Sorry to take a long hiatus but you were warned in the first post. I will post more pictures over the next few days as I try to catch up. The next day after the convention I had to jump on a plane and fly to Rome to sail around the Mediterranean for 10 dyas. It was an absolutely amazing two weeks but not even close to my Japan trip. No N-scale trains to be found in Italy or Greece! More convention pictures to come...
Rich, unfortunately I did not get any pictures. When I ventured to that section of the hotel, which was quite remote I must say, they were only setting up. Things got worse in the last two days as there were concerts by Franki Valli on Friday and John Legend on Saturday. I heard rumors that security and ticket screen was BEFORE the Fremo room which made it difficult to get to though not impossible. I do have a picture of that trestle as it was in Amherst back in January.
After a great two weeks tooling around the Mediterranean and sailing past an actual erupting volcano (THAT was a experience in itself!) I'll try to pick up where I left off. It'll take a little time as I need to catch up on all the other things that I left behind for two weeks, not just trains! So....after we set up the tables, people started to bring T-Trak modules in and setting them up. I was the "electrical" guy (in addition to layout coordinator/captain) so I started running bus backbones, command station, boosters, etc. One of the winners (Kato and Bachmann donated train sets) is this module. An AWESOME effort and this was actually a model of the end of the Bethlehem steel mill just outside the hotel!!!. Here is my "Red Wing 027" by Kato. It is a model of the actual train I rode while I was in Hiroshima. DCC and head/tail light control and all. There were tons of good modules and the ones I'm going to post were only from the Combined T-Trak layout. There were N-Trak layouts and stand alone T-Trak layouts that deserved as much attention but I just didn't have the time to cover it all. Here is an interesting T-Trak module/concept. The Red and Yellow lines run through in the front typical of a T-Trak straight module. But take a look at the background! Instead of your typical scenery of your choice this author decided to just show the different MRR scale sizes. Unique and interesting! A conversation piece for the general public.
Here are various other modules. There were a ton more but I had to balance between running trains myself, seeing what all the vendors had (more later), or people yelling there's a layout problem.
Capital PenNScalers NTRAK had a layout at the Hershey History Center on Saturday, July 13, for the Trains at the Tracks event, which unfortunately was only a one day event this year. The NS Harrisburg Line Derry Road crossing and signals are visible from the patio.
Great pictures, thank you. You can tell the kids LOVE watching the trains run. On a personal note, I have been watching the various threads here and have noticed that even as an adult, my eye is drawn to the layouts/scenes/modules with more detail, ESPECIALLY people. I gotta order more for my layout...
I love that Krispy Kreme donut shop. It's a Walthers kit and my town must have one when I get to that stage in my layout build.
I bought one of these and am going to put Iron Man in the big Donut on my TTrak module and see how many folks notice it.
Here are two that caught my eyes amongst many that did. If you can believe this, the picture really doesn't do it justice. In person your eyes have much more dynamic range that any camera has. I tried my best without setting up a tripod and doing some HDR photography to try to get the "real" feel of the scene. There were things to do and people to see at the convention! Then there is this one. I almost walked right past it! No words needed here. I dropped a penny next to it before taking the photo for obvious reasons. Simply amazing!
That's the Woodland Scenics Builtup "Wood Shack" https://woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/show/item/BR4948
Now for the vendors. There were quite a few and they were together in the same ball room as the layouts. I believe this were their first try at this format even though it is a common one at Altoona, Amherst and Atlantic City. In the end the organizers and vendors loved it as it give the vendors more traffic. The public love to check out the layouts and what better to buy "stuff" from the vendors at the same time. An interesting one is Showcase Miniatures. I don't remember them exhibiting as extensively like this time. As a matter of fact I don't remember them being at Amherst, at least they weren't memorable enough. What was interesting was them displaying all their goods in completed, painted fashion. Now that's advertising! I think they brought everything displayed as available for sale. They even had a freebie to give away. I followed the instructions and only took one.
Thank you for the picture that shows that model near the track for some context. There are other similar WS built-ups, "Tin Shack" and "Work Shed," that I like too. WS' (electrical) Substation (also pre-assembled and decorated) includes a similar shed that can be independently placed on the layout. Sometimes little secondary structures that most people would not even think about, can really make a difference when present on a module or layout. Not having model assembly experience since some larger scale car models in my early teens, WS built-ups are high on my list for inclusion on my layout. I still want to dip my toe into the water and assemble/paint some models too, but these kinda takes the pressure off.
Wow, those N Scale signals are knockouts. I looked at their website and learned they can be lit with tiny LEDs they also sell.
Hi Mike, Yes I got my free picnic table at the Showcase miniatures table. Also got my free wheel stops from Ken at KenRay models table. Also that Esso station is a great little kit, that is in Long Valley on my layout. I didn't go all out with lighting for my version.
More vendors at the convention. Lowell Smith was there. There was also a German vendor that produced very detailed US car models. Somne I've never seen produced in N-Scale before. I talked to him briefly and he said that they do the CAD work very carefully and prototypically as much as possible. It shows in their final product. Of course, this was before the Shapeways announcement that it's going under. My assumption is this guy is severely impacted as his source producer was Shapeways. I'm hoping he would find a Shapeways replacement or change his business model. He has some very nice products! And finally there was this guy. Not a vendor like a company. Just a guy. I think he realizes he has too much and must get rid of some. So what's so special about this guy? Take a look at his prices. They seem typical. Certainly in line with what's out there. His offerings seem to be pretty good with a mix of everything. No junk or garbage. Well....he was selling everything at 50%, that's half off!, of his stickered price!!!!!!! So that B&O 5-pack hopper on the lower right was only $35. God almighty, an exercise in self-restraint!!! I was proud (more like stupid??? ) to walk away!
The N Scale Kits display looks interesting, but I can't visit their website because my computer anti-viral software says their Certificate is invalid, probably expired. About that N Scale car display, what a neat selection he has! I never find great pricing at the few shows I go to, i.e. early 1970s Atlas cars for $8 Ea w/ Rapido couplers at the last show.
After setup was done and the layout functioning well, I decided to walk around the complex to just gawk at history and imagine what it would have been like when this complex was humming with activity. At the back of the casino I saw a non-descript building with something odd looking on the ground. With camera in hand, I decided to get up close and see what this "thing" was. It's a 16" gun barrel from the Missouri class battleship! It turns out they made them here and that building is where they heat treated the barrel. You can see the rifling on the business end of the barrel. As I stood there in amazement, and to have it just laying there in some some obscure place on the complex with no fanfare, I just can't imagine the industrial might that this country was capable of. Not trying to be political but the back then and the now is something that I have trouble grasping now a days. After wandering around, I went back into the convention for some air conditioning and attend my first convention auction. I was only there to observe but I did walk around the tables to see what was up for auction. Wow, many many cool stuff, and some normal day stuff starting at $10. I was surprise how many attended. This picture was 10-15 minutes before things got started. It really became packed when the auction started. I must say it was quite entertaining. Hey! It wasn't my money!
