APA Micro Layout (Part 9) Uncoupling magnets

Another small evening project was installing magnetic uncouplers in the fiddle yard box of my contest micro layout. I have a doule slip crossing to save on space that two ordinary turnouts otherwise would use.

A pair of Kadee Magne Matic uncouplers (#322) would do the trick. 

Unfortunately I only had code 83 uncouplers and my track is code 100. So I had to shim the magnets to rise their height to were it needed to be.

Positioning the magnets is critical, because they need to be centered between the rails, for the uncoupling levers to work properly.

I used a contact cement to glue both the shims and the magnets to the ties.

With the uncouplers in place, I don't have to reach inside the layout box to uncouple cars with a scewer. The tight arrangement of the details makes it easier to uncouple hands-free.

APA-rama Project. The APA-lachia Box

For my second APA box I wanted to try some mountain scenery. A simple cut or tunnel seemed too easy and boring to look at. I searched the internet for photos about trains in the mountains and found several showing a snow shed or avalanche shed. These structures protected the railroad tracks from downslides of snow and ice. Back in time they were build from wood, today they are mostly concrete.

For this box I did not have to take care of a curved backdrop. I filled the rear of the box with pieces of extruded foam.

But first things first.

From the photos found on the internet and a article in Model Railroader Magazine I adapted the size and measurements to our HOn3 needs.

I figured out that I would need at least 22 bents for my snowshed. To make sure all were identical, I built a jig, the same time I assembled the first bent.

 Above is the finished jig after the first bent had been removed. I noted the different length for the scale lumber that I needed.

I cut the strip wood to size using my NWSL chopper and stained them in a mixture of 70% IPA (Isopropyl Alcohol) and a few drops of black India ink. I let the lumber dry overnight.

Then I labelled a compartment box with the different sizes and filled the lumber parts in. This made it very easy to find the right piece during the assembly stage.

I did the final sanding and trimming before assembling the different pieces to make sure that everything fitted tight. I also used some reversed clothes pins to hold the pieces in the jig until the glue had dried. To the right is a finished bent.

I test fitted the snowshed to mark the location of the footings.

I glued the footings to the baseboard. Then I covered the styrofoam with layers of plaster gauze to give a first shape to the rock face.

In the next step I ballasted the track and the surrounding areas including the footings

From rubber molds I cast different rocks and attached them to the plaster gauze base before they set completely. After a couple of minutes I removed the rubber molds. 

After the molds had dried for a couple of days, I filled the cracks between the different castings with wet plaster.

I carved out the footings, were the snowshed would touch the hillside.

The rock faces start to look realistic.

After the plaster had dried again for a couple of days, I started to apply different washes. Ocre, burnt umber and black.

The black wash really brought out the cracks and crevices.

Still some work to do until you'll see it at the US-Convention in Rodgau/Germany on October 24/25, 2015. See you there!

Modified Miter Box

Modified Miter Box

I also start a new tools and general modeling topic on this blog, because sometimes there are jobs to do, to complement the actual layout theme or are also useful in other modeling areas.

Some years ago I have build a jig for cutting scale lumber, styrene or metal strips. This simple jig accepts a standard modeling miter box. Some bigger lumber or styrene shapes just cannot be cut with the NWSL chopper, neither do metal shapes. So this jig simplifies the task of cutting a number of same length strips, like telephone poles, lumber or pipe loads, etc.  

Material list:

- A piece of 1x4 lumber (left-over from your benchwork building)
- 2 small pieces of hardboard (left-overs from your backdrop or fascia/valence)
- 1 piece of thicker wood or whatever serves the purpose (for setting the length)
- 1 small C-clamp
- 1 piece of "paper" tape measure (available for free in most Home Depots like IKEA, serving the customers to make quick measurements of the furniture o.a.)
- Small Miter box and razor saw

 Construction:

- Glue or nail one piece of hardboard at the outer edge of the 1x4 (right)
- Place the miter box against this stop to determine the "0" location of your measuring tape (the center of the miter box)
- Glue the tape in place.
- Put the miter box against the right hand stop and glue or nail the left hand stop in place on the 1x4.

- Now use the bigger piece as a moveable stop and clamp it at the desired mark on the measuring tape.

Place the miter box between the fixed stops, set the desired length with the clamp, insert your scale lumber or styrene stock and cut it with the razor saw. 

On a spare piece of plywood I nailed 4 spikes, spaced for the width of my flatcars/gondolas. This simple jig helps in glueing the poles in layers so the load may be build removable.