I wanted to talk about some of my favorite model railroad figures who you don't really see on a regular basis in the pages of the popular magazines anymore....
Bill Darnaby and the Maumee Route- Bill's model railroad, which appears to me to be a cross between the Big Four and the Nickel Plate, has been around in various forms for at least the last 25 years, the best I can tell. Bill straightforward approaches to operation, car modeling, and layout construction have been well received... I wish we could see more of his layout in photos! I always enjoy Bill's writing style, and I hope Kalmbach continues to favor him for years to come.
Bruce Goehmann and the Midland Electric- Remember this little gem? We first learned about this midwestern traction classic in the July 1980 Model Railroader. Bruce's modeling and approach to traction were well recieved then... is profession as a civil engineer certainly came through in his layout design. We heard from Bruce a few more times in the 1980s... and I think he also authored the O'Dell County Traction series, a very neat project layout that *almost* had me stringing wire on my home layout. Where is Bruce now? Let's revisit traction in the pages of the magazines again, shall we??
David Barrow and the Cat Mountain & Santa Fe- The CMSF came to us in the 1980s as we were learning about a new type of layout that was focused on serving local customers town-by-town with lots of flat switching. The charm of the central Texas prarie lent a specific appeal to this line. I first enjoyed the CMSF for its modeling, simple construction, and the idea of focusing on switching versus through trains. We revisited over the years as he tweaked things on the layout... then David started to delve more into how he designed his layout, and we learned about The Domino. Now David is again reviewing his ideas of layout construction and operation, and I'm still not tired of it. Keep it coming.
Ben King- Geez, if this guy's name does not ring a bell with you, then you were asleep for most of the late 1980s and mid-1990s. But then again, you may have glossed over his articles or not recognized his photos (I dont remember seeing a lot of photos of his layout). Ben was a patient kind of guy... his articles on scratchbuilding were fascinating in a world of window castings and styrene. Not only were his models scratchbuilt, but they were superdetailed as well. Next, Ben would challenge himself (and others) with the quest for a better camera for model photography. Who remembers his articles on modifying 35mm cameras with booms and bellows to compensate for the depth of field and mechanics of a scale world? The resulting photography was amazing... and then we found out that the entire Timber City & Northwestern measured a scant 2' deep and MAYBE was 6' long... unfortunately, Ben King has passed, but he has certainly left an impression on me.
Bill Henerson and The Coal Belt- Bill Henderson, otherwise known as The Brass Hat, has been entertaining us with his well-spun stories and great period photography. Some people may not have liked his story-telling style, but I thought it lent a dimension of character to the line. What ever became of the Coal Belt?
More? Did our heroes of the 1980s fall to the wayside to make way for Model Railroader QuickStartGuide #28?
-otto-
Bill Darnaby and the Maumee Route- Bill's model railroad, which appears to me to be a cross between the Big Four and the Nickel Plate, has been around in various forms for at least the last 25 years, the best I can tell. Bill straightforward approaches to operation, car modeling, and layout construction have been well received... I wish we could see more of his layout in photos! I always enjoy Bill's writing style, and I hope Kalmbach continues to favor him for years to come.
Bruce Goehmann and the Midland Electric- Remember this little gem? We first learned about this midwestern traction classic in the July 1980 Model Railroader. Bruce's modeling and approach to traction were well recieved then... is profession as a civil engineer certainly came through in his layout design. We heard from Bruce a few more times in the 1980s... and I think he also authored the O'Dell County Traction series, a very neat project layout that *almost* had me stringing wire on my home layout. Where is Bruce now? Let's revisit traction in the pages of the magazines again, shall we??
David Barrow and the Cat Mountain & Santa Fe- The CMSF came to us in the 1980s as we were learning about a new type of layout that was focused on serving local customers town-by-town with lots of flat switching. The charm of the central Texas prarie lent a specific appeal to this line. I first enjoyed the CMSF for its modeling, simple construction, and the idea of focusing on switching versus through trains. We revisited over the years as he tweaked things on the layout... then David started to delve more into how he designed his layout, and we learned about The Domino. Now David is again reviewing his ideas of layout construction and operation, and I'm still not tired of it. Keep it coming.
Ben King- Geez, if this guy's name does not ring a bell with you, then you were asleep for most of the late 1980s and mid-1990s. But then again, you may have glossed over his articles or not recognized his photos (I dont remember seeing a lot of photos of his layout). Ben was a patient kind of guy... his articles on scratchbuilding were fascinating in a world of window castings and styrene. Not only were his models scratchbuilt, but they were superdetailed as well. Next, Ben would challenge himself (and others) with the quest for a better camera for model photography. Who remembers his articles on modifying 35mm cameras with booms and bellows to compensate for the depth of field and mechanics of a scale world? The resulting photography was amazing... and then we found out that the entire Timber City & Northwestern measured a scant 2' deep and MAYBE was 6' long... unfortunately, Ben King has passed, but he has certainly left an impression on me.
Bill Henerson and The Coal Belt- Bill Henderson, otherwise known as The Brass Hat, has been entertaining us with his well-spun stories and great period photography. Some people may not have liked his story-telling style, but I thought it lent a dimension of character to the line. What ever became of the Coal Belt?
More? Did our heroes of the 1980s fall to the wayside to make way for Model Railroader QuickStartGuide #28?
-otto-
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Moderator: New York State Railfan :: New York Central :: Toy Trains
NYW&B Fan Site :: A Magazine I Read Often :: A Museum I Volunteer At
Moderator: New York State Railfan :: New York Central :: Toy Trains
NYW&B Fan Site :: A Magazine I Read Often :: A Museum I Volunteer At
