Something Different

From the Internet -
"This is my model of the Disneyland attraction Casey Jr. Circus Train that I made. It was built completely from scratch from styrene on top of old HO wheelsets. It runs, just like the real things with the motor in the calliope car (second car).

The scale is Gn15 (G scale train on HO track. This is not to be confused with the Accucraft Casey Jr. that was released a few years ago; that was much bigger than what is here even though it was called "G scale")."
To view click here:

Note:  To view the actual train ride Click here:

Happy Halloween

G scale train clips for Halloween.
Clip-1  
Clip-2

Westbrook Festival of Trees

It is early but I got a call from Paul Corbett who said he was preparing for another "Iron Man 8 day event" at the Westbrook Festival of Trees.  He did not call it that but that is what I consider it to be.  Paul wanted me to know the dates which I have updated in the Event Calendar.   They are Dec 4 to 11th,  The daily schedule will be updated later.  To see the Map &  Daily Schedules click here:

Downeaster Expansion Update

To view recent Channel 13 News update click here:
Here is a map from the Portland City web site:

The Santa Train

This is a real train from CSX that delivers food, clothing and gifts to children along a 110 mile route.
For more info click here:

Carl met with the set designer at the Mall

Yesterday Carl met with the Mall Event Coordinator and the professional set designer to go over the details of what the Mall will be building for a platform for our trains.  After looking over some of the props and materials they decided that the artificial grass was to coarse and could be a problem for our trains.  The decision was made to use "snow blankets" as the basic covering for the stage.  Carl preferred this and thought it would work out best for us.  We have permission to add ballast between the rails if we want to do that.  That would probably mess up the snow blankets, but they do not care because they will  roll them up and throw them away when we are all done with the display.  We are bringing in a couple of buildings, the Gorham Station and a "castle" style building that Carl has on his layout.  We are all set on track and transformers.  We do need to borrow some additional "Split Jaws" if anyone can lend us some.  The setup begins on Monday November 8th.  We do have enough volunteers, but you are more then welcome to stop by and check out what is happening.  The total layout will not be decorated until after we have all the track  in place.  Then the Mall will come back in and add the elves which are all automated and the lighted trees and the rest of the items they have.  We should have quite an impressive display ready for Santa to arrive on Saturday Nov 13th.   That will be a lot of fun and we are looking forward to it!

Video from Eric

Latest release from Eric - This one is entitled "Steam up at Andy's".   Thank you for sharing. Another excellent movie. 
Click here to view:

Really spooky

I may have posted this previously but it is that time of year again. Holloween!

Do not click this unless you have a nice furry engine happily purring beside you!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bsHHzCP09xs

This is especially for Tiny and his finding sad stuff about trains!

If you are real observant

You will note a new item on the left side of the Blog.   3 Items down.
I am just testing it this weekend.  You can click on it and test it yourself if you like.  No harm done.

The purpose is that I expect we will meet a lot of people at the Mall.  We will not remember who they are and have no way to contact them in the future.  Instead, we could build up a list of folks who may be interested to follow up with us next year when we are running trains again outside.

There is no obligation to them or MGRS.   But, this could give us the opportunity to invite some of them back to see us again in 2011.

Last of the Color

Normally I am a little sad to see freezing temperature hit.  I admire the flowers that hang on for a long time and still look good!  Some I bring inside and keep in the basement.  These are all pictures from today and they are the end of this years garden colors. I have planted lots of new bulbs and look forward to next year when they come up. Winter usualy seems like a long cold season.

But this year will be different.   We will have this terrific indoor area all decorated up inside nice and warm to keep running our trains in!  I can't wait to see what the layout will look like.  And I look forward to all the fun we will have getting together meeting at the Mall.  This year the color will continue a lot longer than usual.  And, it all starts next month!

Just around the Corner

                                                   Click on image to view.

Big trains on little tracks...7/8" scale

Over the weekend, I was introduced to Marcel, a fellow volunteer at the WW&F railway museum who models Maine 2 foot gauge in 7/8 inch to the foot scale. This is the "proper" scale for two foot gauge trains running on 45mm G-gauge track. they are about half again bigger in any given dimension than 1:20.3 scale stuff. that doesnt sound like much until you realize that that is about 3 1/2 times the volume and weight of any model of the same thing. these things are BIG

This fellow lives in Virginia. his name is Steve King. He has been modeling 7/8 scale for a while. most engines are battery powered, radio controlled with sound. The layout is ground level and raised platform.

This scene shows a "standard gauge" boxcar next to the 2 foot gauge stuff.

This is a beautiful model of one of the SR&RL tender locomtives.

This is a live steam model. A good puller too! steamer here is a video of the engine at work. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNEZPoaMApI&feature=related

Greenberg's Train Show

There is a big train show in New Hampshire Oct 24-25th.   NHGRS will be running a train display.  Plus there will be lots of vendors and items for sale.    Click here for details

Santa's getting ready

Getting Ready to Go !

