Troubleshooting the BLI T1

As mentioned in a previous post, I have a large number of steamers out of service due to decoder issues. My Broadway Limited T1 was one of them, or at least that's what I thought. See, for the past few years, I can put this locomotive on the rails, give it some throttle and it just sits there and goes "chug-chug...chug-chug" and doesn't budge.

I tried everything I could decoder wise. I tried resetting by setting CV8 to 008 and no change. I tried the reset button on the decoder (something unique to BLI) and no change. I finally fired off an e-mail to BLI explaining the situation and that the locomotive was out of warranty.

A few days later, BLI responded by asking me what happened if I started the locomotive and muted the sound. Specifically they wanted to know if the motor hummed. I went ahead, muted the sound, gave the locomotive throttle and it moved!

Excited, I hooked up the Broadway Limited cars and sent her around the layout. She was running like a champ! But, I celebrated too soon. The locomotive made it from Cassandra to Altoona and then, it stopped and "chug-chug...chug-chug."

Discouraging for sure, but I got scientific. I muted the sound and put my ear to the locomotives boiler, The motor was indeed humming. The problem is mechanical and not the decoder. I suspected the problem could be a broken link in the drive shafts. I removed the shell and performed a visual check of the drive train and everything looked okay. I manually rotated the motor and all the gears turned properly.

I found after rotating the drive train manually, the locomotive would run. However, it inevitably locks up again. Now I know what the issue is, I'm just not sure how to fix it.

 

The Layout Gets a Glowup

 

Since coming off my model railroading hiatus, I've been focusing a lot of attention on fixing things that have fallen into disrepair. Over the years, some of the wiring to the various lights have gotten damaged. On top of that, some of the LEDs that I used because I thought they would last forever failed.

I've spent weeks under the layout reconnected various yanked wires and getting lights working again. That was the easy part.

Next, I set about replacing some of the failed LEDs. Unfortunately for me, the least accessible one on the layout, the reason I used an LED, failed (Center right photo). To fix it, I had to lean over the layout, brace myself on the tracks for support, and drill a new hole. I'm still having nightmares about it!

Next, I decided Warren's Country Store (Top right photo) needed a streetlight. I also figured it was the kind of place where the old timers would gather and shoot the breeze, complain about "kids these days" and reminisce about the good o'le days. So I added a bench and some figures.

All in all, I'm glad to see part of the layout restored to its former glory. Honestly the disrepair and my not having the spoons in my drawer to replace it, was the reason I took a break. But everything's Jake now.

The Great Digitrax Decoder Die Off

 

After returning to model railroading after a long hiatus, I was frustrated to find a large number of my locomotives simply will not run. This includes my Kato L1 2-8-2, my brass I1sa 2-10-0, my Minitrix B6 and all my Norfolk Southern diesels. I can put them on the programming track, address them but then no response

The common denominator is that all the affected locomotives are equipped with Digitrax decoders, specifically DN136 or DZ136s. I'm at a loss as to what's happening here. The only thing I did was let them sit for a while. It's looking like I may have a lot of decoder replacement in my future!

Proof of Life

 

It's been three years since my last post. In that time the layout's 10th birthday came and went. So I bet you're wondering what's with all the cobwebs and tumbleweeds in this once active blog. Okay, I'll tell you anyway.

The long and short of it is the layout is pretty much done and I started getting bored with model railroading in general.

But, I've been getting back into as of late. My Corvair in the garage for winter so it's time to shift hobby gears. Some parts of the layout have fallen into disrepair, but I'll be fixing them. I hope you'll come along for the ride.

Fixed My Dad's Lionel 2035

 With the scenery on the N Scale layout done, I found myself in a odd position. I had plenty enthusiasm but no projects to do! Well that's a new one on me. I decided to tackle a little side project, my father's old Lionel 2035 steamer. He's had it since he was kid and it's never really run right. Today, I did something about that.

