Author Archives: timf

Building Branchline Blueprint Series Box Cars

Posted on April 20, 2020 by timf

I’m building my second Branchline Blueprint Series Box Car model and I thought I’d document my process. It’s a little different than what the instructions suggest you do. The instructions are a little vague about what order you should assemble … Continue reading →

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Mickey’s Diner

Posted on April 19, 2020 by timf

When I was at the train show I decided the residents of Blackwing needed somewhere to eat. There was a vendor with the Walther’s “Betty’s Diner” kit for sale at a reasonable price and since it fit my time period … Continue reading →

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GN Engine No. 655

Posted on January 5, 2020 by timf

I went to the swap meet again and this time I picked up a Proto 2000 model of an EMD GP7 painted for the Great Northern. It’s a really nice looking model, and has some very nice detailing. It even … Continue reading →

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Ballast Testing

Posted on November 11, 2019 by timf

On Friday and Sunday I put down some ballast on the track on the Northeast end of the layout.

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Progress Report – 8 Nov 2019

Posted on November 8, 2019 by timf

More and more progress to report. Since the last progress report I’ve gotten the following done: I installed the “fiddle yard” extension, painted the top of it tan, put down the cork roadbed, built two more turnouts to finish the … Continue reading →

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Progress Report – 29 Oct 2019

Posted on October 29, 2019 by timf

I know the last post was about being discouraged, but that doesn’t mean I stopped working on the layout. I took a day or two off to do other things and then buckled down to get back to it. The … Continue reading →

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Feeling A Little Discouraged…

Posted on October 23, 2019 by timf

On Monday I decided to run my locomotives around on the layout to test the turnouts. First I ran the V0-1000 diesel around. Sadly it did not go all that well. It looks like I need to do some re-work … Continue reading →

Posted in Misc | 4 Comments

Crossing Lutgens Creek – A Staged Publicity Photo

Posted on October 20, 2019 by timf

Since I managed to place the three bridges and lay the three tracks to cross Lutgens Creek I thought it might be fun to stage a “publicity photo”. Still plenty of work to do, but it’s starting to look more … Continue reading →

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Creating and Crossing Lutgens Creek – Part Two

Posted on October 19, 2019 by timf

In the last installment about Lutgens Creek I had created the creek bed and painted it tan. The next step was to paint the bottom of the creek bed a darker color and then shade the sides a little. I … Continue reading →

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Universal Scrap Metals

Posted on October 16, 2019 by timf

I have a track that runs along pretty close to the backdrop and I’m planning on filling the area with “flats” – buildings with little to no depth. I found a website named Trackside Flats that had a bunch of … Continue reading →

Posted in Industries | 1 Comment