Telltales
February
2013
Newsletter of the Boulder Model Railroad Club
This HO scale replica of a derelict upscale home in the ghost town of Las Animas, CO won the blue
ribbon in the 2011 “Off Line Structures” contest. This month’s program is still under consideration, but
promises to be a good one, and we’ll also have the annual “Off Line Structures “ contest for 2013, a
very wide-open topic. So, join us Thursday, February 21st at the Louisville (Tri-City) Elks Lodge,
525 Main Street in Louisville at 7:15 PM, or gather offsite at Casa Alegre, 1006 Pine St. at 5:30 PM
for dinner (optional). Come and share in the fellowship! (Photo by Keith Bobo.) x
EDITORIAL
The model railroading family tree has numerous branches. A strong interest in trains makes up the trunk,
but from there the limbs become quite diverse. Consider the armchair model railroader, who perhaps has
never built a kit or begun a layout in his life but subscribes to the appropriate
magazines and keeps muttering, “One of these days…” Contrast this person with
the one for whom model railroading is the all-consuming passion in life, whose
entire basement (or huge outbuilding) is devoted to a miniature rail empire and
who belongs to numerous train clubs, historical societies and on-line chat rooms.
Most of us fall toward the center of these two extremes, but there are other
branches, too. Some of us are passionate about prototype operations and if we
don’t have an operating layout of our own, we know people who do and we crowd
as many operating sessions into a month as we can. On the other hand, there
are those of us for whom building models and creating realistic scenes is our main
interest and having a layout merely provides a place to display our scale model
world, complete with a train running through it.
Yet, with the exception of the incurable armchair railroader, I believe there is another thread that ties us
together besides the love of trains: a love of building things, a desire to work with our hands to create a
small replica of something that exists, or could exist, in real life.
This was made clear to me a few years ago when we instituted a new category in our monthly model
contests called “Open – Anything Goes” and we began to see ships and airplanes show up alongside
structures and locomotives. The concept was further reinforced this month when Jerry Gilland proposed
writing a series of articles on a paddlewheel steamship he is scratch-building and wondered if it would be out
of place in a model railroad newsletter. My thoughts immediately went to the layouts I have observed that
have ships in them ranging from tall-masted sailing vessels to tugboats, ferries and the like.
The bottom line is this: We all like to build things. We admire the works of other modelers and hope to
learn something from their experiences. A model is a model is a model, whether it be a ship, a loco, a
plane, a house or a coal mine. Jerry’s series begins on page 8. Perhaps he’ll even give us a workshop on
how he constructed his tiny ripsaw out of an old Dremel moto-tool, something we all could probably use! X
D
—Jack Rummel, Editor
Telltales
Official publication of the Boulder Model Railroad Club, P.O. Box 1851,
Boulder, CO 80306. The BMRC meets on the third Thursday of each
month at 7:15 pm at the Tri-City (Louisville) Elks Club, 525 Main St.,
Louisville, CO.. We are on the Internet at:
<http://www.bouldermodelrailroadclub.org>.
p
----------------------------------------
2013 Officers
President - Joe Baldwin—
Vice-President - Erik Lindgren—
Secretary - Jeff MacDonald—
Treasurer - Chad Horner—
Past President - Bill Bradley—
----------------------------------------
Submissions
The TELLTALES welcomes articles, art, cartoons, puzzles, classifieds,
workshop hints and other model railroading related materials. Mail or
e-mail all contributions and/or changes of address to:
Jack Rummel, TELLTALES Editor
3827 Doral Drive, Longmont, CO 80503
e jtrummel@comcast.net
2
President’s Message:
On the Mainline
About the BMRC
The Boulder Model Railroad Club (BMRC), founded in 1976, is about having fun with model
railroading. The BMRC has no club layout, which means it can (and does) appeal to a variety of
skills and interests. It has something for practically everyone, from the person who only sets up a
train at Christmas, to the “tin plate” collector, to the high tech DCC expert. All are welcome. While
not affiliated with the National Model Railroad Association, the BMRC has had two members
achieve the NMRA Master Model Railroader level. Several members are published authors in
model railroad magazines and have authored several books, and we have bloggers,
photographers and videographers as well. At some point we all started as beginners, perhaps like you. So join
the fun and learn more about the World’s Greatest Hobby.
