Autumn becomes winter

In a couple of weeks we set up the mall display. Please sign up for a time to run the trains.

Open House 2-4 PM TODAY at Amtrak Layover Facility in Brunswick

The Open House at the Amtrak Layover Facility in Brunswick will be from 2-4 pm TODAY, Saturday 10/22

It is located at 2 Turner Street in Brunswick. It can be reached from Route 1 via  Church  Road and from Stanwood Street. Here is a map.

This is short notice, but the hours were not published until Friday. More information at
Brunswick Layover Facility

2016 Holiday Train Display Opens Friday, November 18

The 2016 Holiday Train Display will open on Friday, November 18 at the Maine Mall. We are in our usual place outside the Bon Ton with a 12’ wide x 50’ long layout. Please help us provide fun for children of all ages by running trains at the Mall. And please bring your trains to run while you are there. See the bottom of this page to sign up. Everyone is welcome to help during setup and move out.

We also hope to have an evening when members can get together during a visit to the layout.

The layout includes the “Thomas” area along with a suburb around North Conway Station, a Village, an Industrial Park and the Circus. There will be six trains and four bridges on two levels.

The schedule is

Move In                    Monday, November 14

Setup                         Tuesday, November 15 through
                                   Thursday November 17

Opening Day            Friday, November 18 at 10 am

Running Days           November 19-30 but
                                   closed on Thanksgiving Day

                                    December 1-25 but closed  
                                    on Christmas Day

Move Out                 Monday, December 26 unless extended through January 1. Then move out will be on Monday, January 2^nd

The operating hours will be

10am-8pm                Monday through Saturday.
                                    Shift One 10am-3pm and
                                          Shift Two 3-8pm

11am-6pm                Sunday with Shift One 11am-6pm

Signing Up to run trains

Option #1: Visit the MGRS Blog at http://mgrsmembers.blogspot.com/ and click on the Sign Up button. Then fill in the Form and click on the Submit button

Option #2: Send email to Sam at secarr1@comcast.net

Option #3: Call Sam at 207-865.4467

Here are pictures of the layout, a three-dimensional side view, and the flyer announcing the event

Layout Section 1

Layout Section 2

Layout Section 3

Three Dimension Side View

Flyer

Trailer Voting

The Board of Directors met today and opened the returned voting envelopes. The results: 45 voted to buy a trailer and 5 voted not to buy a trailer.
The trailer committee will now try to locate a suitable trailer.
Thank you for all who returned their votes.
   Terry

G-Scale Items for Sale

Terence Roder has some G-scale items for sale. If  you are interested, please contact him at
207 844 8083 or 520 940 1163. His email is 1911govt@gmail.com

All are NIB (New in box) condition and have never ran.

The road names are uniform, Chicago and North Western (Route of the Streamliners) and in mustard yellow, dark brown livery.

USA Trains 1:29 F3 A and B Units

48 ft steel boxcar

50 ft baywindow caboose (lighted)

An assortment of other 1:29 by Aristocraft and and 1:22.3 Bachman rolling stock for narrow gauge operations, also an highly detailed Accucraft 1:22.3 flatcar, flat red, no road name but all stats silkscreened on unit.  A great standoff to any siding display.

Voting for Trailer

Ballots have been mailed to all members. Please vote and return your ballots in the enclosed, self addressed, stamped envelope.
The Board of Directors (BOD) will count the ballots at the next BOD meeting on OCT 15th. The members will be informed of the voting results by a post on this blog and email.

Terry Norton,  MGRS Secretary

this is a sample of the ballot being sent to all members

For the members:

Should MGRS purchase a trailer to transport and store the club assets (cost not to exceed $2500)?

 

YES                           NO 

Positives for purchasing a trailer:

            Keeps all the track and components in an easy to use condition (carrying the material up and down stairs is serious work that is not shared among all the members)

            Ensures all the assets are on site when setting up (Setup in North Berwick at the Mill Field Festival required a few trips to members houses to get track and supplies)

            Any member can tow the trailer with club contents (presently a few members go to the President’s house and load his truck with the equipment and some even go back after the event to unload his truck)

            Allows for stowage of all the track and components at any members house (now stored at the Presidents house above his garage)

            Trailer can be sold if no longer required

           

Negatives for NOT purchasing a trailer:

            Registration cost every 2 years $100

            Insurance costs yearly $300

            Liability for the person towing the trailer (trailer and trailer contents)

            Large outlay of funds for a trailer for transportation and stowage:

         (1) transportation to event setups:  3 scheduled events in the last year required a lot of assets from the club to be on site: Maine Mall, Strive at the Cross Arena and the North Berwick Mill Field Festival 

                     (2) stowage of clubs assets at other than Presidents 2^nd floor garage space.

Please vote and return ballot in enclosed stamped envelope.

Like To Try A Project Using PVC Sheets?

