Having been a magazine/fanzine editor, when people start making article requests, the first thing that pops into my mind is:
You want it, then either write it or find someone else who can.
Much of the content of a magazine like MR comes from submissions. Someone has to write it. The editors mostly assemble the magazine, they don’t author the bulk of the material.
As to columns, same story. Who’s going to write it? It should be someone with a passion for the topic rather than just trying to fill space. I think the main reason Student Fare went bye-bye was the guy with the passion for the topic (Rick Selby) went on to other things. It happens.
I think the latest columns in MR (like the DCC column) fit today’s hobbists well. You can’t just keep adding columns to the magazine or you’ll end up with no space for feature articles, and that would be a bummer indeed.
I’m writing some articles for MR even as we speak. Are you?
I’ll vote for the G&D / John Allen story… PLEASE !
In fact… let me also throw out the suggestion that some manufacturer do another limited run of G & D cars (copies of just a few of John Allens rolling stock…). I would definately be a buyer !!!
I’d like to see an article about the Clinchfield N scale project layout. I’d like to see more Nscale articles. Paint Shop could also cover doing decals & relettering or renumbering cars. Student Fare could bring back all the easy to do cheap project new modelers need.
Perhaps the MR editors could use this site & determine what questions need to be covered in their magazines, with more details.
[#ditto]
Absolutely! I’ve heard the G&D referred to so often but have no idea what it was like. I even did an Internet search for photos and came up with very little. There must not be much on the G&D in the public domain. I would love to read an article and see MANY photos of this layout that has been referred to so much.
I disagree. Gorre & Daphetid is “cute,” not humorous. After a while (for me, about six seconds), “cute” turns into “tiresome” and a while later (say, after about ten seconds), “tiresome” become “silly.” A short time later (maybe as long as two more seconds), “silly” becomes, as the British would say, “bloody stupid.”
John Allen was an innovative model railroader who set a high standard in his day for others to follow. However, he had his faults, Gorre & Daphetid being a prime example.
what I’d like to see is a series of illustrated articles about the development of various kinds of freight cars. When were the first box cars used and what did they look like; when were the first 50" boxcars seen, when did wood change to steel etc. The same for tank cars, reefers, hoppers and covered hoppers, flat cars, gondolas etc. Illustrated with photos of the different types of cars and even maybe with lists of model mfgs who make a certain type of cars these articles could be run as a fixed contribution MR for many issues and certainly be a boon to all who are uncertain about what kind of cars are appropriate for a certain era.
First and foremost, John Allen did not appear in every issue of MR. Articles on the G&D appeared at widely spaced intervals because in nearly every issue folks would be complaining about too much John Allen in MR. And the articles on the G&D never occupied a full issue of the magazine, not ever. So much for the previous misinformation.
I miss the articles dealing with the little details of railroading, like the type and placement of lineside whistle posts, derail features, section crew facilities. Gordon Odegard was the author for much of this type information, but he up and died. I do miss him, his wit in print, his knowledge. And kitbashing? I would shake with excitement every time I would find an article by Art Curren. There has never been his equal where it comes to the artistic balance of a structure and how to place it for maximum effect. And his article on LeWot Bog. A masterpiece. So Art dies and takes his skills and talents with him. My loss.
I also miss the monthly feature, “Model of the Month.” It featured some truely outstanding models. But that is just my opinion. The features and aritcles I miss most are simply gone. Those great men, modellers even, that created them are gone. I honor them in what they gave, the inspiration they left for us. That is why I keep and maintain all my back issues of MR.
Model Railroading With John Allen is now worth $130? Who would have thought it. I do wonder why Kalmbach does not run a re-print, as in volume 2.
Well, they say that he really wanted to change the name, but he couldn’t because it had already stuck. And… I never thought of “gory and defeated” as cute, sounds more like… rugged.
As for pictures, you gotta know where to look:
(eBay)
(World’s Greatest Hobby website)
I’m still waiting for the Jack Parker NP and Jim Diaz WP layout tours. MR should really consider them. These two layouts are the definition of “museum quality modeling”. Anybody in the know understands what I’m talking about. Both layouts have perfect lighting, very accurate to their prototypes, clean neat modeling, good weathering, and are presented fabulously.
Either one of these I would like to see a visit of.
Railmodel Journal (I think) did a series on “Freight Cars of the 50s”. I think I lost count at something like Part 28. It doesn’t quite address what you’d like to see, but gives a perspective of what was common in the 1950s and prior.
I especially miss Gordon Odegard’s contributions. Any time Model Railroader published drawings of a car or locomotive, Odegard always had some advice on how to build it, using recently available models, and in multiple scales!
He probably forgot more about the hobby than many of us will ever learn.
If you never had a chance to see Gordon Odegard’s Clinchfield N scale layout when it was new and in its prime, you really missed a beauty. It was stunning, and it ran very well. I suspect that layout made more converts to N scale than any other single project.
I wonder what the reception would be if a very good modeler took up the old Eric Stevens and Don Reschenberg “dollar model” and “dollar car” articles and redid them using today’s materials, and yes the cost would have to be more than a dollar, maybe more than $10. Keep in mind that back when good trucks were fifty cents a pair it was considerably easier to call a project a “dollar car!” The thing is, back then those models were highly detailed, now they’d be considered somewhat plain without all the nut-bolt-washer castings being used, and accurate grab irons instead of reformed staples, etc etc. But I suspect most of us would still be proud to take one of those old models just as they were and be able to say “I built this from scratch.”
Dave Nelson
I agree about the $1 models. Perhaps the amount needs to be adjusted for inflation, but features on inexpensive scratch building projects would be great!
