Driver drawing

As I’m planning to print patterns for the wheels, I could no longer be satisfied with blank discs representing the wheels, even in OnShape. They’re a bit of a challenging part to draw, but I think I’ve captured the look of this photo from the Parry Sound Public Library. Possibly the hub is too small – […]

So Long Ed

Last week, I heard that Ed McCamey passed away, and I confess that it rather took the wind out of my sails. Ed was one of the first Proto:87 contacts I made, way back in 1994. He sat behind me at Jim Harper’s clinic on detailing track; when the discussion turned from 1:48 scale to […]

Demonstration modelling

I️ didn’t plan very well for this weekend’s Vancouver Train Expo, and consequently, I️ didn’t have a formal scheduled slot in the Craftsman’s Corner. There were, however, two chairs and usually only one occupant. Doug Hicks had brought plenty of light, and I’d thrown the flat cars, a few tools and bits of styrene in […]

Learning to lathe

There’s a super TED talk where Josh Kaufman insists that you can learn anything in 20 hours. Sure, it takes 10,000 hours to achieve mastery, but 20 hours gets you over the hump. I’m hoping this talk will be as life-changing as that other TED talk about tying your shoelaces. Kaufman’s program plays out like […]

Soldering iron chord cubby

Ever since I moved in to this pristine new work area, the natural state of soldering iron chords has bothered me. I know they’re just being their natural selves, and you can hardly blame them, but the tangled mess was unsightly! As I was battening down the hatches (they’re still battened until the Girl has […]

Flat car ends finished

Please excuse the dreadful iPhone photo. It’s been one of those nights. One of those nights when I should have just stayed upstairs. As expected, I wound up shaving off the outer-most nut bolt washer (NBW) castings so I could centre them relative to the side sills. This also made it easier to add the […]

Batten the hatches!

We’re back in birthday party season chez Gourley. Both kids are having sleepovers in the train room. I’d wager that Nerf war and pillow fights are something that most finescale layouts don’t have to contend with. With the roundhouse in the line of fire, I thought it best to get a little protection up. Fortunately […]

Towards loco wheels

As the workshop project rounds up, I will soon have no reason to hold off on starting work on 622. The first major stumbling block is of course wheels. If I can’t make those, then I may as well abandon the project; and by that, I don’t just mean the engine, I mean Pembroke itself. […]

Workshop cabinets get topped

There is nothing quite like a mitre joint in a countertop to reveal how out of square your house is. Because the saws and sander are all out in the garage on the other side of the house and up a flight of stairs, the countertops were like an exercise class without so much rewarding […]

No-measure flat car ends and stringers

Measure once cut twice. These are words to live by. Reasoning that there are only two truss rods on these 20-ton, 33-foot cars, and given the number of bolt heads on the ends, I felt six stringers were in order. That makes 18 in total, which would be a disagreeable amount of fiddling to get […]