Kevin,
You mean You did not go in the coal mine at the museum? Was one of the first gotta see/experience exhibits since the thirty’s. One of My favorites…
https://www.msichicago.org/explore/whats-here/exhibits/coal-mine/
Take Care! [:D]
Frank
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I went into the coal mine, but after repairing mining equipment for two decades, it was one of those things that was too close to work to be enjoyable.
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Some pictures of me when I was young, slender, and muscular:
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My specialty, the Manitowoc Model 4600 Synchronized Drag Line. I know this magnificent beauty inside and out from top to bottom and one end to the other. These were good times for me.
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-Kevin
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I finished my trip around Chicago with a Northward run to Wisconsin where I stopped to visit the offices of our hosts, Kalmback Media.
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Everyone was very friendly, and I had a great time. The work that goes on in the Kalmbach offices is truly impressive. What a great team these people are.
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The highlight for me was seeing the only remaining GORRE & DAPHETID locomotive, 4-10-0 number 34. What a beautiful item. I was so surprised to find that it was not kept in a secure vault with armed guards.
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I stopped at the Walthers Showroom, but did not get a picture, whoops.
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Then I went to South Side Trains, which is a very small shop. In spite of the small size, I still managed to spend over $150.00 in there. Lots of good stuff for sure.
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Well… time to hed back South… towards Atlanta. Hopefully it will not be freezing. I managed to survive a week by the Great Lakes without ever putting on a jacket, or even long sleeves.
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-Kevin
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I finished the week with a trip to Mr. Muffin’s Trains. Mr. Muffin used to be in Carmel, Indiana, but they have moved to a new location in Atlanta, Indiana. They also have a separate cafe and shop now.
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Mr. Muffins is a magnificent display of three rail Lionel O scale. It is really something to see. They do not have the layout fully put together yet, but it is still great.
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On to Atlanta (Georgia, the real Atlanta).
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-Kevin
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Well, that did not work. It was freezing this morning. There was patchy ice on the overpasses this morning in Atlanta. Schools had a delayed start due to the weather.
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I think I need to make a trip to a good old Atlanta hobby shop to make myself feel better.
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-Kevin
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The Chicago museum is truly a great museum. I haven’t been there since I was a kid but I remember loving it. The Zephyr and the U-Boat were there back then and so was the coal mine exhibit. The model railroad was different however back then. It was an O scale layout which ran from Chicago to Los Angeles. It was one of my first encounters with model trains and made a huge impact on me. I had to go see it every time I went there. I’m glad you got to see the new HO scale layout. I’m sure it’s pretty nice. They also had a dam exhibit that was a pretty neat model of a working dam, lake and river.
Back in those days the downtown department stores always had electric train displays in their front windows this time of year. Good times.
I’m glad Kevin had such a great visit to the upper Midwest – there are shops in Milwaukee he didn’t get to but would have liked – but really, we have to get that lad a jacket or coat! [C]
Dave Nelson
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I think the new layout depicts Chicago to Seattle. While I was in the museum, there were about 10,000 school kids in there. I could not read the explanations of most of the layout scenes.
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It is an impressive display, but it is in need of serious dust removal!
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Thanks Dave.
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I wish I would have had more time to spend, but it was an unplanned trip and I had an awful lot of stuff I needed to do while I was there. I went to absoluely as much fun stuff as I could squeeze in.
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Hopefully I will get back to the Wisconsin/Illinois/Indiana area again and have less stress and more time.
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-Kevin
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Glad to hear that you had a great time. Been following the thread but unable to log in. The current layout at MSI follows the BNSF from Chicago to Seattle. The Chicago citiscape is really amazing and well done. Most of the buildings are custom built in that portion. It is neat from above too in take flight in the aircraft above. I had seen the original one as well- If I remember right it was built by Milton Cronkite (sic) The zephyr is really neat to go through too- excellent restoration. Just have to share this story about it. In the baggage compartment they have an audioanimitronic Zeph the donkey that talks with the tourguide. The first time we went through it our eldest was three or four. The other kids really thought it was neat- the problem was Jimmy had just heard the story of Baalam and the Donkey in Sunday School the week before. He thought he was in trouble and started crying, then to compound the situation in the next car there are statues that talk that are all white. Not sure how the Sunday School teacher described the angel but it must have been a man in white…[:‘(] [:’(]Total crying fit… Took us a little while to find out what was wrong. Everytime we went there afterward we all laugh about it. Jim
ahh, nothing better than going to the Museum of Science and Industry on a school day when all the little rugrats are let in for free…by the busload. I cannot recall, but I think that Tuesday is the free day. A few years ago, my wife went there on a weekday when there were no kids there and almost had the place to ourselves including a one-on-one tour of the submarine.
Rich
Well, I broke free from the office and went to Riverdale Station just South of the loop in Atlanta.
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This is a great store that I get to visit fairly often because I have an office in Atlanta. The store is full of the goodies a builder needs, NWSL parts, Tichy Windows, Replacement Motors, Brass Details, and more. I love browsing around the small space.
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If you are ever near Atlanta, this is a great stop. The owner is an older lifetime model railroader that knows everything. Very friendly atmosphere.
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-Kevin
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“ahh, nothing better than going to the Museum of Science and Industry on a school day when all the little rugrats are let in for free…by the busload. I cannot recall, but I think that Tuesday is the free day. A few years ago, my wife went there on a weekday when there were no kids there and almost had the place to ourselves including a one-on-one tour of the submarine.”
Understand that- going on a free day is a minefield and really isn’t worth it. We homeschool and treated it like a fieldtrip but tried to plan when the school groups weren’t there so we could get some teaching in- how’s that for irony…
Jim
PS is anyone else having trouble with the quote function?
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I could not get it to work last night, but it seems to be OK now.
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Today I went about 60 miles East of Atlanta to Ian Henderson’s Antique Mall. This is in Monroe, Georgia. If you ever get anywhere near Monroe, it is a great city for checking out antique stores.
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I an Henderson’s has a huge dealer that sells olf trains. It is mostly Lionel, but I scored some good deals. I found an Athearn #1200 undecorated 40’ boxcar for $3.00, an Athearn billboard for $5.00, a Hobbyline Berkshire kit for $4.00, and a resin retaining wall casting for $2.50.
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There was this neat steam power unit outside.
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-Kevin
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Hey Kevin-
While you’re buzzing around Atlanta, why not head a little northeast of town to Buford? There’s a hobby shop there called Trainmaster Models run by Mike Devaney, who used to be an N-Scaler, but the latest rumor I hear is that he is now doing O scale. He’s pretty knowledgeable (world-renowned regarding C&O) and a really decent modeler.
Fully stocked brick-and-mortar LHS. Well worth the trip.
Robert
That would be Lindy’s trains right? Found some great deals at the one at Catawba River outside of Charlotte NC. Jim
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Yes, this is one of Lindy’s remaining locations. My favorite one was in the Big Peach Antique Mall in Warner-Robbins, but he closed that location. He does have the treasures if you are willing to stop in and look around for them.
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I have been to Trainmaster many times. I have found countless treasures in the “used items aisle”, including two years ago when I bought this Bowser 16" turntable that made my dream layout plan possible. I love that store. I usually need to make a hard choice when I leave Atlanta whether or not to visit Trainmaster because they are in the wrong direction.
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-Kevin
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I went to the “Golden Spike” annual trains show yesterday at the Tampa Fairgrounds before heading home.
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I did not buy mkuch at the train show, I think I was all shopped-out!
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This morning I laid out everything I bought on the trip… what fun! I spent a little over $500.00, which is not bad for visiting 9 hobby shops and a train show.
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-Kevin
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