Great Scale Model Train Show this weekend Feb. 3rd/4th

Well, its that time of the year for the big show at the Maryland State Fair grounds. Yes, it's the Great Scale Train Show February show.  This one promises almost 900 tables and is easiest the biggest in the Mid-Atlantic region.  I'll be up Thursday night to help get the show doing "behind-the-scenes" work to make sure this show is awesome.  Doors open up 9AM sharp on Saturday.  All the info and upcoming shows can be found on the flyer below.

Great Scale Model Train Show:  www,GSMTS.com
Maryland State Fairgrounds-Timonium MD
Saturday Feb 3rd: 9AM-5PM
Sunday Feb 4th: 10AM-4PM

I'll be helping out Mike as usual with Makin Tracks: Makin Tracks Discount Model Railroad supplies

A little change of pace

Had a chance to do some different things for a change on the layout.  I've finally got away from all my locomotive builds here lately and other things that involved not working on the layout.  From my post before the open house, I'm building an OSB plant on the lower level.  Of course, I started that right before the open house.  I made some progress on the loading shed (where the particle wood is loaded).  I started on the rest of the build that would stick out about 1" from the backdrop.  I also put together an old blue box kit of a Winchester and Western grain hopper.  A hard to find hopper that is not made in a newer reincarnation.  I also started on a wooden depot kit that will be in the Parker area, right down from the OSB plant.

A classic kit for a awesome railroad.

Here's one side of the OSB plant.  It will be about 4-5 feet long.

I love to put together wood kits.  I have a whole drawer full of them!

This the depot kit,  MPP was a great company and made lots of good products.  I find them from time to time at shows and on Ebay.  Very easy to build and look great.

Open house this past Saturday for the James River Division NMRA

Finally had the chance to open up the layout for a tour for the first time.  This has always been on my list of things to accomplish in model railroading.  I've been a NMRA member for the last couple of years and my James River Division here in Virginia is an active one meeting 6 times a year.
Check out the James River Division here: JRD NMRA
 Now the stress level of me before this open house was very high.  I was cleaning the layout room and the most of the down stairs.  I was worry about the space in the room.  What would I do if 10 people showed up at the same time?  Took care of that with a holding room in the kids play room which now is a cozy gaming room.  Never encountered that problem.  Everyone seemed to like the layout and had great compliments to go with it.  I reluctantly did not take any pictures but luckily our official photographer, Wayland Moore took plenty of them.  Thank you Wayland!

 All the following pictures are copyright of Wayland Moore 2018

Several members of the JRD check out the layout.

My oldest son Cameron volunteered to run a couple trains while I talked.

Clint Hyde checks out Battlefield Yard.

Yep, even Zeb made an appearance by the helix

Yours truly explaining the layout.

Fredericksburg Flats view.

VMID #431 passes Industrial Drive.

VC #106 idles away.

A mostly clean desk!

First post of 2018

I had hope to get some work on the layout done on my winter break.  That sorta happened.  I replaced the bridge that hides the hole in the wall to the helix/hidden staging with a wider one.  I also want get started with scenery building in Parker but that lead to a newer future project: a large lumber facility.  Trackage could have been laid by now but I had to order a #4 turnout for the tank car spur. 

Let's get some pics going:

Here is the area the bridge will be replaced.  I had a narrow two lane bridge.

My good friend Greg McComas did some sketches for the OSB (oriented strand board) plant or one that makes

particle board.  It will receive woodchips and tanks of resin and ship the lumber.  

This will be the layout of the trackage of the plant.  The sharp curve with the arrows are the mainline.

The bridge was built from sheet styrene and left over Rix bridge pieces.   This was before I painted the underneath gray.  Why mismatching under pieces?  This part won't be visible.  

Footers had to re-dug to fit the next bridge supports.

Other footers done.

Here's the new bridge in all it's glory.  Decided to add stripes with decals.  That still needs to be done.