Home Layouts
I recently checked the records and found 74% of our members are building a layout or diorama of their own.
I fall into this category myself. To the majority of our brothers and sisters in the
club, our focus is on our own pike or empire. Speaking only for myself, I joined the
BMRC so I could learn from the masters in our club. Our clinics and workshops
are as good as it gets in our hobby. Whether you want to learn how to build a
realistic deciduous tree, an outhouse that looks like it was built a hundred years
ago, a UP Big Boy locomotive, or how to use your smart phone as a DCC throttle
for your railroad, you have come to the right place. One of the benefits of
membership is knowing ahead of time about layout tours coming up. On April 6th,
we will be having an incredible tour. At least three of the finest model railroads in
the state will be open for viewing representing three scales, N, HO & F. This
layout tour is also a farewell tour for our dearly departed friend Bruce Kasson. His layout will be open for one
last hurrah, operated by his dear friends in the BMRC. You will not want to miss this opportunity. The layout is
scheduled for demolition shortly after the tour.
SIGs are Opportunities
BMRC has members active in scales such as, Z, N, HO, On30, S & F/G. There are
Special Interest Groups (SIGs) for N and HO. Their modular railroads are operated at the
club’s annual train show in the fall, also at various other shows and locations throughout
the year. Individual members build modules using the specifications of the SIG. If you like
to run trains, but don’t have room for a layout at home, this could be for you. This is also a
good place for people who are planning to build or have started to build their own layout,
but feel a need to hone their skills. You’ll meet people working in the scale you are
interested in, learn new skills and perhaps teach others new skills while making new friends.
Modelers All
Let there be no mistake about it, we are ALL modelers. Some of us model railroads; others are railroad
modelers. (I’m still not sure of the difference but I am assured there is a distinction!) As I look back on my six
years with the club, perhaps the most popular and enduring aspect of our club is our monthly modeling contest.
Jerry Gilland, perhaps one of the finest modelers in the country, has been managing our contests for the past
several years. I’ll remind you of his recently completed UP Big Boy, built from scratch, much of it in resin.
Remember that terrific clinic where he taught us how to photo etch? Check our website; his presentation is out
there for download.
You, new guy, the tall guy in back (you all look tall from the front, you know) have you entered in the contest?
Why not bring in that new kit you just finished and let us take a look. Or you can bring in an old one you finished
a decade or two ago and make it a show-’n-tell.
So there you have it. We are a unique club, not focused on one giant layout like so many are, but we are
about many layouts. Whether large and small, in tiny Z scale or mammoth G, makes no difference to us, we just
love trains! Our club’s executive board reflects this diversity as well. Yours truly is HO scale, VP Erik Lindgren
is 2-rail O scale, Chad Horner, our treasurer is N Scale, Jeff MacDonald, our secretary is 2-rail O scale and
past president Bill Bradley is Z scale.
Chad Horner is our New Treasurer
We welcome Chad as our new Treasurer for 2013. He has been a model railroader for many years, where
he gained a lot of experience with the large N Scale layout at the Forney Museum. He’s also found himself at
the top of the food chain on Digitrax DCC, so if you have questions about that system, Chad’s your guy.
