Interrupting our usual coverage of big ol’ electric railroads and their models: interesting story about the recent demise of Wingnut Wings, beloved maker of 1/32 WWI airplane kits founded by Sir Peter Jackson of epic movie fame. The hobby business is tough and certainly not immune to the laws of business or the tragedy of human folly.
Also, any actual reporting on how the hobby business actually works is catnip to me.
Up Dunes Junction
Model railroadin' and trains. . . the South Shore line, mostly, but anything electric or Northeast Corridor or Northwest Indiana turns up here
Sunday, May 17, 2020
Saturday, March 14, 2020
Railroad Safety Boss Lady in the House (Literally)
Railway Age story on Operation Lifesaver’s national Executive Director, Rachel Maleh, otherwise known as my spouse. Very proud of this awesome lady, who is also a tireless supporter of my railroading passions.
Meanwhile, stay off the tracks!
Meanwhile, stay off the tracks!
Wednesday, February 5, 2020
Monday, January 6, 2020
Focus Stacking Experiments
Wednesday, January 1, 2020
New Year Old Line Corridor Video
Testing out a new light set, running trains, thought I would shoot some quick video on my smart phone.
Monday, December 23, 2019
What's new on the Old Line Corridor
Saturday, November 23, 2019
Michael Murray’s Classic Photo Take on Modern Electric Action
Amtrak ACS-64 639 leans into the superelevated curve at Newport as it overtakes a Norfolk Southern tank train near Wilmington, Delaware on November 11, 2019 in this excellent photo made by Michael Murray, who originally posted it to the Amtrak Northeast Corridor Railfans Facebook group. Michael’s dramatic photo is reminiscent of the Pennsy-era photography of that famous chronicler of electric railroading, William Middleton. When this image surfaced in my Facebook feed earlier this month, it inspired me to reach out to Michael, and now I look forward to seeing his photos on the regular. Photo used with kind permission of Michael Murray |
Monday, November 4, 2019
New Takes on the Ol' Helix
Georgetown Branch layout, and his helix confirmed what I had noticed in the magazine depictions helices: they typically require what is arguably among the most elaborate and dense possible benchwork of any layout feature. Model Railroader magazine's recent N scale Canadian Canyons project layout--which features a helix--required such complex benchwork that the project went over the magazine's production schedule. In short, a helix seemed like a daunting prospect, with a very specific payoff in terms of modeling satisfaction. As a result, I was cool to the idea of ever incorporating a helix into my own layout construction.
But helices have repeatedly worked their way into my model railroading ideation over the past few months. Most significantly, Ben pointed me to an innovation that addresses the complex and dense construction challenge of a helix: the use of digitally-cut Gator Board for helix construction. Ben passed me a link to this entertaining video demonstrating a compact HO helix built from Gator Board, which also links to the makers of this helix. Then I encountered both the HO and also an N scale version of the "World's Lightest Helix" featured in the video on display at the train show in Timonium, Maryland. The light, elegantly constructed, and reliably operating helices have caused me to reconsider how I might actually incorporate a helix into a future layout.
Meanwhile, Trevor Marshall planted another helix idea in my head during a conversation on my growing interest in European narrow gauge, specifically the electrified Swiss narrow gauge Rhaetian Railroad, or the RhB. He mentioned that he had helped a friend plan a multilevel RhB layout, but that the multilevel concept was ultimately shelved due the complexity of helix construction. RhB operations, with short-ish trains and mountain goat-like locomotives, would have been particularly well-suited to small, steeply graded helices.
Further helix inspiration surfaced in a recent special edition of the German-language model railroad magazine MIBA. In an article that would be right at home in Kalmbach's long out-of-print Creative Layout Design by John Armstrong, MIBA detailed a layout concept featuring a scenicked vignette or stage flanked by two helices built into a Schrank, a large wall cabinet/book case console very common in German living rooms. The helices, and a yard below the vignette stage, would serve as staging tracks.
