NCR Black Swamp Division (Div 1) Officers
Superintendent - Marshall Stull Assistant Superintendent - Brian Burr Chief Clerk - Richard Marquard Treasurer - Randy Bosscher Trainmaster for Services - Steve Glass Director At Large - David McMullian Director At Large - Tony Kukwa
Appointments and Helpers
AP Program - Ron Gilbert Editor/Webmaster - Marshall Stull AV/Computer Support - Steve Glass AV/Computer Support - Steve Richwine New Member Outreach - Open
We Need Help!
We need stuff for the Train Order! Please submit any article/photo/information to the editor. any kind of information is great, please tell us what you are up to!! Even if it's just a photo of your layout, something you saw, or what's on your worktable we would love to see it.
Sharing is the best way to spread the hobby and ideas.
Train OrderOur mission is to promote education and fellowship through the sharing of information and the promotion of the world's greatest hobby. - Model Railroading.
From the Editor
Welcome to the November issue of the Train Order! This month and last month, I tried to capture all the items that were brought to the meeting and show them in the Train Order. This way we can share we can share with those members who live too far, cannot travel or schedules conflict with the meeting schedule. If I did not capture your model/ presentation, I apologize. Sometimes they disappear faster than I can get the camera out.
If you bring photos/electronic media, please send me an e-mail so I can include good quality pics in the Train Order.
WANTED! - Pictures of your Christmas train, layout or village!! Please send a photo of your Christmas setup to blackswampdiv@div1.ncrnmra.org. Many of us enjoy decorating for the holidays so why not share a photo and show it! Nothing is too small or too big, just a quick photo and send it in! Email any images to the editor at blackswampdiv@div1.ncrnmra.org.
View from the Cab
It's November and the holiday season is already upon us! Our meeting is on November 17th which is a week earlier than normal, so we avoid thanksgiving.
We have a lot of business to take care of at the meeting! We have the final details on the 2023 Black Swamp Christmas Party and our Spring One-Day Modeling Event to review. Read about all the details below.
I look forward to seeing everyone at the November meeting!!!!
Marshall Stull,
mstull@marshallstull.com
Superintendent
2023 Black Swamp Christmas Party
On December 15th we will be meeting at the SWANTON COMMUNITY CENTER located at 217 Chestnut St, Swanton, OH.
Come hungry because we will have food catered by Tony Packo's. This meeting is about giving back to the membership after having a great year. To celebrate the holidays with our friends, we will be having the meeting catered with food and we will have some fun with a White Elephant Gift Exchange.
Menu:
- Packo's Original Hungarian Hotdogs
- Chicken Paprikas
- Stuffed Cabbage
- Mac & Cheese
- Baked Beans
Bring a Treat to Share! We encourage everyone to bring a favorite Christmas Treat to share with the group. Past favorites have been Christmas cookies, cupcakes, and other desserts.
White Elephant Gift Exchange The more people who participate the more fun it will be!! Please bring a wrapped gift to place on the designated table. The gift must be model railroad/hobby related but can be old or new. Each person will have the chance to pick a gift or steal a gift from someone else. Remember! The More, The Merrier!
IT IS VERY IMPORTANT YOU RSVP!
If you have not already done so, please RSVP (https://forms.gle/WggQjFGAhu8Ee3ED8) so we can make sure we have enough cheer for everyone!
Spring One-Day Modeling Event
After much work, we finally have an appropriate venue for our March 2024 event. The location will be revealed at the November 17th meeting. All we can say prior to our November 17th meeting is that the venue is central to most layouts, spacious and comfortable. It was a lot of foot work to find the location and we are confident the membership will agree.
The date for the event will be March 23, 2024! We will have model displays, layouts, clinics and layout tours. In order to make things easy (for us) we will only be collecting funds on the day of the event. We will setup a pre-register page for those who wish to reserve their spot and get through registration quickly.
Again, please attend the meeting to get all the details firsthand! For those who cannot attend, we will be putting out official announcements once the membership approves our plans for the event.
Clinic Corner
November is here and we have one last meeting before our holiday break. This month, Tony Kukwa will be presenting a clinic on the lift bridge for the Northwestern Modular Railroad group layout. This lift bridge is used to let people, not boats, pass underneath. Tony's going to tell us what was involved in designing and constructing something sturdy enough to be it's own module and be functional as part of a layout. Maybe this is something you might incorporate into your layout.
See you there,
Brian Burr,
Assistant Superintendent
November 17th Meeting Agenda
Here is a quick breakdown of what to expect at the meeting:- Rip Track Table - Have items you want to sell or just give away? Put them on the table
- Business
- Show and Tell
- Break
- Door Prizes
- Clinic
- Closing Remarks - Announcements and Open Discussion Points
The lighter side of the hobby
October Meeting Highlights
The following are some of the items people brought to our October Meeting. If you brought something and I missed it, please drop me an email with a photo and I will get it included in the next issue.
Dan Merkel provided the clinic for October on designing the kit for the Deshler tower. Dan provided a wealth of information on not only how he designed the model but the sources he used to create his kit. Dan also shared several of his other models he has completed.
Dave McMullian gave an overview of how he used Accurail cars (and gave a positive review) and the modifications he made to match his prototype.
Fred Jean shared some O scale detailed/weathered cars he did along with a structure he modified.
Randy Bosscher showed off his in-process Sn3 project locomotive which will have DCC, sound and other features when completed.
Stephen Kellogg showed his recent locomotive acquisitions and locomotive projects.
Tony Kukwa shared his rolling stock projects. Tony explained his techniques for adding weight to cars that had no space for weight.
Steve Glass showed us how he used components from other scales to simulate HO scale loads.
Ray Huber shared photos of the Deshler Tower and his work towards a simple electronic device for train detection.
Division Happenings
AI Railroad Turkey Run - November 18th
Saturday the 18th of November is the last active club run for the NWOLS group at my AI RailRoad. All Black Swamp (Division 1) members are invited out. This is my Turkey Run event and we will be serving Fried Turkey and many of the traditional sides associated to the upcoming Holiday! We start around 11 am and end around 4 pm. If you want additional info please message me. Last year it was below freezing and we tried to run steam but water pumps froze. This year we are expecting warmer weather!
Upcoming Events
If you know about an event happening in our division, please let us know so we can make everyone aware. If a club is having an open house, setup, or other activities, we could help promote it!
