Thanks Matt. Did you see the C&EI hoppers in the last train? They are very nice models and a great addition to the fleet of rolling stock. Hope you're having a good week. Bill B.
Thank you, Ron, much appreciated! I agree, with keeping it simple, at least the best you can. I still need to run buss wiring for the lighting and accessories and all of that will begin to clutter things up a bit. But keeping it simple are words to live by when one is talking electrical and mechanical work. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods and that you have a good weekend. Bill B.
Very informative install. Love the remote switch in all its iterations! Can't say I am as enthusiastic about manual switches as you are, but to each his own. Looking good! Thanks, Bill. T4
Good morning, T4. I really do enjoy walking with the trains and the manual switches with their little throw levers. Now if I were in the mist of building a 9-level layout I too might also have a different take on manual switches. LOL. Hope you're having a good week and will have an even better weekend. Thank you and take care. Bill B.
Nice work Bill. I use command control and older remote fastrack switches on my layout. In eight years i have found them to be very reliable. Ive only had 1 switch that needed to be replaced.
Hi Peter, good morning. Thank you for your comment. I am glad to hear you have found your FasTrack switches to be very reliable. Do you recall what the problem was with the one switch that needed to be replaced? Hope your week is going well. Bill B.
Thank you, Silver Fox! I am glad you liked the video and I certainly appreciate your kind comment. I hope you will stay tuned as I am hard at it working on the railroad. Bill
Hi Benjamin! Thank you for the nice comment about the railroad and for subscribing. I hope you will stay tune as I hope to make a lot of progress in 2022. Thanks again and I hope you have a Happy New Year. Bill B.
Good morning, Jorge! Thank you for your comment, buddy. I hope you're not having to work to hard and that you are having a good week. Take care out there. Bill B.
You have a beautiful layout and I would like to commend you on it. Do you own the Lionel Legacy Control System? If so I would suggest you program your remote switches into it. This will allow you to remove the control cables and you will have less wiring. On my layout I used Remote Switches where trains would need to move to another track and manual switches where two lines merged. I used this system for over a year and then watched a video about programming switches into Legacy. I did it and I love controlling the switches with my Legacy Remote. Then I replaced my 3 manual switches with remote switches. The problem I I found with the manual switches was smaller lighter cars sometimes derailed on them. After I replaced all my switches with remote, that didn't happen any more. One more thing I noticed your passenger cars have the detailed interior, but you don't have people in them. My New York Central Streamline Cars looks much better with people inside.
Hi Ed, thank you! The railroad is coming together slowly but surely. Just today I began applying scenery to the backdrop I have been working on for some time. It will likely my next video once I wrap up the work. Yes, I do have the Legacy System and more recently purchased a DCS system. I may have to give tying in the remote switches to the Legacy System a try. I only have 3 remote switches, but a bunch of manual switches scattered about the layout. Have not really had much of a problem with my manual switches thus far. I agree that passenger figures do add a lot to passenger cars and I do have plans to one day add them. Thanks again! I do appreciate your suggestions. Bill B.
@@ozarkmidlandsouthernrailway My Layout is quite small (8 1/2' x 5 1/2'). I started the Layout in 2019, like you it started with sheets of Plywood. then I used Foam Board (I picked up at Walmart the type used for presentations. It was in the school supply aisle). I used two 1/2" sheets so I would have about an inch between my track and the plywood. Then I used Grass Mats that I picked up at the Train & Hobby Shop. I originally stapled the grass mats in place, but that caused air pockets. So I picked up some Elmers Rubber Cement and that worked fine. Then I place White Foam Board (1/8" thick) down as a foundation for my buildings. I calculate where the buildings will be places and then glue Evergreen Sidewalk Sheets in place to represent sidewalks. I paint the sidewalks, drill the holes for the building wires. Then once the paint is dry place them on the layout. A few weeks ago I added Street Lights and that worked well. Almost all of my buildings are Woodland Scenic and the Street Lights are the same. Woodland Scenic has a power system called Just Plug, which is amazing. By using an Expansion Hub I can power 4 Lights Hubs, which can power up 4 buildings each. All of this uses only one plug in my power strip. I have one Power Strip that powers my buildings and a second one that powers My Transformer (Track), Legacy Command System and my MTH DCS System. This way I can run my trains without have all of the buildings and lights lit. I pretty much have all of the buildings I need (Station, Restaurant, Post Office, Record Store, Theater, TV & Appliance Store, General Store, Emporium Building and Factory. These are Woodland Scenic Buildings. Then I have a Menards Brewery and a 6 story Office Building. Lastly a Dairy Building. I plan on adding a Bar and a Freight Building).
