Hi, DJ! In Google Maps, if you do a satellite view, you can get some great measurements using the "measure" tool. Right click on any part of the aerial photo, and a pop-up menu will show. Select "measure" to to the next spot on the picture, and click. A big blue line will appear on the picture, and the measurement will show in a floating box. The blue line has white circles on either end, so if you didn't click accurately, you can grab hold of them and move the line. (They are also handy for taking repeated measurements without using the pop-up menu.) I use this feature all the time when modeling prototype railroads in the T:ANE (Trainz) simulator.
Great video! One of your more detailed examples of "how to" that i have seen so far. Going to dig out some styrene sheets and order some corragated style sheets and give it a shot soon... thanks for thr inspiration :)
The best industry to model is tamco roofing in phillipsburg ks. Inbound tanks of asphalt, hoppers of crushed stone,covered hoppers of granules. Boxcars of sawdust. Outbound boxcars of roofing.
you are in Pittsburgh. i did not know that.. so you are close to Steam Town National Historic Site. July 14, I hope to meet lots of people there. wow it is amazing what you can scratch build using that stuff. i like the bat and board look. you did a super job. now on to the hard part, all the scrap heaps in the back. good job sir.
this was an awesome video.. great straight forward info..no foo fa raw...a great...You Can Do.. thank you for all the great content you put up for us. Tom
I would love that. The Chicago area is filled with train stuff and history I'd be interested in. I just bought a C&NW gondola today at the train show. lol.
It's not styrofoam: it's styrene, which is a solid plastic. Styrofoam is a foam, which is actually a lot like popcorn, except that it's made from styrene rather than corn.
0:39 "By using [the] four box cars for reference, which are 50ft each." Actually, I think there are two 60ft cars and two 50ft -- at least, the two on the left look a little longer, to me. Of course, it doesn't make any difference, since you're making a smaller version of the building anyway. Anyway, a useful fact so this isn't just a nitpick: Google Maps has a measuring tool. If you right click, you can click points and it'll tell you how far apart they are. Using that, the main part of the building is 250ft long by 132ft wide, and the lower part by the track adds an extra 20ft to the total width. And now I'm confused, because your measurement based on 50ft boxcars makes it 200ft and mine based on two 60s and two 50s makes it 220. I guess there's about 10ft to the left of the first boxcar and we should be looking at length over couplers, rather than length of the car body?
How bout I say that I was DJs Sherpa when he was in Omaha. Everyone who participated enjoyed DJ’s workshops. Including me. Our local train club now has three new ideas to run with that will help grow interest in the hobby. So I say subscribe because one of the videos will spark an ah-ha moment when you least suspect it!
