Operating the LAJ


While waiting for supplies to come in for the Brooklyn Terminal layout, I doubled back to other areas. As a host layout for the upcoming ProRail national operating convention, it’s time to make sure all of my ducks are in a row.  I’ll be running both the Downtown Spur and LAJ layouts simultaneously so will […]

Mock Up Testing


  One of the things you pick up after decades of modeling is a storied and lengthy list of mistakes that fall into the category of, “Wow, didn’t expect that”!  Although the lessons weren’t fun at the time, having them in your arsenal is an enormous advantage. One of the major lessons I’ve learned is […]

Brooklyn Terminal 2/12/18


Momentum is building with the Brooklyn Terminal layout.  When it comes to layout planning I find that there are limits as to how far you can take scene composition with a two dimensional sheet of paper.  Although I start with sketch something out in CAD, I go in knowing that the final rendition will need […]

Pulling the Brooklyn Plan Together


Despite its relatively small size, planning the Brooklyn layout has taken a fair amount of time.  I’ve been balancing the often competing goals of capturing the sense of the area while at the same time keeping the overall scope from getting out of control.  Urban modeling takes a lot of time to pull together because […]