@@edlindo6005 Wow, Ed, that sounds great. I enjoy having a smaller railroad. One that I can take my time creating. I am older now and find having a small railroad more manageable. I too really like the Woodland Scenics buildings and have a small handful of them. I would have liked to have used some insulation foam over the plywood so as to have allowed below track level terrain work, but instead decided to use 1/2” homasote. The hard surface allows me to easily climb up on layout and move about as needed. Your railroad sounds very interesting. Do you have YT channel featuring your layout? I hope you’ll stay tune to the channel. Bill B.
Hi NorthPennSteam Productions, thank you for watching and for your comment. You are always one of the first to comment and I appreciate that. Hope you're having a good week! Bill B.
I'm a newbie, so this may seem like a dumb question. I just purchased a few 81946 and 81947 switches. I'd like to run the wires under the track to the side of the layout. How difficult is it to disconnect the wires, either going into the switch or the switch controller?
Good morning, Rufus, thank you for the question. I understand that you want to run the cables that connect your Fastrack switches under your tabletop to their respective controllers. To answer your question directly, what I did was detach the cable from its respective switch. It is not difficult to do, but you will need both a very small Phillips head and Flat head screwdriver. A pair of tweezers is also helpful. What I did, with the switches laid on the table I marked where I needed to drill holes through my plywood tabletop so that the cable for each switch could be dropped through to the table’s underside. With the holes drilled I removed the metal bottom plate by removing the necessary small screws. I then with a small flathead screw driver loosened the screws that held each of the wires in place. Before removing the wires I would suggest that you take a photo of the wires so that you will know exactly where each wire goes when you are ready to reattach the cable to the switch. I then located where I wanted to place the controller and then secured it in place. With that done, I drilled the necessary holes in the framework to allow me to route the cable under the tabletop back to the switch. Then all that was left to do was reconnect the cable to the switch and test the switch to make sure it functioned properly. I hope this answers your question and that it helps you in building your railroad. Bill B.
Hi Shelly, the O gauge hobby can be admittedly expensive. As toy/model railroaders, we typically want our switches to be durable, reliable, reasonably realistic, and prebuilt. And like most things, that typically costs. Bill
Hi Art, thank you for your comment. The point made with regard to my not showing "the disconnecting and reconnecting of the wire" is well taken. I believe at the time I did not feel it was necessary. With regard to the "splicing to make it longer" I am assuming that you are referring to the black cables that run between the switches and their respective controller. All I can say is that there was no splicing of wires involved in the project. The black cables were more than long enough for my project. Bill B.
Great video Bill, taking photos of stuff before under going a project is really good advice!
Thanks Matt. Did you see the C&EI hoppers in the last train? They are very nice models and a great addition to the fleet of rolling stock. Hope you're having a good week. Bill B.
@@ozarkmidlandsouthernrailway They are awesome models for sure.
KISS (keep it simple sir) I like it. We’ll done Bill. 👍🚂😊
Thank you, Ron, much appreciated! I agree, with keeping it simple, at least the best you can. I still need to run buss wiring for the lighting and accessories and all of that will begin to clutter things up a bit. But keeping it simple are words to live by when one is talking electrical and mechanical work. Hope all is well in your neck of the woods and that you have a good weekend. Bill B.
Another great video from one of my favourite channels
Well, thank you very much, momatmach1. That is very kind of you to say. I hope you are having a good day. Bill B.
