Sunday: I've been....

I sharpied up the BLMA crossing surfaces. They leave it to the user to customize the surface, and I do NOT recommend painting it if black. Using a straightedge and a sharpie helps recreate a dk grey/black edge. (LEGO Tiles were used to elevate the panels. The crossing surface was not glued yet)

Once benchwork is complete the first area is going to get this. Speaking of which I just found a solder iron to use! :D

Sunday: LHS finds at Warrick's

Yesterday was my birthday railfan outing and no outing is complete without a trip to the Hobby shop. Originally planned Ready To Roll trains but a tip from Ted led me there. I was impressed with the prices, getting a set of 3 spine cars for 72 dollars instead of 90, and containers for $6 less, but I was disappointed that there were no Auto-Maxes. If they aren't there at Ready To Roll in my visit in one to two weeks, I will likely buy it off the net.

Finds are as follows:
Athearn dominates the HO section
lots of FEC flats from Walthers,
lots of BLMA at tiny discounts,
LOTS of TTX Spines,
some Well cars in CPR (Cameron will be happy)
some boxcars
lots of locomotives

What I bought:
Plastic cement (the adhesive)
BLMA's surfaces (which I'm kitbashing now)
Athearn Spine car set of three TTRX 361009
CSX 53' containers Blue/Dulux gold set of 3 Discontinued from Athearn!
EMP 53' Containers
TTX Boxcar TBOX 660217

Monday: Walthers Deals of the Week

Here are this week's deals that I find remarkable. I will try not to repeat last week's news.

BLMA Radio Towers and Billboards are on sale this week, among others.
Details West Leslie Airhorns Great for FEC! 50c off.
Herpa Cylindrical cd hoppers at $5 off.
JL innovative whistle posts, nifty at 50c off for 4, looking at it in a bigger scope, order 80 at $10 off.
Kibri Intermodal Kits at $12 off
PECO C83 concrete flex track at 1.90 off.
Remarkable FEC friendly Walthers deal: ADM Tanks at half off http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-7223
Otherwise, most if not all Walthers deals are intact this week.

Sunday: Tip For Today

Maintennance tip;

To be able to sift through easily and neatly, I suggest organizing your wires and regularly rinsing the scene. This tip is recycling tips from Al Mayo and Lance Mindheim since I unanimously agree with their ideas and my room is uninsulated (which is not a problem since Florida got swept by a neat-o cold front and it feels like 50 while truth be told it's 60-65. Maybe it's because that room was a sauna days ago. Plus, it helps when space doesn't galore. ;)

Sunday: I've Been Working on the Layout

Lots of cleanup. The room is almost set for benchwork, almost.... Some work will contend this pre layout stage over the next few weeks, for sure!

By The Way: A Local Hobby Shop visit is only six days away. Believe me, those 6 will go like an Amtrak Acela. Why? Cause I have no school tomorrow. ;D

Tuesday: Walthers Deals

Rather unusual that I use Tuesdays to report this but I am having a little reprieve from hard core homework.

Tomar's pricy crossing signals remain on sale.
Atlas had wonderdul GATX tanks at $8 off 30 but those were sold out. They remain listed.
Code 83 track joiners and wooden flex remain!
"Whew" BLMA signals remain on sale.
Several Kadee items are on sale.
NJ International's in the game too... Crossing signals! Perfect for the FEC
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/525-1164
NICE Peco C83 flex. http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/552-SL8300
It's 17% off.
Whew! TTX Well cars remain at their 30% off. These are perfect, especially since these were seen in videos of FEC Trains by area foamers.
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-3949
NICE looking centerbeam at 40% off
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-4136
husky stacks are on sale, too.
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-4305
Consider this and its 16000 Gal sister (though that may not be on sale)
Perfect since they are served at NS's terminal at 37th Ave.
FEC carries, NS distributes.
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-7267
Bilevels are almost half off
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-40107
TTX 89 footers as well
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/932-40327
And finally, the usual quagmire of containers, I'll put one up for the buyer's convenience
http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/933-1712

Always recommended are a look at these deals when seeking a purchase.
My birthday's 1 1/2 weeks away, that means a trip to the Hobby shop, so I might miss these deals or beat em!
Speaking of gift giving/celebrations, you bet that X-MAS is around the corner! Never to early to hide a wonderful train gift for your friend or family member.
Finally, stay away from Life Like and Bachmann. I may be biased but their models are money NOT well spent! Life Like had an FEC on sale thru Walthers, and it looks bad.
It's better to stick to the brands mentioned before. Atlas, Walthers, Athearn, BLMA, and Peco.

