If you are a narrow gauge modeler here is an opportunity for you to see some narrow gauge model railroads and meet some great owners. Model Railroads Of Southern California (Model_Railroads_Of_Southern_California : Model Railroads Of Southern California ) presents its twenty-third layout tour on Thursday through Sunday, February 17-20. This will be a free self-guided tour of fifty layouts (twenty eight home and twenty-two club layouts) at forty-seven sites throughout Southern California. There are eight narrow gauge model railroads on this tour: Steve Harris – Steve Harris’ HOn3 Rio Grande Southern is housed in a 32-foot office trailer moved on to his rural home site. Steve’s railroad was on the cover of MODEL RAILROADER in November 2004 and July 2009 and the NARROW GAUGE & SHORT LINE GAZETTE in September of 2008. Steve has also articles in the November 2010 and January 2011 NARROW GAUGE & SHORT LINE GAZETTE. His layout is built on two levels and operates by DCC with a SoundTraxx Tsunami sound system. The helix on Steve’s layout has been replaced by a fully automatic train elevator based on Dick Robert’s design and was featured in the June 2009 MR. The upper level is 100% complete, and the lower level is about 30% complete. All track and switches are hand-laid and most of the structures are scratch-built. The scenery and structure weathering on this layout are first rate. Photo Links: Picasa Web Albums - Steven - Rico on Steve... Picasa Web Albums - Steven - Durango on St... Burton Maxwell – Burton Maxwell is a guy who likes to make things with his hands, so it’s no surprise that his Hon3 layout of the West Side Lumber Company is 90% scratch-built. His wife, Patricia, joined him by doing the scenery. While basing his layout on the West Side Lumber company, Burton created a hypothetical background story. It goes like this: In 1963 a lumber company named Coastal Exteriors bought the logging rights of the West Side Lumber Company. The owners surveyed the territory and found lots of good timber, so they rebuilt the mill and re-opened the railroad, changing the company colors and lettering all the locomotives, buildings and cars with “Coastal Exteriors.” This irritated the townspeople so much that the savvy public relations department of Coastal Exteriors took action. Coastal Exteriors owned the West Side name so some of the lettering was changed back, and most of the equipment was painted in original West Side colors. The layout depicts the day of June 5, 1965. The 16 by 40 layout has 110 feet of mainline and 116 feet of sidings. The track plan is point-to-point and starts at the mill and mill pond where scratch-built structures dominate the scene. Slightly modifying plans by Russ Simpson, Burton built the mill, with its log haul and log-dump area and even carved a couple of the boats in the mill pond. Probably, the most amazing pieces of handwork on the layout are the locomotives. Burton has built all seven of the West Side Shays and two Heislers. The layout is currently operated by direct current and is divided into four blocks which can be run by four people at the same time. The layout is also wired for DCC which will ultimately be the way it runs. Burton recently purchased his first LokSound decoder and will be installing it soon. He is also working toward putting sound in the entire system. Jeff McKee – The On3 Tigard & Grants Pass is a fictional railroad based on Denver & Rio Grande Western equipment, integrating Colorado narrow gauge and waterfront scenes set in Oregon. In Jeff’s world, General Palmer actually built the D&RGW all the way to Salt Lake City and then on to Oregon, where it interchanges with Jeff’s imaginary line. This gives him a logical rational for running his own line and Rio Grande equipment. The use of a waterfront and a car ferry allows Jeff to extend the layout "beyond the basement". Cars leave on the ferry to points off the layout and eventually reappear. Jeff built a series of shadow boxes which highlight individual scenes through which trains operate. The shadow box design allows for easier relocation of the railroad should a move become necessary. Control is NCE’s DCC. Jeff was one of the original members of the old Rusty Rails group from the 1970s and 1980s in North Orange County. Web photos: Orange County Narrow Gauge Modelers Doug Ramos – This On3 railroad was partly inspired by the model railroad efforts of his father and the Southern California Boomers group. It features a point-to-point mining railroad set in dramatic rock scenery with nicely done