Tinplate or Hi-rail? Yes!

[UP2CSX]

I didn't even know that Thomas the Tank Engine and pals have invaded S scale yet. Say what you want about how tacky they are to modelers but they sure have revivied an interest in railroads among young people.

 

[Guy64]

I didn't even know that Thomas the Tank Engine and pals have invaded S scale yet.

I'm not sure of the scale of this particular Terence. He's one of Ertl's earlier renditions of the character, as close to S scale as has been done, I think. He's been touring the C+D System on his own personal designated flatcar (a Marx conversion) since 1993.

 

[Guy64]

Another celeb was on the job during the show, though he was easy to miss.

A potential street race among some tuner enthusiasts was about to begin on a downtown one-way street. It slowed to more of a... parade, when Sheriff Taylor showed up in his black-and-white '61 Ford.

 

[Guy64]

Meanwhile, back at the ranch...

We have a dedicated type 2 watching over Bossy's affairs.

Looking out for Bossy is serious work!

 

[UP2CSX]

LOL, Chuck, those are some great pictures. Looks like you're ready for a great LeMans race there (except for the Sheriff). That kid sure does look like he's concentrating on something. I think he's wondering if Bossy is about to wander on the track.

 

[Guy64]

That kid sure does look like he's concentrating on something.

He had just released the button and the train was beginning to move when that shot was taken. You could be right, he may have been worried that Bossy would jump back into harm's way. No type 5 was he.



Another probable type 2, the little girl at right had a bit of the worry-wart in her. After a tense wait for the freight to stop, she was visibly relieved when it did stop in time, and very pleased when it started moving again after she pushed the button for Bossy to jump aside.

So many things to go wrong...

 

[Guy64]

Once she got the idea though, she wasn't quick to pass the torch to some green trainee. She had the system down!
Adult intervention was needed to pry her loose from the button.

"I hafta take turns?!?"

 

[UP2CSX]

Cute pictures, Chuck. There's something about those larger scale trains that really keep kid's attention that you don't see with HO or N scale. Maybe it's that cow you can actually see.

 

[Guy64]

Sometimes Bossy isn't always seen, at least not while she's making her "moo-ve". Often as not, people are startled by the un-cowlike motion she exhibits.

The blurred figure at left in this shot illustrates...

 

[OldGettysk]

Hey Chuck good so see little ones and there smiles !!!!

 

[Guy64]

Thanks, Paul. There was a lot of very young kids at the NTS, more than we expected, in fact. It was quite busy at the farm in particular. Diana spent much of her time there, loading/unloading cattle, milk cans, explaining how the cows moved ("No, they aren't magnetic..."), when to press the button for Bossy to move, etc.

This shows the normal amount of activity at the farm end...

 

[UP2CSX]

Chuck, it looks like people really did like the old farm. I think that's one thing we've lost in smaller scales. All those operating accesories may seem hokey to a scale modeler but they sure do hold people's attention who aren't looking to count rivets on every passing freight car.

 

[Guy64]

I'm ok with rivet counters, I think there's a place for that. But you're right, it can get out of hand. Our trouble is, we like it all, from lithographed sheet metal to ultra-detailed scale. There were many hyper-detailed layouts at this show, with inspiring scenery and detail. My favorite was an HO scale intermodal yard module that stretched for...oh, must've been at least 40 feet. Another HO club had their main line weaving through a pine forest that made me shiver just looking at it.

As a kid I had American Flyer S gauge (for which I'm glad). Consequently the C+D System began in a "toy train" mode, with lots of AF operating accessories that I never had as a kid, which--I like to point out--Diana prodded me to buy.

But we never intended to confine the system to AF tinplate. (Ironically, none of the locos we ran at the NTS were AF.) Most of the layout is hi-rail, and will be increasingly so as additions are made. Detail levels will increase and sharpen on newer sections, there will be scratch-building, weathering, "aging" and other such "scale" practices.

How far will we go with it? Well, if a built-in home layout is "never finished", neither is a modular layout!


Fortunately, not all of our operating accessories are on the farm. There were more accessories--some with visitor buttons--at other locations, as Di--desperate for a break--reminds the crowd...

 

[Guy64]

During breaks (for Di and the cows) the farm crowd would thin out, sometimes causing a glut of operators at the other buttons. We did have a restraining rope on this outing, which worked ok. For the most part, people got the idea: "Please don't touch the layout!"

But the attraction of moving trains was sometimes too much. The need to get a closer look at an impending "meet" made the one in the green shirt forget about ropes...

 

[Greg Elems]

Hi Chuck,

Sure is nice to see you posting these train show shots. The layout is looking good, even if you think you didn't get enough done.

Cheers,
Greg

 

[Guy64]

Thanks, Greg. Even if I didn't get everything planned done before 8/16, the system does look better than it did at past shows. It's bigger, too.

Jim got a greater percentage of his plans done than I did of mine. One of his newest buildings is the "High Fly Inn", a kitbash of several Plasticville motels topped with a 1/72 model of a Douglas Skyrocket. (Advertising, y'know.)

I hope to get a better shot of it in the future...

 

[Guy64]

Since the last show, Jim's Mobilgas got some finishing touches as well. It got electrified!

OTOH, Jim's pricing system was quite prescient. Even though the price of gas has doubled since 2006, Jim's price boards needed no updating...

 

[Guy64]

An angle on the city, from a 1/64 scale "news chopper" altitude...

 

[UP2CSX]

LOL, Chuck, I really like that gas station sign. BTW, I would have been that kid in the green shirt.

 

[Guy64]

Another city angle...

The blue skeleton going up in the center of town is the remains of the tall silver building seen in pix from previous shows. It's made from an Irwin G+P set. I had to repair the original building after the 2006 show because it had suffered some damage (which I thought was minor) from that outing. As I tried to inspect the structure, I found many more damaged columns than I thought there were. I had to dismantle the thing completely, being left with fewer than 50% of the columns intact. This is a known tendency of the Irwin sets; the little "fingers" on the tops of the columns are delicate, and the slightly over-sized dovetails of the beams can break them off under even the most careful use. I didn't have enough extras to rebuild the 15 storey tower. Only 5 stories are shown here, but later I did make it to 8 stories, still short of the needed 15.

It was one of my favorite buildings on the system. I'll need to find another set from some other frustrated architect before the tower can be completed. I've Zap-a-Gapped the rebuilt structure so far, hoping that will hold it together.

The post-modern buildings to the left are also Irwin sets that Jim built. He has managed to keep them together with careful applications of ACC here and there.