BANTRAK Newsletter. The Engineer s Cab Martin Myers. Inside this issue. Next meeting. On the web. Volume 24 Issue 3 March 2011.

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1 BANTRAK Newsletter Volume 24 Issue 3 March 2011 The Engineer s Cab The Engineer s Cab Martin Myers Some good planning by our February show coordinators allowed us to make last minute changes and still get the layout set up in record time. There s a lot to be said for a simple oval. We were up and running by 5:00pm on Friday. Friday and Saturday crowds were good with more children than I m used to seeing at the Scale Shows. Hope this is a good sign for the future of model railroading. Jack Walsh was our host for the February meeting. Jack had a pre meeting run session on his home layout for anyone that wanted to participate. During the meeting upcoming shows were discussed at the meeting. Alan Del Gaudio and Bob Mohr are coordinating the April Scale Show. There is interest in doing a combined layout with Northern Virginia NTRAK. Two loops attached by a pair of junction modules. The combined red line will allow heavy traffic. Both clubs would have control of their own Blue and Yellow lines. The plan is to make the red line DCC to keep things as simple as possible. Actually we could use our switchboxes on red but that will take some extra planning with NVNTRAK. Alan and Bob will have the final say on that. John Darlington and Al Potter have volunteered to coordinate a weekend show in Oakland, MD. Discussions continue to set a date for either the second or third weekend in May. John and Al are taking a trip to Oakland to size up the layout space in the old B&O Station. Weekend accommodations and a firm date will also be worked out. More information will be available by the March meeting. If you haven t registered for the convention, time is running out to sign up for the steel mill tour. This one is filling up quick so don t delay. We also talked about a bulk purchase of rechargeable 9 volt size batteries to use with our DCC throttles. Powerex 9.6 volt batteries have a good reputation for both length of charge and fit in the case. These can be used with our current radio throttles or the new power hungry duplex radio throttles. Bob and I have ordered a few to test. We should be able to show them at the next meeting. The plan is for club members to purchase the battery(s). We would make a single large order to get the best price and save on shipping. The club would also be purchasing a ten slot charger for use by members during shows. A smaller 4 slot charger for at home use is also available. These batteries can be charged in 2 hours and usually last 5 6 hours of continuous use. They are rated for 1000 cycles. Eric is hosting the March meeting, hope to see you there. Martin Inside this issue The Engineer s Cab... 1 Feb. Great Scale Show Summary... 2 East Broad Top... 7 New and Notable... 9 DCC Corner Website of the Month BANTRAK Company Store BANTRAK Time Machine BANTRAK Call Board BANTRAK Calendar Next meeting Sunday, March 20th, pm 5pm Host: Eric Payne On the web News, information, & forums are all at

2 Great Scale Model Train Show Summary (Feb. 2011) Paul Diley (Coordinator) The February Train show went off without a problem. We had a small layout this time, but it turned out to be a very nice rectangular layout (24ʹx36ʹ). We had to move some modules around to fit into the layout because of some track configurations on individual modules. In the end, by Friday late afternoon, we were up and running. For my first time as coordinator for the club I would like to mention a special thanks to Martin, Tim & Bob for helping me with the layout plan as well as to all the other members who brought out modules. Participation and set up was a bit light for this show (Dave Clyde hurt his ankle and Eric Payne was called out of town at the last minute). The layout ran great all weekend. Although we didnʹt have many runners on Sunday, the members that where there ran trains for more than half the day. All in all it was a good show and I hope to do it again soon. Paul Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 2

3 Great Scale Model Train Show Summary (continued( continued) Paul Diley (Coordinator) photo credits: John Barry Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 3

4 Great Scale Model Train Show Summary (continued) Paul Diley (Coordinator) photo credits: John Barry Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 4

5 Great Scale Model Train Show Summary (continued) Paul Diley (Coordinator) photo credits: John Barry Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 5

6 Great Scale Model Train Show Summary (continued) Paul Diley (Coordinator) photo credits: Milan Radanovic Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 6