Monday: Collective Work from Fri - Sat

Friday and Saturday were working days, and I can happily say the room is in a much better shape than before. More is out of the room now and boxed, including an infamous ream of gift wrap papers.

Wooden sticks were found, these can quintuple in function, either as power lines, pipeline, bridge piers, garage or building columns, or traffic control device supports.

With the existing table empty, some of my LEGO creations (fairly namesake to my screename) were stored, particularly the longer displays such as my Firestone model and my warehouse whereas other places are full or not wide or long enough to accomodate these items.

There will be no Walthers Deals until Thursday, which I dub a "relief day" due to school.
No tip either. Will have one ready on Thursday.

Thursday: Findings

Sifting through the room in days past I came across these things;

-A though cut out, 3 x 3 board of cork!
-A huge sheet of possibly 4 x 6 foot metal screen. Great for a chain link fence! :D
-A classic Woodland Tree Kit with a slab of brush, helps with slash pines!
and;
-Assorted paints, spray paints, and plastic friendly glues and adhesives.

I might have pictures available over the course of the weekend. These items are albeit useful!

Wednesday: Tip For Today

Today's tip has a different approach;

If you are a railfan, use your hobby in model trains! If you are a videographer with good sound, that sound can be used nicely to ease decoding of your locomotives, or play sounds as a train hits an area to give a great feel. Photos too, can obviously make structures realistic, heck, that is what most models are based on!

Monday: I've Been Working On The Layout

The drastic leak that marred a bunch of wood boards / other storage elements was finally fixed today!

Furthermore, the center table is getting a gradual clear up. This will allow more outbound items to be temporarily stored before leaving for good.

The opening and hump that the seeping rain caused is not fixed yet, but it should not be too big of a deal whereas the tiles only need to be replaced, nothing more.

Meanwhile, I did find an old Woodland Scenics box with tree elements. I believe it allows custom trees to be built. Ah, maybe a longleaf pine or two! :D

Monday: Walthers Deals of the Week

This week's unique deals are as follows.

Bumping posts remain on sale.
Less BLMA deals, notably surfaces gone
Example:
Kadee couplers at roughly 10%
Much of the Walthers deals remain intact, namely well cars at 25% off, gunderson boxcars at about 45% off, coil cars, tankers and trinity hoppers, 89'4 flats at half off, etc.
auto carriers are on sale too.
Containers are a third off but it is preferred the modeler turns to Athearn.

What is clearly noticed is that these deals tend to be pretty repetitive. As aforementioned, indicators that deals are intact signify that there is not much to post. Some old clicks from the beginning of my entries may still, in fact, be available on the cheap!

Sunday: Tip For Today

Subscribe to newsletters from suppliers like Athearn. Such subscription will allow you to know firsthand by email when a new product is announced. Thus, you can preorder their items before they even sell out before release. This advance knowledge can structure budgeting more so than finding out days or weeks later.

Sunday: I've Been Working On The Layout

More clearing, and will take care of floor problems. What happened was accumulating rain caused a hump in the floor which bursted today. Great. All of my plans for benchwork are delayed until this problem is cured.

Saturday: Tip For Today

Today's Tip: If you want buildings, custom make them.

I am a modern builder and want to make everything one of a kind. I don't want to spam my layouts with the same Jack In The Box that Big Al has. It shouldn't be expensive to buy styrene and several acrylic or spray paints. Wal Mart has a bunch of Krylon spray paints for plastic surfaces.

Saturday: Train Item of the Week

http://www.blmamodels.com/cgi-bin/webstore/shop.cgi?ud=CAIMDAoPAgEDBxQUEBEcHAENBQ8HBA0ECQkTEQAA&t=main.blue.htm&storeid=1&cols=1&categories=01001-00011&&c=detail.blue.htm&t=main.blue.htm&itemid=4030

The BLMA Modern Cantilever Signal Bridge.

I really like this revolutionary company's products. They make spot on models of modern and classic infrastructure as seen on today's railroads. Like Matt Bown said in their NMRA video, "This is the type of stuff BLMA makes"

This signal is very exemplary of their quality. I was impressed when I first saw it. No one can beat these minute details, especially much of the HO signals I have seen before.

In my model layout, the Port of Palm Beach module will be hugged by two of these cantilevers. The real deal protects an intermediate block by the lead to the port, thus mandating a cantilever since there are three tracks, two of which are signaled.