Hidden for Years...

This is something I didn't know about, it was a well kept secret apparently. Amazing collection! Wonder what has happened to it now?

Posted by Aurora Trains on Sunday, June 28, 2015

Tribute to those who inspired

John Allen(RIP) argumentatively the master Jedi of all train layouts, was my inspiration to become more ( much more)within the hobby.

He is most likely responsible for many of the innovations and progression within the hobby that we take for granted. He had long since passed before I even had my first train set, I remember gazing at that old 1981 model railroader that featured his layout on the cover. I still have that original December copy I purchased with money I made mowing lawns for $1.75

I still have that now clear tape bound battered magazine. It came exactly a year after my Silver Streak tyco set that was given to me the prior Christmas 1980.

Fortunately, I was able to purchase a pristine copy of that old magazine a year ago or so.

Now interestingly, I was 12 years old when I started playing with trains, but I had a fascination with my Grandfathers N scale layout he had set up in a room at his mobile trailer.

He passed away about 4 years ago and I received a box full of all that N scale from the 80's Atlas and a couple minitrix items.

Now outfitted with mtl couplers these inherited items pay tribute to him on the Shasta line.....

More nostalgia, thoughts and controversy will be forthcoming on the ModelTrainFanatics blog... 

But for now, and to those who don't know, here is the legendary John Allen.

http://www.doug56.net/GD/

Layout pains

I will admit that my layout is far from rivet counting prototypical In various ways. The main one ( that bothers me though) is the size constraints. All the other non prototypical things I can not only live with but embrace fully and enjoy. But this one gets to me. Why? Because my prized possession consist of 10 beautiful WP passenger cars hauled by the appropriate ABA F units...

My layout just does not give this beautiful set the breathing room for the proper meandering in a mountain range that it deserves... It will run on my 16' of main line track just fine operationally, but I have to give a big sigh as  the majestic turns my route into a mini me Australian Roundy round as they would say...

Please embrace my pain in solidarity, those of you who feel the same cruel injustice in this fantasy world...

Small Layouts

Layouts-  as much as I like to watch those giant sprawling layouts like the giant public one in Germany that runs floor  to ceiling in multiple rooms with its operating airports and computerized mayhem running amuck amongst trains, I feel more attracted to the compact every day working mans layout. In fact I like to see the ingenuity packed into tight spaces. It is like rooting for the underdog in a lopsided game or something. I like compact neat and tidy layouts. I love seeing how people can do more with less, and in this case space restraints. I find myself drawn in to the challenges most people face with their limited spaces. I mean, yeah everyone wants more room right, but the reality is most of us won't get it.  I think the reality of this hit me when a neighbor of mine who had collected trains all his life with intent to build a grand layout passed away recently. He had accumulated a treasure trove of some of the neatest, coolest train items in HO and N I have ever seen. But at the end, most of it went from house to house in boxes over his life time with no fun time. Now, it just so happens that I ended up with a handful of his untouched n scale from years past. I run it! And run it like it is majoring up for lost time just because of this unfortunate guys loss. Point being, even a small layout might of brought this guy some model train closure. So my feels are for the " less is more" type of folks out there and the not quite what I want or hoped to have layouts. ( you know who you are) I am one of them. My L shaped 8'x30" x 8'x32" is the embodiment of getting everything to look bigger than it is type of layout. It is my third and final n scale layout. My first was a 2'x 4' over and under continuous loop.... I loved that layout! It was the underdog of amateur king!  But I was running trains! Many of you have these same layouts and don't really feel like they are worth showing, but I assure you they are, especially in this group. It is what I created it for. Yeah I know it says the best of the best etc... And a lot of over the top pictures get posted, but the group needed a catchy name and a reasonable bait to catch some fish.... And I think that it has done that in the first 60 days of inception. It needed a fan base and we have one now. It will continue to grow too. 

I want to encourage the blue collar small incomplete layout owners to share their stuff! It is you that make up the majority in this hobby..., if you have that massive layout that is Hollywood movie ready (we hate you) but please post anyways because we need something to aspire to and continue to drool over from time to time..,

Patrick