice touch also.

Here is another view of the porch and the lobby interior. I added a flower box and will also build and add the Adirondack chairs to the porch.

This photo shows the metal trim I added around the top of the roof.  It finishes it off nicely. I see I need to straighten some of the roof trim

These two photos show some of the figures in the rooms.

Another view of the finished hotel

February This and That

My mill building missing parts have arrived and work is underway on the kit.

Shortly there will be one million blog view...if that is you, lets hear from you and what you like the most about the blog. I had a few random photos that I thought I would share with you...George Dutka 

The mill will be having some of the weathered wood showing through the paint. Here we see Hunterline stain applied.

A CP WB waiting a crew at the west end of the yard in London, Ont. Feb 3 2021.

CV 4553 is seen in 1958. Note the small fuel tank compared to the Athearn model. Also what is interesting is the location of the re-railers. They are next to the fuel tank. Most CV geep's have the re-railers on the walkway outside the engineman's window.

The current Railfan (Feb 2021) is all Canadian content. This view is from the RMC site.

My FOS Atlas Gorge arrived about a week ago. I noted on-line someone has already completed building his kit which I find surprising...a really quick worker.

The yard crew assembled train 434 at London East. The crew will be changed out shortly. The new crew will switch the power around for a better leading engine. Feb. 3, 2021

Brian Smith sent me this photo after my Pillsbury post of one of the cars in St. Thomas.

Steve Boyko recently posted some extra views of Pillsbury cars on his blog site. The link is on the sidebar or seen in this photo.

Looking East at CN Highbury

That is Hale St. London and the engine I am working on is on the lead to the old reclamation yard. I am beside the switch that take one in and out of the yard at the east end. It is called CN Highbury.

It is 12 year to the day that I was working as the engineman on a local London, Ont. yard job during my last year prior to retirement. I took the photo out the door looking east toward Hale St.and the reclamation yard. Feb 8, 2009. Today there is a large roundabout overpass at Hale St which connects with busy Trafalgar St....George Dutka

B&M Budd's

 

A B&M RDC is on its way to Bellows Falls after crossing the Bellows Crossing. The engine is a stock Rapido model with DCC and sound. I got it a few years back at the Walthers store in Milwaukee. It was a return which was heavily discounted.        

B&M 3662 at North Conway, NH

 

B&M 3662 a 4-6-2 at North Conway, NH, 8-8-48. From the George Melvin collection I purchase in 2019 NERPM meet.  

 

N Scale Long Barn

 

The barn is almost complete. The doors are a bit thick so they are applied inward. Thinner versions can be made if need be.

I finally finished the N scale version of the Creative Laser Design model. I use my HO paint and weathering techniques on this model. What works in HO does not always work in N scale. After taking the photo above I decided to change the weathering. I applied a wash of Floquil thinner with a little red paint added. The darker red walls had more red added to the wash. On the wall that is mostly gray the wall got a wash of thinner and Floquil grime. It now looks a lot better...George Dutka  

The lower bracing is added and the four wall will be assembled shortly.

This is all that comes with the kit. A lot less detailing than is found in the HO scale version. The price reflex the lack of. One can add anything that is found on the HO model.

Since this barn is a good size even in N scale I braced the walls and roof well. The middle flooring really helps with bracing on one side.

The barn is ready for stain and paint. I replaced the wood roof with cardstock roofing. I don't recall were I got it from. It will be covered with a gray tone of roll roofing.

Throwback Thursday - Passing Through

There is nothing like the opportunity to photograph an unusual locomotive to make for a good day of railfanning!  Such was the case on Jan 07/90 at CN London East.

By Peter Mumby.

BAR 36 put in a brief appearance at CN London East on January 07, 1990 on a westbound freight.  Ahead of it in the locomotive consist were CN 9313 and 9305, two of the 14 GP40 model units on the CN roster at that time.  The first car on the BAR unit's drawbar was a flat car loaded with diesel fuel tanks from the GMD plant. BAR 36 was an SW-9, ex-PL&E 8940, which had been acquired by the railway in the summer of 1972. 

 

Wordless Wednesday No. 411

 

 

Intermountain "War Emergency" Gondola

A finished Intermountain "war emergency" gondola ready to roll on the WRD. Looks like this ATSF car has traveled a long way to New England.

Peter gave me an really nice Intermountain gondola for Christmas this year which is a built Tichy kit and is factory lettered. It is nice to get a Tichy model already finished. I did not realize that these two companies had worked together on this model. Something to watch for at future train shows. All I had to do was add some weathering and trash to the interior...George Dutka 

The joints between the wood boards got a rub of AK graphite.

The metal work got a dusting of AK dark rust pigment. The wheels are painted acrylic dollar store cinnamon brown. The tucks are spray bombed Princess Auto cast iron.

I used these two colours of AK pencils to streak the floor joints prior to AK dark rust pigments and raw umber shade PanPastels. The AK pencils are dirty white and smoke.

Some pieces of scrap board and a skid are seen left behind in the car.

The finished gondola with weathering and scrap on the WRD.

White River Division - 2003 Construction

This view if of the layout during Dec. 2003. All the track has been in place for a year then and all runs well. Now to the scenery.

Here we have a print I scanned the other day of the original construction on the WRD during 2003. The Alder barn is in place along with the cardboard forms for the hillside. Now for the plaster cloth. After a rebuild a decade later this is now the White River Jct. yard...George Dutka