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This is the current pride and joy of the line, the 2-8-0 Consolidation steam locomotive that's painted in colors inspired by the "Mountaineer" train of the long departed prototype railroad, the New York, Ontario and Western. The model is a "Spectrum" series by Bachmann. The paint is largely factory applied except for the accents in Wisconsin Central Maroon which is very close to the color used on the real NYO&W steamer (based on the few color pictures that survive). There is a "tourist train" that follows the steamer as well including an open flat car.
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A couple of "blue dot" Micro-Trains cars pose in front of the Miracle Chair Company in Au Sable Forks. The New York Central double door boxcar on the left was "backdated" from the MTL model by changing the odd boxcar red door back to Jade Green, and the roof was painted black as was NYC practice during the early 1960's, before budget cuts changed that to the same Jade Green. The New Haven boxcar was actually a bit of a mistake from MTL as it was really boxcar red, not black. A lot of weathering suggests that it may have started as brown but now it's so dirty that it looks black. (So does the photo of a car from the prototype series in the Morning Sun Color Guide to the New Haven, which is how I suspect this MTL paint goof originated.) The term "blue dot" refers to my treatment for cars that I want to (eventually) use in a prototypical operating session on the Wilmington; they have body mounted couplers, MTL low profile wheels, and, as can be plainly seen, attempted weathering.
| The Miracle Chair Company takes its name from an Earl Smallshaw building of the same name and slogan "If it's a good chair, it's a Miracle" that was discussed in the December 1971 issue of Model Railroader. It is constructed largely from two Design Preservation Models kits. |
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One of Model Railroader's earlier slogans was "Model Railroading is Fun" and I truly believe that if it weren't, I wouldn't do it. Some of that fun is subtle jokes-- more subtle than "Miracle Chair Company." Such as the advertisement on this building. (I don't mean "Replace with Autolite Spark Plugs.") Fans of Warner Brothers cartoons may recognize the soft drink "Friz," which is a reference to director Friz Freleng. This exact wording can be seen on a billboard in a Tweety and Sylvester cartoon. I have one of these same billboards on my "Starter Layout" that travels to shows and it usually results in a few knowing smiles.
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Black Brook is the area that is getting the scenery focus at this writing. It's at the end of a short steep branch and is home to the Au Sable Dairies Grocery Warehouse, which is shown here (two Walthers' "Brach's Candy Company" kits joined to make a squarish building). This gives me lots of leeway to send different cars up the branch. Some roofers (Woodland Scenics "Scenic Accents") appear to be busy atop the structure. The different looking green power pole to the right is an ancient import from either Faller or Vollmer, and I'd love to get my mitts on a few more of them. In front of the building in this view is a more typical double pole transformer arrangement which serves the relatively large electrical needs of the operation.
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One of the more recent photos, from December 2005, shows some more progress at Black Brook. The "John Allen Memorial Enginehouse" which took more than a year of elapsed time to assemble and paint (see, I meant "a snail on tranquilizers"!) is now in place on the pike, along with a repainted Bachmann water tower (which doesn't look half bad after changing out the yellow and bright red that it comes in!) and a Bachmann "Plus" coaling tower and sand house. The small station in the background to the right of the coaling tower is from Depots by John and this is at least the third location it's been in-- which is fitting because it's a model of a "portable" station that was utilized by the prototype Milwaukee Road.
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This is a "work in progress" shot of the small "housing development" that will be put in place to the right (directionally east) of the John Allen Memorial Enginehouse. This is a "stretched" Grandt Line "Reese Street Row Houses" kit-- stretched in the sense that with a little extra styrene, I've made the three company houses that come in the kit into four. (More styrene and you can get five, I'm told.) These houses are very small-- about 450 square feet each, in fact-- but given that the Black Brook area drops off steeply just in front of the scene, they need to be. Anything to raise the population of the village! I think it breaks into double digits when these four residences are installed. Certainly enough for there to be a post office, which will be in the lean-to on the left most building.
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A hint of things to come, and some hope for my goal of getting this layout "done" by the end of 2006. This is the "difficult corner" of the layout, the part of the line that I have not quite figured out. I think it will wind up being mostly "white space" in that there won't be anything interesting going on. Black Brook is just to the left and Black Brook Junction is just off to the right, and I think that if this is the Adirondacks, there should be some open space! I do like the way my backdrop came out; it's just cardboard painted and glued with a whole bunch of Timber Products' "Summer Oak" ground foam stuck to it. This is one case where the photo looks better than the real thing; I don't know if that's good or bad! Oh, and by "white space" I don't mean that the Woodland Scenics risers (turned sideways) will stay uncovered! I'm at least a little better modeler than that!
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