Fend off procrastination

First a little side note. A few weeks ago, I was visiting the town of Gadsden, Alabama. I had been pursuing an outdoor activity but was halted by a rainstorm. I then decided to visit the downtown area while waiting for the rain to abate. As I was heading back, I found myself heading south on one of the streets perpendicular to Locust Street. As I and a car in front of me were waiting at a red light, A freight train proceeded in front of us from the river bridge area to the western side of town. I had never seen the street tracks in use and was pleasantly surprised. Somehow the train appearance lessened the effect the rain had on the outdoor activity.

  Now back to fending off procrastination. Or should I say “fendering” off inactivity. Specifically, omscaler has started working on the fenders of the ’39 Olds. The first attempt was not up to par. So, we redouble our efforts. We gotta’ have what we gotta’ have. And so we shall. Continuing the work, omscaler

 

Happy Fifth of July!

 What is the significance of the Fifth of July? Well, in this case, it is the day when many people must return to their regular jobs after a bombastic three-day weekend holiday. What a bummer! Nevertheless, omscaler hopes everyone had a great holiday. On the OSR, we do have the hood installed and the fenders are in progress. Who knew that such a small car could take so long? After the hood assembly and fenders, will come the roof and windows and then smaller details. All of this will be a pioneering effort for sure. We continue to work, omscaler

 

Back to the hood

Or more correctly, still on the hood. By the time readers see this post, the hood may or may not be installed on the Olds. As this post is written, configuration number three will be the next attempt at a better hood design. Omscaler knew that complex curves would be a challenge, but that, as we have learned, is half the fun around The Very Small Railroad. Also, learning from this project will better enable us to be more successful going forward. The end result on this project will be a better-looking model as well. Still in design mode, omscaler

 

Still rolling along

Omscaler is still working on the Oldsmobile. Omscaler is still be distracted by “the outside” as well. Nevertheless, the firewall and sides are attached. This week should be even more productive. The personal schedule has been rearranged a little which should help our efforts. The car being built as mentioned before is the 1939 Oldsmobile 60. A two-door model with a space behind the front seats for luggage or other items. Oldsmobile also made a touring model 60. The difference being an extended roof line and an actual rear seat. Once omscaler gets going with the vehicles, maybe we can do one of these as well. We shall see. Still driving toward the goal, omscaler

 

The wheels of time

Due to outdoor activities taking much more time than was anticipated, the auto project has moved much slower than omscaler was hoping. As the saying goes, “you have to make hay (or play) while the sun is shining.” Omscaler uses these times to recharge and contemplate the best way to proceed. Normally, this works quite well and has done so in this case. When readers see this post, the wheels will have been mounted. This ushers in the phase that is the body fabrication and attachment to the frame. More fun coming down the tracks for the OSR. See you around, omscaler

 

The work continues

 More on this post about where we are now. The new drive link is working. The car rib method continues to show promise. Omscaler still needs to perform module maintenance. A decision has been made regarding the next project. It has been decided to build an automobile. The specific model will be a 1939 Oldsmobile 60. This is a two-door car. The car will probably be owned by Gerald McCorkle and family. Readers will remember Gerald from the bungalow posts. As this post is written, just a bare bones effort has been started. Mostly consisting of a scale diagram and a list of dimensions. It is hoped that this auto will be the first of many. The Murphysboro module has had the appearance of a railcar populated ghost town for way too long. See you down at the tracks. Omscaler

 

Upgraded drive link

 Hello again readers. In the last post, omscaler was mulling over which direction to take regarding maintenance of The Omega Scale Railway. As stated before, a number of things are needed. What took place last week was a redesign of the locomotive drive link component. This component is a simple formed wire. The first iteration worked but not as well as hoped. The new part is very similar but more robust. Initial work is very promising and omscaler hopes this one continues to work well. More testing is needed. Work is also being done on an improved car side rib method. This effort is actually somewhat ironic considering that the previous hopper group is complete. These cars have seven ribs on each side. Other possible developments are in the works as well. Just thought I would give readers an update that is a little more specific. Continuing to dig in, omscaler