Very informative install. Love the remote switch in all its iterations! Can't say I am as enthusiastic about manual switches as you are, but to each his own. Looking good! Thanks, Bill. T4
Good morning, T4. I really do enjoy walking with the trains and the manual switches with their little throw levers. Now if I were in the mist of building a 9-level layout I too might also have a different take on manual switches. LOL. Hope you're having a good week and will have an even better weekend. Thank you and take care. Bill B.
Nice work Bill. I use command control and older remote fastrack switches on my layout. In eight years i have found them to be very reliable. Ive only had 1 switch that needed to be replaced.
Hi Peter, good morning. Thank you for your comment. I am glad to hear you have found your FasTrack switches to be very reliable. Do you recall what the problem was with the one switch that needed to be replaced? Hope your week is going well. Bill B.
Your ballasting and benchwork construction look very nice. Switches look nice also.
Thank you, Chris, I appreciate your kind comment. I hope your week has been a good one. Take care. Bill B .
Very nice. Awesome layout. Thanks for sharing. Dave
Thank you, Dave's Trains! Thank you for watching and for the comment. Much appreciated and I hope you are having a good week! Bill B.
Nice bench work!!
Thanks, driverman8615, if anything, I tend to overbuild, lol. I do appreciate your comment! Thank you. Bill
Outstanding video and great layout.
Thank you, Silver Fox! I am glad you liked the video and I certainly appreciate your kind comment. I hope you will stay tuned as I am hard at it working on the railroad. Bill
You did a great job with the remote switches.
Good morning, Nick @Nick L Trains. Thank you for watching and for your comment. Much appreciated! Hope your day will be a good one. Bill B.
Very nice layout! Happy railroading from Benjamintrains aka Benjamin!
Hi Benjamin! Thank you for the nice comment about the railroad and for subscribing. I hope you will stay tune as I hope to make a lot of progress in 2022. Thanks again and I hope you have a Happy New Year. Bill B.
Great job Bill, switches look great 👍
Good morning, Jorge! Thank you for your comment, buddy. I hope you're not having to work to hard and that you are having a good week. Take care out there. Bill B.
Great video enjoyed watching great job
Good morning and thank you, ROGERS O SCALE TRAINS! Your comment is much appreciated! Bill B.
Nice video
Thank you, Ripan shil. I appreciate the comment! Bill B.
You have a beautiful layout and I would like to commend you on it. Do you own the Lionel Legacy Control System? If so I would suggest you program your remote switches into it. This will allow you to remove the control cables and you will have less wiring. On my layout I used Remote Switches where trains would need to move to another track and manual switches where two lines merged. I used this system for over a year and then watched a video about programming switches into Legacy. I did it and I love controlling the switches with my Legacy Remote. Then I replaced my 3 manual switches with remote switches. The problem I I found with the manual switches was smaller lighter cars sometimes derailed on them. After I replaced all my switches with remote, that didn't happen any more. One more thing I noticed your passenger cars have the detailed interior, but you don't have people in them. My New York Central Streamline Cars looks much better with people inside.
Hi Ed, thank you! The railroad is coming together slowly but surely. Just today I began applying scenery to the backdrop I have been working on for some time. It will likely my next video once I wrap up the work. Yes, I do have the Legacy System and more recently purchased a DCS system. I may have to give tying in the remote switches to the Legacy System a try. I only have 3 remote switches, but a bunch of manual switches scattered about the layout. Have not really had much of a problem with my manual switches thus far. I agree that passenger figures do add a lot to passenger cars and I do have plans to one day add them. Thanks again! I do appreciate your suggestions. Bill B.
