Trains Magazine, March 2011

[Becky Morgan]

The March issue of Trains has a good article on Civil War railroads by J.P. Hankey, plus a good two-page map of both Northern and Southern roads. Just the information on the profusion of Southern gauges is an eye-opener. If you can't find a newsstand copy, the magazine does have a .pdf pack on its website.

[hireddutchcutthroat]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

Thats a great article! Just a quick look at that map you can understand the grand strategies of both sides. You can also see a photo of me hard at work in the same issue. ;)

[garyjd]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

On a somewhat related note check out this blog on the construction of a Civil War period model railroad layout. This isn't your typical train layout. The builder is going to great lengths to create a accurate layout. ~Gary

http://usmrr.blogspot.com/

[dixieflyer]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

Thanks Gary! I have long pondered modeling a CW era railroad as another means of enjoying my CW history, but figured I'd wait until I was no longer able to take the field. From the looks of that blog, at least at first blush, it looks as if much more is becoming available to model this era. I know if he uses correct coupling apparatus, that coupling/uncoupling will be a real fun exercise.

Warren Dickinson

[garyjd]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

Warren, The locomotives are gourgeous and this layout has set the bar very high if someone wants to build a Civil War period layout. ~Gary

[dixieflyer]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

Yes Gary, this layout is built to a very high standard and requires a great deal of scratchbuilding and outsourcing beyond the "usual" model railroading sources. I've enjoyed going through his blog very much. I've toyed with this idea since the late 80's. While this gentleman's focus is in the USMRR in the Eastern Theater, my interest is geared more towards a RR in Tennessee or Georgia.

[CompanyWag]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

Hi Warren,

We've spoken of model railroad pursuits in the past...almost as if a secret indulgence that others can't quite relate to.

I've toyed with the idea of a USMRR layout for years. My dreams were to model points between Nashville and Atlanta (using a lot of space compression of course) with highlights of Murfreesboro and Fortress Rosecrans, the trestle at Whiteside, Chattanooga, fortifications at Allatoona, etc...and wrapping up with a grand diorama of the yards at Atlanta. Rather ambitious, I know, but not completely impossible. But time, space and money were always as daunting as scratch building motive power and rolling stock, using link-and-pin couplers, building and operating troublesome stub switches...and doing it all in HO scale while my closeup eyesight gets rougher the older I get. At least this guy took the advantage of going O scale.

Hmmm...I've got a nice 80 x 140 foot metal building on my property with a clean concrete floor thats only storing vehicles and equipment right now...

Paul McKee

[dixieflyer]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

Paul,
LOL, I was wondering if you would get in on this thread, and I fondly remember us discussing this in the past. Your dream layout and mine are almost one and the same. (My favorite RR is still the N.C. & St. L, what Southern boy could resist a postwar railroad founded by two vets of the AOT, and had the slogan "Ride the Battlefield Route! Ride the Dixie Line!) I too dreamed of this in HO, but my forays into scale modeling these last two years and the illusion that my thumbs have grown larger is swaying me towards larger scales. However the house that Esther and I built will not accomodate a layout of that size. Hmmm, maybe I'll have to build a garage with an upstairs room?

PS: Did you see that HO scale Lincoln Funeral Train being offered by Precision Brass??? Wow!

[CompanyWag]

Re: Trains Magazine, March 2011

Warren,

Yeah I couldn't resist posting to this.

A while back MRR magazine printed an interesting article on a pre-war layout based on the B&O circa 1840 or so. Talk about niche modelling!

The Precision Scale funeral train model certainly takes period modeling to a whole new level in HO scale. Check out those cab gauges and controls! I believe they also recently did a Promentory, Golden Spike set (c1869) built to the same level and finish.

About 10 or 15 years ago there was a fellow on the train show circuit exhibiting his scratch built Lincoln funeral train in large scale. It was magnificent...and huge. He even scratch built figures in VRC uniforms loading the coffin into the car. As I remember, he was some sort of college professor who pioneered a special method of casting parts in various resins to create the model. The guy had a real loony personality and folks speculated it was a result of exposure to the chemicals he was using. Nice work either way. I think it was featured in MRR magazine as well.

My biggest issue if I ever proceed with my modelling plans, is building to the same standard as I approached participating with the Mudsills. I wouldn't want to cut corners and end up with a "toy" layout. Realism and historical accuracy would be paramont. To this day, if I find something in HO that would lend itself to that stillborn USMRR layout, either scenery or equipment, I will still snap it up and store it away...just in case.

Paul McKee