What's New on the PRR Panhandle Division?

[Roy]

...I remember those Mattel Vac-U-Form machines, vaguely. I don't recall that they produced anything that could pass for prototypical, though. And that is the look I'm trying for...

I wouldn't be surprised if Plastruct vacuformed the hemispheres you bought.

[G3750]

...I remember those Mattel Vac-U-Form machines, vaguely. I don't recall that they produced anything that could pass for prototypical, though. And that is the look I'm trying for...

I wouldn't be surprised if Plastruct vacuformed the hemispheres you bought.

Maybe we're talking about two different things here. The Mattel Vac-u-form machine I remember had cheesy molds, worked on sheets of paper-thin plastic, and generated items that vaguely resembled cars, trucks, and boats. Cheesy is the operative word. Kind of the male equivalent of the Easy-Bake Oven.

The Plastruct hemispherical pieces are round at one end and have "plug" type protrusions at the other end. They probably are hollow (haven't received them yet) and probably were formed or extruded in some fashion. Their walls are at least 1/16" thick. Other ends I've gotten from Plastruct have these characteristics. The process of making these pieces is industrial-strength.

George

[Roy]

George, vacuforming actually is used on an industrial basis. It's also easy enough, that many modelers use it, too.

I can't imagine the tanks you're building need the kind of strength those 1/16" thick ends have - but I guess that's a done deal. Have you already arranged for the casting of the tank saddle supports?

[G3750]

George, vacuforming actually is used on an industrial basis. It's also easy enough, that many modelers use it, too.

I can't imagine the tanks you're building need the kind of strength those 1/16" thick ends have - but I guess that's a done deal. Have you already arranged for the casting of the tank saddle supports?

Roy, I don't doubt that vacuforming is in use industrially at all. And I would like to know what kind of machine modelers are using for vacuforming. I just don't think the Mattel toy of the 1960's would be up to the task.

As for the 1/16" ends, I re-checked the catalog. They are actually 13/64".

The tank saddle have not yet arrived, but my friend has agreed to cast them for me.

I am actually looking into 3-D printers as a way to make parts for this structure as well as for the PRR Panhandle bridge.

George

[Roy]

...As for the 1/16" ends, I re-checked the catalog. They are actually 13/64"...

You could make real pressure vessels, with those!

[G3750]

...As for the 1/16" ends, I re-checked the catalog. They are actually 13/64"...

You could make real pressure vessels, with those!

OK already. As a lesson learned Roy, how about providing specific vacuforming machine make and model and plastics supplier(s)? I'll keep it for future reference.

Alright, on to progress made this weekend:

I worked on the static compressed air tank that will be positioned at the end of the slag dumping track. Originally I ordered an 2" wide acrylic tank from Plastruct. There was an option to get an ABS version; for future reference ABS is superior to acrylic in this use. Cutting the tank into a 3" height without chipping or cracking it proved a challenge. Ultimately I used a friend's 10" chopsaw with a 120 tooth blade and by going slowly was able to produce a good sample. The first try produced a cracked sample.

All plastics tubes and end caps were washed in water and a little dishwashing liquid, rinsed, and then dried.

I used a fine (320 grit) sand paper to rough up one half of the cracked sample prior to painting. I left the other side alone. There didn't seem to be a difference in paint appearance or adhesion, but I will sand the good sample.

I used Walthers Goo to glue the end caps to the good tank sample. A cut 1-oz. medicine cup will be used as the base of the tank. Other conditions permitting, these items will be spray painted today. Multiple passes yielded a deep green paint job on the sample; I'll take the same approach on the good one.

George

[rogruth]

Waiting to see.

[G3750]

Waiting to see.

Yeah, me too!

Updated 8/6/2012:

• I assembled and then painted the tank. If I were to do it over again, I would reverse the steps. Once assembled, the tank has no flat surfaces and had to be propped upright. The color looks right, but the tank seams are a bit more prominent than I'd like. I painted the tank at night in a lit garage. I will have to take a good hard look in sunlight and assessment the paint job. I did take a few photos and will try to get them posted tonight. This is a photo of the tank on its (temporary) pedestal. It's a little tall.
  