7 My Trip To The East Broad Top Jack Walsh After a visit to Altoona (see January 2011 Bantrak Newsletter), what would be more natural than driving a little out of the way and stopping at the East Broad Top Railroad, especially when it is their special Steam Celebration Weekend! The EBTRR claims to be the only narrow gauge (three foot) railroad east of the Mississippi that is operating on its original roadbed with its original equipment. As this was a special weekend, steam engine #15, the diesel M 7, and the motor car M 1 were all out and running. At 11 am, M 7 took a string of flat cars with benches up the line followed by #15 with more flat cars with benches, a coach and the parlor car #20. At noon, three additional whistles were hooked up to #15; then with M 1 gave a whistle and horn concert for about five minutes. At 1 pm M 7 took the parlor car up the line first. By this time #15 had assembled behind it two boxcars, a tank car, a flat car, a caboose, eight flatcars with benches, and a coach. I have included some pictures of the train we rode. Our seats were on a bench that was almost exactly in the middle of the train. The trip is about six miles up to a wye where the engine turned around with the string of freight cars, leaving the caboose to be the end of the train going back. The leaves on some of the trees on the hill sides were already turning colors, so the view was wonderful. For more information on visiting, click here. Jack Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 7

8 My Trip To The East Broad Top (continued) Jack Walsh Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 8

9 New & Notable: Club Purchases Tim Nixon, Treasurer As Martin mentioned in his introduction, the Club will be reviewing a potential bulk purchase of 9.6 volt batteries for use in DCC throttles during shows. More information can be found here or here. Stay tuned for order details OR if you are interested simply send an to add your name on the list. (Don t forget to include the number of batteries you want to purchase) Also, Martin mentioned in his introduction, the Club will be reviewing a potential bulk purchase of Club shirts for use at Shows and other events. Stay tuned for order details OR if you are interested simply send an to add your name on the list. (Don t forget to include the number of shirts and size you want to purchase) (Note that we are also talking about doing some sort of special club shirt for the convention; that will NOT be included in this order.) New & Notable: Membership Al Palewicz, Membership A quick snapshot of the Club Members as of 15 February Members with paid 2011 dues 29 Members with 2011 dues outstanding 12 Honorary Members 3 (Remember, dues are owed by the March meeting ) Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 9

10 New & Notable: National N Scale Convention 2011 For more information contact trainnbyskip@yahoo.com Hershey, Pennsylvania, June Presented by Baltimore Area N Trak ʺBANTRAKʺ, Capital PenNScalers and the N Scale Enthusiast (NSE) With a central location in Pennsylvania, the convention hotel is close to one of the greatest selections of railroads and railroad history in all of America. Register for the Convention and make plans to attend this summer!!! If you want to volunteer for staffing, judging, tour guides or anything else, Skip. (Note: BANTRAK members are eligible for a small Convention registration discount which will post to your account after you register online) New & Notable: 2011 N Scale Weekend (7th Annual) For more information contact nscaleweekend@yahoo.com N Scale Model Trains & Supplies TEXNRAILS, HB PETERSON, WINGARD S TRAINS, MIKE BENCS, THE N-CELLAR, BOSTON & ALBANY HOBBIES, N&O TRAINS, DETRICH ENTERPRISE, KENRAY MODELS, ABH MODEL TRAINS FRED-EOT, DELUXE INNOVATIONS 15+ Large Operating N Scale Train Layouts BALTIMORE AREA N-TRAK, NORTHERN VIRGINIA NTRAK, TWIN TIERS N-TRAK, JERSEY CENTRAL N-TRACK CAPITOL PENNSCALERS N-TRAK, CENTRAL OHIO N-TRAK. STEEL CITY N-SCALE, ROCK SPRING STATION, THREE RIVERS ASSOCIATES N-TRAK, KEYSTONE N-TRAK, NEW JERSEY SOUTHERN N-TRAK, CANTINGTON N-TRAK GENESEE & ONTARIO MODEL N-GINEERS, PITTSBURGH LITE TRAK, & BEDFORD MODEL RAILROADERS Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 10

11 New & Notable: Bantrak.org Dave Clyde, Webmaster the editor and suggest a DCC topic!!! the webmaster today!!! During the past 4 6 weeks, several new updates have been made to the website. I d like to pass along a brief note of each /12/2011 Updated the BANTRAK Forum from SMF to SMF /01/2011 The February Newsletter is now available /15/2011 Updated the Festival of Trains Show Review /15/2011 The January Newsletter is now available /13/2011 Updated the Recent History section /13/2011 Updated the club officers contact us page /03/2011 Added the Raffle Layout winner information /02/2011 Added 2011 Upcoming Events /01/2011 Added Picture Gallery of the B&O Festival of Trains /01/2011 Added Skipʹs Wild West Topper to the Club Modules Page. DCC Corner: (Exploring Digital Command Control) Installing the AR1 Auto Reverse Loop Control: The AR1 is usually located close to the point where the gap is cut for the reversing loop. The length of the reversing loop is determined by the maximum length of the train that will use it. Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 11

