On the Layout: Go Habs Go!

     I try to put a lot of Montreal into a very small space, the city is in a basement bathroom closet after all.  I don't want it to appear crowded, but I want to include many landmarks in the space I have so folks know they are looking at Montreal.  The layout enters Montreal through a tunnel under the Turcot Interchange (on the other side of the wall).  

    I decided long ago that above the tunnel portal, on the city side, I needed a backdrop building.  It's been on my "To Do" list for a while.  I finally got around to adding it this month.  I did a little photoshop work on the Bell Centre looking from the Lucien L'Allire station platforms. Using Super 77, I attached the building to the wall and then added some additional ground cover to the side of the portal.  I wish that I had sprayed the page with Dullcoat before attaching it to the wall.  I normally do this to protect the ink and reduce the shine from the printer ink.  I forgot all about it until it was attached.  I guess it'll just be a sunny day at the Bell Centre.

To add a little additional depth to the scene, I added an Atlas signal cantilever to the foreground.  No plans to make the signal operational anytime soon.

 

Happy Veterans Day/Remembrance Day

 

To all of our veterans, thank you for your service!  Lest we forget.

Fleet Friday: Rapido E9A

    New arrivals keep showing up at my doorstep!  I welcomed a set of Rapido's E9As to the layout a few weeks ago.  102 and 103 are in the CN Executive scheme as they appeared in 2006.  These locomotives have been through several schemes during their lifetime.  Originally part of Illinois Central, they wore IC colors.  Once they become part of CN, they wore green and gold.  This scheme was next.  In their final stages of service, they went back to green and gold but with the noodle logo.  Both units appear to be retired and are now in different museums.

    On the layout, these run with CN's executive train consist.  They are great models and have been great additions to the fleet.  They sound amazing when consisted together.  Speaking of sounding great, if you've never listened to the Easter Egg sounds on a Rapido locomotive, you should give them a try.  Special sound files often appear around F21 to F24.  I appreciated the Montreal Metro announcement for Bonaventure station on these decoders.