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    Benefits of belonging to a model railroad club

    I forgot to mention another club I was briefly involved with, but never a member... when I was 16 and had just gotten my driver's license, I thought it was a chance to get into a club that was on the other side of town. I had seen their (portable) layout at shows and knew a number of the people...
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    Benefits of belonging to a model railroad club

    Freudian slip? Andy:)
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    Benefits of belonging to a model railroad club

    I haven't ever really belonged to a club. Probably the only one I would consider joining is the La Mesa Club in San Diego, even though it's 2500 miles away - I would join just to support their efforts. I have been a visiting operator there on several occasions - it's a great example (and one...
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    Can you identify these engines.

    1. Athearn H24-66 Train Master shell cut to pieces, with an old (pre-1985) Athearn SD45/SDP40 drive. 2. Athearn GP7, post 1985. 3. Front Range GP7. Good motor, shell ok for its time, trucks are really bad. Parts: Look like somebody's metal GE FB2 trucks there. Forget who made them...
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    Can you identify these engines.

    The top one is a Train Master shell but the drive looks like it belongs to an SD45. It might fit but it's the wrong drive. Andy
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    Opinions on this set of track?

    Basically....... the regular track is ok. Some QC problems, but it functions and it's available in larger radiuses than the standard 18 and 22". The switches however are junk. QC really all over the place. I currently run my trains on the floor - and I have over a scale mile of main line...
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    Opinions on this set of track?

    Not everyone. Andy
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    Got the Brass Blues

    Better off just starting with the correct ones. I don't know for sure if the Alco switchers have the same wheelbase - the Proto SW - any of them - would be the easiest to fit because it doesn't have the humongous weight crammed under the hood. You could also use an Athearn SW7 drive - that's...
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    Got the Brass Blues

    The drive is a pile of junk. You could spend a lot of $$ on NWSL parts to rebuild it, and have a lot of work ahead of you... or just get a switcher drive someplace else. I think the Proto 2000 switcher drive might be a good bet. You may have to chop off the frame ends because the brass will...
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    NCE Power Cab

    I have long been a fan of NCE, but it was tough to recommend to beginners due to the cost. When they came out with the PowerCab - which has been three years now I think - it became a no-brainer. Their entry level system costs roughly the same as everybody else's entry level system, but has the...
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    California Dreamin'

    Yep all powered. The only dummy Genesis F units ever produced were for Walthers - they did a Santa Fe warbonnet set to go with Walthers' Super Chief - this was before Athearn was purchased by Walthers rival Horizon. The 47L and 47A (A-B set) was powered, the 47B-C were dummies. At the time...
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    California Dreamin'

    Athearn made a Genesis WP F3 A-B-B set about 5-6 years ago which is correct motive power for the WP leg of the California Zephyr. They released these locos several years before BLI did the train, so by the time the train was released they were hard to come by. I lucked into a set - in San...
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    No more "Extreme Trains"?

    I used to think that, but I stopped worrying about it a long time ago. I'm not going to be all things to all people, or even most things to most people. Or even 51% of things to 51% of the people, which is why I don't run for office. If I reach someone by being a phony, what have I...
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    Athearn SD40-2 shell fit SD45 chassis?

    The difference in total length between an SD40 and an SD40-2 is 65'8" to 68'10". This extra length is due to the HT-C trucks being a foot and a half longer than the Flexicoils, in part because their traction motors all face the same direction hence the overhang on the inboard motor. To...
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    Athearn SD40-2 shell fit SD45 chassis?

    Long hood length, back porch, cab and sub base, all that stuff had to be changed. I built this model in 1988 - it was my first non-widebody SD40. A couple years later, Kato's SD40 came along and rendered it obsolete. It's the first model I put treadplate on (Bilger peel n stick X-plate from...
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    No more "Extreme Trains"?

    I would think that would go without saying. Although if you don't have very many entries or qualified judges, the contest might end up just being dinner for two. In theory yes. In practice, that 1860s critter had a far better chance of winning than a 1980s diesel, just because the judges...
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    No more "Extreme Trains"?

    I wasn't referring necessarily to the judges, just modelers sharing techniques with each other. That was 24 years ago. I was not part of RPM at the time, so I only know the standard history on why RPM was formed. Yes it was a break from the contest, but the #1 and #2 issues were not...
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    Athearn SD40-2 shell fit SD45 chassis?

    You mean like this? Andy
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    Athearn SD40-2 shell fit SD45 chassis?

    Nope. Wrong wheelbase, wrong trucks, and the chassis you are showing is for the old widebody SD45. The frame grooves are too wide to fit in the SD40-2 shell, and there's no room for the porches. One of the significant obstacles to Athearn or anyone doing a decent looking SD40-2 back then was...
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    No more "Extreme Trains"?

    I agree. Which is why I have no need for judging. I can certainly understand wanting to learn techniques, but there are many ways to do that. I've also found people are more willing to share their techniques if they don't view me as a competitor. Sometimes I've had the morbid curiosity -...




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