Big Boy
Bailey Yard
My Trip Through UT
I spent the last week traveling through southern Utah. Visited 5 National Parks. Here are some pictures.
Roadside Surprise
While driving through eastern Colorado we happened upon this train holding the siding in Akron, CO. As I got out of my RV he was nice enough to power up and head out of town.
Longevity
Me again.
AS most who have operated the Atlantic Shoals know one of the most important interlockings on the layout is Punkshire, a double crossover that literally is the entrance and exit to the main yard Church Point. During the last OP session one of the “legs” of the double crossover failed! All indications was a striped gear in the Hankscraft switch machine. Now for a very short story but one I found very interesting. The ASR is a elderly (like it’s owner) layout that started as a DC control system using twin coil switch machines. I still use those old twin coils and thanks to the generosity of my friends have plenty of spare parts. At Punkshire, however, I chose Hankscraft slow motion switch machines because of the simplicity of instillation. At that time, 1980 these machines were readily available, however, in a few years they became very difficult to find. I understand that they are again available via Ebay and other outlets. Anyway back to the story. About ten years after I installed them one failed. The gear train striped out! I went to my favorite hobby shop Bay State Hobbies owned by Win Nowell a good friend and asked him for a replacement. Win told me he couldn’t get them any more but that he had a demo display with two motors on it that I could have, “for free”. Now imagine, that display had been in the hobby shop for many years and probably thousands of customers had tried it! I took the display home with much gratitude towards Win and removed both motors and installed one on the Shoals. Needless to say that was the motor that failed last Tuesday. So what do you say about those ancient Hankscraft motors? I wish I had installed them on the entire layout. By the way I have plenty of spares, which until now I have never needed, just in case. Quality is never out of vogue! Carl.