  

  Tank-01W.jpg (99.79 KiB) Viewed 5165 times

• Got the 3 big foamboard pieces out of the train room and into the crawl space for storage.
• Also did a small amount of wiring of the caboose track.

Caboose Track WiringW.jpg (141.14 KiB) Viewed 5166 times

George

[G3750]

Photos have been added to my previous post.

George

[rogruth]

That tank looks good to me George.

[G3750]

That tank looks good to me George.

Thank you, Roger. The tank is OK; the pedestal is too high. I wish I could scan and post the photo of the prototype (it's copyrighted). I've since cut the pedestal down and painted it with another coat. I think it will turn out pretty well.

George

[G3750]

Updated 8/8/2012:

Made an attempt today to apply the decals. I am not happy with their appearance (my design) or their installation (again, my fault). So I'm going to rethink how best to change them and install them.

Oh well, every once in while you hit a bump in the road.

George

[G3750]

Updated 8/9/2012:

I decided to let the decorative and scenic work go for awhile and focus on track laying and wiring. Both the slag dump track and the caboose track have been wired to 4-pole terminal strip. I've also updated the wiring diagram (Excel spreadsheet) for that Power District (#6). The wiring labels have been created but not yet printed.

George

[G3750]

Updated 8/9/2012:

I decided to let the decorative and scenic work go for awhile and focus on track laying and wiring. Both the slag dump track and the caboose track have been wired to 4-pole terminal strip. I've also updated the wiring diagram (Excel spreadsheet) for that Power District (#6). The wiring labels have been created but not yet printed.

George

More on this. Last night I was fairly frustrated with the abortive decal attempt. It was a classic case of trying to rush the work. "Haste makes waste" really turned out to be true. The location I selected for the Bucyrus-Erie decal has a ridge running left to right across the it. I applied the decal and then realized it wouldn't sit properly. I ended up removing it. I guess my choices are to chisel or grind away the ridge or "plate" the area over with a very thin piece of Plastruct. Might apply some putty in both cases. To quote Roseanne Roseannadanna: "Well, Jane, it just goes to show you, it's always something!"

So I went to Plan B: do something rote that even I can't screw up too much - wiring! I didn't get a whole lot of it done, but the progress was satisfying. The two spurs (Standard Slag and Caboose track) are now wired to a 4-position terminal strip on the access hatch. All I have to do is run 2 red/black pairs of 14 gauge wire from that terminal strip to the one for Power District 6 on the Power Distribution panel, label the pairs in 2 places, and that will be done. The wiring diagram already has their numbers assigned and the labels are ready for printing. I also fastened down track with countersunk 1" GarGraves track screws.

I've taken to calling the one spur the Caboose track, but that is only because I've got 1-2 cabin cars (correct PRR-speak for cabeese) parked on it. In reality, that track will be used to hold the Weirton Steel Alco S-2 switcher, "empty" slag cars, and any cabin cars removed from trains in-bound to the Weirton Steel mill complex (coal drags, ion ore, etc.).

OK, I think that's a little more descriptive than my hurried note last night.

George

[G3750]

It was a busy weekend, at least with regards to model trains. Saturday I spent about an hour at the Strasburg 2-rail O Scale Train Show. It was pretty good, but not as good as the April one, IMHO. They're going to have another at the end of October (after York); kind of wonder about the timing.

With all the track feeders for the Standard Slag access hatch wired to a 4-position terminal strip, it was time on Sunday to wire the DZ-2500A switch machine. Originally, I had two ideas in mind. First thought was to push each wire into a 6-hole plug, but they were too short and dificult to reach and hold. Second idea was to wire them to a Euro-style terminal strip, but I ran into the same problem, plus I needed 3 hands. I finally solved the problem by using small wire nuts and connecting the wires to 12" leads on a 6-wire multiple connector. That connector will plug into a socket, which allows me a relatively quick disconnect when I need to remove the hatch.

While I have the hatch pulled, I'm going to finish painting, bending and installing the steel piling sections, applying ground cover, and ballasting (in that order). But that work will take lower priority to the remainder of the roadbed strengthening effort and thinking about the bridge. And I also need to work on the "plug".

That's my current state of mind. I have some photos of the electrical work that I will try to post today.

George