The problem was the locomotive's E-Unit. For uninitiated, an E-Unit is and electro-mechanical polarity switch controlling the direction of the motor. They can be quite cantankerous when they want to be. I took the locomotive apart, which is easier said than done. This thing is a total Chinese puzzle box. The I cleaned all the contacts. 

While I was in there, I rewired the headlight. The original, 70-year-old wire's insulation was disintegrating. That was an easy fix. Now this 70-year-old classic is running better than it's run, at least in my lifetime.

Finished with the Ballast and The Scenery

 

The title pretty much says it all, doesn't it? I got a bag of Woodland Scenics Fine Cinders ballast. It turned out to be just enough to finish the yard tracks and the area around the roundhouse. With that, every inch of track on the layout, save for Pittsburgh Staging, is ballasted. Yay!

Once the track was ballasted, I turned my attention to the small pond in the middle of the loop. I painted the bottom with a mix of navy blue and black acrylics. Once that dried, I added several sizes of Woodland Scenics Talus to a side that came out too steep. I used Woodland Scenics Field Grass to make reeds. The canoeing folks were salvaged from my last layout. The water, which is still drying, is Mod Podge gloss medium.

With the pond done, I channeled my inner Bob Ross and added some happy trees. These are Woodland Scenics large trees. I've assembled hundreds of these trees for this layout and I have to say, they can be a bit of a PITA.  You assemble them by twisting a flat plastic armature into something tree shaped. Then coat it with WS's "Hobby Tack" glue. My mistake was putting the foliage on right away instead of waiting 15 minutes. This time I waited and had much better results.

Another thing about trees is they look best in distinct stands even as part of an overall forest setting. Further more, said stands look best with an odd number of trees.

With the tree planted, I went back into ground cover mode. I have a jar of fallen leaves, which I ground up into a fine powder a blender. I sprinkled this under the stands of trees and added a few pieces of Woodland Scenics deadfall.

With that, I can declare major combat operations over as far as scenery. Suddenly, the to-do list is looking very empty. Up next is the fine detailing faze. Now, detail parts can be quite dear and are best picked up en mass at train shows from folks liquidating their layouts. Unfortunately, the show isn't until February. 

I think it's high time I finally get serious about operation. I do have a phone system and am planning to use timetable and train order. But What I don;t know about operation could fill the grand canyon! Time to get researching!

2021-22 Annual Progress Report

 

On Halloween of 2013 work began on the Pennsylvania Railroad. Here we are nine years later and the layout is nearly finisher. Well, as finished as a layout gets anyway. Also of note, this layout now ties my old garden railway for title of my longest lived layout.

Anyway, last year's goal was finishing Altoona. I didn't make it, but I'm darn close. I wanted to finished all the ballast work. I manged to get the main lines and most of the yard tracks done. However, obtaining Woodland Scenics fine cinder ballast has been difficult due to supply chain issues. The good news, is I tracked some down and ordered it. It should be here next week.

As for scenery, I managed to get all ground cover finished. Not just for Altoona, but the layout as a whole. So no more fuzzy turf until next layout!

The last scenery items on my docket include finishing a small lake and planting some trees. That will round out Altoona.

With Altoona finished the final project will be wiring up Pittsburgh Staging. With that, It's major combat operations over and I begin focusing on operating the layout. 

Goals for next year?

-Finish Altoona

-Wire up Pittsburgh Staging. 

-Pop a bottle of Champagne and celebrate a job well done!

Finished With the Ground Cover

 

I'm finally back at it. Today I knocked out all the ground cover. With that, every inch of foam, save for Pittsburgh Staging is covered with ground foam. That is a major milestone. I can kiss all this fuzzy turf goodbye until the next layout!

While I was at it, I worked on the lake. I painted the bed a mix a navy blue and black. Next I painted the bank burnt umber. One side of the lake came out a bit steeper than I would've liked. Rather than dig into the foam, I added some Talus rip rap. The next step will be to apply some Woodland Scenics field grass around the edges.

