CNR School Car

Winter 1954

Back last summer I posted about a visit to Clinton, Ont. with Peter to visit the CNR school on wheels. Since then I have come across a nice group of photos of this exact car in use somewhere in the snowy north during 1954...enjoy...George Dutka

The 1970's Arrive for the Summer Season on the WRD

A trio of B&M power heads through the WRD countryside destined for White River Jct.

My power and rolling stock changeover is well underway as the early 1970's begins to take hold...George Dutka

Weathering the Fleet

A load of refrigerators is heading into New England aboard a Cotton Belt 40' high cube mini-boxcar. This is an Athearn model that received some PanPastels at the WOD workshop and a light over-spray of boxcar red once back at home. This trio of boxcars are only lightly weathered.

I thought I would share with you some of the other cars I weathered at the spring WOD workshop...enjoy...George Dutka

New stirrups are used with ACI labels by Walthers and lube lables by Herald King applied. I used some new products to me...MIG war weathering colour acrylics offered by the WOD followed by my PanPastels. The car is left kind of clean looking.

Before the WOD workshop.

The Walthers model received some acrylic paints and PanPastel's. I kept this car clean as I don't want a fleet of rust buckets. Most of the acrylic weathering happened on the roof and door.

Before Workshop. I still needed to add the wheels, couplers and brake wheel before heading to the WOD workshop.

This car I forgot to dulcote before the weathering workshop. Some of the acrylics did not stick well to the Athearn shell. I went a bit heavy with my powders and PanPastels to hide the sins.

My New Weathering Mix

My new rust weathering mix. Steel wool and vinegar.

 Back in a 2015 RMC article Tom Troughton explains how he made his weathering mix. This is a mix he regularly uses to apply a coating of rust. I thought I would give it a try also. I took an empty pickle jar added two steel wool pads and filled it with vinegar. I shaked it around every couple of weeks and began opening and looking into the jar after a couple of months. One could see the rust starting to form. It is now six months later and I am giving it a try. The mix is looking really good. The RMC author's jar is now three decades old...so looking forward to see what mine is like in another six months...George Dutka

This is the first application of the mix. Note the colouring on the lid.

Once dry the hopper lids are rubbed with my finger while damp removing a bit of the rust.

A pewter engine block by Crow River Products.

One coat of my rust mix. Some touch-ups are needed along the edge. I still need some practice applying this mix. I think if I pour a small amount into a small cup and just dropping the smaller items in might work the best.

The siren seen on my new fire hall has some rust mix applied.

Throwback Thursday - That's a Wrap!

Via 6429 rests in portrait mode at the head of train #75 at Brantford, Ontario on June 02, 1998.

By Peter Mumby

Earlier in April, Rapido Trains announced another run of its successful F40PH-2 locomotive models.  Included in this run are several examples of the promotional wraps that have graced these VIA units over the years.  One of the earliest wraps (other than a short-lived Diet Pepsi scheme which debuted on unit 6400 in 1990) appeared on number 6429 in 1997.  This bright yellow Home Hardware scheme remained in place until 2002.  At this time, 6429 was re-wrapped in a promotion for Telus Communications.  The body colour was altered a few clicks along the colour wheel to a brilliant lime green.  With a few periodic tweaks to its labelling, 6429 retained this scheme until it was rebuilt to F40PH-3 (or F40PH-2D) specifications as part of the 2009-2012 fleet reconfiguration.

Wordless Wednesday No. 281

1942 New Haven RR News Reel

Got this link from Glenn Glasstetter and thought some of you might be interested in this newsreel which is narrated by NHRR Lowell Thomas...George Dutka
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B5Q06EFEqjg&feature=youtu.be

2018 Ontario Narrow Gauge Show - Schomberg, Ont.

Jim Burchell's dioramas

On the weekend I attended the annual Ontario Narrow Gauge Show. I normally have a table of displays and also enter the various contests. This year I also gave a clinic. Through the door the show I believe topped 90 in attendance plus all that helped out. I left on Friday doing some rail-fanning along the way which got me to a few new spots and a couple I had visited may times. More on the narrow gauge show on my Modeling Maine in Narrow Gauge blog...George Dutka

If one brought $250 you could walk away with Peter Watson's great looking G scale model.

