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- Today
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Miniature Gaming
Cat replied to Cat's topic in Other Hobbies: Games, Simulations, Models & Photography
An early draft of Twig's rules and stats can be found here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxiKebhaxRomQXQyVGg1SmU1c3c/view https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BxiKebhaxRomVlZlUmd5Ny02STg/view There haven't been major changes, some polishing up and a few tweaks. When my brain isn't so immersed in planning the Ibaraki Shorty layout, I will get back to finishing the polished up version. The real fun with these rules compared to a generic tank skirmish game is that they are really designed to capture the flavour of the show. Loading times are critical and give lighter tanks a good fighting edge with faster rate of fire. -
Miniature Gaming
nah00 replied to Cat's topic in Other Hobbies: Games, Simulations, Models & Photography
Gale Force Nine did a stand-alone Tanks game using the newer plastic minis from Flames of War. It's a skirmish game with only a few units per side and always thought it would be great for GuP battles. Plus Pravda's paint scheme is REALLY simple, same for most of the other schools. I have a few of them that I never got around to building/painting, depending on when we get off voluntary house arrest I may actually get to assembling some of them. I have some Zvezda 1/100 tanks I've put together real fast that I could get around to painting too, I have an M3 and I think 2 Matildas. While sorting through my boxes of 'to do' models I did find a 'Start Collecting' box for Deathwatch and an Imperial Guard infantry squad. I remember buying the Deathwatch guys but have no recollection of buying the Imperial Guard guys. -
Planning my layout (unknown name) thoughts please!
ranger10178 replied to ranger10178's topic in Layout Planning
Having done some testing, Koki wagons and DD51's are fine on R249 curves. As such I've done a few tweaks to the design as follows. I've partially test built the layout, but I need some bits and bobs that are in storage to do the rest... -
Truer words have never been spoken. Only thing that interests me is the containers a possibly another EF210. How common a sight are the banking ones outside of their normal areas? Do they just hang out at helper depots or make their way around the system?
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Depends, but for a medium-sized room it would be in the 10-15 minutes range.
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Political Vans - A couple of unusual Japanese road vehicles
Cat replied to ben_issacs's topic in General
Non-descript, but add a buddhist-templey hearse pulling out of the driveway, and it suddenly becomes very interesting. Street-viewing your way around that block, there are several buildings with outside staircases. The Tomix condominium with the great staircase on the back is due for restocking this month at Hobby Search. We're planning on getting one of those, but to remove that staircase to use going up to a sidewalk on a roadway overpass. It's the closest we could find to anything like this one down the other side of the station: https://www.google.com/maps/@36.3699234,140.4686862,3a,75y,65.9h,97.63t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sw8fGrmXZ73Kr3SK2xPrdhA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192!5m1!1e4 -
Political Vans - A couple of unusual Japanese road vehicles
cteno4 replied to ben_issacs's topic in General
Wow pretty non descript! I like the narrow building next to it with the outside staircase! jeff -
Political Vans - A couple of unusual Japanese road vehicles
Cat replied to ben_issacs's topic in General
I've just been looking up information on the hearses as we've found a really cool funeral parlour to kitbash. https://www.google.com/maps/place/セレモニア富士水戸駅南館/@36.3700497,140.4807207,106a,35y,202.62h,47.2t/data=!3m1!1e3!4m12!1m6!3m5!1s0x60222500c0bf6ce1:0xbf1c6445ffbd8bd1!2sMito+Station!8m2!3d36.3707551!4d140.476308!3m4!1s0x602225067f4d14e7:0xef2807c405a64767!8m2!3d36.3689497!4d140.4802459 Some point down the road, I'll have to take a crack at modelling one of those hearses to help complete our Ibaraki transportation systems! -
part 4
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An HLJ order made it here via FedEx. This is the 4th of those 'Bridge D' kits for us; needed one more segment of the concrete bridge to complete an extended overpass in Katsuta. The pile of wooden ones will get used elsewhere in Mito CIty, after some re-paving and losing the trestles. 2nd of the Pedestrian Deck to complete needs on both sides of Mito Station, plus donating some parts to other projects.
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Low-sided Dump Trucks?
railsquid replied to Cat's topic in Scenery Techniques & Inspirational Layouts
Put it like this, a large swathe of the construction/delivery/refuse disposal industry orientates around the requirement to fit down streets commonly 4.5 metres wide, often with 90 degree bends and basically no overhang room. Even the road signs are constructed so the poles can be as close to the edge of the road as possible, and a little bend in the pole at the top to extend the actual sign outwards a little. -
Thank you! Haven't been there yet, but have certainly noticed how narrow many of the streets are while cruising through Google Street Views. The extended sides of the trucks as seen in those photos would also provide more functional carrying volume if it can fit within load limits. Those little trucks would be in some danger at Boston Sand & Gravel by North Station; they could be scooped up and dropped in the big ones here. : 3 —Cat
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Severe Japan Post SAL/EMS/ePacket suspensions due to COVID-19!
bill937ca replied to Yavianice's topic in Suppliers
Plaza Japan update: Corona Virus Situation: Due to the decreased number of commercial flights leaving Japan, there are delays in International shipment and we will temporarily close our store until the situation gets back to normal. https://www.ebay.com/str/plazajapan?_dmd=1&rt=nc -
Low-sided Dump Trucks?
railsquid replied to Cat's topic in Scenery Techniques & Inspirational Layouts
Ever been to Japan? It's full of narrow roads with tight bends and weight restrictions, so unless you're operating a mine or something, small is usually better. A coupe of examples of similar vehicles in operation here: http://permeations56.rssing.com/browser.php?indx=25134386&last=1&item=3 -
Question on a very small bit of scenery — what they heck are low-sided dump trucks used for? Tomytec has some very lovely models of little dump trucks with low sides. I've picked up a couple in auction batches of other little trucks. My New England brain can't begin to guess why anyone would want such a vehicle. Such as the little one in this package: https://www.1999.co.jp/eng/image/10478706/10/1 Web searching finally helped me figure out that Japan, and some other countries, have really taken to the crane trucks like in that pack for many uses that we use rollback flatbed tow trucks for, and that makes sense. But still stumped on those dump trucks. Around here, we have very large, very deep-sided dump trucks. They are great for gravel companies, a specialty agriculture product of the region. They are great for snow removal when you run out of room to plow snow up in piles by the side of the roads. And for many other duties. I don't recall ever seeing a low-sided one.
