Since my last posting, I’ve managed to complete the exterior sides and roof. The shape is fairly simple but, even so, the relatively large size made ensuring I got everything to the right size and fit a little more time consuming. Also, the larger size required far more effort to make sure that everything was […]
Category: CSX Downtown Spur
Miami Jai-Alai Dec. 12
Today I was able to get most of the core assembled and, of more importance, braced. A Gatorboard panel is inset as the base to keep things square. I also used a piece of it in the middle. After yesterday’s post I found some pieces of 3/4″ C channel in the shop so used that […]
Miami Jai-Alai Dec. 11
Sometimes the hardest part of a project is simply launching and making those first few pieces. I found a new source for large slabs of .060″ styrene sheet on Amazon. With materials in hand, I’m able to start. For larger structure projects like this I prefer to have a large, clean, work surface to spread […]
The Lowly Shuttle
My first encounter with The Downtown Spur was in February of 2006 where I caught GP38-2 #2639 (above) heading light back to Hialeah Yard. Clearly it was a shuttle of some sort, the details of which I have no clue. I think it’s safe to assume he had a car (or several) that needed to […]
Directing the Eye
This older view of the layout is a classic example of visual chaos. The eye dances around a sea of pastel cubes and struggles to make sense of the mess. Some of the most enjoyable, and useful classes, I took at The Smithsonian were on artistic composition and visual literacy. The applications to model railroading […]