Notes on Designing, Building, and Operating Model Railroads
A hobby adventure
I hosted an operating session recently on the B&O Wheeling Freight Terminal. This was the first session held in my new Philadelphia home and the first session since the spring of 2017 in El Paso, Texas.
Continue reading “May 2025 Op Session”
I recently attended an operating session on Jim Leighty’s HO scale Central New York & New England Railroad. I kept busy through much of the session. Jim has several industrial switching areas on the layout that will keep a crew member busy.
Continue reading “Boomer Operator – Central New York & New England”
It was a special day recently on Perry Squier’s HO scale Pittsburg, Shawmut & Northern layout. He had been holding regular op sessions using the 1923 calendar. The most recent session coincided with the October 8, 1923, operating date. A one hundred year celebration was held to commemorate the moment. The first train ran with bunting and banners!
Continue reading “Celebrating a moment”
I attended an operating session on Perry Squier’s HO scale Pittsburg, Shawmut & Northern layout earlier in January. I had participated in several sessions a dozen years ago, before moving to El Paso. It’s a thrill to see all of Perry’s smooth-running steam power and equipment set in 1923. Additionally, it was great to see many familiar faces among the crew and meet a few new members.
Continue reading “Boomer operator – Pittsburg, Shawmut & Northern”
I often field question on how I prepare my layout for an operating session. The Wheeling Freight Terminal hosts a session nearly every month and I’ve fallen into a work pattern that minimizes the time to bring the layout ready for a session. The tasks fall into three basic categories; clean and lube, inbound and outbound car inventory, and fix previous problems. Let’s take a closer look at each category.