Thanks for the information.  I did go ahead and purchase replacement shafts from Bachmann, and have installed those on one of my Shays.  They seem to be working fine so far, its just too bad that I had already purchased the NWSL parts.  I wish they weren't so hard to install, though, because it really would be much better to have steel gears rather than plastic.  I may consider contacting shayfixer if I have any further issues in the future. 

I recently attempted to install the NWSL steel replacement gears on one of my Shays, and ended up bending the lineshaft in the process.  I would like to successfully complete this process, but I can't see a way to do it without destroying the brittle plastic parts.  I read the directions to a "T" and did what they said, but it literally seemed impossible to do.  I must have spent four or five hours on a single truck.  I had no troubles really with taking the old gears off, but I just couldn't get the new ones on at all.

Any suggestions to make it easier?

Quote from: boohbah62 on June 09, 2011, 04:56:01 PM
All technicalities aside the main thing I need to know is if it comes as a "speedy delivery"

Well, now, I guess that would depend on which "speedy delivery" service you choose!   

Quote from: boohbah62 on June 08, 2011, 08:58:55 AM
Cape Cod House (Mister Rogers' house!): http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/160-45131. This is totally not Mr. Rogers' house. Mr. Roger's house had the porch on the front. (duh)

Umm, boohbah62, that IS Mr. Rogers' house...no question...the plastic is just colored different.  And the "porch" was on the OPPOSITE SIDE of the house, not the front.  Looks like this "duh" is on you.   

JoAnn Fabric's and Michael's both do have a limited number of items that one could possibly use for model railroading.  One thing that comes to mind is their decorative colored sand that can be used as a cheap substitute for modeling coal, river banks, or even ballast.  I do remember seeing some fancy sticker machines or something there...I'll check those out the next time I go shopping, but I'm not making a special trip. 

Thanks for the hint about railgraphics, jward!  I may go that route, but the only thing I don't like is that places like that are shady about pricing...I like to know how much they charge up front by simply looking at their site, rather than having to inquire every time I want something.  It still does look promising though!   

Thank you both for the information.  Unfortunately, our nearest Kinko's/FedEx is 90 miles away in Pittsburgh (no WV jokes, please, lol).  Whenever we order something and it is shipped FedEx, we have to wait an extra day while it gets exchanged with the USPS.  We do have a JoAnn Fabrics nearby, maybe they would have the stencil?  Its been a while since I was last there, but I don't recall seeing any.  I'm definitely not paying $500 for the ALPS printer, lol.

If there are any more suggestions, please throw them my way!

One more thought...how about a small scale stencil?  Any idea where I can get one of those for the whole alphabet?

A while back, I bought some of Testors decal making paper, and attempted to make decals with it.  While the paper works fine for dark images, the standard inkjet printer doesn't allow you to make lighter colored decals (i.e. yellow, white).  I saw that there is also "White" decal paper available as well (as opposed to the "Clear" that I purchased)...but would the white decal paper only make the lettering with a white background, or does it mean that when I cut out the decal the whole thing will be white?  I am wanting to place the yellow lettering on a black surface.

Also, as opposed to decals, I used to know someone who said he bought custom silkscreens from Athearn (?), and would then use them to detail his own boxcars and then sell them.  I have checked Athearn's website and have found nothing about this, and the person has since moved away/lost contact with me.  Any ideas?

Thanks for the tip, Pacific, but I'm actually looking for the Cass version of the cars with the circle logo on the side.  There is one seller on eBay that has them, but the price is still a little high to me.   

Thanks, Bach Man! 

Looking forward to your future reply!

Hi!

I am looking for the HO excursion cars with the Cass Scenic Railroad emblem on the side to operate with my new Climax #9.  Has Bachmann quit making them already?  Please let me know where I can find them in stock, I have looked everywhere and even called Cass and can't find them.  Also, please let me know when the next shipment is expected so that I can watch for them to come in stock if they haven't been discontinued.

Thanks!