My curbs are in...

...made from scrap sidewalk material that comes with Model Power kits, I pieced them together, then painted them tan with a wash of black paint.

Model train rule # 3...

No matter what era you model, bright red Lamborghinis and purple Firebirds from your little girl fit perfectly and are to be parked near the front for all to see.

Grade crossings and roads made easy...

...using match sticks, roofing shingles, paint pens and pastel chalks.



Glue 'em down, carve 'em to rail top level, a bit of sanding...



...stain 'em with your favorite weathered wood wash---mine varies between dirty paint thinner or thinned Nutmeg acrylic craft paint from Wal Mart---cut your shingles to width and length, then secure back side up...



...straight edge, paint pens and pastel chalks for weathering sealed with clear matte finish...



...the bolts are simulated by poking a pencil point into the soft wood...



...and your LPBs will be the envy of any road department.

The N scale Basic and Mostly Credible Railroad...

...was a surprise that came from out of the blue. A gentleman heard that I liked model trains and sent me an email offering his layout to me, free for the taking if I'd only come by and pick it up....engines, cars and all.

It wasn't long before I realized that my time constraints left me with sporadic operating times at best, made all the shorter by the necessity to clean the track and dust everything down before I could run. Since we needed a bookshelf for our exploding library of books and I own a couple of tools to boot, I designed and built this combination bookshelf cabinet for my layout.

It features storage for my HO equipment and projects and the layout, both on full extension drawer slides. Now both my model work and layout remain in a dust free environment and are ready to go at the pull of a drawer.











There is additional storage for the boxes and unassembled kits that go with the hobby in the cubby hole, an accident of design that works out well for maintenance and wiring issues that may come up.

Today's monster kitbash...

...comes from Mike in Ohio. He built this for my switching layout in an exchange we have going on at the 2Guys forum. We swap a car or building with each other, do our personal touches, then send them back so that we can share a bit of each other's workmanship on our layouts. Stunned is an understatement, the work he put into this goes above and beyond expectations. It's fully lit and features a detailed interior both up and downstairs. I'm making a home for it even now...

The B&MC Inglenook switching puzzle...

...reflects my downsizing trend. I love doing scenery, but there just is only so much time in the day. I couldn't imagine how I could justify the time involved in even a medium sized layout when the call to ministry is so urgent. This little switching puzzle gives me an operating platform for my trains and a photo diorama and it's "How-to" can be found here...





My LPBs enjoying a break after a day of cruzin...

Luke 19:29-44

(29) And it came to pass, when he was come nigh to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount called the mount of Olives, he sent two of his disciples,

(30) Saying, Go ye into the village over against you; in the which at your entering ye shall find a colt tied, whereon yet never man sat: loose him, and bring him hither.

(31) And if any man ask you, Why do ye loose him? thus shall ye say unto him, Because the Lord hath need of him.

(32) And they that were sent went their way, and found even as he had said unto them.

(33) And as they were loosing the colt, the owners thereof said unto them, Why loose ye the colt?

(34) And they said, The Lord hath need of him.

(35) And they brought him to Jesus: and they cast their garments upon the colt, and they set Jesus thereon.

(36) And as he went, they spread their clothes in the way.

(37) And when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen;

(38) Saying, Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord: peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.

(39) And some of the Pharisees from among the multitude said unto him, Master, rebuke thy disciples.

(40) And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out.

(41) And when he was come near, he beheld the city, and wept over it,

(42) Saying, If thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy day, the things which belong unto thy peace! but now they are hid from thine eyes.

(43) For the days shall come upon thee, that thine enemies shall cast a trench about thee, and compass thee round, and keep thee in on every side,

(44) And shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy children within thee; and they shall not leave in thee one stone upon another; because thou knewest not the time of thy visitation.

From my junk box over the years...

...toy trucks, scrap styrene, bits and pieces, even a rocket part.

Athearn N scale Ford "C" Cab firetruck...

As I've confessed before, I have a weakness for inexpensive vehicles. The Athearn N scale firetruck is a nice but very expensive model of a truck similar to the ones I grew up around. When I found this one in nearly the same paint scheme as my dad's truck for half price, I had to scarf it up. What a model and yes, I will make those lights work one day...

Monster build of the week...

TC's scale lumber vacuum clamped sled saw...

N scale traffic lights...

My computers have been having an off month lately, leaving me to pick up those round tuits that have been laying around the work bench. My latest project has been working N scale traffic lights. The commercial ones are just too expensive and don't look very good anyway. I like how these came out...





The complete "How To" can be found here.

John 21:1-25

(1) After these things Jesus shewed himself again to the disciples at the sea of Tiberias; and on this wise shewed he himself.

(2) There were together Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two other of his disciples.

(3) Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; and that night they caught nothing.

(4) But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus.

(5) Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No.

(6) And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and ye shall find. They cast therefore, and now they were not able to draw it for the multitude of fishes.

(7) Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved saith unto Peter, It is the Lord. Now when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he girt his fisher's coat unto him, (for he was naked,) and did cast himself into the sea.

(8) And the other disciples came in a little ship; (for they were not far from land, but as it were two hundred cubits,) dragging the net with fishes.

(9) As soon then as they were come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid thereon, and bread.

(10) Jesus saith unto them, Bring of the fish which ye have now caught.

(11) Simon Peter went up, and drew the net to land full of great fishes, an hundred and fifty and three: and for all there were so many, yet was not the net broken.

(12) Jesus saith unto them, Come and dine. And none of the disciples durst ask him, Who art thou? knowing that it was the Lord.