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Changing treasurers is not a trivial task. . We are working to organize the Bank, PayPal, Email, Quicken and
other necessary identities around the Club's needs. This is all being done in an effort to streamline the process
of moving the treasurer's job from one person to the next. To facilitate these transitions, the board unanimously
agreed to purchase a laptop for the treasurer. We purchased a Toshiba Satellite model L955-S5370. It listed
for $699 reduced to $600 with a $50 rebate. With tax it as right at $600. The unit is Intel I5 with 6GB of ram and
1/2 TB of usable space. In my professional opinion, the machine will serve the club for at least 5-7 years
perhaps longer. The device runs Windows 8 and has been set up so that the ID & personalization of the
computer is for the treasurer. As we change treasurers, our passwords will change but the laptop’s IDs,
software, data and configurations will remain the same. For those concerned, we also backup our club data to
the secure ‘cloud’. We continue in our quest to make the treasurer’s job
simpler while providing this much needed service to our club.
Father Time
January has been a stark reminder of the fragility of the
human condition. This past month our BMRC family
celebrated the lives of three. Bruce Kasson (left), former VP
and Layout Tour Coordinator for 2012-2013, passed away in
a traffic accident. William (Bill) Smith (right), a new member
in 2012 passed away after a brief illness. Win Kellogg, wife
of club member Spen Kellogg and mother of three, passed
away after a brief illness. Our hearts go out in sympathy to
the families and friends of our brothers and sister.
Pre-Meeting Dinner
We have established a relationship with the manager of Casa Alegre,
1006 Pine St., Louisville, (303) 665-2833. They expect us between 5:30
and 6:00 and have agreed to a 10% discount (alcohol excepted) and separate checks. The feedback from this
restaurant has been positive and we expect to use this place for the next couple of months. We will be looking
for a different place, perhaps outside for the summer months, but our intent is to keep it simple.
Rail Fan Bike Trip
As a model railroader and bicycle rider, I will be organizing a bike ride along the Platt river for some time in late
May or Early June. You may not know it, but the Platt bike path runs under and along some really neat
prototype railroad features including the old Santa Fe yards, several trestles or bridges, great remote control
train switching and a rotary dumper. The ride will be at least 15 miles round trip with a lunch or snack planned at
the half way point which will be the old trolley building now REI at confluence park. The ride is quite flat with
very little hill climbing. If you are new to biking and have ridden a few miles, you can probably make this one, it
is considered as a very easy ride by avid bicyclists. If you are interested in joining us, please let me know and
I’ll put you on the list.
Elks Lodge
Our lease agreement for the Elks is coming due in the next couple of months. We are aware of the lighting
situation and have seen some improvements. If you have ’issues’ please tell the board so we can address them.
2013 Dues Update
So far we have had 70 people pay their dues. Four have informed us of their decision not to renew and
several have or are in the process of moving out of state. This economy has proven to be a challenge for a
number of our members. Some are also telling us the end of the year is a particularly challenging financial time
and some have suggested we consider changing our dues due date to July 1st.
The BMRC By-Laws state “Dues shall be assessed annually, payable in advance. Every member is expected
to pay his/her dues at or before the January meeting.” Please, if you can, use PayPal to pay your dues. You can
access PayPal through your ID on the club website at this URL: <http://www.bmrc.info>. Thanks to Jon Bond
for this PayPal tip; you can log in directly to your PayPal account and send $24 to the club email address which is
<bmrc.info@gmail.com>. Please, in the note form, tell us who you are in case we don’t recognize your email
address. You are also welcome to mail your check to the club at PO Box 1851, Boulder, CO 80306, or you can
bring it to the February meeting on the 21st. Please, if at all possible, no cash. Thank you!
SIG Guidelines
The Board is working on a draft of guidelines for our SIG groups. The intent is to clarify longstanding but
sometimes misunderstood agreements and policy between the club, membership and the SIG teams. Our belief
is that by clarifying the relationship and the details, the long term outlook will remain positive and grow stronger.
Teamwork
Our club has a lot of irons in the fire. I’ve received several ‘new’ ideas for consideration and we continue to
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look at the workload and expectations of everyone. Model railroaders are a detail oriented lot, and we
as a group expect things to work a certain way with predicable outcomes. Your executive board is
committed to working our policy and operational documentation. Our intent is to clarify and distribute
the responsibility and work in a fair and equitable manner. Our club is an exception to the old 90/10 rule
where only 10% do all the work. At current count we have 28 identified positions with five openings (see
box below). This is a great way for you, that new person, to get involved, make some new friends and
help sustain the Boulder Model Railroad Club.
