On Jan 19, 2009, at 12:04 PM, Richard Hendrickson wrote:

On Jan 18, 2009, at 11:30 PM, Anthony Thompson wrote:

I don't mind downloading Adobe Reader 9, in fact I've done so,
but it won't work with Mac OS 10.4.10 (latest one I have). This

means

(at least for Mac users) that only the newest OS can run the reader
that handles MRH. That's what I mean by NOT reaching an awful lot of
the public, which I think is a funny way to do a magazine.

I have had exactly the same experience as Tony. And I'm running the
earlier Mac operating system because I have many files in earlier
applications which won't run on the latest OS. So, while MRH seems
like a good idea, I can't access it, and I've already spent a fair
amount of time (when I could have been writing text for a book or
working on a model) trying unsuccessfully to do so. Yeah, I know,
print is SO twentieth century, but an internet publication that some
of us can't access seems needlessly stupid.

Richard Hendrickson

----- Original Message -----
From: Dennis Williams
To: STMFC@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Monday, January 19, 2009 3:00 PM
Subject: Re: [STMFC] Resin kit problems...


I have a few kits that are in the black(almost) resin that is VERY brittle. I contacted the company and they said could not do anything about the kits. I understand why. Correct me if I am wrong, They said that they offered all the shops who purchased the kits replacements and they sold(the shops) the bad ones any way. It does not upset me once it was explained to me. I paid good money for kits I can not build. Now I have built a few of these kits in the light grey resin and they are great!! I have no problem with the white resin. After a couple of hundred kits, They all need some kind of work. All I can say is to keep building!! Dennis

--- On Mon, 1/19/09, Steve Lucas <stevelucas3@yahoo.ca> wrote:

From: Steve Lucas <stevelucas3@yahoo.ca>
Subject: [STMFC] Resin kit problems...
To: STMFC@yahoogroups.com
Date: Monday, January 19, 2009, 12:10 PM

I was discussing resin kits yesterday with a couple of fellow
STMFC'ers. Talk centred around the use of various resins for model
kits, and their relative stability. It was felt that the the grey
resin used in Westerfield kits was most stable. The white resin used
by some manufacturers was cited as being least stable, with instances
of a certain manufacturer' s cars being "humped" held out as examples.
These particular car kits have one-piece carbodies, either floor and
ends/sides, later kits from this manufacturer having roof and
sides/ends as one casting.

At home, I opened a box containing a white resin car kit from that
manufacturer (I won't specify the manufacturer at this time) that I
had purchased about seven years ago, to find that the one-piece
floor/end/sides assembly had sagged so much as to make the model
impossible to finish assembling. It had been stored in its original
corrugated cardboard (single-wall corrugated material) box, in the
original tissue paper wrapping. The box is undamaged, and the kit has
been stored at room temperature in a house that is is air-conditioned
in the summer.

I also have a flat cast resin kit for a CPR "Big Otis" steel-frame,
high-sided GS gondola car moulded in tan coloured resin, which I
purchased in 1991. I scribed board detail on the inside of the car
sides and ends. I have not assembled the car. Over time, the side
castings warped--again, stored in the original corruagted cardbord box
and tissue, heated and air-conditioned house, no damage to the box,
yadda, yadda...Some of this I was able to remedy by placing the
offending castings on a cookie sheet in the oven to soften them, then
placing the parts on a sheet of glass under weights. Sort of
remedy--the sides still have a slight curve.

As we STMFC'ers assemble many resin kits, this may be of some concern
to many of us. We spend a fair amount of time and effort to assemble
(or even more to modify) decorate, and weather these kits, and their
long-term dimensional stability of some resin material used in them,
for me, has been called into question.

I'd appreciate your comments.

Thanks in advance,

Steve Lucas.

--- On Mon, 1/19/09, Steve Lucas <stevelucas3@yahoo.ca> wrote:

From: Steve Lucas <stevelucas3@yahoo.ca>
Subject: [STMFC] Resin kit problems...
To: STMFC@yahoogroups.com
Date: Monday, January 19, 2009, 12:10 PM






I was discussing resin kits yesterday with a couple of fellow
STMFC'ers. Talk centred around the use of various resins for model
kits, and their relative stability. It was felt that the the grey
resin used in Westerfield kits was most stable. The white resin used
by some manufacturers was cited as being least stable, with instances
of a certain manufacturer' s cars being "humped" held out as examples.
These particular car kits have one-piece carbodies, either floor and
ends/sides, later kits from this manufacturer having roof and
sides/ends as one casting.

At home, I opened a box containing a white resin car kit from that
manufacturer (I won't specify the manufacturer at this time) that I
had purchased about seven years ago, to find that the one-piece
floor/end/sides assembly had sagged so much as to make the model
impossible to finish assembling. It had been stored in its original
corrugated cardboard (single-wall corrugated material) box, in the
original tissue paper wrapping. The box is undamaged, and the kit has
been stored at room temperature in a house that is is air-conditioned
in the summer.