As You may have seen from the above photo, the yards tracks still require ballast. That's on order. Unfortunately, Woodland Scenics Fine Cinder ballast seems to be unobtanium. I managed to buy the last bag off Amazon. The big shakers are completely unavailable. Gotta love the supply chain issues.

Anyway, I imagine the scenery should be done by spring.

Reading, Writing, 'Rythmatic and Railroading!

 I while ago, I wrote a post about attracting new blood to the hobby and how we can do that. Well, over the past few weeks I've been working on doing just that. Last month, my daughter's Pre-K class was doing themed days for each letter of the alphabet. T was Transportation, sensing an opening, I offered to bring in my O-Gauge equipment for the kids.

The day went well, the kids loved running the trains. The day was so successful, I set the trains up for my son's first grade class. Once again, the kids ate it up. Emboldened, I pitched the idea of a model railroad club to the principal. She liked the idea as it dovetails nicely with the school's STEM/STEAM curriculum. However, she said we would need to gauge interest before we moved ahead.

The second to last day of school was sort of a do-nothing day for certain grades and teachers would have a bunch of rambunctious kiddos. I volunteered to set trains up again and the principal loved the idea. One class at a time came in to run the trans. I counted the number of students interested and it was 88. That's 88 potential young railroaders! The principal came into the room and saw engaged the kids were and told me to start planning my club!

So I was excited. Now the excitement has turned to "Holy Moses, what did I just get myself into?" I started mulling which scale. I think I've settled on HO. It gives you the most bang for the buck. It's small enough to fit in a small space but also robust enough for kids. 

Right now, I'm thinking of having the kids start off the way all of us start off, with a 4'x8'. We can design and build the layout and hopefully operate it. 

My goal here is to get kids into the hobby. I'm tired seeing forum posts by grumpy old men lamenting the death of the hobby. Why don't you do something about it? Make YouTube video about scratch building! Welcome the younger members into the club instead complaining about them. Invite the local scout troop to see your layout. Be part of the solution.

More Structure Lighting

All but one of the town building are illuminated. Dang, these LEDs are night-into-day bright! The gas station roof is glowing despite the black paint. In addition to the building lights, I took a Model Power Y-Shaped street light and bent it to resemble a 1980s-style gas station light.

As for what's going on across the street from the gas station, that's going to be a used car lot. The office is an old Nucomp Miniatures trailer. I'll elaborate on this scene more when it's finished.

Next thing on my list is finishing a partially-completed Model Power house kit. That will do it for the structures on this layout.
 

Finished City Classics' "401 Crafton Ave. Service Station" Kit

 I scored this long-discontinued kit off eBay. It's too bad City Classics didn't expand their N Scale line because this really is nice kit with lots of interesting details.

I started things off by spraying the inside of the walls with some cheap black spray paint. This is necessary with structures to keep them from glowing when they're lighted. Unfortunately, some of said paint bled onto the front of the building. I sprayed the front walls with Rustoleum white primmer. The door and window frames are Floquil "Conrail Blue." The roof? You guessed it, Floquil "Grimy Black."

The structure base and pump islands are painted Testor's "Flat Light Aircraft Grey," my go-to concrete color. The Pumps are Testor's Flat Red and Floquil "Coach Green."

The next step is to pain the parking lot, add some lighting and details and then we're done. After this, I have only one more structure to finish.

Wired Up Some Buildings

 You ever have one of those days where it seems like all you do is spin your wheels and get nothing accomplished? Yup, that was me today. I came up to the train room all fired up to get going on the wiring project. Well hit the first roadblock when my drill battery died almost instantly. That delayed my plans.

Unable to drill holes, I took a whack at wiring up the turn table. I had pre-drilled the holes years ago, so routing the wires was no problem. And the turntable didn't work. Stymied, I came back later.

This evening, armed with a fully-charged battery, I drilled holes and snaked the wires through the table top, one of my least favorite tasks. I managed to get everything hooked up to a barrier strip and - nothing. I tired switching the polarity, no change. With nothing else to try I switched the polarity again, and tightened down the screws, this worked. 

