Introduction

[Shark Nose]

Hi everyone-

My name is Kevin, I am 38, and I have lived in the Delaware Valley of PA/NJ all my life, currently in Lambertville, NJ. I have been drawn (and prodded by some friends) back into model railroading (HO) after a nearly 30 year absence and wound up here as a source for some layout mechanics info I was looking for. I have been a bit shy to post because as I have explored this world and its people more thoroughly than I had ever (I learned on a lone wolf layout) I have discovered that my main draw is quite different than many others. I am a freak for Rail Traffic Control (and a railfan as well) and I am mesmerized by the thought of seeing how busy I can get a model railroad to be without mishap. (Apparently not something one would ever see on a prototype except in a very busy city). My draw for this comes from the layout my Dad designed when I was a baby. It was (obviously) DC, focused mostly on operations (no constructed scenery, just a base of grass paper, with some buildings, trees and lichen integrated) and had provisions to run four trains, two trackless trolleys, and four Model Motoring slot cars at once, all integrated. My favorite thing to do was run two trains at once by myself and keep them separated (a lot of switch flipping!), and in between just let one go around by itself and run a slot car.

I have already seen a few threads that I had a slightly different perspective on, but wanted to put myself out here before I jumped in. I have read already about two years of back Layout Posts looking for info and seen along the way many examples of all of your dedication to having fun instead of rivet counting. I am looking forward to participating.

Kevin

 

[CBCNSfan]

Welcome aboard Kevin. Yes the forum is dedicated to having fun and learning also helping others who want to increase their modeling skills.
Rivet counting or attack posting, are definitely not allowed, so if you encounter any, there is a little red triangle with a white center at the upper right corner of the post, just click on it to report the post. Although it is not allowed it does happen occasionally but will be looked after by the moderators.
I'm somewhat of a lone wolf myself as there are no hobby shops or clubs nearby. If you have a layout or are building one we'd be interested in seeing photos of your modeling. New purchases or photos of treasured rolling stock are welcome too.
Take care and post often
Cheers
Willis

PS the D&H Shark nose was always one of my favorites

 

[Shark Nose]

Hi Willis-

Thank you for the encouragement! Unfortunately, as I am just wading back in and my future layout area is cluttered to packrat proportions, it will be quite some time before I will have anything to show (I plan to build a compacted layout in my home office in two stages around, and hopefully a third elevated stage over, my desk). I would like to post some pics of my treasured motive power and rolling stock (most of which has been packed away for nearly thirty years) but I am inclined to wait to get it out of storage due to space constraints. Hopefully it will not be too long.

I am feeling a bit out of place, because, quite frankly, I have almost no interest in scenery (at least for now). I am hopelessly mesmerized by the action of trains, especially multiple trains (and hopefully slot cars) interacting in the same space, and to maximize that, the trackplan I devised for my phase one table (a 10' by 8' by 54" L shape) wound up being what is apparently referred to as a spaghetti bowl (and with good reason when scenery is important, as there is nowhere to put it). I have surmised that I am primarily interested in Rail Traffic Control, which I view as a fast moving puzzle much as I see switching as a slow paced puzzle. Unfortunately I have not seen much interest in this sort of approach since it is not modeling per se, and consequently am a bit apprehensive to jump in with both feet. Your and others' thoughts on this would be appreciated.

By the way, I have looked at your website and layout and enjoyed it very much. I like to see off-the-beaten-path stuff like that, especially your construction of a model of diesel loco from scratch! (I am also amused by one of the others being named John Galt.) Also, I have much fondness for the area of your railroad, as I have been there twice in my life and often speak to others about the Bay of Fundy and the Tidal Bore in the Truro River.

PS Back- I love Sharks, they are my favorite diesel. I dream that I will someday visit the two former D&H that are currently dormant in a private warehouse, the last two in existence.

 

[CBCNSfan]

I am feeling a bit out of place, because, quite frankly, I have almost no interest in scenery (at least for now). I am hopelessly mesmerized by the action of trains, especially multiple trains

Kevin that's what model rail and the forums are all about, each one does their own thing, what they enjoy and exchange information. Scenery is sort of an artistic thing to depict or represent a certain area. The way I look at it is that some artists paint on canvas and others build dioramas using all sorts of materials to do much the same thing. It usually starts off slow and through time a person acquires a knack for it. Like anything else there are different levels of proficiency. In truth I guess most model layouts are never completely sceniced.

I am just wading back in and my future layout area is cluttered to packrat proportions, it will be quite some time before I will have anything to show

Me too, can you beat this? It's been like that for about 4 years now

 

[CBCNSfan]

By the way, I have looked at your website and layout and enjoyed it very much. I like to see off-the-beaten-path stuff like that, especially your construction of a model of diesel loco from scratch! (I am also amused by one of the others being named John Galt.)

Well I guess the website is all that's left of it except the locos which are now stored in boxes. They'll require servicing before being run again. That won't be a problem as they'll also be getting DCC decoders. The locos are just Tyco's mounted on Athearn drives. When Railtex bought the shortline fron CN they painted the locos and gave them names. The C630's got names of scottish poets and the RS18's got the names of politicians or the names of rail employees.

Cheers
Willis