One month from today - Santa arrives at the Mall !  See our Info Page

Big Steam Locomotive at Full Throttle

Big Steam Locomotive at Full Throttle ~ That is all I really need to say.   Thank you Eric for finding this and passing it along.  Click here and enjoy.

Getting ready

o

   We now have a total of 24 trestles and 5 extra bridge abutments if we need them to use for the Maine Mall Train Display.  They are built to match the height of the risers 10.25 inches.  The layout will rest on a 30 inch high stage that the Mall will build and then cover with a green artificial grass.   On top of that we will position five "risers" which represent high ground or hills.   They will be covered with a brown earth colored cloth and probably have small pieces of material underneath the cloth to represent rough terrain. The risers will support the elevated track and be connected by bridges and trestles.  So we end up with the green grass flat lands for the main lines and the brown hills for the elevated line.   Then the whole thing will have artificial snow sprinkled over it.  It should end up a very colorful display especially after the Mall adds lighted trees and the rest of the decorations. Remember, Saturday Nov 13th is when Santa Clause arrives and the whole display come to life. More on this later.

FYI - Author Unknown

My friend and I took the Notch train last month, the first time that we'd ever ridden that train. And we live here! As we traveled North, it was interesting to cross rivers and see the area from a new perspective, and climbing in elevation brought the mountains ever closer. The views and the foliage up there were beautiful, and we especially enjoyed the leisurely stop at Crawford Station. The train crew was attentive and informative, and the narration was filled with fun facts about local lore, the natural surroundings, and railroad history. My only suggestion would be for the speakers to be turned up a little more, to make the narration easier to hear, but we'll definitely go again!

Cab Ride in an EMD FL9. Maine Eastern Railroad

OK, here is the train we took on our trip and this is part of what Scott got to see on the way home as he had an up front view.  Not sure when this was taken but not much has changed except you can see where we went by the location of the new Brunswick Station and continued on to where the train turns around on the "Y'.
Click here to watch

Is this a portland company locomotive?

I happened across a youtube video of a Virginia and Truckee "American" locomotive cosmetically restored with what looks like the Portland Company logo between its driving wheels. Is this a Portland Company loco? I thought there were two in existance, WW&F #9 and something in Canada
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhDWXWtuUf4&feature=related

Nice picture - I wonder who was driving?

SP 4449

Take a look, she is pretty impressive ~ Click here

RR Crossing ~ 50 seconds ~ I like this one.

Congratulations to our newest Blogger!

That would be Paul Smith.  Thank you Paul! You did a nice job on your first blog (see below).   We look forward to keeping up with your progress and your questions as you build a brand new layout.  I know you are planning a large one!   A lot of folks will be interested to learn with you as you go.  Thank you and the very best of good luck and success with your new railroad.  

weed control

I am in the process of starting my garden railroad and have a spot leveled with bare soil at this time. It will be another year before I begin laying some track, but in the meantime I want to cover the ground with what ever material I will end up using under a thick layer of mulch. I'm looking for recommendations and personal experiences with different products that you folks may have used and have had good luck with. I know Carl has used Typar with good success over a period of 8 years or so. I want to make sure I use a product that is durable and allows enough moisture to penetrate to supply the plantings. Can you please share your experiences?

Thanks.

Portland Show

The train show in Portland did not cater to the G-scale crowd. But, if you were into HO or N there were some excellent bargains.

What is the Mall going to be like?

   Fun, Exciting, Lots to see, lots to do!  I am sure it will not be boring.  It will go by fast,  faster than we would wish it to.  It will be sad to come back and see an empty space.  We will wish that we could do it again.  We will talk about "The Mall"  for a long time.  It will distinguish us as a train club, as a charitable organization and as a group of people who have shared a special experience.  We will remember "Opening Day" when Santa Claus arrived and the "official" switch was thrown and the display came to life with sights and sounds of our trains in action!  Mark it down, it will be awesome!  Plan to be there.   We hope that members will stop by all the time.  You do not have to wait for your turn.  Make it a practice to stop by when ever you can.  Bring in an engine with you and run it for a while.  Bring your camera and take some pictures, Say hi to Santa Claus, do a little shopping or give the MGRS members at the display a short break.  It will become a bonding experience for all  that are able to attend and one that we will look back on and enjoy for a long time. 

Vests are "in"

MGRS Vests have arrived.  They came in just in time for the train ride.   These are exactly the same as our original shipment.  We got them from the same vendor who has his own shop where he does the custom embroidery right here in Maine!   We did order a few extra so if you want one call Carl.  The new gold colored metal name tags that members have look real nice on them.  We do plan to save a couple of vests out for members to wear if they wish to when they are at the Maine Mall Train display.