The Home Machinist!

Hi rk.... Just for reference, and not remarking on your circuitry, because all my reference material uses circuits with 'real live' relays and such, here's how it works on the 'big railroad'. I've never worked in ABS (Automatic Block Signals) territory, but I've ridden the Domes on passenger trains ...

I've had pretty good luck with google earth. I was able to scroll around looking at the elevations, and you can also draw a line or path, save it, and then "view elevation profile", and it will give you a graph showing the elevation changes. I didn't think my RR was going to be possible d...

I was out in the shop welding this week, until my cheap Harbor Freight ground clamp gave up on me.  I've got a good one coming, which won't be here until Monday, but I did get two couplers welded up, and all drilled.  I couldn't resist bolting them onto one of the new wagons, and setting all the par...

Thanks, Glenn.... My "General Cadd Pro program will do survey/mapping, I just never have. The Google picture is clear enough to locate the end-of-track in 2013, and the 'Zoom Earth' picture is clear enough that I can measure the grade from the old end-of-track to an 'East-West' spot located fro...

Mike: Don't know if there is a pay version but the free version is very good where my house is but 5 miles west (water with small uninhabitable islands) the image goes soft when you zoom in. No spooky gov't facilities there either. Rick Yup, Rick.......... It looks like it's sharper in more populat...

boaterri wrote:You might try "flash earth" for satellite imagery. Don't know about your area but the images for my area are clearer and newer.

Rick

Say, Rick......

Is that a Pay service? I'll bet that would sharpen up the image

Mike

neanderman wrote:

Erskine Tramway wrote:...the Throttle, pull back, with 9 notches (Idle through #8) of power.

I'd have to have one that goes to 11...

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=4xgx4k83zzc

I've run engines with 16 power notches.....I don't know what good the 'half-notches' did, but they were on GE 'U Boats'.

Mike

boaterri wrote:You might try "flash earth" for satellite imagery. Don't know about your area but the images for my area are clearer and newer.

Rick

Rick.......

The image isn't as clear, but it's new enough to show the grade. Thanks.

Mike

I've seen quite a few methods for laying track as far as the base, ballast, and weed cloth goes. I like yours the most. In my neck of the woods, it can pour rain for weeks. As I'll be installing a "trail" first then laying track on it, I'll probably use 3/8 clear for the base, lay the tra...

Mike, Don't see a wood pile yet at End of Track!?? :D Glenn Glenn........ That's because the wood pile is next to the Car Shed, and at the moment, there isn't much there :D We're expecting another four cords, first of next month. The end of track has nothing to do with hauling wood, it's just about...

Today, I decided it was time to start getting ready to haul wood. So, I had to clean off the cars. I hauled five of the new track panels out and laid them on the ballast. I see I need to roll out a couple more feet of weed fabric to clear the sixth panel, I'll work on that later. I'll take the last ...

That's pretty crazy, I've never been in or driven a real locomotive. So you undoubtedly experienced the bumpiness of the old ~40' bolted railing that used to be the norm? One of the reasons I remember the Milwaukee road so much, is as a kid we had a grade crossing not far from home. When we had to ...