A gift from my Uncle

I got this amazing gift from my Uncle recently. An O scale Triplex Steam Engine. My Uncle knew that I liked it and he packaged it up and sent it over to me from Maryland. A truly amazing gift!  Not only did he sent the engine, but he sent some cars to go with it plus some track to display it on.

I love it!!!! I'm not sure where I'm going to run this - maybe the garden? It's HUGE! As an N scale guy, seeing something like this is mind blowing. I still need to get a power source - evidently, the sounds on this are remarkable.

It's really a beautiful engine. My Uncle is a collector and doesn't have the space for an O scale layout right now, so when he saw how much I loved this engine, he thought he'd pass this along to me to love. :)

I mad up a little video, too.


NRAIL the Gift from Malcolm Johnson on Vimeo.

Randy Hage Miniatures

A friend of mine recently sent me a link to the work of Randy Hage. I opened the URL, clicked the first image and literally said, "You have to be f^%#ing KIDDING me!" out loud.

This work is just incredible. The detail is off the scale. When I was checking the section with miniatures next to the real thing, my mind almost melted - there are differences, but they are so small and subtle that it sent me spinning. The detail at 1/12th scale is just bonkers.

I had to post these. Make sure you give the site a visit - there are more examples there!

Randy Hage - Storefront Sculptures:  http://www.newyorkstorefronts.com

Rasch Studios

A new find for me -  
Rasch Studios: C  U  S  T  O  M    R  A  I  L  W  A  Y     &     M  I  L  I  T  A  R  Y    M  O  D  E  L  S

Website
http://www.raschstudios.net/

Flickr
https://www.flickr.com/photos/55090073@N03

YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC8EpHEoMA-YI0btzEv6k0sA


I'm really enjoying the work here. Some fun details and a great blending of some of the Kato Japanese style products into an American landscape. Very cool stuff! I think I'm going to contact him about being on MODEL RAIL RADIO - I don't think I've ever heard him on the show.

O scale? Oh yes...

Soon....this will be mine.....

:)

My Uncle was SUPER KIND to send this to me. It's UPS'ing it's way to me as we speak. I'm actually rather excited!!!!!  :)

More details:

Name

MTH 20-3118-1 Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback W/Proto2.0 Steam

Taxonomy

O Modern / Steam Loco / 0-8-8-0 / Erie / MTH

Dash ID

MT-0609714

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Avg: None
0 ratings

Boxed Value

More Features

Unboxed Value

More Features

Manufacturer

MTH

Manufacturer #

20-3118-1

UPC

658081069227

First Year

2005

Last Year

2005

Shipping Info

Dimensions

32 x 12 x 12"

- See more at: http://www.collector-modeltrains.com/dash/universe/catalog_item/MT-0609714/#sthash.4BRl3iC8.dpuf

Name

MTH 20-3118-1 Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback W/Proto2.0 Steam

Taxonomy

O Modern / Steam Loco / 0-8-8-0 / Erie / MTH

Dash ID

MT-0609714

 

"Here is the beautiful MTH 20-3118-1 Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback Steam Locomotive and Tender with ProtoSound 2.0. This ones got a lot of character, with attention to detail. It features Die-Cast Metal Chassis, Metal wheels and axles, Decorative metal whistle, Operating marker Lights, Lighted cab Interior, Puffing Proto smoke, Operating Tender Back-Up Light and Proto Sound 2.0. Please see my photos for a full list of all the features of this steam locomotive and tender."

Here is the beautiful MTH 20-3118-1 Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback Steam Locomotive and Tender with ProtoSound 2.0. This ones got a lot of character, with attention to detail. It features Die-Cast Metal Chassis, Metal wheels and axles, Decorative metal whistle, Operating marker Lights, Lighted cab Interior, Puffing Proto smoke, Operating Tender Back-Up Light and Proto Sound 2.0. Please see my photos for a full list of all the features of this steam locomotive and tender. - See more at: http://www.collector-modeltrains.com/dash/universe/catalog_item/MT-0609714/#sthash.4BRl3iC8.dpufHere is the beautiful MTH 20-3118-1 Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback Steam Locomotive and Tender with ProtoSound 2.0. This ones got a lot of character, with attention to detail. It features Die-Cast Metal Chassis, Metal wheels and axles, Decorative metal whistle, Operating marker Lights, Lighted cab Interior, Puffing Proto smoke, Operating Tender Back-Up Light and Proto Sound 2.0. Please see my photos for a full list of all the features of this steam locomotive and tender.

