Hello all from Vermont!


dtabor

New Member
Hi all!

Thanks for accepting me into the group. 30+ years ago I had a room at my parents house with my HO layout. Marriage, moving out and family took my time up to now and now Im looking to get back into MR! I live in North Central Vermont and will hopefully be modeling the area back in the 80s or so but may not stick strictly to a time period. Thinking about an early fall season but that may change as Spring/Summer seems to be easier and more tutorials about that season.

If anyone can point me to pages etc that are modeling Vermont that would be great. Google has shown me a couple but seems limited. Looking for inspiration!

Cant wait to get back into the hobby!
 
Welcome aboard D. Not a lot of people here model Vermont, but we'll all gladly answer questions readily. Tell us a bit more about yourself. Got a first name? Are you going to model in HO again? DC or DCC? What railroads operated there in the 80's? Potential layout size?
Check out the Coffee Shop if you have some time. We chit-chat mostly about model railroading, but anything goes except politics and religion. Get to know some of us more closely.
 
Welcome aboard D. Not a lot of people here model Vermont, but we'll all gladly answer questions readily. Tell us a bit more about yourself. Got a first name? Are you going to model in HO again? DC or DCC? What railroads operated there in the 80's? Potential layout size?
Check out the Coffee Shop if you have some time. We chit-chat mostly about model railroading, but anything goes except politics and religion. Get to know some of us more closely.


Thanks for the reply! Name is Darron. I will do HO Scale again. I have no experience in DCC at all but Im leaning toward working with that since all of my equipment is so old anyway, might as well try the newer stuff. Everything has changed alot since I did this so theres a learning curve.

Im still working on size. I have an unfinished basement, almost a blank slate, and want to build a wall to divide off the train room area. The area Im using has the bulkhead entry so trying to work around that area so that I dont lose the use of that. Liftout areas for that and the door into the room itself would take care of that unless I make the benchwork loop away from the bulkhead then would only need one liftout. If I dont use that area, Id have appx 10x14 or so. If I use the entire area would be 20 x14 +/-.

Central Vermont Railway was in my immediate area, along with St Johnsbury and Lamoille County, and Canadian National came (still does) down from Canada to St Albans in NW Vermont. Id kind of like to incorporate St Albans as that is where my dad was from and he took me to the yards there a few times when I was younger and was really the person that got me hooked on trains in the first place.
 
Do you have any older locomotives that run on DC. If so and you plan to go with DCC, you will either have to install decoders in the older engines, or do as I have and set up for both a DC powerpack and a DCC setup, with a selector switch so you don't burn out the DC motors. If, you don't have older engines, I'd start with DCC. One advantage of DCC is you can run more than one locomotive at the same time. (I don't, generally because I'm usually running only one train at a time...can't walk and chew gum simultaneously!)
Welcome and good luck!
 
Do you have any older locomotives that run on DC. If so and you plan to go with DCC, you will either have to install decoders in the older engines, or do as I have and set up for both a DC powerpack and a DCC setup, with a selector switch so you don't burn out the DC motors. If, you don't have older engines, I'd start with DCC. One advantage of DCC is you can run more than one locomotive at the same time. (I don't, generally because I'm usually running only one train at a time...can't walk and chew gum simultaneously!)
Welcome and good luck!

I do have older, way older, like over 30 years older. Haven't been run in a LONG time. My thought was to just put those on a display shelf and start with DCC. A lot of $$ I know but a fresh start with new tech.
 
Welcome Darron. The only thing I have Vermont Railways is some Piggyback Trailers and a Atlas Louisville Ford Truck. Before they left St. Louis Missouri we housed there Piggyback Trailers I’ve pulled several. If I can find it I have a old Photo of some of there Trucks and Trailers. It was in the Early 80s as a kid I remember there were about 500+ Vermont Piggyback trailers down by the Mississippi River on the Illinois side they was big in the St.Louis area. Glad to have you aboard and there’s a great bunch of guys here that are helpful.
 
Hello and welcome. Another Vermonter here, north eastern part. I'm just getting started myself. N scale freelanced Pennsylvania Railroad for me so I can get some of those long coal trains rolling. Starting with steam but I'm probably gonna make it the transitional era so I can add in a few diesels over time.
 
I dont have locomotives that aren't at least 20 years old , and most are over 30 sevaral are close to 50 . None are for display. They all have to "earn" their keep , I'm not a museum . Same for the rolling stock. Some of the ConCor passenger cars have never been out of their original boxes.
 
Hi Darron, & welcome to the Forum. I'm modeling in the HO scale, but way over on the other side of the map in Oregon. Google Mike Confalone, he models the Allagash RR around New Sharon Maine. Maybe he has something that may be of interest to you. Welcome back to model railroading!
 
DARRON - Glad to have you join the forum.
Strange that you should inquire about Vermont!
I just have been reading a MAY 1986 Railroad Model Craftsman that has a five page spread entitled 'The Vermont Railway'.
It is an HO 10x12 foot layout. A very nice model RR done in the fall with the trees changing.
I'll post a couple pic later today.
 
DARRON - Glad to have you join the forum.
Strange that you should inquire about Vermont!
I just have been reading a MAY 1986 Railroad Model Craftsman that has a five page spread entitled 'The Vermont Railway'.
It is an HO 10x12 foot layout. A very nice model RR done in the fall with the trees changing.
I'll post a couple pic later today.
How many old copies of those magazines you have? I thought I was the only one who read those old ones. I have about 25 or so different years sorry for off topic
 
How many old copies of those magazines you have? I thought I was the only one who read those old ones. I have about 25 or so different years sorry for off topic
Lee - I have years and years - Wife gets fed up because I leave them everywhere!
 
Let's see some pic!
v1.jpg
v2.jpg
v3.jpg
v4.jpg
 
thanks so much Sirfoldalot! those pics are just what Im looking for for ideas. I will keep that layout in mind too. Its peak foliage here right now so Ive been out getting pictures of the landscape for ideas and coloring to use as I plan to model fall on the layout.
 
Hi all!

Thanks for accepting me into the group. 30+ years ago I had a room at my parents house with my HO layout. Marriage, moving out and family took my time up to now and now Im looking to get back into MR! I live in North Central Vermont and will hopefully be modeling the area back in the 80s or so but may not stick strictly to a time period. Thinking about an early fall season but that may change as Spring/Summer seems to be easier and more tutorials about that season.

If anyone can point me to pages etc that are modeling Vermont that would be great. Google has shown me a couple but seems limited. Looking for inspiration!

Cant wait to get back into the hobby!


Welcome! I don't know anything about modeling Vermont but I do know that it is one of my favorite places to visit. I look forward to watching your progress.
 



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