Just heard that Ribbonrail will introduce 10 inch long, 38/40/42 inch radius alignment gauges. First are expected to become available next week. The 10 inch versions make it much easier to establish smooth curves with flex track than the original 5 inch models. The 5 inch units work well in combination with the 10 inch units in forming easements. I know not everyone uses broad curves but many of the newer Bachmann On30 engines look much better on them. I wish Ribbonrail success in expanding their line to suit our needs.

It is harder than necessary to separate the electrical harness between engine and tender with the current arrangement. The very tempting side/saddle tank modifications to the 2-8-0 being sold by Backwoods Miniatures (which require moving the board/decoder from the tender to the engine got me to thinking how much simpler it would be if the engine and tender were both fitted with a 9 pin JST or 8 pin NMRA socket and a wire harness with a male pin plug on each end used to join the two. With a 9 pin JST the female plugs could be horizontal and thus keep the wire close to the drawbar. Just a thought.

Has anyone tried the sanded grout method used by the Bach Man for producing roadbed and ground cover on the Stoney Point Wharf layout? In the article in the 2010 On30 Annual it looks like the grout was applied wet. Was this with a spatula or a brush? Could the grout be applied dry and brushed to profile then sprayed withg wet-water to fix?

Would appreciate any commens from the Bach Man or anyone else who has tried this method. Thanks to who respond.

The GE 44t switcher has been well established as a good workhorse for many years. I am now wondering how the GE 45t switcher compares and if it has performance advantages to warrant spending the extra $50? Anyone had experience with these models, also how well do they hold up to heavy use? Any known operational problems?

I have the outside frame 4-4-0 which has to be as close to a perfect model as can be obtained, it's only drawback is it's length. Just a tad too long for some of my situations.
Am wondering if one of you with both the inside and outside frame versions can report if the inside frame version has the same sweet running, silent, mechanism and estimate just how much shorter it is. Thanks.