I've had good luck using PVC plastic sheets for outdoor garden railroad projects.  Pieces can be glued easily with PVC cement to form permanent bonds that are weatherproof outside. The material cuts as easily as wood and sands easily.  Paint sticks to PVC much better than to wood, because no moisture can penetrate behind it to cause peeling or blisters.  The material is waterproof and will last through any number of Maine winters.  Home Depot sells 4' x 8' sheets of 1/2" thickness PVC for about $100, but they do not sell 1/4" thick sheets.  I have found a plastic supply business in Portland that has a 1/4" 4' x 8' sheet available for $77.00.  Is there an MGRS member who would like to split a sheet of this with me (either cross-cut or ripped)?  I can't justify a whole sheet, but half a sheet would make several outdoor models with walls approximately 6" wide in several garden railway scales.  Let me know if you're interested.

Scott Gould, 799-9799 or email at sgould@maine.rr.com

MGRS VISITS NORTH BERWICK MILL FIELD FESTIVAL

           

          This Saturday, August 20, the Maine Garden Railway Society participated for the first time in the North Berwick Mill Field Festival.  The festival is a colorful annual event that celebrates the town’s heritage as a rail junction for the Boston & Maine R.R. and the Portland, Saco & Portsmouth R.R.  Operations began in 1842, when the PS & P first came to town.  Travelers from Boston would take the B&M to North Berwick and transfer to the PS & P for the remainder of the trip to Portland.  The lines were initially competitors, but the B&M eventually acquired the PS & P.

The MGRS display was designed by Terry Norton and historian Lynn Day to resemble the town of North Berwick as it existed when both the B&M and the PS & P ran through the town.  Terry even lettered a train for the PS & P.  Buildings on the MGRS layout were placed in the same relative locations as in the actual town.  The B&M and PS & P lines also were designed by Lynn and Terry to run side by side, just as they did originally.  In addition to this 16’ x 16’ display, Terry also designed a similarly-sized display for the Society’s ever-popular Thomas trains.  A great number of happy children visited this display.

The MGRS display was in the planning stages for nearly a year, spearheaded by Terry and Carl Churchill, with help and encouragement from Mike Macdonald, who coordinates the annual Mill Field Festival.  A number of MGRS members helped run the trains today, among them Ben Braithwaite, Sue Norton, Hunk Erskine, Carl Churchill, and Brian Saunders.  Special thanks go to Terry and Sue Norton and Carl Churchill for the major investment of time and energy they put into making this a very successful event.

Correction to phone number for the Sanford's G-Scale Moving Sale

The correct phone number to reach them is 207-654-2771.

Steel Caboose August 2016 - North Berwick Display on Aug 20, G-Scale Sales, Future Events

The August 2016 Steel Caboose has been sent via email and U.S Mail to all members. The topics include

--MGRS Display at the North Berwick Mill Field Festival on August 20
--Barry and Buckie Sanford's Moving Sale
--Neville Lewis Indoor Layout Trains and Track for Sale
--Upcoming Railroad Events in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont

See the full edition at August 2016 Steel Caboose

G-Scale Moving Sale at the Sanfords

Barry and Buckie Sandford are moving from Athens to Skowhegan. The are selling trains, locomotives, track, buildings, and controls too numerous to list.

You can visit them on Sunday, August 14 from 9am to 4pm, or call Barry at 207-651-2771.

Their address is 193 Fox Hill Road, Athens, Maine 04912.

Please Help with Upcoming Events at the Overlook Garden Railway

Please help Carol & Pat with upcoming events, starting at 10am on these dates

August 16, Monarch Nursing Home

August 29, Monarch Nursing Home

September 16, Gorham House

July 30-31 NH Garden Railway G-Scale Live Steam, Heritage Park, Wakefield, NH

 July 30-31, Live Steam Returns to Union Station.  Noon-4pm both days Unique opportunity to view NH Garden Railway Society’s traveling outdoor display of live-steam G-scale locomotive and freight cars 12 Noon to 4:00 PM at the Heritage Park Railroad Museum, 1 Chapel St., Union, NH.

Free admission.  www.historicwakefieldnh.com

Another MGRS - Minnesota Garden Railway Society from Jim Muthig

For the past seven summers I have been working for a nonprofit educational organization (Project Lead the Way- PLTW) training teachers across the country in high school engineering curriculum.  Basically PLTW sends me to a participating university to teach teachers their curriculum.  This year I was sent to the University of Minnesota at Mankato.  The training lasts two full weeks so I always have the weekend in between to venture out.

This year I found the Minnesota Garden Railroad Society which just so happens to share our initials :)  So I drove up to Wayzata Minnesota and was treated to a weekend of Garden Railroading AND railfanning.  In speaking with the club members on hand Wayzata is the only public garden railroad display of its kind in the midwest. 

