Guys, Hope you have been doing well. I wanted to say hello, and happy Independence Day to everyone! I am sorry it has been so long, I apologize. Boy, so much has transpired since I last posted! The wife is doing great. She is a registered nurse now. My family is doing well, but Dad was a close call over Thanksgiving and Christmas of 2007. I hope your families are doing great. I still enjoy looking at these old layout photos. I appreciate them more over time. You know, my drive and motivation, bordering on obsessive sometimes, is as much a curse as a gift.
Hutch, it indeed has been a while--good to have you back! Take care of the family first--that's a lesson I almost learned the hard way. Any layout news?
Well there is a new layout on the horizon, but it is still fuzzy. I am going to try to find the one that PowerSteamGuy recommended and take a look again. It won't be long and I will be building again. Kind of exciting really. Yeah, I found the book !
How far is Florence from Sumter? Here's a guy about our age, in SC, looking for N scalers... http://www.trainboard.com/grapevine/showthread.php?t=99721
What's up guys. Hope you have all been doing well. A new layout design is under way. Hope to have it completed soon. Having someone help me, so I will be sure to share the results. Happy Holidays to you all. Gosh, I wish I knew what happened to all of my gallery photos. They are all gone
Hi Hutch, good to hear from you. Were did you store the pics? Do you have backup on a C-drive or backup drive? How about the plans for your next layout. Anything to share already? Cheers Dirk
Hutch: Glad to see you back. That layout we discussed way back when.... is a great choice for you. It is # 62 and is similar to your old layout but only on one level. It would give you plenty of elevation changes and running options. Give my regards to your wife.. Take care...
I just spent about 3 evenings reading this whole thread and looking at the pics. I was shocked that closed to end you tore it down and are doing a redesign, but I understand. I think it's a common mistake to make the benchwork too deep. My first layout at age 12 was the typical 4x8 with 2 loops. Then I added a 4 track yard on a 2x4 piece of plywood. The middle was always hard to reach. I then built a 6x14 sized layout with a hole in the center, but tore it apart when I got into cars and driving. Now at 33 years old with a squashed disc in the lower back, I've re-entered the hobby and built another layout, which will be getting torn down because we are going to sell our house and get something closer to my work with some more land, but kind of a fixer house. The layout is going to get free'd into the entire upstairs of a 2 story pole building, no longer confined to the limited space of the spare bedroom and one side of the garage. I am planning.....well if you can imagine, the "negative" image of a 4 legged letter "E" in this space. I am focusing on super long sidings and large radius's, narrow benchwork- in some places 12" only, with alot of elevation change. I plan on building the benchwork in 8' sections, such that if I don't like one or I end up moving, and can break the layout into sections or remove a section and make a new one. Your work looks great, looking forward to seeing the new construction start.