A minimalist helix might be in my future as a I contemplate my post-retirement model model railroading. For example, perhaps the stage or vignette could be sized to fit T-Trak-compliant modules. The maker of the World's Lightest Helix is currently planning to offering the Gator Board product commercially, but perhaps modelers could produce their own custom-sized helix components with a Cricut or similar digital craft cutting machine. I look forward to seeing the product and design concept evolve in the years to come.
But helices have repeatedly worked their way into my model railroading ideation over the past few months. Most significantly, Ben pointed me to an innovation that addresses the complex and dense construction challenge of a helix: the use of digitally-cut Gator Board for helix construction. Ben passed me a link to this entertaining video demonstrating a compact HO helix built from Gator Board, which also links to the makers of this helix. Then I encountered both the HO and also an N scale version of the "World's Lightest Helix" featured in the video on display at the train show in Timonium, Maryland. The light, elegantly constructed, and reliably operating helices have caused me to reconsider how I might actually incorporate a helix into a future layout.
* * *
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MIBA Special 122 - "Pro-
jects with Flair" image
courtesy MIBA/Verlag
Gruppe Bahn
|
Further helix inspiration surfaced in a recent special edition of the German-language model railroad magazine MIBA. In an article that would be right at home in Kalmbach's long out-of-print Creative Layout Design by John Armstrong, MIBA detailed a layout concept featuring a scenicked vignette or stage flanked by two helices built into a Schrank, a large wall cabinet/book case console very common in German living rooms. The helices, and a yard below the vignette stage, would serve as staging tracks.
* * *
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Ilustration from MIBA showing the multilevel vignette/stage concept image courtesy MIBA/Verlag Gruppe Bahn |
Monday, October 28, 2019
Old Line Corridor on Facebook
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Facebook users, I've set up an Old Line Corridor Facebook page. I will be crossposting over there, and also sharing interesting and relevant Facebook-based content. Hope to see you over there! |
Monday, October 21, 2019
Quick Snaps: Finishing Touches on Old Line Corridor Scenery
More trees, weeds, vegetation, signs, vehicles. Hard to believe I have finally reached this level of completion on the Old Line Corridor. |
More trees and vegetation, plus signs and weeds. |
Looking down the road on the street side of the substation. Trees and weeds and a railroad |
A weedy, swampy area under an embankment, instead of just scrubby lawn |
Under the expressway |
Another view of the cattails and swampiness under the expressway |
Thursday, October 10, 2019
Heritage Units...WITH PANTOGRAPHS!
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NJ Transit has jumped on the Heritage Unit bandwagon with Tuscan-and-Pinstripe ALP electrics. Intriguing meeting of old graphics and new lines. Go read about it at Railway Age. |
Monday, October 7, 2019
611 Sighting at Strasburg
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611 oriented the right direction, tiptoeing back into the Strasburg station. This extended visit to Strasburg is reportedly her first venture north of the Mason Dixon line. |
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The 'other' N&W locomotive that lives at Strasburg, 475, with a string of cars approaches the station/shops complex. |
Tuesday, October 1, 2019
Whirlwind Work Travel + Trains + Interesting Light
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The destination of my zero dark thirty flight out of Nashville was the New York city area, where a meeting ended late in the afternoon. The Long Island Rail Road was my path back to Penn Station, but the off-peak inbound schedule is thin, occasioning a wait of over an hour for a train. During my wait at Westbury, a dozen or so LIRR trains swooshed past in the beautiful late afternoon light, including these MUs. |
Monday, September 23, 2019
Renewed Man-Crafts Campaign
Monday, September 16, 2019
More N Scale Electrics: A Little Joe!
Click through to http://milwaukeeroadtrainshop.com/home to see an actual N scale Milwaukee Road Little Joe electric locomotive in action. Not sure if this guy is custom making these models, or what, but his model looks great. Reminds me of the persistent--and to my ear, dubious--rumor that Kato is/was contemplating an N scale Little Joe to go with its Hiawatha passenger set.
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