- Yesterday
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Hmm might look at simple stud walls and either styrene foam insulation board or just blow foaming the whole stud wall and then Sheetrock. Also cheap flooring with thick foam pad under also helps greatly. Cork is a wonderful flooring and insulator as well for underlaminent and flooring and renewable but a bit more expensive. We have cork in our kitchen/family room and lower level rooms that are on concrete slab and not super cold and soft on the feet even though on hard slab! im lucky one of our forced air furnaces is in the basement so it’s nice and toasty in the winter! I’ve tried to get in the habit of small shop in the basement in the winter and save the big stuff for the garage in spring/summer/fall. Once below 50 it’s a bit hard for a few hours in the garage, especially on the hands even with fingerless gloves, below 40 no way for more than 15min. I got a cheap thin pair of ski bib/pants and that helps along with fleece lined work pants and a long sleeve thermal base layer and one of those really light thin down jackets. Works pretty well but not as comfortable as it would be in the 60s! might throw a forced air heater if you have one in that work room and close the doors and see what it does. If it’s not too huge a space and you get the air heated up the walls may insulate enough to keep it comfy enough, sometimes it’s getting to just a point where you no longer notice it. I tried that wirh ac in the garage at the height of summer last year and just taking off 10degrees went from sweltering to ok. Luckily the cold air stays down with me unlike the winter where in the garage I have to warm all the air in the rafters first or at the same time (with the air dust handler going circulating air in the whole space). sounds like a baseboard heater would finish off the train room with little electrical cost. jeff
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I have an ever growing collection of HO container flats and those older style Yamato containers are more commonly seen in my part of Japan than the previous released newer design. You can never have too many Kokis, right?
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Famous Australian steam loco back running.
ben_issacs replied to ben_issacs's topic in Worldwide Rail
Mark, Thanks for your info. on the saga of 3801's boiler. I was the one who stuffed things up, not Meningen! Bill, Melbourne -
It's not. There are two rooms. One is finished and is relatively warm in spite of no heating. That will be the train room. I may install headed tiles. but haven't decided yet. The other is not finished. It's got bare concrete walls. It's icy cold. This will be workroom and storage. This might work for the train room. This is more like the situation. I may consider just having the room finished. Electricity savings would probably pay for it eventually. I can't imagine sitting down there working on things as it is. Way too uncomfortable. Yeah, I was concerned about that. I think I was just tripping that this would be an easy fix. Yes, I'm leaning more and more toward a definitive solution. Thanks for all this great advice.
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I think squid was even just cutting a strip of cardstock that fit between the rails and just putting ballast on that and setting it in place or just tacking it down. jeff
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Gavin, if it’s well insulated (if basement it should be) then you might look at some baseboard heaters to try to keep the base temp up all the time and then just augment with a little fan heater near where you are working to do the last bit. If good insulation the heat put into the air should not escape quickly and may be more efficient than trying to blast the room up from really cold repeatedly. i have a heating issue in my garage wood shop. In the winter it’s impossible to heat much as it’s not insulated and any stored heat bleeds off fast. I use a 1500w fan heater and a 1500w radiant heater in combo but it just gets temp up like 10-15 degrees and takes an hour or two to do that. But that can be enough to make it more tolerable. Radiant heaters don’t heat the air much they just heat surfaces with ir, so more about heating your body not the air around you. In the right situations working in the shop it cna feel good (too close and you can burn and dry skin and too far and you don’t feel much of anything). Fan heaters will heat the air more, but this of course quickly dissipates into the room. Again too close to you and they can dry your skin out fast and too big a room and poor insulation they can’t keep up to really warm the room. be careful with all these heaters as they are a big fire hazard. Also each 1500w heater eats up a whole 15a circuit. Also keep extension cords short and bigger gauge to be safe. Cord plug junctions also are where you will get the most resistance/heat so always feel these when plugged into an extension cord. Some extension cords that are big gauge (like 10 or 12g) have very small contact points in their sockets to the prongs of the heater cord. I had one shop 12g cord like this. When I usually used it for stuff that drew high current it was only for a few minutes but when I used it in a 1500w heater for a few hours the socket got way hot to the point of getting close to melting down. might talk to hvac person as if you have central air a vent in the basement may work as well. They may know the most efficient way to keep it warm. cheers, jeff
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I think what you suggest is pretty common. So yeah do it. If you do wanna raise the inbetween ballast height a little on the cheap. Just use old piece of scrap wood and the ballast over the top.
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How long does it take to heat up? I like the idea of setting it. But I'd also want to be able to go down there and work on an unplanned job without freezing.
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Microace Nankai R-pit Pantograph broken
Aztecknight replied to Aztecknight's topic in The Train Doctor
Hi Jeff Thank You I followed your advice and I ordered Tomix Pantograph that look almost identical -
At the club we use a couple of these electric portable heaters (not sure what would be the exact english translation for "calorifero") connected with two timers, so that they'll automatically start heating the room a couple hours before the meeting begins. They usually range between 30-70€ so they shouldn't be a lot expensive. Ours is quite a large room, but for a domestic hobby room one should be more than enough.