@@ozarkmidlandsouthernrailway My Layout is quite small (8 1/2' x 5 1/2'). I started the Layout in 2019, like you it started with sheets of Plywood. then I used Foam Board (I picked up at Walmart the type used for presentations. It was in the school supply aisle). I used two 1/2" sheets so I would have about an inch between my track and the plywood. Then I used Grass Mats that I picked up at the Train & Hobby Shop. I originally stapled the grass mats in place, but that caused air pockets. So I picked up some Elmers Rubber Cement and that worked fine. Then I place White Foam Board (1/8" thick) down as a foundation for my buildings. I calculate where the buildings will be places and then glue Evergreen Sidewalk Sheets in place to represent sidewalks. I paint the sidewalks, drill the holes for the building wires. Then once the paint is dry place them on the layout. A few weeks ago I added Street Lights and that worked well. Almost all of my buildings are Woodland Scenic and the Street Lights are the same. Woodland Scenic has a power system called Just Plug, which is amazing. By using an Expansion Hub I can power 4 Lights Hubs, which can power up 4 buildings each. All of this uses only one plug in my power strip. I have one Power Strip that powers my buildings and a second one that powers My Transformer (Track), Legacy Command System and my MTH DCS System. This way I can run my trains without have all of the buildings and lights lit. I pretty much have all of the buildings I need (Station, Restaurant, Post Office, Record Store, Theater, TV & Appliance Store, General Store, Emporium Building and Factory. These are Woodland Scenic Buildings. Then I have a Menards Brewery and a 6 story Office Building. Lastly a Dairy Building. I plan on adding a Bar and a Freight Building).
@@edlindo6005 Wow, Ed, that sounds great. I enjoy having a smaller railroad. One that I can take my time creating. I am older now and find having a small railroad more manageable. I too really like the Woodland Scenics buildings and have a small handful of them. I would have liked to have used some insulation foam over the plywood so as to have allowed below track level terrain work, but instead decided to use 1/2” homasote. The hard surface allows me to easily climb up on layout and move about as needed. Your railroad sounds very interesting. Do you have YT channel featuring your layout? I hope you’ll stay tune to the channel. Bill B.
Awesome video!!
Hi NorthPennSteam Productions, thank you for watching and for your comment. You are always one of the first to comment and I appreciate that. Hope you're having a good week! Bill B.
@@ozarkmidlandsouthernrailway 👍
Is there a remote switch adapter than be added to a manual switch instead of replacing the whole thing??
I'm a newbie, so this may seem like a dumb question. I just purchased a few 81946 and 81947 switches. I'd like to run the wires under the track to the side of the layout. How difficult is it to disconnect the wires, either going into the switch or the switch controller?
Good morning, Rufus, thank you for the question. I understand that you want to run the cables that connect your Fastrack switches under your tabletop to their respective controllers. To answer your question directly, what I did was detach the cable from its respective switch. It is not difficult to do, but you will need both a very small Phillips head and Flat head screwdriver. A pair of tweezers is also helpful.
What I did, with the switches laid on the table I marked where I needed to drill holes through my plywood tabletop so that the cable for each switch could be dropped through to the table’s underside. With the holes drilled I removed the metal bottom plate by removing the necessary small screws. I then with a small flathead screw driver loosened the screws that held each of the wires in place. Before removing the wires I would suggest that you take a photo of the wires so that you will know exactly where each wire goes when you are ready to reattach the cable to the switch.
I then located where I wanted to place the controller and then secured it in place. With that done, I drilled the necessary holes in the framework to allow me to route the cable under the tabletop back to the switch. Then all that was left to do was reconnect the cable to the switch and test the switch to make sure it functioned properly. I hope this answers your question and that it helps you in building your railroad. Bill B.
Thanks for the info. 👍
Hi Ogauge Trains plus slot Cars, your welcome. Thanks for watching and commenting. Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas! Bill B.
why so expensive is the question
Hi Shelly, the O gauge hobby can be admittedly expensive. As toy/model railroaders, we typically want our switches to be durable, reliable, reasonably realistic, and prebuilt. And like most things, that typically costs. Bill
Why didn’t you show the disconnecting and reconnecting of the wire as well as the splicing to make it longer , not very good
Hi Art, thank you for your comment. The point made with regard to my not showing "the disconnecting and reconnecting of the wire" is well taken. I believe at the time I did not feel it was necessary. With regard to the "splicing to make it longer" I am assuming that you are referring to the black cables that run between the switches and their respective controller. All I can say is that there was no splicing of wires involved in the project. The black cables were more than long enough for my project. Bill B.