Model Railroader
January 2005
148 pages
Editor: Terry Thompson
Managing Editor: Dick Christanson
David Popp starts off the January 2005 issue with his Guest Editorial discussing the merits of smaller layout. As I’ve been reviewing the decades of magazines, this issue is one of the most consistent requests. The interesting thing is that while MR covers large layouts and club layouts, there have been more smaller layouts and track plans in the reviewed issues than I thought as the refrain of “smaller layouts, please” has been present for decades. Mr. Popp writes of Ian Rice, and that is a pretty good source reference if you opt not to reference John Armstrong. Mr. Popp notes that in the book, Mid-sized & Manageable Track Plans, Mr. Rice “suggests that you start with a realistic understanding of just how much model railroad you really have the time and money to build.” Mr. Popp acknowledges that those are “a very wise set of words.” I have to agree with both Mr. Rice and Mr. Popp.
Lionel Strang’s column, Workin’ on the Railroad, appears after New Product Announcements and Railway Post Office. While his column of Building a Yard in a Tunnel wasn’t something I would consider, there is a good nugget of information embedded within. A reader, whose name Mr. Strang does not recall, suggested that prior to painting track to apply a thin coal of Wahl’s Clipper Oil on the top of each rail. After painting the track, wrap a rag around your index finger (other fingers would do I suppose) and run it down each rail. Mr. Strang stated, “I wasn’t sure this suggestion would work as well as the reader had claimed, but after a couple feet I concluded this was just about the slickest way I’d found to clean up painted rail.”
In Workshop, Lewis Matt of Holbrook, PA, recommends taking pictures of what you are placing into storage boxes/containers as well as complete a written inventory on a notecard. Then match the photos and the notecard scan or image in your computer so that when you go to look for something, you can open of the files that show with pictures and a written contents list of what is in each box making it easier to find items. I think that is an excellent suggestion as I have pulled storage container after storage container off the shelving looking for a particular item. Now it is up to me to go back, pull each container, take photos of the contents and write out an inventory. That would be a good winter project. I’ll have to put that with everything else on the list that I classify as a good winter project. That is the surest way to make Spring appear whereby I fool myself into thinking I will get it done this Winter. At least I am consistent with my procrastination of implementing good ideas. I should know. I have a list.
David Popp makes his second appearance in Step by Step and discusses 5 different detailing projects to “make your layout look more realistic and visually interesting.” He covers adding figures to the layout and inside vehicles, signs, streets, everyday life, and products for industry. I like details so naturally I gravitate to detailing articles.
The feature articles start off with the project layout for the year. This one is a 2 x 6 coal branch extension for the previously completed project layout from 2002, the Turtle Creek Central. The original layout was a 4 x 8 and this extension added some operational enhancements. This pairs with Mr. Popp’s editorial on working with smaller layouts. A lot of modelers seem to recall the Turtle Creek Central project layout. I do to. I think it has to do with the slogan, the Route of the Dashing Turtle. It is very memorable (at least to me…but I have a soft spot for turtles so I may be biased).
Next up to the plate is a Bob Foltz article on How to Model a Stucco depot. His project involved modeling the Santa Fe depot in Lamy, NM. While a southwestern depot is not on my to-do list, I found the article interesting as it pertained to scratchbuilding a depot plus it was a stucco depot which makes it all the more interesting. Stucco structures aren’t as prevalent in the Midwest as in the Southwest but they do exist. To make stucco, the author used Durham’s Water Putty. I’ve always wanted to try that, and not just for stucco, but I wanted to try making roads with it. I haven’t tried with either, so I guess that would make a good Winter project. Where’s that list…
The layout feature is the 16 x 27 with 7 x 13 addition HO scale layout, the Webster Groves & Fenton by Dave Roeder. Mr. Roeder has since become a MMR and he is active in the Gateway Division of the NMRA. That is where I met him. I have not visited his layout yet, but the pictures, and reports by his friends and members in the Division, indicate he has a very nice layout. I am more familiar with the models he takes to the St. Louis RPM. He is an excellent modeler to say the least. The foundation of this article outlines Mr. Roeder’s journey on building this layout and his determination to get it right. To me, this is a nice pairing and an indirect tie in to Mr. Popp’s guest editorial about building a manageable layout (or more specifically, getting it right from the beginning.)