12 Website of the Month: Bar Mills Scale Model Works the editor and recommend a site!!! Bar Mills Scale Models has the stuff you didnʹt know you needed until you saw it. Really... lobster traps, low bridges, weathering powders... all little things that can make a big difference! Check out the FREE e newsletter!!! BANTRAK: Company Store For more information contact treasurer@bantrak.net Baltimore Area N Trak presents a special run of a 40ʹ standard box car with a single Youngstown door. Road # has the B&O logo, and road #52008 has the BANTRAK logo. We are pleased to commemorate our 25 years in modular N scale railroading by offering this commemorative two pack. Building a module or rescuing an old one? Get your wire harness. It doesn t get easier than this. Color coded / preinstalled power poles included. Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 12

13 Bantrak: Time Machine Here is a copy of the 1990 Year In Review newsletter essentially a Bantrak after 20 years including a look back and history Jack GBNSA Is Having An Unusual Year by Ed Yanacek The year 1990 has turned out to be an unusual year for the Greater Baltimore N Scale Associates, the only NTRAK club in the greater Baltimore/Washington metropolitan area. We started as a small group with a mutual interest in N scale, and have become an organization of 20 plus active members whose interests include round-robin meetings, NTRAK operations, and rail fanning. In order to see how unusual 1990 has been, it may help to know a little about the history of GBNSA. In 1983, Gene Villaret, using a mailing list acquired from Jim Fitzgerald, was able to get a half dozen or so people interested in forming a round-robin club for the express purpose of sharing N scale ideas and experiences. This core group eventually became the Greater Baltimore N Scale Associates. During the spring of 1984, GBNSA decided to try its hand at NTRAK modules. With the assistance of Joe Armacost of Greenberg Publishing, who lent the club the four Greenberg corners (which, incidentally, we greatly improved), we set up our first public display. The layout consisted of the borrowed four corners, and 6 straights. Since this modest beginning, the club has slowly grown in size and module inventory, and has operated at almost every Greenberg "Great Train, Dollhouse, and Toy Show" held at the state fairgrounds in Timonium, MD, since then. In 1987, we also started operating at the Ellicott City Scale Model Railroad Association's "Great Scale Model Train and Railroad Collectors Shows" which are also held at Timonium. Operating at the Scale Show offered us the chance to set up a layout of unlimited size. In 1988, Skip and Robert Hayes, who are a father and son team in the group, and who are also volunteer firemen, suggested that the modules be set up in their firehouse for Christmas. This would give their firehouse the opportunity to participate as a Holiday "Train Garden". Train gardens are a Baltimore area firehouse tradition that predates World War II. For this event, the layout was kept up from mid-december until after New Year's Day. It was as if we had a club layout. Going into 1989, GBNSA now had three different events on their schedule for the year, for a total of five showings. Up to this point, this probably sounds like a typical NTRAK club operating schedule. In 1990, things really got interesting. From a historical railroad perspective, modern day Baltimore is most famous for being the home of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Museum. Not too long ago, the museum became independent from CSX Corporation, the former owner who provided a large operating subsidy. One of the ways that the museum keeps its head above water is to rent out the 106 year old roundhouse for social events. In March of 1990, the American Association of Allergists and Immunologists held their national convention at the Convention Center in Baltimore. One of the participants in the convention was the Schering Plough Corporation, which is a pharmaceutical company. Schering had planned a large social event for the convention attendees, away from the convention center, to advertise their products and services, and the museum was selected for its uniqueness. Schering wanted something at the convention to draw attention to their party, since other large companies were planning similar events for similar reasons. In discussing this with the museum, the idea of having an operating layout was selected. The museum, not having a portable layout, and not knowing where to get one, contacted Greenberg Publishing. Greenberg suggested that they call GBNSA. After lots of negotiation, and coordination with both the museum and a public relations company, what resulted was a modest 4 straight/4 corner layout shoehorned in the middle of one of Schering's two booths on the convention floor. We must have been effective, because over 1200 conventioneers attended the party. Two separate doctors also approached us, checkbooks in hand, prepared to purchase the layout. This was certainly an unusual place to find a NTRAK layout. (continued) Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 13

