Along the Right of Way ...

Nick's Railway Supply

  Milepost 102

Since model railroad shops are becoming more and more scarce, I do like to comment about and highlight those that are still around.  I'm especially excited about those that go above and beyond the usual smattering of Ready To Run offerings pushed into one corner of a multi-purpose hobby shop and simply called the train department.  That's why I'm interested in mentioning Nick's Railway Supply in Canton, Ohio.

It's funny how these things go... I was planning a trip to Columbus to celebrate my birthday back in February.  In preparation for that trip, I posted to the MODEL RAILROADER forum and asked if there were any good hobby shops in Ohio's capital other than The Train Station.  Well, I got a few mediocre replies but then someone mentioned Nick's in Canton.  It almost hijacked my original post as several others chimed in about their positive experiences there.  So I decided that I'd have to pay them a visit.  A month later, we were off to Kent State to see our daughter and there would be time for a little side trip!

I spoke to the owner (I'm sorry, I lost his name with the rest of my notes) and the shop had a strange start to it.  He started out by fixing lawn mowers & other power equipment in the summertime.  But there wasn't enough business for him in the winter, so he looked for something to "fill in" during the slow months.  Since he was a model railroader and a couple of the guys who worked with him were as well, his mother actually suggested that they should use their interest in trains to keep them busy over the winter.  From there it grew...

She actually told me that the first few shipments of store stock that came in didn't make it to the shelves as they took many of the items for themselves.  But once the shelves started to fill up, the word got out and the business took off.  Now they are plenty busy during the winter months with both walk in traffic and a fair amount of mail in orders as well.  They also mentioned a few sales online using Ebay.

Their business card says, "For the Intermediate to Advanced Model Railroader" and this is certainly the case.  I didn't see many preassembled kits or RTR rolling stock.  Instead, there were racks of detail parts for custom detailing steam & diesel locomotives.  There was also a very large selection of scratch building materials like scribed styrene, windows, doors, roofing materials, etc, for the modeler who doesn't like the kit building routine.  Nick's probably has the largest selection of this kind of material that I've ever seen under one roof.

The selection was broad as well.  I spent a good hour there and certainly helped the local economy by the time I checked out.  The owner was very friendly & helpful during my entire visit and really did like to talk trains.  So if you are in the Canton area and have some extra time to spend on your favorite pastime, you may very well want to drop in to visit Nick's Railway Supply.  They aren't the easiest place to find, so I'd check on an Internet mapping site for some specifics.  Their address is 7251 Middlebranch Avenue, North Canton, Ohio, 44721.  Their phone number is 330 494-0125 and their web address is www.nicksrailwaysupply.com   It wouldn't hurt to call ahead as their summer hours do change to accommodate the increased workload with mowers & other power equipment.

Until next time...

dlm 

Speaking of Mileposts...

Milepost 101

If all goes well, when this is posted, I'll be in Kent, Ohio, at Kent State University for our daughter Jayne's graduation ceremonies.  Talk about a milepost!

For those of you with kids, you know that they grow up fast.  It doesn't seem like it was all that long ago that I took her to the railroad tracks to see & hear her first railroad train.  Ummm... she was less than thrilled, but I never gave up hope.  And, as time went on, if it was good enough for Daddy, it was good enough for her.

We would go watch trains together.  She was more interested in picking up neat looking stones than watching for the trains, but when one would come, we would stand back at a safe distance and count cars, wave and have a good time.  It was a special thrill when the engineer would blow the horn at us.

Later, when she was able to run the throttle on my layout, she would run the train back & forth before she went to bed each night.  Sometimes, I'd hold her and she would just watch them roll by until her eyelids got too heavy and she was out like a light.  Those memories are priceless.

I'm amazed that people today say that they don't have the ability to assemble even the simple Athearn "Blue Box" kits.  When Jayne was about nine years old, she & I would sit at the table and put them together.  She wasn't too interested in my beloved Nickel Plate Road.  She liked the Chessie cars... with the cat on them!  But she could and did put them together by herself.