Help Wanted
Membership Chairman - receives new member applications and dues, collects and tracks dues from
the membership, gives funds to Treasurer for deposit, approves website enrollment, maintains club
roster. Peak workload is the Train Show through February meeting. Takes direction from club
Treasurer, and President (Computer skills and internet access required.)
Layout Tour Coordinator—The primary responsibility of the Layout Tour Coordinator is to assist the
Vice President in securing, coordinating and publishing layout tours throughout the year. In addition to
BMRC members, there are several sources of layout tours including the Northern Colorado
Model RR Club and the Denver Narrow Gauge Circle club. And, as done with clinics, BMRC
should be ready to have these other clubs included in BMRC layout tours. Maintaining a list of
the layouts visited each year is another responsibility.
Train Show Door Prize Coordinator
Train Show Advertising Coordinator
Auditor for 2013
Each year, a member (or members) who is neither the current Treasurer, nor the Treasurer for the
period being audited, is assigned by the President to perform an audit of the club’s books and physical
assets. This is an internal audit, and the results of this audit are to be reported to the membership
during the business portion of the April club meeting. X
—Joe Baldwin
BMRC ELECTED AND VOLUNTEER POSITIONS
Position
Name
Began
ELECTED POSITIONS
President
Joe Baldwin
2012
Vice-President
Erik Lindgren
2013
Secretary
Jeff MacDonald 2012
Treasurer
Chad Horner
2013
VOLUNTEER POSITIONS
TELLTALES Editor
Jack Rummel
1997
Webmaster
Joe Baldwin
2010
Membership Chair
OPEN
HO-SIG Leader
Frank Smucker 2004
N-SIG Leader
Warren Hester
2011
Club Auditor 2013
Appt. pending
Contest Coordinator
Jerry Gilland
2011
Video Librarian
Loren Blaney
2001
Book Librarian
Mike Mead
2011
Club Historian
Layout Tour Coord.
Layout Manager
Photographer
Club Store Manager
Lgmt. Library Layout
Bob Uhr
???
OPEN
Jon Bond
2009
Keith Bobo
2008
Jeff Morrison
2012
Jerry Bengtson 2012
Jerry Gilland*
2007
WOW Museum Layout Bob Rothe
2008
Train Show Manager
Jim Froning
2013
TS Layout Coord.
Jon Bond
2013
TS Raffle Manager
Marv Van Puersem 2010
TS Advert. Coord.
OPEN
TS Vendor Coord.
Jeff Morrison
2013
TS Setup/Teardown Coord. Derek Walker 2013
TS Door Prize Coord. OPEN
(*provides electronic tech support)
I don’t feel old. I don’t feel anything until noon. Then it’s time for my nap.
—Bob Hope
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Library News
Visual Library Report
I waited a little too long before ordering from Amazon.com, so this DVD set hasn't arrived
yet, and I haven't seen it. But here's what I've gathered from what others have said about
"Extreme Trains," which will become #718 in our collection.
This two-DVD set has eight episodes that aired on the History Channel during November
and December of 2008. The host is Matt Bown (not Brown), a train conductor for Pan Am
Railways in Maine. Some have criticized Matt's exuberance, which makes me believe this is
directed toward young audiences.
The series begins by showing Norfolk Southern shipping coal from a mine to an electric
power station in Pennsylvania. Succeeding episodes show high priority freight shipped from
L.A. to Dallas, the high speed Acela from Washington to Boston, reefers, UP's 844 steam,
passenger service aboard Amtrak's Empire Builder, and even a circus train!
Reviewers have described it with these phrases: "superb camerawork, dramatic background music,
full-on hyperbolic treatment, borders on self-parody." I'll love to hear your phrases.
