Appalachian Southern

I have been finishing up another project over the past couple of months. This project was started around Thanksgiving of 2006!  Anyway, this project was expensive so I had to spread it out over a period of years. It is not something you can do overnight anyway…

Here is what I started with, a 1985 Jeep CJ7.

1985 Jeep CJ7 in November of 2006

Bead Blasted and Painted Frame

A Cool View of the 383

Fitting the Body Prior to Paint

So, fast forward to August 2009. Here is what the jeep looks like after a total frame-off restoration and a bunch of goodies:

1985 CJ7 in August of 2009

I built the motor for the jeep which is a 383 small block chevy. There is a 4-1/2″ rubicon express suspension lift and a 1″ body lift. 35″ Super Swamper SSRs put the power to the pavement. The jeep is completely new. Nearly all new and upgraded parts. A few parts that can’t be replaced were reused, but only after repainting and some time to make them look like new.

Here is a photo of my masterpiece:

383 Small Block Chevy

If you would like to follow the entire build of this project, you can see it all here:

Hutch’s 1985 Jeep CJ7 Frame-Off Restoration

The motor will be cranked for the first time tomorrow, August 28th. It will be an exciting day for sure. Can’t wait!

08/29/3009

Just an update, the motor cranked and ran great. I was pretty excited ! Here is an image of the 383 just after it was started for the first time.

SBC 383 Stroker

I hope everyone likes the new colors of the website. I have been working to get that done over the past few days.

I am not sure where all the time has gone since my last post. Just trying to get all the materials ready for my wiring panel has taken some time. I am centrally locating as many of my DCC components as possible to minimize the rats nest of wiring that tends to develop under a layout. This centralized panel gives ready access to DCC bus power, 12 volt DC for power supplies, and 120VAC for other needs.  All of my power districts will be centally managed here on this panel. All of the DS64 tortoise controlers will also be mounted here. As the layout grows, the panel will grow to accomodate the needed devices. I have about five additional feet in which the panel can grow.

In the photos below you can see the red and black terminal strips which distribute the DCC bus lines to the layout. The blue and black terminal blocks house the 12 volt DC power for the AX lines on the DS64 units.  The wiring channels have lids that will cover up all the wiring when I am done. This is the same way I used to wire machines, and it works good for the layout.  This wiring channel is 1″ square, but I likely should have purchased 1″ x 2″ to accommodate all of the wiring. This is going to be a tight fit for the amount of wires that will call these channels home.

The first locomotive will be running in  a few minutes! I am excited!  Oops, can’t run anything without some LocoNet cables. I guess I will go and make those!

DCC Central Control Panel

DS64s Mounted to the Control Panel

8 Conductor CAT3 Cable to the Remote Tortoise Machines

DCC Bus Line Distribution Terminal Blocks

Shelf Holds Power Supply and DCS200 Next to the Control Panel

My goal for the summer is to read more books.  Here is what I am reading and have read so far this summer.

Today, the work continues on the AutoCad drawings for the BB&T building, here in Florence, SC.  As the drawings progress, I am gettting excited about the building process.  Once I complete the rear elevation, I should be able to order the materials that will be required for construction. 

This N scale model is going to be huge. From the scale drawings, it will be just under 12″ wide!

BB&T Building in Florence, SC

Front Elevation

Left Elevation

Revised Right Elevation

This week I have been working on installing the tortoise switch machines and installing the drops from the track to the DCC bus lines. Each rail  gets its own feeder to the DCC bus lines. The isolated frog of each switch also gets one drop so the tortoise can control the polarity to the turnout frog. This will allow the motive power to crawl slowly through the turnouts.  All is going well so far.

Tomorrow I will start mounting the two Digitrax DS64 units that will be required to add DCC control to these six turnouts.  At that point I can also add my 12v DC power runs to each DS64 and wire up the Tortoise switch machines.  I use DIN rail mounted terminal blocks with jumper bus bars to tie the rail drops into the bus lines.   Here are couple of pictures of the progress so far.

Wiring Drops to the DCC Bus Lines

In the following picture you can see the wiring drops from each turnout’s isolated frog.

