Another quick project I crossed off my work order list was to add some numbered track signs to my crossing signals.
I had a few sets of ScaleSigns waiting to get used for the project. I like these signs because they have the metallic backing.
In just a few minutes, the project was done.
I also added some 2 Trains signs (a unique sign to Canada). Although these were just printed from home, the signposts are from ScaleSigns.
I was very motivated one weekend to get a number of small projects done on the layout. One of the projects was to put improved bars on the windows of the Dominion Building in Toronto. This building was a kitbashed project and I didn't have an idea of what to use for bars on the lowest level windows. I ended up using pieces of picket fence I had in a junk box.
I painted the bars a flat grey and then stained the bars with a weathering wash.
They were a perfect fit in the windows and a great little detail to a pretty large structure. It was quick project with excellent results.
I had this fairly large piece of real estate in one corner of VIA's Toronto Maintenance Centre that was going unused. I had always planned on using the turntable as part of my operation plan, but it just never happened. I really liked the turntable and that's why I waited for years to make any changes to the scene.
After removing all the scenery products and old tracks, it was time to build something new.
I was able to learn a lot about the Mimico facility from a Trackside Treasure blogpost from 2018. I used a Walthers Magic Bakery kit and added the loading/unloading shed. I really wanted to include a truck scale to the scene, but it would have looked too cramped and out of place.
One benefit of this facility is the ability to use my Trackmobile for on-site switching. It's not quite finished. I still need to weather the paved spaces, and I'd like to add lighting to the loading/unloading shed. I also need to add a small crossing for access to other tracks nearby.
I bought this railfan photographer figure from East Coast Circuits a few years ago at Springfield.
I finally got around to installing it on the layout. The setup was very easy. I installed the sensor on the turnout just west of the Brockville VIA station.
The railfan figure is at the station waiting to get some great shots of VIA trains arriving and departing the station. When a train passes over the sensor, the LED on the figure replicates a camera flashing. The flashing continues, at a realistic rate, until the sensor is uncovered. It's a great addition to my growing obsession with all things East Coast Circuits.
At the start of the summer, my wife and I brought home a yellow lab puppy. He's been a lot of fun and quite a handful. The dog not ready to hang out with me in the basement. ...bull in a china shop comes to mind.
 |
| 5 months old |
It was time to add him to the layout. I was looking for a quick project and here's the end result. The 3D print is from Miniprints.
He'll be hanging out with HO versions of our first dog and cat in Port Hope. Can you see the three of them? 
Over the summer, work continued on the layout in the utility room. In an earlier post, I wrote about MacMillian Yard. I decided to model the highway overpass the crosses over the entrance to Mac Yard. In the last few years, this bridge has undergone a widening to allow for dedicated bus lanes, but in my model of year of 2006, it was a three-lane highway with a small concrete median and sidewalks on both sides. I needed to do a little selective compression and reduce it down to two lanes in each direction.
I added a line of hydro poles next to the bridge. There are several lines running parallel to the real thing. I used a set of Walthers Intermediate Height Utility Poles and some EZ Line from Berkshire Junction for the power lines. EZ Line is great because it stretches if bumped. Below the bridge I added a construction trailer and a few additional details to represent on-going construction in the area and storage space for Canadian National.
Finally, the scene has a few buses and a garage. I had this kit and plenty of school bus, and they all needed a home, so I added this scene.
I needed to weather the fence. There are several different ways to do so. I watched a tutorial by Wiley's Scale Modeling on YouTube and it seemed easy enough to get the supplies and follow. The end result wasn't too bad.
For some reason, a reason I still don't fully understand, I felt I needed this SD90MAC from Athearn Genesis. Maybe I felt like I needed a new Canadian Pacific locomotive. Maybe I felt like I didn't have enough locomotives with patched paint jobs. Maybe it was the closest possible way to see a Union Pacific locomotive on my Canadian layout. Who knows!? The fact remains that this new locomotive, CP 3712 (an ex-Union Pacific locomotive) was found running a detoured CP freight onto the Kingston Subdivision in Brockville. It runs and sounds great. I'm happy to have it on the layout regardless of the unknown reason it made its way to the roster.
