Hobbyline HO scale Fairbanks Morse H-10-44 in Lehigh Valley colors...

...a gift from an online modeler friend. I've wanted one of these for awhile, in any form, from any manufacturer. The look is pure brute and the car body was designed by the same guy who did the Pennsy GG1.






Made in a time when the hobby was less refined...come on, can you imagine the caterwauling from the peanut gallery if Atlas stamped their logo on the SIDE of any of their models. And check out the screw on the top of the hood...shameless, I tell you, shameless...thinking some goob could actually enjoy the hobby with such a blatant display of non-scale hardware. That boxing glove for a coupler actually mates with most knuckle couplers today and was only used by HObbyline on their equipment. It just gets cooler with each inspection...


This torpedo tube is actually a device to eliminate light bleed thru the shell and concentrate it towards the headlight, a rather forward thinking detail that sees little use still today.


Then there's these giant spur gears in the cab, just waiting to puree some hapless HO scale crew that manages to fall into their clutches.

A great piece of modeling history, it appears to have been offered as part of several sets in 1955 -- in Lehigh Valley, C&O and AT&SF paint as a passenger train and in C&O and AT&SF paint in two freight sets. Pennsylvania paint eventually was offered but it wasn't long afterwards that HObbyline became Bowser and the diesel models stopped, most likely before 1960.

Many thanks buddy...it will be a cherished beastie in my fleet...

American Train & Track Corp. HO scale Plymouth diesel...March 1968...

...finally identified, won in a friendly bet with a hobby shop owner, $5 if it didn't run, $10 if it did.

I won...





The company only lasted about 10 years and is most well known for its model of the Alco Century 415, later picked up by Life-Like. It used mechanism parts and truck sideframes from the AHM RS2 locomotives.

Athearn HO scale Hustler diesel, Yellow #60...

...and then there were three in my stable. This one, a recent online purchase, shows what NOT to do when re-wiring an Athearn locomotive. Like most Athearn owners, the modifier replaced the metal clip contacts with more direct wiring to the motor from the frame...


Unlike most modifiers though, they left the brush clip on the plastic motor frames, essentially melting them into the motor...sigh...


It runs, but maintenance will be a kick...

UPDATE: New upper clip, new wire and terminal, a soldering job that would make my 8th grade shop teacher proud...much better.

Run night....

...been a long 2 weeks with over 2000 miles of driving and a complete make ready in a house---including cleaning the stove...

...sigh...


AHM/Rivarossi NYC Dreyfus Hudson, Proto 2000 PRR GP30, Mantua 2-6-2 Prairie...yes, I do possess a rather eclectic collection...

Bachmann HO scale MDT Plymouth 3 axle switcher....

Like most of their Products during the 1980s, these suffered from a poor grade of plastic used in the drive train that was prone to cracking---even while sitting on the hobby store shelf.

This one was no different but I found a fairly easy fix for the mechanically minded individual with a pin vise and some drill bits.

I ordered the axle sets currently offered on the Bachmann parts page, hoping that they were a drop-in fit. Alas, that was not to be---note the difference in the bearings on the two wheelsets...


Note also that the newer gears (in black) are helical cut for meeting with a worm gear and not cut for the spur gearing of the older locomotive...sigh...more on that later.

Of course, Bachmann couldn't leave well enough alone and made the newer wheels with smaller axles, making a simple swap out of the question. What I ended up doing was carefully enlarging the axle holes in the new gears to fit the older wheels. By stepping up to the next size drill bit rather than going for the whole smack in one shot, I was able to keep the new axle holes properly centered with no wobble...


Note that they also had to make the new gears narrower...a problem overcome with a snug fit and an NMRA wheel gauge for uniformity.


The helical cut on the new gears mesh well enough with the spurs and, since Botch...er...Bachmanns aren't noted for their quiet drives at this market level, the slightly elevated growl isn't any more noticeable over any other locomotive of the period.

Bachmann N scale DD40X and Brill Trolley...

Both are now running and fully assembled.

The DD40X now sports Unimate couplers fore and aft, hates 9 3/4" radius curves and looks great on my one wide curve with the roof top blinkies in their full glory. An 80s offering, they're weak in the power department but, have the open walk throughs that they took away in their later offerings.


The Brill trolley suffered from the classic Bachmann malady of the 80s, a weak plastic gear train given to cracking, even when new in the box on the store shelf. I replaced the truck assemblies with later ones that were a drop in fit. It runs great now.



Both were finished with parts offered on their online store. Take advantage of it as certain parts, like the coupler boxes I got the last of, are no longer available.

Atlas O scale MDT Plymouth switcher, circa 1974...

...a surprise gift from another modeler. This thing is a beast...I shall sell all my N and HO scale and start over in O...

Wellll...maybe not but, there's something to be said for a model train hobby with 3 pound plus locomotives...





My guess is that the HO and N units, being made primarily for the low end and toy markets, used equally low end motors, requiring the makers to use a wider hood, thus taking away the space needed for the side hand rails the O scale model has. Other than that, they are essentially identical models.

Lionel HO scale CP Rail "Pac-Man" scheme" GP30...

...my secret to so many of my models..."Buy the ones with boo boos, they'll patch up easy enough."

Just a couple strips of scrap styrene and some paint was all it took to fix this minor flaw...






Purchased with the intent to salvage its mechanism for another, better shell, the patch has me looking for...alas, sigh, groan...another mechanism.

And there lies the rub...

How can this be "The World's Greatest Hobby" if it feeds the beasts of avarice and materialism? I hope never to get caught up in that...and...am making preparations for clearing out some excessive excesses on eBay...

The Greater Baton Rouge Model Railroad Club Open House, Oct. 23, 2010...

...in pictures...

Bachmann HO and N scale Santa Fe Plymouth MDT switcher...

...it's great when you've been in the hobby long enough that you can put together a layout with the perfect conditions for rolling stock to reproduce...




An online friend sold me a locomotive, only to miss a flaw that can easily be overlooked in N scale. Upon learning his error, he went above and beyond what was necessary to fix it, sending me the N scale diesel switcher and a kit for a cottage as a token of good faith.

Thanks buddy...little did you know at the time that the diesel switcher has as many fond memories for me in N scale as the 0-4-0.

A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and loving favour rather than silver and gold.---Proverbs 22:1