WANTED! - Photos and Articles for the Train Order!! New content is always needed, and new thoughts and ideas are the best. Even new twists on old ideas are great. Maybe you have a certain technique for ballast or car maintenance or a locomotive you just upgraded. Send a photo and a small paragraph. It does not need to be professional, just jot it down in an email and fire away. Any content is welcome. Email any content or ideas to the editor at blackswampdiv@div1.ncrnmra.org.

Our Spring Modelers Meet is behind us and the feedback so far has been nothing but very positive and to quote a long time NCR member "I think you set the pattern for one day events for the future". The secret to managing a successful event is having great people you can depend on! I want to personally thank all involved who assisted, attended and opened their homes!

The actual attendance numbers were a little lower than we had hoped for. The snowstorm in Michigan prevented some from making the trip but on the good side, we saw several NMRA members from adjoining regions and a few non-members attend. In total we had 65 attendees which will put us at a slight loss financially and we will review these details at the April meeting. For a first-time event, put together in just a few months, with new ways of handling an event, I would say we had a successful event, and we know how to tweak it for the future. If anyone has additional feedback, please be ready to discuss at the April meeting or send me an email. ALL FEEDBACK IS WELCOME!!

Special thanks also need to go to a couple supporting vendors. Gotham Rail and Marine brought a range of very nice detail products and samples which fit very well with the theme of the show. More information about Gotham Rail and Marine can be found on their website at gothamrailmarine.com. Providing food for the event was Paws Smoke n Grill. Checking with guests about lunch time, I heard lots of happy comments on the quality and quantity of the food provided. Paws Smoke n Grill can be found at many local venues by following them at StreetFoodFinder.com.

We also need to send a thank you to the Sylvania Senior Center. The facility was clean and easy to work with. We got lots of comments from those who attended about how perfect the facility was. We also need to give special thanks to KJ (the site director) who made everything easy for us during setup and the show.

Our Last Meeting before Summer Break

The April 26th meeting will be our last meeting before taking a break for the summer. We will need to agree on the location for our summer outing. The Steam Railroading Institute was our #2 choice last year and will be at the top of the list for this year's outing. If you have some alternative ideas, please bring them to the April meeting for discussion. Hopefully we can make a decision at the meeting!

I look forward to seeing everyone at the meeting!

Marshall Stull,
mstull@marshallstull.com
Superintendent

The last home layout tour before summer break will be Steve Kapela's Norfolk & Whey Railroad. This is a new layout just started in 2021 with the room becoming available in 2016. The golden spike was driven and the first train ran in October 2022. The major electrical work is nearly complete and troubleshooting the track and turnouts is actively underway. The scenery and land-contours are being finalized with the scenery maybe 10% done. Steve is actively seeking thoughts and ideas as the project moves forward. Coal, lumber and passenger service are planned for the layout.

The layout tours are private residences so parking will be limited! Try to car pool if possible!

The following are some of the items people brought to our February 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.

Jim Wolsiffer brought a 16MB Push Button Activated Sound Module with Speaker he picked up from Amazon. These little devices are getting very inexpensive and allow you to add sounds to your scenes around the layout. Link to Amazon https://a.co/d/adH1Cg5

Jim Treadaway shared a logging cabin for his logging company on flat car. He built 12 of them for the layout. Jim says these are simple structures to scratch build. For fun, he actually had his railroad haul the little cabins to the logging site!

Randy Bosscher shared tools he found good and some not so good. These included high tensile, fine sprue cutters from Ruitool Model Nippers from Amazon that he recommends. A jab saw, fine tooth saw which he does not recommend (in blue) and another saw which he did recommended (very sharp) made by Honoson from Amazon.

Tony Kukwa brought Div 6 show finds proving deals can still be found! Ann Arobor RR gondola for $7, pair of LS&I boxcars, one assembled and one kit at $5 each and a Wabash auto parts boxcar. For a modular layout, fine details are not always desirable.

Jeff Schumaker shared a refrigerator car he built from an all metal kit from the 1950s and a Mantua tank car from eBay he rebuilt and repainted. Jeff also showed metric bits he recommends from Harbor Freight for around $3 and a mechanic's silicone tray which are perfect for small parts and Vallejo paint bottles.

Dave McMullian brought K4 decals which he (and several others in the audience) highly recommends!

Spring Modelers Meet

The Spring Modelers Meet went very well with around 65 people attending. Below are some images from the event. These are just a few images and truly cannot do the event justice. A special thanks to Jim Read and Brian Burr for taking the photos!