Joe Fugate flew into Grand Rapids on Friday for the National Train Show - and since he hadn't seen Bruce Chubb's SVOS since it was an empty basement and a plan just prior to the Valley Forge Convention in 1993, we went over there on Saturday evening.

Bruce gave us a tour of the layout from beginning to end - I still think it's a bit sobering to realize that most of Joe's Siskiyou Line is modeled in one stretch of the SVOS.

After completing a number of jobs around the house, I managed to get some time on the weekend to spend in the train room. I also got parts of the steelwork for the layout back from the powder coaters on Friday, so therefore construction could finally begin.

I spent some time working on level heights before the sending the parts to the laser machine to be cut. ( Excuse the drawing. It is not as clear as I would have liked. )

Got my new DCS100 and have been splicing it in. Am thankful that this was a planned change -- although I had not anticipated reaching this point so quickly. Multiple sound locos and the illuminated cars of the Rapido Canadian (a beautiful train, really worth the wait...) did make a dent in the 2.5amp put out by the Zephyr. This becomes a throttle and booster for the yard and the DCS becomes the command station for the layout. Am also installing a BDL168 for block detection in the hidden track areas.

GS&M crews march on...

After the 1st set of track goes into place a Trio of C-630 pulls a tank train from staging up and out of the main Helix.

You can see how the main works it way out of the Helix and into La Grange.  The Alcos are on what will become the A/D tracks for La Grange.

1:100 American truck from FDS

In the Czech cardboard modeling scene, car and truck  models in 1:100 scale ( mini model ) had long been a popular topic. There are infinite variations from every conceivable field. Here I have listed a few models that fit my U.S. model railroad theme.

I won't be able to complete my mountain section by the deadline. Many of you know that we're trying to sell our home and move to Florida. We've had 39 showings, dropped the price twice (total $7,500), and had zero offers. Our "Phase 2" of or plan is comprised of two items: 1.) completely empty the unfinished part of the basement so that potential buyers won't see all of that junk and can better visualize the space (18 ft X 50ft); and 2.) clear and fence a 30f ft X 40 ft heavily wooded area in our back yard to make an area for pets.

Today marked the first day of construction of the layout, and, my first blog entry.  Here is a quick break down of what my layout is all about

-Freelanced
-Modern
-12' x 40'
-Triple deck (two scenic, one for staging)
-Point to point with hidden continuous run connection.

Revive your Pike -  New Life for an Old Scene

So I had planned to submit this escapade as an article, but as soon as I saw the pictures, I knew it was a no go.  So here I shall post my work on the SASME layout, as the project progresses; I present to you, for your viewing enjoyment, the Turkey Creek Rural Renewal Project.

The original Facebook album for the project:

To All: Mariani Distributors is an N scale industry scratch built by Vinny of Phoenix, Arizona. He models the BNSF Peavine line from Williams to Phoenix, Arizona. Yours, Elvin Howland/E. St. Louis Rail Group Layout