I also have a flat cast resin kit for a CPR "Big Otis" steel-frame,
high-sided GS gondola car moulded in tan coloured resin, which I
purchased in 1991. I scribed board detail on the inside of the car
sides and ends. I have not assembled the car. Over time, the side
castings warped--again, stored in the original corruagted cardbord box
and tissue, heated and air-conditioned house, no damage to the box,
yadda, yadda...Some of this I was able to remedy by placing the
offending castings on a cookie sheet in the oven to soften them, then
placing the parts on a sheet of glass under weights. Sort of
remedy--the sides still have a slight curve.

As we STMFC'ers assemble many resin kits, this may be of some concern
to many of us. We spend a fair amount of time and effort to assemble
(or even more to modify) decorate, and weather these kits, and their
long-term dimensional stability of some resin material used in them,
for me, has been called into question.

I'd appreciate your comments.

Thanks in advance,

Steve Lucas.


















[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

----- Original Message -----
From: "Anthony Thompson" <thompson@signaturepress.com>
To: <STMFC@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Monday, January 19, 2009 1:22 PM
Subject: Re: [STMFC] Re: Model Rail Hobbyist

Tim O'Connor wrote:

I think MRH is a very promising information format. Perhaps Acrobat
was not the best choice . . .

If they had used, say, Acrobat 5.0, I bet they would not be
hearing what they're hearing. If you look at Signature Press's website,
you will see lots of simplified and even clunky graphics--we have
deliberately avoided flashy "features" and enhancements like frames
just so that even those with older browsers can successfully view the
pages. Obviously the MRH approach is the diametric opposite.

Tony Thompson Editor, Signature Press, Berkeley, CA
2906 Forest Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705 www.signaturepress.com
(510) 540-6538; fax, (510) 540-1937; e-mail, thompson@signaturepress.com
Publishers of books on railroad history




__________ Information from ESET NOD32 Antivirus, version of virus signature database 3778 (20090119) __________

The message was checked by ESET NOD32 Antivirus.

http://www.eset.com

At 1/19/2009 12:04 PM Monday, you wrote:

On Jan 18, 2009, at 11:30 PM, Anthony Thompson wrote:

I don't mind downloading Adobe Reader 9, in fact I've done so,
but it won't work with Mac OS 10.4.10 (latest one I have). This means
(at least for Mac users) that only the newest OS can run the reader
that handles MRH. That's what I mean by NOT reaching an awful lot of
the public, which I think is a funny way to do a magazine.

I have had exactly the same experience as Tony. And I'm running the
earlier Mac operating system because I have many files in earlier
applications which won't run on the latest OS. So, while MRH seems
like a good idea, I can't access it, and I've already spent a fair
amount of time (when I could have been writing text for a book or
working on a model) trying unsuccessfully to do so. Yeah, I know,
print is SO twentieth century, but an internet publication that some
of us can't access seems needlessly stupid.

Richard Hendrickson

At 1/19/2009 08:15 AM Monday, you wrote:

Jim Hayes Wrote" "The small rods on the under boards are locaters" Jim and all: Initially yes, but disregard. You don't really need these. ONce the "origami" has taken place with steps you can just glue them into place. I believe I over engineered the rod/pin/hole/placement. Jim you are fine in getting rid of the parts. It's much easier. As for the decals, initially the car is released with Spencer Kellog, other road names to follow. As for the web site: Yes, it's coming along. I am a pattern maker, not a web site designer, big hurdle for me to get over. Working on this. John Miller; disregard old web site and go with what the group is telling you. The 2 cars that are available are the 2 compartment car (GATX), and the 6 course Radial Car. $49.00 each, plus $7.50 shipping handling up to 3 kits. If you need lots of tanks, I offer a bakers dozen, buy 12 get 13. Of course it would have been much easier if you would have just shown up at Cocoa! Weather was great and great time was had by all. We expect you next year though, it will be Mike's 10th anniversary bash. I hear he is renting a Gulfstream III to fly around the country and pick people up. He got a bailout from the Gov't ! Thanks for the kind words. jonsc&f

At 1/19/2009 12:04 PM Monday, you wrote:

On Jan 18, 2009, at 11:30 PM, Anthony Thompson wrote:

I don't mind downloading Adobe Reader 9, in fact I've done so,
but it won't work with Mac OS 10.4.10 (latest one I have). This means
(at least for Mac users) that only the newest OS can run the reader
that handles MRH. That's what I mean by NOT reaching an awful lot of
the public, which I think is a funny way to do a magazine.

I have had exactly the same experience as Tony. And I'm running the
earlier Mac operating system because I have many files in earlier
applications which won't run on the latest OS. So, while MRH seems
like a good idea, I can't access it, and I've already spent a fair
amount of time (when I could have been writing text for a book or
working on a model) trying unsuccessfully to do so. Yeah, I know,
print is SO twentieth century, but an internet publication that some
of us can't access seems needlessly stupid.

Richard Hendrickson