Name

MTH 20-3118-1 Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback W/Proto2.0 Steam

Taxonomy

O Modern / Steam Loco / 0-8-8-0 / Erie / MTH

Dash ID

MT-0609714

• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  

Avg: None
0 ratings

Boxed Value

More Features

Unboxed Value

More Features

Manufacturer

MTH

Manufacturer #

20-3118-1

UPC

658081069227

First Year

2005

Last Year

2005

Shipping Info

Dimensions

32 x 12 x 12"

- See more at: http://www.collector-modeltrains.com/dash/universe/catalog_item/MT-0609714/#sthash.4BRl3iC8.dpuf

Name

MTH 20-3118-1 Erie 0-8-8-0 Camelback W/Proto2.0 Steam

Taxonomy

O Modern / Steam Loco / 0-8-8-0 / Erie / MTH

Dash ID

MT-0609714

• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  
• 
  

Avg: None
0 ratings

Boxed Value

More Features

Unboxed Value

More Features

Manufacturer

MTH

Manufacturer #

20-3118-1

UPC

658081069227

First Year

2005

Last Year

2005

Shipping Info

Dimensions

32 x 12 x 12"

- See more at: http://www.collector-modeltrains.com/dash/universe/catalog_item/MT-0609714/#sthash.4BRl3iC8.dpuf

Sankei Building

New SANKEI building build.

I'm still loving the Sankei products, but they do have a few things that are difficult about them. The fact that they are card stock means that they can't be pushed too much. Things need to be lined up properly from the get go or you're cutting card stock free and trying to re-glue it later. :) And...Roket Card Glue stick anything to card stock. ANYTHING! Bugs that happen to crawl by. Other pieces you've cut out to build later. FINGERS. heheheh    That being said, they still offer a lot over traditional plastic kits.




The builds are always interesting. Looking a few steps ahead and paying attention to notches and things is a must.

The Roket glue is grand. Once you're sure where things go, you can pop them together and WHAM! it's set. This does have it's downside for sure. If you're wrong...start cutting. :)






The construction is pretty straight forward. Again, if you follow the steps and make sure things are lined up properly, things are fantastic. The smaller details are really nice. Brick carved into the card stock, building up walls and window areas with layers of card. All very cool details.

Things went really well with this build - one of the best so far. But I did get one gloob of glue on the roof, sadly. You can see the shine on the upper roof. Unfortunate, but it's still acceptable....for this round.

The kit comes with a vespa, vending machine and a lamp with a sign.

So happy with the selection of buildings that Santa-san got me in Japan!!!! And, happy that I'm a little more patient and calm - zen - when building these kits.

The paper kits really add a lot to the overall layout.

Burnt fishing boat

I've seen a few boat accidents that involved fire while searching for Japan harbor images and I thought that it might be a fun scene to model. The Tomytec boats come with bottoms in case yu want to have them dry docked, so I thought I'd use one of them to do a little burnt boat project.





I started with this green putty. Health hazards be damned! :) It's cool stuff. You can sculpt with it and build things up, then you can sand it if you ant something smoother than...a burnt ship. heh














I tossed a layer of of black and some color accents over the top of the green.

 

Based on prototype photos, I'm happy with how this turned out. It's simple and tells a fun little story...that will be written about in the future. :)

"HOW long will it take to fix this?!"   :)

Shizuka and Soyokaze - Canon shots with the new lights

I broke out the Canon camera and took some shots with the new lights up and I'm really happy with the results. I need to play around with the amount of light I'm using, but the overall feel is exactly what I wanted. The setup is a bit ugly at the moment - I have light cables running over my ceiling, which isn't appealing, however it's worth it for the time being.

I'll need to play with the lighting a bit and I am still looking forward to adding a spot element (based on Rios Tam's suggestion) and some colored lights in the Cowboy Studio lighting rig to create a bit more mood with the lights. Should be fun to see what I can get out of this setup.


More photos here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/malcojojo/sets/72157652732650675

Harbor Loading Area

Soyokaze Station

Tomytec Freight Liner

Temple and Harbor area

I really need some folks working in this area. :)

Soyokaze Farm  - still needs a better name! :)

Naze hashi なぜ橋

Soyokaze Harbor

Shizuka

Soyokaze - Old Town

Full layout - shot on iPhone