Just completed converting an out-of-the-box Atlas New Haven RS-1 into a (90%) accurate New Haven class DERS-1b. While NHRR, the added steam generator details would be useful for other railroads. Lots of added details and pics on the build thread here.

Enjoy! And if you have any tips/suggestions on how I could do better and/or improve, please let me know!

Chris

I'm sure we can all relate to a temporary descent into madness prompted by a search for a long-coveted item. Whether it's a one-of-a-kind locomotive, or a rare craftsman structure or resin freight car kit, my guess is that most of us have beaten the bushes of eBay and searched through the musty back rooms of hobby shops during our search for the Prize.

You think you want a large layout with regular ops sessions? Beware - layouts need regular care, and ops sessions just make it hungrier. If you want a little taste of what it's like to give a model railroad the care and feeding it needs, check out my latest blog post. Hope you're able to stop by!

The Valley Local

For those of you that have been following along with the progress on my Christmas diorama, be sure to check out my site for the Final Fotos! Yes, it's finally done and just in time for Christmas %^) I hope you'll stop by and leave a comment if you can. In the meantime, I wish you and yours a most wonderful holiday season!

It's been over two weeks since my last progress report on this (click here for that), but with Christmas closing in, I've been busy trying to get this done in time. After "snow gooping" the next step is to do the fascia and use some foamcore to support the town buildings, create sidewalks, and define streets. I also used it to raise the town park area.

What could be more fun to work on during the Thanksgiving Holiday than a Christmas scene, complete with railroad station, church, Christmas tree salesman and a little town, complete with gazebo and town Christmas tree? For a taste of what I mean, check out my last post. That was the former layout that had to be scrapped. But I'm salvaging all that stuff for this new module.

Time to do a valence - but traditional masonite construction would be too heavy to try and hang from my drywall ceiling - not to mention awkward to install. So I decided to try vinyl. Turns out, its pretty easy, and allows the valence to easily follow whatever curves your layout has. Click here for details on how to get started - and let me know if you have any helpful tips or suggestions as I proceed!

Chris

Considering Halloween is coming up, have you ever thought of how this time of year also begins to reveal ghosts of railroads past? In southern New England especially, as the beautiful foliage starts to diminish, old railroad roadbeds start to emerge and it's easier to imagine what it must've been like when those lines were still active.

One of the best things about modeling - especially prototype modeling, IMO - is the ability to create your own little time machine. I wasn't born until 1969, but on my layout it's the late 1940s.

Last week, a friend of mine mentioned feeling a bit overwhelmed by the layout project he'd started. I think we've all probably felt that way at one time or another in the hobby. A while back, I went so far as to consider giving up the hobby entirely - or severely cutting back. Problem was, I'd already gotten WAY too far in with a half-basement's worth of benchwork and track and a wall full of unbuilt kits.