Paul Dolkos, writes a nice article on modeling the early 20th century railroads. He points out what details to consider for this time period and give examples (written and photos of models). It isn’t exactly a popular timeframe, but does have a distinct appearance.
Next up is Erik Bergstrom, who many remember from running the old Kalmbach forums many moons ago, writing about detailing, painting, and weathering an Athearn undecorated SD40-2 for the MR&T. I will leave the description as detailing as opposed to superdetailing. There are detail upgrades, but not what I would call superdetailing. It’s a solid article for those of you who are interested in such a project.
Paul Chandler writes about wiring a DCC layout with circuit breakers. On many layouts this is now taken into consideration during construction. There are a lot of DCC layouts without the power districts. I know we retro-fitted my buddy’s layout with circuit breakers and power districts just a few years ago, so I think this article still ages well even though it is now 20 years old.
The second layout feature is about an 3-rail O scale diorama for the Los Altos, CA History Museum. The 8 x 25 diorama represents trackside scenes in Los Altos in 1932. The article doesn’t discuss how the layout was built, but rather the design considerations.
Tony Koester’s Trains of Thought arrives in the station with a fancy title (or subtitle I suppose). You know, no matter if you read the column or not or agree with Mr. Koester or not, he can come up with some snappy titles to the Trains of Thought column, like this one: “The Graceful Imposition of Order.” Regardless of what it is about, I just like the title. But what it is about is Mr. Koester explores the ability to move thousands of tons of steel smoothly through rugged terrain. His conclusion is “when our work is done, our main lines should look as though they were laid out by the guiding hand of a civil engineer who not only knew his craft, but had an eye out for the esthetics of his creation as well.”
In Information Desk, Carl Swanson provides photos from and information for a boxcar that was converted into a station on the Rock Island. It would make for a relatively straight forward project but it would still have character or scenic appeal. The boxcars origins are on readily display. The RI added doors, windows, and a slope roof. While not a passenger station, it sufficed for freight service. The photos also offer a wealth of details for the immediate area around the station. While it’s not a how-to article, it doesn’t need to be. This would also be a good project if you have an old beat-up, unused boxcar just taking up space or a cheap project with a train show find. While a lot of railroads use boxcars for lineside storage, this one adds a little different flavor to the stew.
A second item in Information Desk contains information on how to compensate for curves on grades when it comes to deciding on what actual grade to use. Having curves on a grade adds rolling resistance and therefore amplifies the effects of the grade. The information at hand gives you the formula to use to calculate how much you should (or at least could) reduce the grade to eliminate the effects of the curves. The data for this theory and calculations was attributed to John Allen. His contributions to this hobby continue to amaze me. I know some people don’t like his modeling style, and that’s OK…to each his or her own…but his influence on the hobby are undeniable.
In Trackside Photos, there is a photo by Lance Mindheim of his N scale Monon layout. It is an incredible photo. I have found that the way he modeled a creek running through a pasture is the most accurate I’ve seen. The way that he has it meandering and the undercuts in the dirt banks are 100% spot on. Mr. Popp makes his third reference in this lookback with a wintery snow scene along the Soo Line as it passes though Genoa, IL. He absolutely nailed it.
Finally, the issue wraps up with the fourth David Popp reference in an end-of-magazine feature that was entitled “Model Railroading is Fun!” One of the highlights is a modeler, Brian Orlowsky, who bult a 2 x 4 Ntrak module but modeled everything in black and white. He noted that he used 10 shades of gray paint and 4 tones of black to simulate the gray-scale range. As timing is everything, I saw the exact same type of modeling today (1-31-2025) through one of my Facebook feeds. Not something I would do, but can you imagine that instead of figuring out what color something should be, you have to figure what shade of gray something should be based on what color it was in real life. I think I will leave that to others. But I do agree with the title of the column, model railroading is fun!
And thank you Mr. Popp for your contributions to this issue. And just because you got so many references in this lookback, don’t go getting all highfalutin on me. In all actuality, I wouldn’t expect that he would.
Jeff