MORRISTOWN & ERIE RAILROAD - WESTERN DIVISION

[Erieman]

I guess it is about time to really get into this forum. While there are many followers of another fourm, i notice that this forum has many new faces. That being said, I'll start my story of my railroad.

The Morristown & Erie railroad existed in my hometown in New Jersey. It seemed logical that when i moved to Arizona that the name of my layout should be the Morristown & Erie Railroad - Western Division. Rather than bore everyone with pictures of prior posts, I will be posting progress photos of the layout.

  This past year has been a year of change. Not like my esteemed friend, Tom Langford's project, but change, non the less. The early reversing system installed on my layout was non DCC and consisted of a bunch of solenoids. Time changes everything and DCC auto reversers were installed this year. Lots of wire was removed from under the layout. The auto reversers were added and perform flawlessly, but not without some head scratching. I have 9 auto reversers, some in series.

Another item that needed attention was the switch machines. I had purchased the first generation of slow motion machines from PFM / Fulgarex. they were a very nice machine, but like anything else, time was not kind to the operation of the layout. So-o-o, they too are being replaced. A little over half the layout is complete. Since the switch machine replacement, running trains showed another issue. The control panels were outdated. The schematics were old and wrong and many toggle switches were not functioning properly. The lights were incandescent, not LED's. That too is being changed.

All this has been going on while building structures! Needless to say, the railroad is getting better. I'll take some pictures in the next day or two and post them on this threat so you can see the progress. Hope you enjoy the journey.

Frank / Erieman

[GPdemayo]

Good to see you hopping in Frank. I'll be following along! 

[gnatshop]

Typical reactions to OFS (Old Fart's Syndrome).
At some point, we realize that we have to move into the new improved world of model railroading.
Today's technology allows us solutions that we would have thought impossible in the past.

Congrats to you for embracing them and allowing you to continue forward with your New, Improved railroad! 

[ACL1504]

Frank,

You have been very busy as well my friend! You forgot to mention to our forum friends that you also remodeled the kitchen and completely redid/landscaped your entire back yard to include irrigation and a huge fountain!

I'm not real sure any grass has a chance of growing under our feet!

Tom

[Erieman]

Good to see you hopping in Frank. I'll be following along! 

Thanks Greg, stay tuned.

Frank / Erieman

[Erieman]

Typical reactions to OFS (Old Fart's Syndrome).
At some point, we realize that we have to move into the new improved world of model railroading.
Today's technology allows us solutions that we would have thought impossible in the past.

Congrats to you for embracing them and allowing you to continue forward with your New, Improved railroad! 

Gnat,

Thanks for stopping by. In this hobby, you snooze, you loose. Need to keep everything up to snuff so it looks and runs well. i'll be posting more pics soon to show you the results.

Frank / Erieman

[Erieman]

Frank,

You have been very busy as well my friend! You forgot to mention to our forum friends that you also remodeled the kitchen and completely redid/landscaped your entire back yard to include irrigation and a huge fountain!

I'm not real sure any grass has a chance of growing under our feet!

Tom

Good Morning Tom,

Thanks, actually the kitchen was several years ago. The backyard has been this years project. I have been taking a break working on the yard. all that digging was getting to me. Still have a lot of work on the backyard, but at a slower pace. Trains are more important right now. I also have the edition of the newsletter to get out in January. This issue will not be as big as the last issue, but it will be good.
got the layout drawing from greg this morning with the grid. Now I can sketch out some more ideas for your consideration.
Have a great day.

Frank / Erieman 

[Erieman]

Okay, as promised, here are some photos of Chester. While not complete, these photos show the progress of scenery, structures, etc. to the visual effect of the railroad. earlier in the week, i visited Don Ledger, a modeler in the valley, who has been making pine trees. These trees are awesome. He has published several articles on how to, and I will be attempting to build the same trees. they really look fabulous on the layout.
I am trying to complete the scenery in Chester first and then move around the room. Lots of details to do in the meantime. Enjoy the pics.

Frank / Erieman

[tjseeley]

Wow, Frank!  The detailing and weathering on your buildings is amazing!  I'm also impressed by your scenery - I'm going to enjoy following your posts and learning!

[Erieman]

Wow, Frank!  The detailing and weathering on your buildings is amazing!  I'm also impressed by your scenery - I'm going to enjoy following your posts and learning!

TJ.
Obviously you probably know of this railroad based in Whippany. When I lived in Morristown, the engine house was behind the main train station. I had the pleasure of driving one of their old steam engines when I was a kid. Quite cool back then. The scenery on the layout does not depict anything like New Jersey. My layout is more freelance, using only several names of towns and places that I recall.

As far as buildings are concerned, i really enjoy building structures. You'll find another one of my buildings on this forum in Robert Secklers layout" Dutchess and Hudson in this thread on layout tours. It is the Ft. Edwards Station and is scratch built.

If you see anything and have a question on how it was done, do not feel bashful about asking. I would be glad to answer any questions. Thank you for stopping by.

Frank / Erieman

[robertseckler]

Frank

As always AWESOME Work

More pictures please

[ak-milw]

Love it, just love it!!

[Erieman]

Frank

As always AWESOME Work

More pictures please

Thanks Robert,

Appreciate your comments. I'll be posting more photos tomorrow. Here are a couple photos of Yakima Apples prior to installation on the layout.

[Erieman]

Love it, just love it!!

Andy,

Thank you for your comments. glad you are enjoy the railroad.  Here are a couple more photos.

Frank / Erieman

[GPdemayo]

Atta boy Frank, keep the pictures coming!

How are you doing on the man cave drawing for Tom?