Installing Maastrecht's Mill and some roads.

The problem with Maastrecht's Mill is that there was not a space for it on the layout. Logically, it would fit best near water. The only place with running water on the layout is in the Canyon, but the scenery is arider. Not the place you expect to find a flour mill.

The most logical spot was the corner of the layout near Cass and the Sawmill. There was a little wooded hill that rises into the backdrop. Trees could be cut down and space made for the mill. But there was no water. So this site was chosen. After a little thought, I was able to create a little creek in front of the mill for the water from the wheel to drain into to make the mill a better fit.

Unfortunately, this location did not allow for the mill to be serviced by the railroad like Ben King's original model was. However, I made a little road from the mill to the town of Cass and placed a wagon outside the mill to be loaded.

The chosen corner. The little cabin will have to go...

The hillside has been cleared and part of the hillside has been excavated. A wagon road has also been carved toward the left.

The overall completed scene.

Another wagon road was created further along coming out of the forest. This road helped connect the little town of Cass with the sawmill, which is a stone's throw away. Truth be told, I don't have many grade crossings (railway crossings) on the layout. Creating this little road gives me a reason to blow the whistle a bit more.

To help with the illusion that the railroad is the connector of towns and people, the roads don't link to the other towns on the layout.

The scenery went faster than I expected and was mostly completed over two work sessions. The little hillside all along the backdrop was re-grassed using static grass, the trees were replanted. I weeded out the poorly built trees as I didn't need as many now the Mill was taking up some ground.

It has been summer here in New Zealand and I've enjoyed the wildflowers on our families travels. I decided to model some wildflowers in this scene using the Woodland Scenics product. I've mainly used red, orange and yellow flowers in the long grass to bring a little colour.

The road to Maastrecht's Mill. The creekbed is visible to the right of the tracks. The photo was taken before the resin water was poured.

Overall I'm pleased with how the model fits into the scene. All that is left to do now is to connect up the water wheel to the power.

The dangers of getting new locomotives...

The problem with getting new stuff is your old stuff starts to feel old. Favourite items, having been usurped by a newer item, are used less and less. This is exactly where I found myself after I finished kitbashing my 2-6-0. Very quickly it became my go-to locomotive, which is understandable for a time, after all, it was new; new stuff tends to have a novelty value. However, it slowly dawned on me that I was enjoying this new locomotive because of the Tsunami 2 decoder and the Current Keeper.

My locomotives were either sound value models, with a very cut down version of a Tsunami decoder, or had a first generation Soundtraxx sound decoder that was shipped with the Bachmann 4-6-0 and 4-4-0 Spectrum sound onboard models; a very good decoder, but with some limits.

Thoroughfare Gap Railroad's full fleet. Because its a rare occasion for all the locomotives to be in one location, the company photographer scaled the imposing cliffs outside of Erewhon to take this elevated shot.

Shortly before Christmas, I made the fateful decision to commit to upgrading the remaining five locomotives in my fleet to Tsunami 2 decoders. I knew I would get Current Keepers in the two Bachmann Spectrum locomotives. But I was resigned to continuing to put up with occasional stalls on dirty track and insulated frogs for the two new Bachmann 4-4-0's and the kitbashed 2-8-0. Their small tender sizes probably precluding the installation of a Current Keeper.

I thought I'd knock off the two Spectrum's first. While I was fitting up the first Spectrum, I decided to see if I could fit a current keeper in the new tooling 4-4-0. I was pleasantly surprised that it was a very close thing! I ground out some of the tender shell to create some more clearance using a motor tool, and presto, the current keeper could fit!

Now the cost of my project had just escalated by three current keepers, for I knew I could squeeze them into the other two small locomotives. But the final result was going to be worth it.

I've now finished the upgrades and the whole fleet is using Tsunami 2's with Current Keepers. I spend less time cleaning tracks, though I know it still needs a good clean from time to time. I certainly am not tapping stalled locomotives in frustration anymore.

The lift in enjoyment from the smooth and easy running the Current Keepers provide is a real game changer. Years ago, MRC ran an advertisement encouraging modelers to consider buying one of their power packs instead of a new locomotive to increase enjoyment of the hobby. I feel like Soundtraxx could run the same advert with their Current Keeper. Having a locomotive with a Current Keeper is like having a new locomotive!

So in summary, you can argue the true cost of the 2-6-0 mogul project was the mogul locomotive PLUS six Tsunami 2's and six Current Keepers! Be careful when you embark on new projects, you never know what else you may end up purchasing as a result. Though in this case, I have no regrets.

I'll post another day about how I've configured my Tsunami 2's and some of the great features that drew me to this decoder. I'll also make a post about the Current Keeper, its pros and cons and the drawbacks.