Conceptual sketch, with thoughts and notes, on where I’m thinking of taking the LAJ 1960s version. For a number of reasons, I plan to focus my upcoming efforts on the LAJ layout. I like the feel of the room, its openness, the mid-century modern interior design, and the way the sun floods the space in […]
Category: Model Railroad Design
Unveiling My New Layout
Having wrapped up its work on the LAJ’s Horn Lead, the local crosses District Blvd. on its way back to “B” Yard on my LAJ layout. The Foster & Kleiser Methyl billboards were a signature feature of LA during the early 1960s. It’s removable in the event I want to update to a modern era. […]
Petroleum
Although these tank cars look identical, they are not, and therein lies a lot of operational potential. Looking up the placards, I could see that as a minimum, we have diesel fuel, ethanol, and carbon disulfide. The cars need to be blocked in the yard and spotted at specific locations within the Exxon Mobil complex. […]
Lost Civilizations
A duo of Geep 15’s rolls through the Philadelphia suburbs on the proto-freelance Chester Valley Railroad. Now a Genesee and Wyoming shortline, the line was originally conceived by modeler Hardold Geisell in the 1930s. Last fall, I was streaming one of these quasi-conspiracy series on Netflix. The premise of this particular show was that the […]
A Two Turnout Layout
LAJ Alco S-2 #1 basks in the sun awaiting its next assignment. 1964. ebay slide scan. Photographer unknown. It’s interesting how a little information, often innocuous on the surface, can totally change our perspective and make us realize that our layout offers opportunities we hadn’t considered before. Even better, this expanded view can be realized […]