Bernhards Random Ramblings BACKUP

[ Untergroeningen posts ] [ part 2 ] When I planned segment three, I flipped the direction of the crossover compared to the prototype because I figured it would be helpful to have a passing siding on the way to Slim Staging. Let's just say that wasn't such a great idea. It makes switching the ramp cumbersome. Remember, the prototype is (almost) always right. Change the track arrangement only if you really thought it through. Over the last couple weeks, I slowly reworked the crossover, reusing one of the turnouts.   Here's the segment on the workbench. I'm remounting the Tortoise turnout motors. Aligning the track on the segment so that I get maximum length and width of the ramp, while not diverging too much from the existing arrangement took a little bit experimentation. Now I just need to fit the curve to the Welztalbahn connector. For curves I prefer to install the puko-strips the old fashioned way using brass screws in the roadbed on the centerline and soldering th...

Admittedly, my commute these days consists primarily of the walk from the bedroom to the patio.

[ part 1 ] Tonight was the ops session we have been planning for the last few weeks. Since we are in the middle of a global pandemic, we decided to severely limit on-site attendance, institute social distancing, wearing masks, and try out remote participation. Instead of the usual 10 - 15 session participants in the layout room, we had only four: A yardmaster for Nowheres, and three engineers. Plus myself for the Internet and streaming stuff. We also had three club members joining us remotely as engineers, as well as a remote dispatcher. Remote control of our web-based layout panels and locomotives on the layout is easily accomplished using a VPN application that connects remote devices to the club network. EngineDriver's automatic discovery of JMRI's Withrottle Server doesn't work over the VPN connection. Instead, remote participants need to enter IP and port number of the computer running JMRI manually. In our case 192.168.8.10, port 12090. The control and dispatcher web...

In normal times, Silicon Valley Lines runs one operating session per month. In these times ... not so much. Density of people in the layout room is the main problem with social distancing. Cutting down on the number of people, wearing masks, proper hand santitation, and keeping social distance is a requirement in these times. What would it take to have a remote dispatcher patched into the FRS radios used by the engineers in the layout room? Video Conferencing solutions like Google Meet, Zoom, Skype, and others bridge the long-distance connection easily. However, how do I connect a FRS radio to a computer? Should be easy: Connect the headphone speaker of a radio to the microphone in on the laptop, and the line out of the laptop to the microphone of the radio. Not so fast! The voltage levels between line, speaker, and microphone vary quite a bit. It's not just about plugging stuff together with the correct wires, but rather needs some circuitry to translate the signals properly in b...

[ Untergroeningen posts ] [ part 2 ] Taking a break from rebuilding the tracks on Segment Three I decided tonight to paint the platform on Segment Two. I'm using Woodland Scenics Asphalt Top Coat, which is easy to use and has a very pleasing asphalt color. I find it fascinating how a little bit color can change the scene. A source of frustration in this area was Track One. At the station building the track is embedded in asphalt. Building track embedded in pavement is always a challenge on Maerklin layouts because the center studs get in the way. I've tried various approaches for this in the past (e.g. the railroad crossing in Emsingen ). Here I filled the gaps between the ties with very fine sand, leveled it to the top of the ties, and glued it down like ballast. The Puko-Strip from WeichenWalter sticks up slightly above the ties. I was concerned that the difference in texture would be jarring, and that I couldn't get the top of the center studs properly cleaned after pa...

I'm playing with old smart phones as IP webcams, Open Broadcaster Software to stream video to Youtube Live, FRS radio to computer audio, ... This might be going somewhere useful.

I finally got over my internal "Schweinehund" today, hopped on the bike, and climbed the hill at Santa Teresa County Park to the gates of IBM. Even at 7:30am it was impressively warm already. After months of being sequestered at home, the climb was a bit harder than I expected, but the downhill ride makes up for the pain. There's a nice view of Almaden Quicksilver Park and Mt. Umunhum from the small parking lot at the top of the hill.

[ Untergroeningen posts ] Slowly making progress on segment three. Getting there. Piece by piece.

[ Kurve posts ] Here's a little finger exercise to get my mind off other things going on in this country. A small box connects the rest of the Kurve module to Slim Staging yard. While I built a storage case for Kurve a while ago , today the extension finally got its respective case. I'm using hardboard with glued and stapled strips of wood. I made the case high enough to leave room for some bushes and small trees on the hill as a transition to the trees on Kurve. The main motivation for building the case is to protect the scenery from damage and dust while the module is stored in the garage.