What's New on the PRR Panhandle 2.0?

[rogruth]

We have a local store here that carries most of what I need. Not as big as the biggies but can get stuff just as fast.
I have used them as much as possible since we have lived here, 30 years.

[Rufus T. Firefly]

I am trying to find the local hardware stores that deliver product and service.

I would suggest that you celebrate just the finding of a local hardware store that is of any quality.

Service and delivery, now there's a effort worth of Don Quixote....so saddle up Rocinante and recruit a local Sancho Panza,

[J. S. Bach]

We have three full service hardware stores here in li'l ol' Chester, SC: True Value, Ezell's (been there over 100 years), and Sam's. Between the three, I can get just about anything that I would need. Ezell's is my favorite as after (or maybe before) I shop I can get a great breakfast at Gene's across the street!! The only thing that I do not know about is delivery as I have never needed anything yet that I can not not carry. Beside, a friend has a pick-up truck.

[G3750]

Updated 6/5/2017:

We are having some dribbles of progress, little baby-steps towards getting the workshop and train room prepared for bigger things.

First photo is of the major set of shelves in the workshop. I am still finding bins, but we've gotten a lot in place.

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Second photo is the spot reserved for 1 of the pegboards.

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Third photo is of the pegboard awaiting installation.

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Finally, here's a shot of the exhaust fan I installed in the window under what will become the staging area.

EarlyProgress_003_.JPG (21.95 KiB) Viewed 6925 times

George

[G3750]

Updated 6/9/2017:

I've made some progress on the lighting front. I decided the obvious solution to getting identical lighting in both the workshop and the train room was to (DOH!) do the same lighting fixtures and bulbs. Instead of going for shop lights in the workshop and track lighting in the train room, I am just doing track lighting everywhere. I had a very helpful visit from a lighting sales person at the house yesterday. He knew the products, lighting, and worked hard to understand what I wanted. Track lighting with 4100K bulbs will give me the flexibility to play around with dispersing light and seeing how the color works in the room. And it will be less expensive than LED shop lights.

This is a big step forward and I'm pretty happy about it!

George

[Rufus T. Firefly]

And it will be less expensive than LED shop lights.

Do tell us more - illuminate us with your newly obtained knowledge!

[G3750]

And it will be less expensive than LED shop lights.

Do tell us more - illuminate us with your newly obtained knowledge!

OK, basically for shop lights there are 2 choices.

1) Hardwired LED shop lights which can be $40-170 / fixture (4' wraparound). These mount to or hang from the ceiling. You pick a color (K) rating and live with the choice. Any issue with the LED or associated hardware and you have to replace the entire she-bang. Plus they are fixed in place.
2) Ballasted fixtures that accept LED tubes. These provide a little more flexibility than #1 in that you can change the bulb, but are still expensive.

My ceiling in the train room is divided by enclosed beams and heating / cooling ducts. The fixed solutions of 1 & 2 could result in dark areas.

The inexpensive and more flexible alternative is LED track lighting. The track is cheap, readily available, and easy to install. Track heads (cans) are also inexpensive (about $20 apiece) and can be moved around as needs change. If more light is required, additional track heads can be installed. They take LED bulbs of various (any) K rating.

By doing both the workshop and the train room with LED track lighting I've achieved uniformity in lighting quality and brightness, gained flexibility in dealing with problem areas, and saved money by eliminating the expensive and inflexible LED shop lights.

George

[Tom Dempsey]

After living with them for awhile in the house, I have come to generally despise track lighting.

[G3750]

After living with them for awhile in the house, I have come to generally despise track lighting.

Please, tell me more. Where are your track lights? Are they in the living spaces or train room? What kind of bulbs do you have - incandescent, halogen, LED? Why do you despise track lighting?

Thanks,

George

[healey36]

I have a four-light config of track lighting over my layout and while I like the flexibility of it, it just doesn't throw enough light. I went from conventional bulbs to halogen which seemed to make only a slight difference. Picked up a few LED bulbs last week after reading the last couple of pages here and will give those a try. If no significant improvement I might go back to tubes.

George, how high are your ceilings down there? As with most basements mine are somewhat lower than the standard height on the upper floors, but yours appear to be a conventional height.

Healey

[G3750]

I have a four-light config of track lighting over my layout and while I like the flexibility of it, it just doesn't throw enough light. I went from conventional bulbs to halogen which seemed to make only a slight difference. Picked up a few LED bulbs last week after reading the last couple of pages here and will give those a try. If no significant improvement I might go back to tubes.

George, how high are your ceilings down there? As with most basements mine are somewhat lower than the standard height on the upper floors, but yours appear to be a conventional height.

Healey

I absolutely hate fluorescent tubes. They buzz, sometimes fail to light, flicker, and just generally (in my case) fail to provide adequate, dependable light.

You can always add cheap track-heads (cans) to increase the amount of light thrown. And they will take any kind of bulb. Let me know how you like the LED bulbs. What color-temperature are you using? The following chart might be helpful.

http://www.westinghouselighting.com/col ... ature.aspx

Over the past year, I have been looking at magazine articles and "how-to" pieces with an eye towards backdrops, lighting approaches, and ceilings. I learned about 9' ceilings and their advantages. I also read a couple of articles where the modeler had painted the ceiling black. This is the first house in which I was able to influence the ceiling height in both the basement and the house. We have 9' ceilings (8'9" actual). That gives me enough space to work with track lighting or other options. I didn't think going with a black ceiling would do anything except convey a closed in, cave-like feeling so I decided against that.

George

[Tom Dempsey]

After living with them for awhile in the house, I have come to generally despise track lighting.

Please, tell me more. Where are your track lights? Are they in the living spaces or train room? What kind of bulbs do you have - incandescent, halogen, LED? Why do you despise track lighting?

Thanks,

George

The bulbs are rather short lived, relatively expensive and don't seem to throw enough light. They are in the living room, aimed at the artwork on the walls. They've just been a PITA in general. Hope that's what you were after George. The local utility company sent folks around a while back to any houses where the average age of the occupants was above fifty and installed the latest versions of LED replacements for incandescents, they've really come a long way and I've sorta' becoming sold on this generation of that technology. I never like the "flickering" on the fluorescents, most folks told me they couldn't see it but it really messed with me.

[G3750]

After living with them for awhile in the house, I have come to generally despise track lighting.

Please, tell me more. Where are your track lights? Are they in the living spaces or train room? What kind of bulbs do you have - incandescent, halogen, LED? Why do you despise track lighting?

Thanks,

George

The bulbs are rather short lived, relatively expensive and don't seem to throw enough light. They are in the living room, aimed at the artwork on the walls. They've just been a PITA in general. Hope that's what you were after George. The local utility company sent folks around a while back to any houses where the average age of the occupants was above fifty and installed the latest versions of LED replacements for incandescents, they've really come a long way and I've sorta' becoming sold on this generation of that technology. I never like the "flickering" on the fluorescents, most folks told me they couldn't see it but it really messed with me.

I'm absolutely with you on fluorescent lights. Hate 'em. Not a fan of the CFL (twisty fluorescent Chinese mercury-bearing landfill time bombs ) bulbs, either.

George

[G3750]

Updated 6/10/2017:

Made a little more progress today. The paint booth has been ordered. Also found a cheap 2-shelf bookcase to go under it to hold paint, gloves, and supplies. Hope to get to installing my pegboard walls on Monday.

George

[G3750]

OK gang. Some (not naming names Rufus ) have engaged in egregious thread-drift.

My turn.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X3IT3TL1fTs



The parade is scheduled for Wednesday.

George