It is only slightly disappointing that she isn't as interested in trains as much as I am but I can still count on her to take new friends up to the train room to show them what her dad does in his spare time.

So she graduates and goes on to be a nurse here in Findlay at Blanchard Valley Hospital.  A milepost indeed.  Congratulations Jayne; your father is certainly proud of you!

Until next time...

dlm

Mileposts

Milepost 100

For the past several months, I've included a milepost notation on each of the posts I've made.  I've done this for several reasons:  first, I wanted to keep tabs of the total number of posts I've made here.  I also wanted an easy way to refer back to previous posts, you know, "...see Milepost 83" etc.  And, mileposts would be something that would often be seen along the right of way.

The two photos above are from the Nickel Plate mainline which ran between Buffalo, New York, and Chicago, Illinois.  As you might guess, the post was located 362 miles from Buffalo and 161 miles from Chicago.

The mileposts served as reference points along the line.  As such, their precise placement was of extreme importance and was a high priority of the road's engineering department.  Almost all facilities were referenced by their relative position to a milepost.  A station might be located at Milepost 37.6, a passing siding might be at Milepost 53.7, etc.  And, obviously, mileposts allowed a train crew to know where they were and just how far it was to their next destination or even point of reference.

My friend Ben, a former railroader, tells me that there are other uses for the mileposts.  Train crews have to check their train speed with a watch and two mileposts.  Just like in your car on the Interstate highway, it should take you one minute to travel between two mileposts at 60mph.  If a train has to stop for a reason, the crew can notify the dispatcher of where they are by the mileposts.  A dispatcher can also give a train crew permission to use a certain section of track between two mileposts.  And a train crew might be notified of a possible problem or of a maintenance crew working in the area of a certain milepost.  These are just a few of the many reasons that railroads had and still have mileposts in place on the railroad.

Through the years, the Nickel Plate acquired other railroads and added them to their system.  The milepost pictured here was between Peoria, Illinois, and Sandusky, Ohio.  This line was the Lake Erie & Western that passed through Findlay.

Today, the mileposts are usually small metal squares mounted on a metal signpost.  Certainly functional but not nearly as neat looking as the old cast concrete posts featured here.

Until next time...

dlm

ATCS Monitor software

Milepost 99

It was a few weeks ago that I was over in Deshler at one of my favorite train watching spots... I had been there for a couple of hours and a few other railfans had come & gone.  In the distance, a couple of us heard a train whistle and got all excited about some traffic approaching from the west.  "Nah," said a guy there who had taken a quick look at his laptop screen, "that's on the NS going through Leipsic."

Huh?  How did he know that? Well, I sauntered over to where his laptop was plugged in and saw a graphic representation of the railroads in the area of Deshler and Leipsic.  Sure enough, there was a green line running through Leipsic complete with green signals and all.  Well, one thing led to another and before I left there that evening, I had the web address of the ATCS Monitoring group.  And I've been hooked ever since.

Take this from a complete novice; after all, I've had this up and running only a few weeks as I said.  But here's what I know... the railroads must use radio signals to indicate signal aspects, switch positions and track occupancy.  This information is picked up by regional radio antennae and then forwarded to the dispatcher's display where he/she can see the progress of the trains as they move across the rail system.

But these same signals are being picked up by amateur Ham radio operators, translated, then in some cases, fed to some Internet web servers.  This data in turn can be picked up by anyone with the proper software and then displayed on a graphic presentation on their personal computer.

While I realize that it is hard to see, the screen shot displays pictured here show both Fostoria on the top and Deshler on the bottom.  If one pieces the two together, they can pretty much monitor trains on the CSX main line from the Indiana state line to Attica.  Switches, crossings, sidings & interchange tracks are all displayed and after a bit of studying, you can pretty much figure out what is going on along the whole stretch of track.