Six Tortoise Switch Machines Installed

For my second scratch building project, I have selected the BB&T building in Florence, SC, my hometown. This building in N scale will be about 9″ x 7″  from  the initial work on the elevation drawings. Quite a large building, but I have plenty of room on the layout to accommodate a building of this size. The first step, I have learned, is to create a set of elevation drawings for the building in AutoCad. I have completed the right side elevation drawings at this point. Please excuse the fact that they are labeled incorrectly in the drawing below.

The best way to scale the photos was to count the actual bricks in the building. Knowing the size of standard bricks and their mortar joints, it is pretty simple to derive the dimensions of the building and windows.  The soldier course of bricks above and below the windows really adds a touch of flair to this building.  While I still have more work to do on the elvevation drawings,  here is where I am currently with the progress.

Below you will find a few of the photos I took of the building to produce the elevation drawings, and the right side elevation drawings of the building.  The brick detail is left out for clarity, except what is found between the first floor windows.  I am completing the drawings in full scale and will then scale them to .00625 of actual for N scale.  We will see how this works out in the coming days.

Have a good afternoon.

BB&T Building in Florence, SC

BB&T Building in Florence, SC

Left Side Rear of the BB&T Building in Florence, SC

Left Front BB&T Building in Florence, SC

BB&T AutoCad Right Elevation Florence, SC

This morning,  I completed a scratch build of Sinclair Station from the original build article at N Scale Limited. This was my first scratch build attempt and the final results are quite pleasing. I hope to do more scratch building in the future and improve my skills even more. In order to provide some insight, here are the final steps that were followed to complete the build.

Clear laser printer decal paper was used to print the Sinclair Station decal on an HP Color Laser Jet. After printing several copies of the decal on one sheet of clear laser decal paper,  a small brush was used to coat the decals with MicroScale Liquid Decal Film. Once the first coat was dry, a liberal second coat was applied. Once the second coat dries, the decal can be cut and immersed in water in preparation for application to the model.

Just prior to placing the decal on the structure, I brushed MicroScale Micro Sol onto the painted surface of the structure. I slid the decal into place on the structure, positioning it with your finger as needed. Once the decal is in the proper position, a small brush was used once again to apply Micro Sol over the top of the decal, being careful not to displace or move it. Once the Micro Sol dries in about ten minutes, you can move on to the final steps of weathering the sign / decal and the model in general.

The weathering techniques consisted of the india ink / alchohol solution procedure detailed on N Scale Limited, and several applications of Bar Mills weathering chalk.

Building this structure was enjoyable and rewarding.  I appreciate the work Chris Brimley did to detail its construction.  Without his excellent article, I would have never discovered the joy of scratch building my own structure. It has opened a whole new area of interest in my model railroading activities. Thank you.

How about something for free? If you would like one of the decals I had left over from my printing, please send me your mailing address and I will drop one in the mail for you.

Sinclair Station

Sinclair Station

Sinclair Station

Sinclair Station

After some long days lately,  here are  a few  pictures of the layout. The homasote was installed in the upper and lower level staging areas.  I plan to lay the atlas code 55 track right on top of it.  The lights are working out well above the lower staging level. I was very pleased to say the least.  Not an inch of it is dark. The lights are so bright, it is almost difficult to photograph. The plan for today is to get to work on building several #7 switches so I can begin laying track as soon as possible.

Update 05/12/2009

A reader asked for the specifics on the lighting setup; here are the details.

I bought a four bulb florescent ballast and some low profile single lamp holders. Here are the part numbers:

Ballast: ADVANCE (4)F32T8 RS/IS Centium ICN-4P32-SC Instant Start Electronic Ballast

Lamp Holders: ADVANCE Model FRBP Medium Bi-Pin Lamp Holders Low Profile

I mounted each ballast that I would need under the bench work. There is a wiring diagram on the ballast. I ran the appropriate wires to the ends of each bulb, most of the wire had to be extended due to my bulb spacing. I ran a switched power lead to each ballast. One ballast for every four bulbs. Of course the one switch on the wall turns all the bulbs on. I will just continue this around the room as the bench work progresses.

Homasote Installed in Staging Upper and Lower

Lower Staging Area Lighting

What the Room Looks Like Now with Lighting