The Home Machinist!

Depending on what you need...the small scale guys use Green Velvet's Sapon-A-Max 320 available at: https://www.thetraindepartment.com/stea ... ting-oils/ in manageable size containers.

Hi Mike, I actually own one of these machines and I really like it! I have the larger bed version with the 10k rpm spindle. I use it mostly for precision glass cutting using diamond tools (fully submerged in coolant, a very clean way to do it). I make all my custom fixtures from scrap aluminum. I us...

I'm thinking the suspension could cause some timing issues. Is the center driver blind? Perhaps the front and center drivers could have extremely hard suspensions to help minimize the chance of issues.

So how much is a student license?

In the pictured trucks... Are the main sideframes all wood, or are they clad in iron?

Hi folks, I'm back to planning my (non-riding) home track again and I was curious to know if anyone has ever made any scale ties for 3.5in? The track is being built parallel to a Ga 1 track with both ground level and elevated sections so it's not really appropriate for riding. My normal supplier for...

Hi Cary,
Lgb G1 code 332 rail is literally 0.332in tall. Likewise the finescale rail code 250 is 0.25in tall.

I'm guessing the G scale toy trains probably have a bigger flange than a 3/4 scale model, but maybe I'm wrong?

Hi all, Has anyone ever tried using garden railway code 332 (.332in) stainless steel rail for 3.5in gauge? Normally, I think one would use .625in aluminum rail, but I have plans to build this track along side existing G1 tracks and may even consider dual gauge. I have little doubt that the rail woul...

I can attest to the hardness and durability of bowling alley....I've brought kids many times! I think my face is permanently disfigured from the resulting reaction I have when the ball falls out of the sky at such a faster rate than which it moves forward. Anyways, one of the nearby granite quarries...

I remember seeing "butcher block" style table tops at home depot years back. I salvaged mine from an old kitchen table and it now holds a desk top mill and a heavy vice (plus everything else that accumulates overnight).

We have two Heavy 10s and both have speed charts. I have one that's rather old and one from the 90s we bought new.
I'm curious if they both have the same charts. We only use them for a very specialized process so the charts have been covered up for many years.

That's an interesting point. Also, without fear of a crew timing out you can run a freight train at whatever painfully slow speed you need to make it "safe" without a driver onboard.