Not all railroads use ATCS so there are a lot of areas that simply aren't available.  And even the areas that are under ATCS may not all be covered by an Internet server.  Keep in mind that this is not the railroads putting this information on the Internet; it is a group of hard working HAM radio enthusiasts who have invested their time and money to make this happen.

The ATCS group has a Yahoo Group where the software to monitor the system is available for free.  You do need to request membership but I had no problems being accepted.  I simply told them that I was interested in railroading, railfanning and rail photography.  I was accepted within one day.

Should you decide to look into this more closely, you can do a search on Google for ATCS monitoring.  That should get you started.  You'll need some modest computer skills to set up the software, but it is pretty simple and there are some good instructions & tutorials available on the Yahoo group.  Take my advice & read them.

As I mentioned, not all areas using ATCS are available on the Internet.  There are quite a few areas where you can capture the signal yourself on a railroad scanner (it takes a special frequency and some modifications to your radio) then use the software to display the translated signals on a laptop.  But the gentleman I met that night at Deshler was simply using his laptop with a wi-fi card.

While it's not quite as exciting as being there in person, when it's cold, windy & raining outside, it's kind of nice to be able to sit in the comfort of your living room and "watch" the trains as they go along the right of way.

Until next time...

dlm

Lucky Shot!

Milepost 98

When I was about 10 or 12, we had a pool table in our basement.  And, when we played, the shooter placed much more emphasis on "skill" than "luck."  So, after making a shot that caromed off of six cushions & three other balls, you would loudly proclaim "Skill!" while others mumbled, "Lucky Shot......."

A couple of weeks ago, I was up in Bloomdale just watching trains.  My wife had dropped me off and came back to Findlay to attend to some other matters.  I had about an hour & a half to watch trains.  Only problem was that the trains didn't cooperate that night... it was about ten minutes before I left that one finally made an appearance from the east.  By then, it was too dark to take a decent picture.

But all was not lost as I had plenty of time and an unobstructed view of the sunset to the west that evening.  I noticed that as the sun went down, the skies turned more red and orange... this was setting up to be a great opportunity.  I'll be honest and tell you that I took several shots of the sunset over a period of about five or six minutes then chose the best one to keep.

So I don't care if you want to call it a Lucky shot or if you want to give me credit for being at the right place at the right time... or even a little skill.  No matter how you vote, it is one of the nicer railroad related pictures I've taken and I'm glad that I could share it with you.

Until next time...

dlm

All In The Family...

Milepost 97

No, this post isn't going to be about the popular 1970s TV show with Archie & Edith Bunker, Gloria, Meathead and all of the others... instead, it is about my recent efforts to show that my railroad layout has a "family" look to it.

Once railroads began to flourish and become bigger after mergers, consolidations, take-overs, etc, they realized that it made sense to develop some sense of standardization.  This meant in motive power, rolling stock and yes, even the buildings along the right of way.  While larger city stations usually maintained their uniqueness because of special situations, most everything else from small stations, signal towers, trackside shanties, maintenance buildings and even telephone boxes were pretty much of a standard design AND color.

When you think about it, standardization made sense for a lot of reasons.  Parts were interchangeable.  Even buildings were able to be moved from one location to another and fit the same foundation.  Colors were standardized to save on buying paint and also to develop and maintain a railroad's identity.  Besides, it was a whole lot easier to pull out a standard plan when you needed a new tower.  And it was much cheaper than redesigning one all over again.

So I am trying to do the same thing on my layout.  The standard building gray is inexpensive spray paint from WalMart.  The green roof is also a standard craft type paint.  In this case, I bought several bottles of a color called "Thicket."  While it's not a perfect match for the NKP's green shingles, it is close enough and easy enough to find.  As I build more buildings, I'll try to maintain the "standard" look by using the same kinds of windows & doors, etc.