scratchbuilt structures and pine trees. Some of the soil comes from actual Jerome, Arizona, mine tailings. Scenery is about eighty percent complete. Operations feature PFM sound and DCC wireless remote control. The railroad also has a unique lighting valance which employs simulated corrugated iron sheets which are realistically weathered as one would have seen years ago at a real mining operation. This layout was featured in the 2010 Fine Scale Narrow Gauge Annual. Randy Scott – This O-scale, three-foot gauge layout depicts the high desert country of New Mexico. The around-the-walls-of-the-garage track plan includes a small yard area with engine facilities, a town and station scene, a stamp mill, desert arroyo and staging yard. All the locos are DCC controlled and feature sound decoders by Soundtrax. Scenery is about fifty percent complete. Photo we blink: Randy's Layout Photos Joel Shank – Joel’s Sn3 Rio Grande Southern layout is located on farm property in Brawley, which is in Imperial County. The layout was featured on the cover plus seven pages in the October 2001 issue of RAILROAD MODEL CRAFTSMAN The layout has its own 34 foot x 44 foot building with the layout size of 33 x 34. It was built by Joel and good friend Charles (Bud) Smith of Alpine, CA. The layout building was built to residential code and heavily insulated so even in July when the outside temperature can get to 120, inside it seldom gets above the low 90s. He has not experienced any heat related track issues. Notable features of this superb layout include a professionally painted back drop, more than 3,000 hand-made trees and dozens of mostly scratch build structures many of which are contest winners. The beautifully crafted hand-laid track totals more than 500 feet, of which 350 feet is the main line. The Rio Grande Southern is complete and operates using NCE DCC. Joel operates using computer generated switch lists. He uses the Ship-It program to schedule trains as well as to track cars through controlling loads and empties including loading/unloading times. Bill Beverly took a number of excellent photos of this layout and they can be seen as a slide show at: Photos by Bill Beverly Another photo website: http://www.p-b-l.com/Support/JS-Minimeet/JS-Minimeet-11-07.html Slim Gauge Guild – This club operates two beautifully detailed layouts located in a 2,000 square foot basement. The HOn3 layout is based on the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad and the Rio Grande Southern in roughly the 1920 to 1949 time period. On this layout members tend to model specific prototype scenes. The 1900-era Sn3 layout is more freelanced. Members tend to model scenes as they see fit. They loosely model the Colorado and Southern for the mainline and northern California lumber companies for the highline. As of 1/23/11 this club will only be open to Sn3 Symposium attendees. Check the Model Railroads of Southern California website for a possible change in status. Website: Our next Open House is By scale and gauge, there will be twenty-eight HO scale standard gauge layouts, nine N scale layouts, two O scale layouts, three HO scale narrow gauge layouts, three O scale narrow gauge layouts, two S scale narrow gauge layouts and two live steam facilities. The details for this free tour are available now in the Model Railroads Of Southern California Files Section (for members), including complete descriptions and two maps for every layout. Here is a basic list: HOME LAYOUTS Marty Bradley (HO) Sat. 12:00 to 6:00 Sun. 10:00 to 4:00 11802 Davenport Road, Los Alamitos John Bruce (HO) Fri. & Sat. 12:00 to 3:00 2327 Nella Vista Avenue, Los Angeles Al Daumann (HO) Sat. 1:00 to 5:00 443 Valley Gate Road, Simi Valley Tim Dickinson (HO) Sun. 10:00 to 5:00 1002 Eastglen Drive, La Verne Joe Enos (HO) Thur. to Sun. 12:00 to 5:00 2808 Ashmont Avenue, Arcadia Jeff Gorjans (HO) Sat. 12:00 to 6:00 1251 Calle Estrella, San Dimas Rick Graves (HO) Fri. 1:00 to 6:00 5212 Redwillow Lane La Canada Bob Grech (HO) Sat. 11:00 to 6:00 17302 Elm Street, Fountain Valley Steve Harris (HOn3) Thur. 10:00 to 4:00 Sun. 12:00 to 5:00 12424 Sierra Rojo Rd., Valley Center Mike Komosinski (N) Sun. 10:00 to 3:00 12315 Banuelo Cove, San Diego Jim Lancaster (HO) Thur. 1:00 to 5:00 Fri. 1:00 to 5:00 14241 Galy Street, Tustin Lloyd Lehrer (HO/HOn3) Fri. 1:00 to 6:00 401 9th Street, Manhattan Beach Burton Maxwell (HOn3) Sun. 1:00 to 5:00 318 Rose View Place, Chula Vista Jeff McKee (On3) Thur. 3:00 to 8:00 Sat. 10:00 to 4:00 21271 Bristlecone, Mission Viejo Mike Murphy (HO) Sat. 10:00 to 4:00 13015 Rancho Vista Court, Santa Rosa Valley (Camarillo) Jim O'Connell (N) Sun. 10:00 to 3:00 7467 Mission Gorge Rd., #80 On Fernridge, Santee Mike Osborne (HO) Sat. 12:00 to 6:00 24460 Shadeland Dr., Newhall Doug Ramos (On3) Fri. 12:00 to 3:00 Sat. 12:00 to 6:00 4236 Inverness Dr., Corona Randy Scott (On3) Sat. 10:00 to 5:00 7908 E. Horseshoe Trail, Orange Joel Shank (Sn3) Thur. 11:00 to 4:00 Sun. 1:00 to 5:00 5005 Highway 115, Brawley Ron Sipkovich (N) Sat. 1:00 to 6:00 24121 Becard Drive, Laguna Niguel Jim Spencer (HO) Sat. 12:00 to 6:00 424 California Terrace, Pasadena Larry Stark (HO) Fri. & Sat. 12:00 to 4:00 922 E. Palm Street, Burbank Larry Stewart (HO) Sat. 9:00 to 4:00 23226 Dune Mear Road, Lake Forest Jay Styron (HO) Sun. 12:00 to 5:00 1647 Colina Vista, Fallbrook Dick Trotter (HO) Sat. 12:00 to 4:00 9245 Rock Acre Drive, Lakeside Ron Varnell (HO) Thur. & Fri. 12:00 to 8:00 2741 Plaza Del Amo, Suite 211, Torrance Al Wallace (HO) Thur. 1:00 to 5:00 Fri. & Sat. 12:00 to 5:00 2146 Countryman Lane, La Canada CLUB LAYOUTS Angels Gate Hi-Railers (O) Sat. 10:00 to 4:00 3601 South Gaffey Street, San Pedro (Angels Gate Park) Belmont Shore MRC (N) Sat. 12:00 to 4:00 3601 South Gaffey Street, San Pedro (Angels Gate Park) Coachella Valley Model Railroaders (HO) Fri. – Sun. 10:00 to 9:30 82503 Hwy 111, Indio (Riverside County Fairgrounds) Glendale Model RR Club (HO) Sun. 12:00 to 6:00 619 Hahn Avenue, Glendale Highland Park Soc. Of RR Engineers (HO) Sat. 12:00 to 5:00 854 E Broadway, San Gabriel La Mesa Model RR Club (HO) Sat. & Sun. 11:00 to 4:00 1649 El Prado, San Diego (Balboa Park) Los Angeles Live Steamers (7½", 4¾", 3½") Sun. 11:00 to 4:00 5202 Zoo Drive, Los Angeles Los Angeles Model Railroad Society (HO) Sun. 10:00 to 4:00 14005 S. Crenshaw Boulevard, Unit G, Hawthorne N-Land Pacific Model RR Club (N ) Thur. 1:00 to 5:00 Fri. 12:00 to 6:00 Sat. 12:00 to 6:00 Sun. 10:00 to 5:00 1495 W. 9th Street, Unit 501, Upland North County Model Railroad Society (HO) Sun. 12:00 to 5:00 1820 Oceanside Blvd., Oceanside (Above Boney’s Market) Pasadena Model Railroad Club (HO) Sat. 1:00 to 5:00 5458 Alhambra Ave., Los Angeles Poway Station (N) Sun. 12:00 to 4:00 14134 Midland Road, Poway San Diego 3-Railers (O) Sat. & Sun. 11:00 to 4:00 1649 El Prado, San Diego (Balboa Park) San Diego Model RR Assoc. (HO & O) Sat. & Sun. 11:00 to 4:00 1649 El Prado, San Diego (Balboa Park) San Diego Society of N Scale (N) Sat. & Sun. 11:00 to 4:00 1649 El Prado, San Diego (Balboa Park) Santa Susana Model Railroad Club (HO) Sat. & Sun. 12:00 to 4:00 6503 Katherine Road, Simi Valley Short Track Club (N + N) Sun. 10:00 to 4:00 2040 N. Santa Fe Ave., Vista The Slim Gauge Guild (Sn3, HOn3) Thur. Evening (Symposium Attendees Only) 300 S. Raymond Ave., Pasadena Southern California Live Steamers (Live Steam) Sat. 12:00 to 3:00 2100 Washington Ave., Torrance NOTES: Please observe individual hours of operation for the layouts. No smoking at any of the layouts. Information current as of 1-23-11 Coachella Valley Model Railroaders – Admission required to Riverside Co. Fairgrounds/National Date Festival Lloyd Lehrer – Upstairs location. Parking limited to two cars at a time or up at end of block. Randy Scott – Gated community. All guests must enter at the Chapman Ave entrance, just west of Newport Ave. (Note: If you use your navigation system, it will lead you to the wrong entrance!) There is a call box on the left. Scroll through the directory until you see "Scott, R." and then push CALL. Randy will buzz you in. San Diego Model Railroad Museum – Admission required to Museum where La Mesa San Diego 3-Railers, San Diego Model RR Assoc., and San Diego Society of N Scale clubs are located. Slim Gauge Guild – As of 1/23/1 this club will only be open to Sn3 Symposium attendees. Check website for change in status. Persons taking this tour assume all risks and liability for their personal safety. Although I am the Moderator of this group, I am not responsible for personal loss or injury to those taking this tour. Be sure to check the Files Section and the group website the day before the tour to see if any changes to the schedule or layout lineup have occurred. If you cannot make this tour, more tours are being planned, including a Riverside-San Bernardino tour on March 19 of this year. If you wish to open your home layout for an upcoming tour, please contact me off list. Bob Chaparro Moderator Model Railroads Of Southern California Model_Railroads_Of_Southern_California : Model Railroads Of Southern California