One building is sitting on a wooden base so I glued it down. In very fitting end to this day, it warped! So yeah, today was a bit of a battle, but Altoona is one step closer to the finish line.

Finished With the Backdrops

 I knocked on item off the to do list tonight. I finished mounting backdrops. I took the section I'd mounted to foam core board last night and blackened the edge with a black magic marker. Then I stuck it to the wall. Next, I carved the final section of mountain with my hot knife, painted it and glues on the remained of the lichen. I added turf around Alto Tower and the area between the wall and tracks was done. 

While I was turf slinging mode, I decided to go ahead and cover up the area behind the roundhouse and the area where the two sets of tracks diverge. The upper photo really illustrates the difference between the new ground cover and the stuff that was put down in 2014 (on the left). The latter has become quite dusty, dull and lifeless looking.

Roads, Backdrops and Turf, Oh My!

 I've been stuck in this "I don;t know how to finish Altoona" quagmire for what seems like years. Oh, wait, it has. But I', turning the corner on it. For a while, I've been dreading finishing the roads, but today, I was determined to get it done. And wouldn't you know it? I found a much easier alternative.

In one of the massive boxes of crap under the layout, I found two sheets of brown Creatology foam I'd purchased years ago. Turns out these foam sheets are the same thickness as Woodland scenics paving tape! So rather than do my roads out of plaster, I simply cut them out of foam. I used this for the parking lot under the shop powerhouse and the the road leading out of town.

In the town itself, I really took the coward's way out. I painted the roads directly on the base. It definitely passes the "good enough for government work" test. However, I did use a foam sheet to create a sidewalk layer for the buildings to sit on.  

Doing the roads ended up crystalizing my needs for the town. I decided to add one more building, a gas station. and that's it. After all this supposed to be the outer fringes of the city. The city proper lives off the layout.

I also applied more turf to some areas around the shop complex. Since it's industrial, I went heavy on the dry grass turf.

The last thing I did was mount the final section of backdrop to a piece of foam core board. All that's left is painting the edges black and it's ready for prime time.

Despite the work I've done, there's still quite a bit on the to do list. to wit:

-Wire all roundhouse tracks and turn table

-Finished the remaining mountains.

-Mount remaining backdrop section.

-Assemble final building

-Wire building lights

-Install street lights

-Ballast remaining yard tracks

-Finish turf

-Add trees.

-Add details

Once this is done, I can declare major combat operations over for the layout. Stay tuned.

My Layout's Got 99 Problems and a Switch Ain't One

 Well hello there! I know, it's been forever since I've posted. But I've been working on the layout in fits and starts. As you can see from the above photo, I've gotten most of the Altoona yard tracks ballasted and am starting to apply ground cover. 

My most recent project involved my turnouts, chiefly, the double crossovers at each end of the layout. My trains were consistently stalling on them. Nothing kills my enthusiasm faster than balky trains, so I finally attacked the problem.

The Achilles heal of these Peco Electro Frog turnouts is their reliance on the points to ferry current to the rest of the turnout. If you point rails don't make perfect contact with the stock rails, your turnout becomes a dead spot. Painting the rails and ballasting, no matter how careful I am, tend to gum these turnouts up. 

It took a few hours of careful cleaning with Goof Off and tweaking, but now my trains run around flawlessly. It was well worth the effort. 

The main fruit of my labors was being able to teach my son Victor to run the trains with the DCC throttle. Talk about a proud papa moment!

2020-21 Annual Progress Report

Johnstown, October 31, 2013, the day construction started.

Johnstown now

 Happy eight birthday to my layout! The layout has come a long way those eight years. Let's get down to the annual progress report.

I haven't done anything in terms of DCC conversion on the NS fleet. That's at the bottom of the priority list.  

As for track, almost all of the Pittsburgh staging area is laid down and ready for wiring. As I said last year, there's no ruch on this project due to the pandemic keeping me from holding operating sessions. But, the real heavy lifting is done.