14 Bantrak: Time Machine (continued( continued) A couple of weeks later as we were preparing to participate in the April "Scale Show", we were approached by Dave Savage of the DARN (Delaware county Area Railroaders in N). DARN was also preparing to participate in the show, and they proposed swapping a couple of their modules with ours in the respective layouts, and joint operating rights on each layout. In the end, DARN was not able to set up at the Scale Show. However, the two groups decided to have a weekend joint meet. Skip was able to get the firehouse for the last weekend in June. On Saturday morning, GBNSA set up a 28 module "L" shaped layout. DARN also setup an "L" shaped layout. The difference is that DARN runs loop to loop, and they were very much interested in expounding on their mode of operations. In addition to operating for two days, the joint meet also had a silent auction, several clinics, and a pot-luck supper. Word of the joint meet also spread. Members of the South Jersey and Long Island NTRAK clubs also showed up. The event was so successful, that a repeat, hosted by the DARN group, is tentatively planned for next summer. After our successful venture with the museum for the AAAI convention, both GBNSA and the museum agreed that it would be mutually beneficial to both organizations for us to set up and operate at the museum. The weekend of August 18th and 19th was selected, and the museum promoted GBNSA as the headline attraction for that weekend. A 26 module layout was set up in the center of the 60 foot operating turntable in the roundhouse. An estimated 1200 people visited the museum that weekend, which is about 50% higher than a typical hot August weekend. Several people mentioned that they came to the museum that weekend specifically to see us. There is nothing like operating l/160th scale trains while surrounded by dozens of pieces of 1/1 scale engines and rolling stock. It was also very pleasant having the wide open spaces available in the museum, and not have the distractions that are typically associated with a train show. Everyone was so pleased with this event that we hope to add the museum as a regular event on our schedule. Finally, sandwiched in between the firehouse and the museum were the NTRAK/NMRA conventions in Pittsburgh. GBNSA anticipated having a large contingent there, but several members' plans had to be changed, and they were not able to attend. Approximately half a dozen members and their modules attended one or both conventions. Paul Bierman's "Carbon City" industrial city module was the first place winner in the NMRA Module Contest. Skip Hayes won second place in the N Convention Structures Contest for his kit bashed container ship, the 1990 Convention Honorable Mention Award for his fire scene module, and the NMRA Honorable Department Award. As you can see, 1990 has been an interesting and certainly unusual year for us. We are going to have a hard time topping this in 1991, but we are going to try. Volume 24 Issue 3 Page 14

15 BANTRAK Call Board (Activities & Events of BANTRAK Club Members) the editor with your info!!! PRRT&HS D.C. Chapter Meeting March 6th, Afternoon Info Contact Jack Walsh OP s Session March 20th, 9am Noon Info Contact Eric Payne NMRA Ches. Div. Meeting March 27th, 2pm 4pm Info Contact Arthur Boyd 4/9~4/10/ Great Scale Model Train Show, Timonium, MD. May 7/8 or 14/15. Train Festival, Oakland, MD. "Richard E. Markle Photo Special" April 30th, All Day Info Contact Steve Van Metre BANTRAK Calendar CRHS Rail B Q May 7th, All Day Info Contact Ed Kapuscinski 6/21~6/26/ N Scale Convention, Harrisburg/Hershey, PA. 8/26~8/28/ Bedford N Scale Weekend, Everett, PA. 10/28~10/30/ Great Scale Model Train Show, Timonium, MD...(TBD)...Turf Valley Model Train Show, Ellicott City, MD...(TBD)...B&O Museum Festival of Trains, Baltimore, MD. BANTRAK was founded in 1983 as the Greater Baltimore N Scale Associates. Begun as a round robin group to share skills and experiences, we have expanded our focus to include participation in many diverse activities to promote model railroading in general and N Scale model railroading in particular. Activities include participation in local, regional and national shows, meets and conventions. BANTRAK membership includes membership in the national NTRAK organization. The BANTRAK Newsletter is the official publication of the Baltimore Area N-TRAK organization. This is your newsletter! Please send articles, photos, and suggestions to newsletter@bantrak.net. Editor: Eric Payne