(13) Jesus then cometh, and taketh bread, and giveth them, and fish likewise.

(14) This is now the third time that Jesus shewed himself to his disciples, after that he was risen from the dead.

(15) So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs.

(16) He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

(17) He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

(18) Verily, verily, I say unto thee, When thou wast young, thou girdedst thyself, and walkedst whither thou wouldest: but when thou shalt be old, thou shalt stretch forth thy hands, and another shall gird thee, and carry thee whither thou wouldest not.

(19) This spake he, signifying by what death he should glorify God. And when he had spoken this, he saith unto him, Follow me.

(20) Then Peter, turning about, seeth the disciple whom Jesus loved following; which also leaned on his breast at supper, and said, Lord, which is he that betrayeth thee?

(21) Peter seeing him saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall this man do?

(22) Jesus saith unto him, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee? follow thou me.

(23) Then went this saying abroad among the brethren, that that disciple should not die: yet Jesus said not unto him, He shall not die; but, If I will that he tarry till I come, what is that to thee?

(24) This is the disciple which testifieth of these things, and wrote these things: and we know that his testimony is true.

(25) And there are also many other things which Jesus did, the which, if they should be written every one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that should be written. Amen.

A lazy, cold Saturday at home...

...yields a new cruiser for Sheriff Sternly Hardcase. Now my Albertson town force can call in a backup.

I modified a Bakatronics flasher kit by adding wire leads to remote LEDs mounted on the roof of the car. Because the 1.6mm clear red and blue LEDs are modified by filing them down a bit, the voltage had to be controlled with the addition of 750k resistors. Musta blew through 5-6 of 'em before I figgered that out.






The board is scrap plywood mounted to a square of wood that will be hot glued to the bottom of the layout for easy removal and maintenance. The circuit board is elevated slightly for airflow and a switch and 9v battery clip and terminal were added. The addition of a screw terminal makes it easy to wire and mount layout level items.

Athearn HO scale MKT wide vision caboose...

There was an older gentleman in the club who showed some appreciation for my working with a very low budget. His name was Bill and he was very helpful in teaching me the basics of installing DCC decoders into older locomotives. He always seemed genuinely pleased when I'd shoehorn one into an ancient Rivarossi or Bachmann.

I moved on from the club, but I was never able to say goodbye to Bill. Sadly, he passed away shortly after that, leaving his equipment to the club as a fund raising aid. By the time I found out that he was gone, most of his collection was too. I managed to pick up this caboose as a sentimental piece to remember Bill and to remind me that the chief end of man is to "...glorify God, (1Corinthians 10:31) and to enjoy him for ever (Psalm 73:25,26)". Our models are but fleeting things, gathered today and scattered to the winds when we are gone.

My prayer is that my legacy leaves a testimony to be drawn from for an eternal value---first for my beloved and my children, then for those around me---and not something to be bid over by folks looking to grow their railroad.



Blessings, grace and peace to you and yours, Br'er Shaygetz

Marklin vertical steam engine...

...owned by Sandman of Ayrshire Scotland over at the Mamod forum. A beautiful runner, I just love that rhythmic putting.

Monster scratchbuild of the week...

...1/4 scale R/C "Gravedigger" monster truck with model V8 engine...ragin'...

Franklin Mint 1:24 scale 1907 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost

I pay for my hobby with a keen eye for the resalable. This model was picked up at a yard sale for next to nothing, needing a cleaning and a very minor repair. I enjoyed its workmanship for a time, then swapped it for some N scale stuff.

Tyco HO scale #347 Operating Floodlight car circa 1980...

Oh yeah, freebies, too.

Mantua HO scale caboose kit circa 1947...

...part of a freebie box lot. I must be some kind of Oliver Twist of model railroading. "Please sir, may I have that...er...thing you're tossing?"

I put Central Valley bolsters, Kadee trucks and couplers and MDC wheelsets on for tracking ability but left the original paint untouched.





Original ad provided by Larry at HO Seeker, simply a treasure trove of lost diagrams, catalogs and parts lists from manufacturers past and present.

1 Timothy 6:3-21

(3) If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness;

(4) He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings,

(5) Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself.

(6) But godliness with contentment is great gain.

(7) For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out.

(8) And having food and raiment let us be therewith content.

(9) But they that will be rich fall into temptation and a snare, and into many foolish and hurtful lusts, which drown men in destruction and perdition.

(10) For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

(11) But thou, O man of God, flee these things; and follow after righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, meekness.

(12) Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, whereunto thou art also called, and hast professed a good profession before many witnesses.

(13) I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;

(14) That thou keep this commandment without spot, unrebukeable, until the appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ:

(15) Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;

(16) Who only hath immortality, dwelling in the light which no man can approach unto; whom no man hath seen, nor can see: to whom be honour and power everlasting. Amen.

(17) Charge them that are rich in this world, that they be not highminded, nor trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who giveth us richly all things to enjoy;

(18) That they do good, that they be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate;

(19) Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come, that they may lay hold on eternal life.

(20) O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:

(21) Which some professing have erred concerning the faith. Grace be with thee. Amen.

Tyco #900 Operating Crane Loader in HO scale...

...a rather ingenious accessory that I am pleased to own. As with most of my Tyco, it was someone else's cast-off, destined for the dumpster if I wasn't there to intercept it. Maybe I should just set up a kiosk next to it or something...

Team Caliper 1/24 scale 2000 Monte Carlo...

...wearing the NRA/Friends of the NRA/Invencom/ARM Safe ARCA series paint scheme. I believe it was run for one race.
















Thankfully, the model comes with additional hood pin castings...