Last year my goals were to finish painting and ballasting the track, make significant headway in Altoona and continue minor repairs. I'm happy to report all track is painted. All main lines are ballasted. The Altoona yard tracks have to wait until I can get over to Blue Ridge Hobbies for more ballast. 

I've made excellent progress in Altoona and have a game plan for finish it and the scenery as a whole. 

Altoona, currently under construction.

As for minor repairs, I'm addressing a fair amount of them. 

Goals for next year?

-Finish Altoona

-Wire up Pittsburgh Staging

-Wire up Altoona engine facility.

And that's really it. With the scenery done, it will finally be time to focus on operations.

Started Building the Embankment and Mounting the Backdrops

 The title pretty much sums it up. I started things off by taking a long strip of white Styrofoam roughly 3/4 of an inch thick and two inches wide and beveling it with my hit knife. Next, I painted the whole thing raw umber and glued it along the backside of the Altoona peninsula with white glue.

Once the paint and glue dried, I broke out the lichen and started gluing down. At first, I tried using Elmer's spray adhesive. Turns out, this stuff isn't meant for Styrofoam. Oops! So after melting some of the embankment, I switched the white glue. 

With the lichen glued down, I moved on the the backdrop. I tried gluing one section to the wall, and it looked all wrong! The white edges of the foam core board stuck out like a bunch of soar thumbs. The solution was to painstakingly paint the edges with black acrylic paint. Once mounted, they looked awesome.

I'm pretty stoked about how the backdrop is turning out. I have about one more section to mount and that project is done.

Improved the First Train Show Building

This building is jazzed-up DPM Otto's Auto Parts. The seller added a base, interior LED light, signs and some roof details. A lot of the detailing is quite nice, but some of it had to go.

First and foremost, the styrene base was glued to a larger balsa wood base. The latter made a rather unconvincing. The first thing I did was pry the sucker off, remove the vehicles and toss it in the trash. 

Next, I pried off the plastic base and drilled a hole through the center for the light wire (the were regionally routed out the back wall). While the base was off, I re-glued the window inserts and drapes.

Not a bad little 30-minute project.

In other news I've started building the embankment along the back edge of the Altoona peninsula. More on that to come.
 

Train Show Haul

 As threatened I went to a train show in Simpsonville, SC this morning. It was a small show, but there were some deals to be had. 

On the N Scale front, I was hunting urban buildings and managed to buy four nicely-detailed buildings. Some of the bases will have to come off and the modern cars have got to go. But otherwise, they're quite nice.

I also picked up five ore cars for my I1 to pull. They're quite elderly and as such are equipped with Rapido couplers and deep wheel flanges. The later will have to be replaced. The former I can live with as these cars will be run in a unit train that will pass from one staging yard to the other.

 

 

I also picked up a few things for my children's (really mine) O Gauge layout, the V&R Railroad. One vendor was selling a Lionel USRA 0-8-0 and a trio of freight cars for 60 bucks. That was smoking deal so I snapped that up. That is my son's Victor's train to run. 

I also scored a Lionel Percy for my daughter Rosie. They are both super excited to come upstairs and run the trains. That makes me happy. 

And what Lionel layout is complete without some of those cantankerous operating accessories? None! I snapped up this operating gateman.

Speaking of the V&R Railroad, it's lived on the carpet long enough. I'm planning to build a 5x8 table for all this stuff along with a kid-friendly control panel.

Why Didn't I Think of This Sooner?

 I've been moving forward with the Altoona end of the layout for better part of a month and a half now. Today, I had one of those eureka moments normally reserved for waking up at three AM or sitting on the toilet. 

As I've mentioned previously on this blog, my main concern with scenicing Altoona was said scenery hindering operation and getting damaged in the take. The solution to this concern is dead simple, make the middle of the peninsula a lift out!

With a lift out, we have functionality for operating sessions and nice scenery for show. Implementing this may be a tall order, but well worth the effort.