—Loren Blaney, Visual Librarian
Layout Tour News
Membership Updates
The first layout tour of the new year will be held
on Saturday, April 6th. Another "Arvada Triple
Play" will feature the layouts of Ron Keiser (F
Scale), Bruce Kasson (N Scale) and Doug
Wright (HO Scale). Doug will be celebrating the
completion of his layout, Ron's is finished but
undergoing some upgrades, and much of Bruce's
is complete also. 11AM to 4PM. More later.
—Doug Wright
Fran Scott joined the club at the January
meeting. She lives in Arvada with her husband,
Tom, who is also a member. She has a special
interest in D&H history and models the T&FS in HO
scale. They have a modern-era layout featuring
Eastern railroads. Welcome, Fran!
We continue to grow, thanks to club exposure at
the Train Show and on our website. Why not invite a
friend to come to a meeting? X
N-SIG News
The N-SIG hasn't had any gatherings for the last few weeks because
Mother nature won’t cooperate with temps that are conducive to working with
water and glue. We learned a very costly lesson last year when we did some ballast work and had a
cold spell come up. When glue and water freeze they tend to make a real mess out of all your hard
work. Our last gathering found us removing and making an attempt at repairing a lot of our hard work.
Hopefully, since the furry rodent in Pennsylvania didn't see his shadow, we will be able to make
some headway again soon. Our group needs and would like help from some of you other N-scalers out
there. Working on modules is just as much enjoyment as working on a large layout but you get to see
results sooner as it is a smaller project and tends to be more of a community effort. We have found
that the skills one person has tend to help those who haven't built a layout or have been hesitant to try
something for the first time. There is safety in numbers and a lot of good ideas have come from just
talking as we worked and tossed thoughts around.
We try to meet once a week but don’t always manage that, usually Tuesdays from noon until around
three or three-thirty in the garage in my back yard.. We want to try and add a couple more straight
modules for this year and it would be a great opportunity for you to get your feet wet and try something
new. If you would like to join us, let me know. My address and phone number are in the roster.
—Warren Hester
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Keith’s Corner
Scenes from the
January meeting.
All photos by Keith Bobo.
Jerry Gilland comments on his recentlycompleted scratch-built O scale UP “Big Boy.”
\
_
Bob Rothe describes his “scratch-built” underthe-layout creeper while President Joe enjoys a
brief moment out of the spotlight.
Ready for the Senior Roller Derby
What have
I just gotten myself
into???
Lon Wilson
returns to the
club after a neardeath battle with
Guillain-Barré
syndrome.
Chad Horner, our new treasurer
_
7
Contributed by Bruce Dickerhofe.
Scratch-Building a
“Paddlewheeler”
The “Scratch-Built Bug” Bites Again
Now that the Big Boy is on the shelf, I have been casting
around for something new to do. My focus was on my true
love, working with wood. The Big Boy was fun, but wood just
A Long Term Project
isn’t the correct media for a locomotive. My other love is
by Jerry Gilland
ships, and that combination of interests led me straight to
paddlewheel steam boats. So, I am starting to build the
Thomas A. Edison. She was built in 1904, and spent most of
her 10 year life on the Caloosahatchee River in Florida.
One can ask what a series on steamboat modeling is doing in a respectable newsletter like
TELLTALES? Well, I can rationalize several justifications. First, I will be modeling in 1/48 scale, which is
familiar to some of you. And, of course, these boats are steam powered. Next, many of us have river, or
harbor scenes, where a steamboat would be a perfect fit. These boats typically hauled freight, such as
cotton, or cattle from rural areas to industrial centers. For period modelers, I can envision interesting
freight transfer operations between the steamboats and early rail lines and/or transfers to ocean going
ships. If you are modeling in a more modern period, many of these old steamboats have been restored
as excursion or casino boats, and are in use today. Finally, modeling is modeling is modeling!