Every Sat and Sun from June to Oct Club members sit alongside the layout and assist.  Inside the railroad, museum adjacent to the layout, are shelves of  rolling stock and engines donated by club members.  I sat alongside a few club members and watched as local kids brought out and made up a train and then walked around with the wireless throttle.  The kids were junior members of the club and the senior members did provide guidance as the trains made their way around the layout.  As shown in the picture below the layout sits alongside an active BNSF line and both days coal trains rolled by as expected. 

Inside the museum/depot a volunteer mans the stations telegraph office.  He answers visitors questions about all the old refurbished equipment in the office that includes a vintage working antique Coke machine while also watching a display on a laptop computer that uses ATCS (Advanced Train Control System) feed that shows the local BNSF subdivision train activity.   Every once in a while I would wander inside the old station and inquire of the status of the next train.  Right on schedule both coal trains, really longgg trains came slowly rolled through town. 

On Sunday two of the club members invited me over their houses to show their home layouts.  Quite the hospitality!  So if anyone is headed to the St.Paul/Minneapolis area be sure to visit the Wayzata Depot.  

MGRS Outing and Annual Meeting Recap

We had  another sunny day for the Outing with a nice breeze so it was cool in the shade. It all starts with getting here, and here is one of our antique auctioneers arriving in his antique vehicle.

Then its time to check in with Terry, vote for officers, buy raffle tickets, and talk to old and new friends over coffee

Lunch comes out but everyone saves rooms for all those desserts.

That gets everyone a little sleepy for the Annual meeting.....

• Election results were announced
• President Carl Churchill
• VP Art Handman
• Treasurre Dennis Farrell
• Secretary: Terry Norton
• Directors: Hunk Erskine, Mac McLaughlin, Norm Waycott, Frank Howard, & Paul Corbett
• The discussion on purchasing a club trailer will be continued
• Carl proposed a donation of $1,000 to Angel Flight, which takes WWII Veterans to visit the veterans memorials in Washington, DC. The club approved the donation

Raffles were drawn

• 50/50 Raffle for $100
• Members Only G-Scale Freight Car
• Child's Railroad Quilt
• Adult Railroad Quilt with Pillowcase

The auction this year had a large number of items. Terry Norton and Frank Howard, our regular auctioneers, brought on Ben Braithwaite to help. Ben has a great "patter" and helped moved things along.

 There was a spirited bidding competition between a group of New Hampshire members and certain well-known members from Maine. Comments like "Walmart Shopper" and "I made that in rehab" were made and accepted in good fun.

One "blind auction item" box was met with great interest. Another proud winner took home a complete set of Model Railroader Magazine in bound volumes - what a find! Side deals were made to trade already purchased items as the auction moved along.

And then was time to pay up!!

Norm had a large circus rail yard with a parade as the circus began to unload

Steel Caboose July 2016 on the way via email and U.S. Mail

The July edition is on its way to members via email and U.S. Mail. Topics include

--Open House and Annual Meeting this Saturday, July 16
--North Berwick Historical Society Train Display on August 20
--Scarborough Veterans Home
--Holiday Train Display
--Passing of Dick Soderberg
--Upcoming Railroad Events in Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont
--Toy Train News

See the full edition at Steel Caboose July 2016

MGRS supports Maine Veterans Home

Paul Corbett has been maintaining a small train layout at the Maine Veterans Home in Scarborough. He visits frequently to clean the track and on a regular basis will change the railroad theme from cityscape to western theme to others he has in his inventory.
Today Frank Howard and I had a chance to meet up with Paul at the Vets Home to update the rolling stock. I installed a push button similar to the ones at the mall to allow some interaction. Frank set up the small Piko steam engine that the club purchased and it sounded awesome.
The staff liked the push button and the Veterans were taking turns pushing the button. 
The attached photo is Don, one of the Veterans, who sat with us while we upgraded the layout.

Passing of Richard "Dick" Soderberg

Richard "Dick" Soderberg, a friend of many in MGRS and the well known owner of  Dick's Trains, passed away earlier this month. He was known for attending train shows throughout the Northeast and attending the MGRS Summer Open House and Annual Meeting in Buxton each July.

Our thoughts are with his family at this difficult time.

Amtrak Exhibit Train in Brunswick on Saturday,June 11, and Claremont, NH on Saturday, June 18

The Amtrak Exhibit Train will be visiting Brunswick Station this Saturday from 1-5pm. The consist includes 2 diesel locomotives. 3 cars of exhibits, and an Amfleet car as a gift shop. There will be a model train display inside the station, vendors outside, and specials in downtown Brunswick stores that day. The location is 16 Station Ave, Brunswick, ME 04011.

The train will also appear in Claremont, NH on Saturday, June 18 from 10am to 4pm. The location is at Plains Road and Maple Avenue, Claremont, NH 0374.

These visits are sponsored by the Northern New England Passenger Railroad Association, NNEPRA Web Site. The full Amtrak Exhibit Train schedule can be seen at Amtrak Web Site