But don't panic too much if your buildings aren't all EXACTLY the same color.  Paint varied in color from region to region and even from batch to batch.  Styles differed some because some buildings were obtained as a result of consolidation and, often being frugal, the railroads weren't quick to replace a perfectly good building just because it was different.  So you have a little leeway.  But if you want to try to duplicate the practices of your favorite railroad, try to maintain the same style and colors... along the right of way.

Until next time...

dlm

Four legged railfans...

Milepost 96

A couple of weeks ago, we had a really nice weekend and so we decided to get out for a ride.  As usual, a ride usually stops at one of my favorite train watching spots and this ride was no exception.  But instead of heading to Fostoria or North Baltimore, we opted instead to head north then west to Deshler.

Deshler is on the same CSX tracks that go through Fostoria but there is also a north-south set of tracks that goes to Toledo and south towards Dayton.  There is usually a lot of raifanning there and this particular afternoon and  evening was no exception.  I'll tell you more about my experiences there in another post, but I had quite the surprise when I looked at one of the pictures that I had taken.

We could see that there was a train coming from the south but we couldn't see if it was headed on north to Toledo or if it was going to take one of the connecting tracks to either Fostoria or west towards Defiance.  So I got the bright idea to use my telephoto lens and take a picture to the north, then zoom in to see how the signals were set.  You can see in the first picture that the signal colors aren't showing up at all.  In the second photo, they still aren't very clear but there is something on the tracks.  Finally, the third photo reveals the green light of the signal indicating that the train we saw coming was indeed headed to Toledo.  But you can also see that there were a couple of deer there as well!  Perhaps they, like me, were out for a stroll to enjoy the nice day.  Who knows; they may have been doing some train watching of their own!  : )      Anyway, it was quite the surprise to see them in the photo once I had magnified it.  It just goes to show that you never know quite what you will see... "Along the Right of Way."

Until next time...

dlm

Warrington, Ohio

Milepost 95

When you have an interest in trains like I do, people soon find out about it.  This is usually a good thing because if they want to know something, it is usually, "I'll ask Dan the next time I seem him.  He probably knows."  But better yet, they tend to save things that are really neat for you!  As usual, each one of those things has a neat story behind it.

Ever since I was old enough to remember, I have liked trains.  When I was very young, I used to run to the windows at the back of my grandmother's house to watch the steam engines on the Wheeling & Lake Erie tracks that were over the hill behind her home.  By then, they were actually the Nickel Plate's tracks but their origin was all Wheeling.  Her house was only about a mile from where this photo was taken.

Even on an old map, I doubt if you will find Warrington.  For as long as I've known it, the little town was called Warrenton, Ohio.  Its only real significance was that it was where the wye on the Wheeling & Lake Erie was located.  The Wheeling & Lake Erie tracks ran from... well, Wheeling to Lake Erie near Toledo.  At Warrenton, there was a wye and trains could either go north to Steubenville & Mingo Junction or they could go south to Terminal Junction, then across the river to Wheeling, West Virginia.  As the traffic increased from the growth of the steel mills in the area, the wye was put in place to allow trains to go directly from Terminal Junction to Steubenville.

I'm not sure of the date of this photo but it has to be before 1937.  In that year, passenger trains on the Wheeling were discontinued.  The picture is taken from the north; I believe that there was a water tower there.  There are two trains in the foreground that are headed north towards Steubenville.  In the background is a third train headed west... perhaps ultimately towards Toledo.  The station is setting right in the middle of the traingle of tracks.

So, I'm not sure where she got the picture, but my grandmother had a copy of it made especially for me because she knew that I would really appreciate it.  Not only is it a neat photo, but there are other memories that are attached to it.

That's all for now... until next time.

dlm

Be Polite!

Milepost 94

I had a chance to go train watching the other evening.  My wife was going to visit her mother and since she has moved to a new assisted care facility, it isn't all that far from the CSX main line where I frequently spend "quality time" watching them run by.  So, along about 6:30 in the evening, she dropped me off complete with camera bag & binoculars.  And I settled in for what I thought was going to be a decent night.