I was first up on the clinic list.

Bob Harper's SR&RL On2 modules brought over from England.

David Woodhead shows off a tree he purchased a few years ago from Roadside America. They sell authentic roadside trees (weeds) with a numbered tag as seen below. The trees are painted and ground foamed. David had the tree set in his history of Narrow Gauge display.

I caught up once again with the Cando engine at Orangeville, Ont. The train had just arrived from a Friday run down to Streetsville returning with three cars.

One of the returning covered hoppers was spotted at the Glad Plastic plant across from the yard.

One of this years displays views what one can do in O scale using military models.

St. Albans Shop Track - 1979

CN power at St. Albans, Vermont May 18, 1979, Gord Talyor photo, Peter Mumby collection.

FOS Scale Models - New Kit

Decker's Tar Soap is back for it's 10th Anniversary!

FOS Scale Models has a new kit out that I have been thinking of ordering. It is actually a model that they offered in the past. The nice thing about this kit is it fits in a narrow area between the rail and roadway which would really work well on a peninsula...humm...George Dutka

This narrow but detailed kit features multi angled walls and a variety of materials that makes for a unique small industry for your layout or diorama.

Throwback Thursday: "Round, Round, Get Around, I Get Around..."

CV 4551 demonstrates what a turntable was designed to do.  The action took place at St. Albans, Vermont in July of 1986.

By Peter Mumby.

Back in the 1980s my Dad and I got into the habit of taking an annual railfanning trip.  He liked traveling; I liked watching trains.  Thus, traveling to watch trains seemed like a great compromise.  Very civilized!  The trip of July 1986 involved a larger than normal itinerary.  The outbound route took us through Quebec and into New Brunswick, while the trek home encompassed Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont.  We chased a passenger train on the Gaspe peninsula, visited Gordon Yard in Moncton, rode the Salem and Hillsborough dinner train, and visited the Conway Scenic Railway.  Our last railway stop occurred in St. Albans, where permission was received to tour the locomotive shop area.  The included photo of CV 4551 following a ride on the turntable is one of my favourite souvenirs of that trip.

The Ontario Narrow Gauge Show - Schomberg, Ont.

On Saturday I will be at Schomberg for the annual narrow gauge show. If you are planning to attend I will have a display table of my narrow gauge projects and will be giving a short clinic called Products I use that makes modeling easier. A show and tell type of talk...George Dutka

Wordless Wednesday No. 280

Snapshot - April 2018

Sept. 7, 2012 at White River Jct., Vermont.

Back in 2012 while at the WRJ station I played around with my camera angle...something I like to do from time to time. This time I placed my Canon pocket camera on the rail to get a low down view of a NECR engine. I actually did two photos, one up-close and a step-back version...enjoy...George Dutka

A step back view.

Prototype Corner - A Bilingual Boxcar

TBOX 639002 poses for its portrait at Paris Junction on April 07, 2018.

By Peter Mumby

Those of us who are fans of Canada's two largest railways are quite accustomed to bilingual (English/French) markings and instructions on cars and locomotives.  However, TBOX 639002, spotted at CN Paris Jct on April 07, 2018, took me a bit by surprise.  Perhaps I just hadn't noticed this on other cars, but the instructions on the door are bilingual - English and Spanish.  I guess I will have to start paying more attention to the passing parade to see just how generalized this trend has become.

Is this the shape of things to come as we approach a conclusion to the current Trump-era NAFTA negotiations?

How is your Spanish?  Fortunately, there is an English translation available, in case you have missed your last couple of tutorials.

St. Johnsbury, Vermont - 1970's

MEC 400 heads a train at St. J on May 19, 1979 Photo by Gord Taylor

Let's take a look around St. J with this nice little group of photos taken by Gord Taylor...George Dutka

A MEC geep at St. J on May 19, 1979.

May 19, 1979

May 19, 1979 Gord Taylor photo

The other side of MEC 568 at St. J May 19, 1979.