Techniques developed in building steamboats are equally applicable to building period structures, like
old businesses, hotels, houses, or any wooden structure.
This will be a scratch-built project, using one of the many plans that are available for these models. I
do not plan to do the extreme scratch building that I constrained myself to with the Big Boy and I will
allow myself to purchase components. However, in this area, there is not the extensive array of
suppliers that exist to support model railroading. First cursory studies of my plans indicate that I may
be able to use some O Gauge doors and windows, but little else.
And, yes, I planned to allow the use of power
tools on this build, but I didn’t have any. I will
use double plank on frame for the hull, and
most of the deck and structures will be built up
using planking. I quickly realized the large
amount of planking that will be required with the
further realization of how much it costs. This led
me to the need for a rip saw so that I could
make my own. I didn’t really like what I saw
commercially available. Besides, I was impatient to get
started. So, I found an old Dremel tool that I wasn’t using
and with some scrap lumber and with a day’s effort came
up with my own little sawmill, shown in Photo 1. It is
working quite well. I have cut strips, as thin as .01”, and I
am routinely cutting .030” strips for the hull of my
steamboat. I am employing the double planking approach,
and have finished the first planking with basswood strips.
The principle behind this is that the first planking can be
fairly irregular. A liberal coat of putty is then applied to fill
all cracks and irregularities. I used automotive body putty
named Ever-Glaze, by Evercoat. When dry this was
sanded to produce a very smooth and regular surface, on
which to place the finishing mahogany planks. The hull, ready for final planking is shown in Photo 2.
I am anxious to be finished with this time consuming hull, with essentially no detail, so that I can get
started on the deck details. I will try to have something more interesting to look at by the March issue. X
8
JANUARY CONTEST
We had a fairly good turnout for the January contest with six Kit Built entries and three Scratch/Bash
entries. Maybe, now that we have lights so that the models can be seen, participation in the contest will
continue to be high.
The Red ribbon in the Scratch/Bash class went to Bob Rothe for his “Colossus
of Ramses” flat car load shown in Photo 1. Nice work Bob, but you didn’t identify
the Egyptian railroad carrying it. The first place blue ribbon went to John Nahodyl
for his 1½-door box car shown in Photo 2. John built this nicely detailed model from
scratch using “Ambroid” plans.
Second place in the Kit Built class went to Pete Opila for his nice string of PFE
1
reefers. These kits, shown in Photo 3, are nicely detailed wood kits. The Blue ribbon
in this class was awarded to Roy Johnson. This pickle car, shown in Photo 4, was
a Westerfield kit using Kadee trucks and couplers. The eye catching paint job was a
combination of airbrushing and some careful brush painting. Thanks, Roy, for
providing these details on your entry form. It makes writing this column much easier!
2
The Best of Event gold ribbon was won, hands down, by Jeff MacDonald for his
highly detailed ventilated ALC “Watermelon Car”
shown in Photo 5. This kit featured laser cut wood
and many etched brass parts. We smaller scale
3 modelers are envious of the super detailing that
Jeff achieved in this O gauge model.
4
The February contest is for “Off Line Structures.” This includes house, stores,
storage sheds, and businesses that are not directly related to railroading, but
necessary to round out any realistic layout—almost any structures, except
trackside industries which are the subject of the March contest.
Contest Voting We are converging, but there are still some who
misunderstand the procedure. Just do the following:
5
First, vote for 1st and 2nd place in each of the Kit Built and Scratch /Bash
categories.
Second, decide which of the two 1st place models you feel is the better
one. That should be your “Best of Event” vote.
Rule of the month. (Note that the rules for 2013 are the same as
those published for 2012)
“All entries in any contest must be crafted entirely by the entrant and must
have been constructed within the past two years. Only one model can be entered in any one class each
month. If a model has been awarded a 1st or 2nd place award in any past BMRC contest, it cannot enter
any subsequent contest. A model that has not won an award can be entered in no more than one
subsequent contest.”
