Wednesday, July 29, 2026
Wednesday, October 15, 2025
Saturday, May 24, 2025
Quick Update...
I know content has been a bit lax here as I focus (too much time) on the Valley Local Facebook Group, and it's also my busiest time of year at the day job. . . But there are some exciting new developments coming up and I'm planning on sharing them here too, so your continued patience is appreciated!
In the meantime, in addition to helping Pete out with his layout . . .
I custom painted/lettered an undec Rapido 44-tonner and weathered it with a combination of airbrushed acrylics, oil paints, and PanPastels. I also installed MV lenses as well as a cab-filling Scale Sound Systems speaker which really rattles the windows. Only downside is that I had to sacrifice the cool cab interior. But I think it's worth it. You can have a listen in the video below . . .
The video also shows some of the other progress being made in Middletown - specifically a new "concrete" pad for the bulk track.
More to come, so thanks much for your patience and stay tuned!
Thursday, March 13, 2025
Rapido 44-tonner Sound Check - Dirty Little Deeds, Done Dirt Cheap
Sincere apologies that I've been posting more to The Valley Local Facebook Group than posting here - and given the current zeitgeist I should probably wean myself off FB (as many of you have, if you were ever on it) and post here more. A quick review of this here blog reveals mostly a photo album. My last substantive post was literally last year. New Year's Eve, but still 2024.
But there is LOTS to post and I sincerely hope to get to work on those posts soon. In the meantime, and as you may have guessed from yesterday's Wordless Wednesday, I've recently acquired a Rapido 44-tonner. A full review will need to wait, but suffice it to say it will be effusive - this model is one of the best locomotives I've come across in a while. The way it runs so quiet and smooth reminded me of the first time I saw an Atlas RS-3 running back in the day - which is to say, like a Swiss watch. But the details (as well as how I went about weathering it and reprogramming it for my ProtoThrottle) will have to wait another day.
This post is about how it sounds - specifically trying to answer the question of "what the heck is Sound Slot 30 supposed to represent?!"
Check out the video below and let me know your thoughts in the comments...