Well... after about 45 minutes of no action at all, I decided to take a walk down the tracks and kind of look to see if I could find any old concrete mile posts or property markers.  Most of them are gone now but on occasion, especially out in rural areas, you can still find a few.  Having walked about fifteen minutes and not finding any, I headed back to the crossing where I started.  About five minutes later, I hear someone yell, "Hey!  Is everything OK?"  I didn't think they were talking to me, so I kept going.  The second shout caused me to look and notice a local policeman along the side of the road in his patrol car.

He wanted to know if everything was OK and where I was headed.  I told him I was headed back to the crossing.  A few minutes later, when I got there, I saw his car and felt that I needed to be a little proactive instead of looking & sounding defensive so without a second thought, I walked over to the car and struck up a bit of a conversation.  He simply wanted to know why I was walking along the tracks, where I was headed & where was my car.  It seemed a bit awkward for me to explain to him that I didn't drive, that my wife had dropped me off and that she was going to stop by in about half an hour to pick me up again.  He simply pointed out that with the speed that the trains traveled in the area, he couldn't ignore anyone walking down the middle of the tracks.

Before being asked, I produced some ID and he seemed satisfied that I was who I said I was and that my intentions were harmless.  But I understand that he was simply doing his job and was ultimately concerned about my safety.  We chatted for a few more minutes, found that we had a mutual friend then he got in his car and drove off.  Before he left, he mentioned a good place in town to watch trains, he asked me to please stay off of the tracks and he said that he hoped that he didn't ruin my evening. 

About ten minutes later, there was one west bound train of tank cars; the evening wasn't a total loss...

So a word to all of you train watchers... keep a few things in mind when you are out enjoying your favorite pasttime.  The police are interested in your safety and the safety of others.  They are simply doing their job when they speak to you.  Being courteous and polite is a lot better than being a smart alec.  I've actually been embarrassed by the actions of some belligerent rail fans when approached by law enforcement officers.

There are a lot of us who enjoy train watching.  Don't give the rest of us a bad name by being a hotshot or mouthing off.  For the most part, the police know that we aren't there to cause trouble and may in fact be of assistance should the situation arise.  As I mentioned earlier, be polite and courteous... and as the staff sergeant on Hill Street Blues used to say, "Hey, let's be careful out there."

Until next time...

dlm

Athearn Announces New NKP Heavy Duty Flat

Milepost 93

I received an email from Athearn the other day announcing some new products.  Among them, is a Nickel Plate Road Heavy Duty flatcar.  This kit has been around for a while but this is the first time that Athearn is offering it in their popular RTR (Ready To Roll) series.  And, as an RTR car, they will include some kind of appropriate looking heavy load for the car as well.  This feature was omitted from the kit.

The artist's rendering above gives a pretty good rendering of what the final car model will look like.  You will immediately notice two things:  first, there are four trucks instead of the usual two.  This was to spread out the weight of a heavy load.  Second, you will notice that the car is of "heavy duty" construction with very thick components to support those heavy loads.

The four truck design is rather interesting in that the trucks are still independent of each other.  It's hard to explain, but it's almost like each end of the car is a "mini-car" with the heavier flat car supported between the two.  It makes for an interesting piece of rolling stock and, as an interested Nickel Plate Road modeler, I'm always glad to see it when major manufacturers feature my road in product releases.

Somewhere in my collection of "future projects," I have one of these cars.  Perhaps this would be a good time to assemble it to share with those of you who frequent the site.  Time will tell...

The other source of my interest is strictly personal satisfaction... I sent them the picture of the original car many years ago.  So I did have a small hand in helping promote the Nickel Plate Road to the rest of the hobby!  : )

If you are interested in finding out more about the NKP Heavy Duty Flatcar or other Athearn offerings, you may visit their web site at www.athearn.com 

Until next time...

dlm