The remaining contest topics for this year are:
Feb
Off line structures (houses, stores, etc.)
Mar
Trackside industries
Apr
Motive power (steam or diesel)
MODEL PHOTOS BY KEITH BOBO
May
Open (railroad related)
Jun
Passenger rolling stock
Jul
MoW equipment (including cabooses)
Aug
Open – anything goes
Sep
Locomotive servicing (water, sand, coal towers, etc.)
Oct
No Contest – Caboose Hobbies night
Nov
Railroad owned structures (bridges, trestles, interlocking towers, roundhouses, etc.)
Dec
Model of the Year contest
—Jerry Gilland, Contest Coordinator
XADFGHR
9
20 years ago, more
or less
Contributed by Bob Uhr
FEBRUARY 1993
Doug Geiger provided the 1978 photo of UP
3092 at Green River, Wyoming.
Randy Lee was the February guest speaker.
As editor of Model Railroading, he gave an
interesting presentation about his magazine and
what it takes to be an author. ‘Course, Model
Railroading is now history.
The straw poll conducted during the January
meeting was much appreciated, with the most
interest (by far) in Modeling Classes and Field
Trips. There was a strong show of hands for Nscale modules and layout tours. And there was a
surprising lack of enthusiasm for the existing HO
modules. The HO module group needs a new
module coordinator.
Therefore, Club President Chris Cain proposed
modeling classes starting in April, with possible
subjects of Electrical, Basic Kit Building, Model
Photography, Rolling Stock, Weathering, and
Decals. Chris also solicited volunteers to be field
trip hosts for 1993.
The BMRC was asked to display its modules at
the Scout Show at the fairgrounds in Longmont in
April.
The February model contest featured Diesels.
The winners were:
Tier I: First place: Brian Kistner, Rio Grande
SD40 T2
HO-SIG NEWS
Winter is still here
and it is too cold to work
outside on the flowers
and yard. But now that the Super Bowl is over, the
HO Special Interest Group is making plans and
working for the coming TCA's Toy Train Show on
the first weekend of March, just a few weeks away.
The group worked in January installing new trucks
and wheel sets on un-roadworthy, donated, BMRC
rolling stock. At long last, we will have a good
running freight train made up of only BMRC club
cars and engine. But there is still work to be done
before the Train Show on March 2-3 .
The SIG will be working again on Thursday,
February 14th, 7:00 PM, at Frank Smucker's
place, putting more details on some of the layout's
modules, such as roads, cars, trucks, lots of figures
and planting a lot more trees in time for spring (to
keep arborist Bruce Dickerhofe happy).
There is a need for BMRC members to help set
up for the Train Show on Friday afternoon of March
1st at the Merchandise Mart and more BMRC
members to run the trains and to talk with show
visitors on Saturday and Sunday March 2nd and
3rd. If you are able to help out on any of the three
days, please call or email Frank as he needs to get
all the names to the TCA for name badges to be
made. All those entering the show must either
have a pre-made badge or a purchased entrance
ticket. So give him a call as soon as possible.
If you have any questions, feel free to call or
email Frank. We look forward to seeing you on
February 14th and again on March 1st, 2nd and
3rd.
—Frank Smucker
Bruce D. with a
cup of coffee &
his happy face
with V.P. Joe at
the last work
session. Photo
by
Frank
Smucker.
Monthly Groaner:
If a pig loses its voice, is it disgruntled?
CONTINUED ON PAGE 11
10
Secretary’s
Report
construction and is a retired government contractor
and volunteer fireman. The train show committee
still has openings for an ad coordinator, setup and
teardown and door prize managers. The positions
of raffle manager, by Marv Van Puersem, vendor
coordinator, by Jeff Morrison and layout
coordinator by Jon Bond have been filled. The
2013 contract with the mineral club is in review.
Erik Lindgren is designing a new flyer.
