Shilling in Oregon

Railroad Comments turned off

Visit to 7” Gauge Ride-on railroad

By Russell Shilling on September 20th, 2015

We were invited to visit a very impressive 7” gauge ride-on steam railroad. It is located in a suburb southwest of Portland. There was a large amount of rolling stock, obviously used for “operating” sessions. In the foreground you can see some cars for full-size passengers.

The motive power was diverse, including two SP engines (standard gauge prototype, not pictured), a C-16 D&RGW (left) and a K-38 D&RGW (right). Just like the prototype, these are both coal-fired steam engines, about 1/5th the size. And, just like the prototype, they must be oiled, have the tender filled with coal and water. Note the glow from the firebox in the bottom-right photo.

The railroad was about 1 mile long, with two tracks so that on a ride you would cover the distance twice. The road features a very long trestle and a tunnel.

The day was very enjoyable for all.

Garden Comments turned off

Hypertufa

By Russell Shilling on August 11th, 2015

Hypertufa is a method of using cement to create light yet strong rock-like castings or scenery. I plan on using a lot of artificial rock scenery in my railroad instead of moving literally tons of rock and earth. The mixture is simple to make. Here’s my take on a recipe:

Hypertufa: 1 part patching cement, 1.5 parts perlite and 1.5 parts peat moss. It will take 0.5 to 0.75 parts water to make this the right consistency.

Note: The cement dust is very irritating to skin. I learned that gloves are very important. I got a rash where my hand touched the dust on the bag when scooping out the cement.

On the left is hypertufa on hardware cloth. I had the mixture too thin, but it still worked okay. I would probably “paint” another coat over this and do some sculpting. On the right is an aluminum foil casting. Both methods are likely to be used.

Bonsai, Garden, Plants, Railroad Comments turned off

Alberta Spruce Bonsai

By Russell Shilling on August 8th, 2015

Trimmed on left, Bushy on right

I found small Dwarf Alberta Spruce cheap at Lowes. I used bonsai-like pruning techniques to make the shrub-like spruce look more like a scale model of a full-size mature tree for eventual planting in my garden railway. Exposing the main trunk and reducing the foliage density accomplishes that.

Here is before pruning on the right and after pruning about half the foliage on the left.

Bridge & Trestle, Railroad, Track Comments turned off

RCGRS – Annual Railway Tour (Pt 3)

By Russell Shilling on July 2nd, 2015

Track & Bridges

Part 1 of the RCGRS Tour is here.

As one can tell from other posts, I particularly like track and bridge-work, as that has some of the most interesting complexity and engineering that is not motive power or rolling stock.

A nice trestle on the Whisky Creek & Bear Mountain to the right. A very nice Town Lattice Truss Covered Bridge on same.