Appreciation trophies for the 2012 show were
distributed. There are still club openings for a
membership coordinator, which will ease the
treasury position work load, and a position for
catering coordinator. During Show and Tell, Jerry
Gillland talked about his now complete O scale
Big Boy project. It was done without commercial
model railroad parts. Jerry also brought older
Model RR magazines to distribute. Bob Rothe
showed a home made creeper for under-layout
construction. Loren Blaney showed a B&O signal
system he is designing.
The evening program was given by John Parker
of the Northern club titled, “Model Railroad
Operations, An Introduction.” Basic concepts
including layout size, identity and functional
components were discussed. Operations are the
fastest growing segment in model railroading.
Layout designs for operations include
adequate isle width and promoting a feeling of
isolation by view blocks and obstructions. Even a
4’x8’ layout or a shelf layout can be operated. Car
forwarding is done by defining industries and
moving freight. Car cards and waybills were used
prior to the 1960s. Modern railroading is done with
computer generated manifest lists. There a many
variations of moving trains from the most
sophisticated CTC signaling to the "mother-may-I"
dispatching method.
The contest for the month was freight cars,
administered by Jerry Gilland. The meeting
closed at 9:30 PM. —Jeff MacDonald, Secretary
JANUARY MEETING
The January 2013 BMRC meeting at the
Louisville Elks Club was opened at 7:15 PM by
President Joe Baldwin. Fifty-nine members and
guests were present. More than twenty enjoyed
the pre-meeting dinner. Guests included Phil
Avary, an S scale hi-railer who discovered us
through the December train show; Chip Rovetta,
an O scaler at the Denver Society of Model
Railroaders; Jim Adams, in HO from Louisville,
Fran Scott, wife of member Tom Scott; and Jim
Brown an HO modeler.
Chad Horner, an N scale modeler, was
nominated for the open treasurer position. He
was elected by unanimous vote. He has past
budgetary experience and has worked as a
volunteer fire fighter. The 2013 board of directors
was introduced to the members, for those who
have been under a rock the past year.
The Rails in the Rockies train show in Estes
Park scheduled for February 16-17 was
announced. The club N scale layout as well as
Bill Bradley`s Z layout are to be shown. The
club is sponsoring the Longmont library and
Lafayette WOW children’s museum layouts. The
Louisville library display was so successful that
Jon Bond and Joe Lhotka were asked to give a
presentation on railroading which over thirty
people attended. Jeff Morrison is handling the
club gear, hats, coats, etc.
Ken Ziebarth offered paper cars to be
constructed by the brave. Jim Froning has
volunteered to be the December train show
manager. He has an O gauge layout under
2013 Timetable
Feb. 16-17—Rails in the Rockies Train Show, Estes
Park Conference Center, Hwy. 36 & Hwy. 7, Estes
Park, Sat. 9-5, Sun. 9-4.
Feb. 21—BMRC Meeting, Tri-City Elks Lodge, 525
Main St., Louisville, 7:15PM. Optional dinner 5:30
PM (Casa Alegre, 1006 Pine).
Feb. 23-24—Train Expo Colorado, 3660 N. Nevada,
Colo. Springs, Sat. 9-4, Sun. 10-3
Mar. 2-3—Rocky Mtn. Toy Train Show, Denver Merchandise Mart, 451 East 58th Ave., 10AM-5PM.
Mar. 16—Swap Meet, at Green Mtn. Presbyterian
Church, 12900 W. Alameda Pkwy. at Mississippi,
Lakewood - 9AM to Noon.
Mar. 21—BMRC Meeting, Tri-City Elks Lodge, 525
Main St., Louisville, 7:15PM. Optional dinner 5:30
PM (Casa Alegre, 1006 Pine).
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10
Tier II: First place: Doug Geiger, Union Bay #3
Second place: Tom Johnson, D&RGW RS-3
Third place: Don Peterson, Eureka & Southern
The club balance at the end of February was
$3,941.19.X
Next TELLTALES Deadline
Submissions for the March TELLTALES should be
sent no later than March 7, 2013.
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