Awesome Model T Railcar in action

Rail-fanning in Connecticut

For a small state, Connecticut offers a lot of opportunities for the rail fan. Here is a complete overview of all of the railway (steam and trolley) and railroad and trolley museums in Connecticut. Most of them offer train or trolley rides as well as exhibits. These are live museums which restore our railroad heritage. Donate to them if you can! Links to the article about rail fanning in Connecticut.

1939 Stores

Love this picture. Reference for the future town area of my railroad.

Muskrat Ramble Railroad - Bayou Fish & Greens

Here's an awe inspiring layout called the Muskrat Ramble Railroad. Its an On30 scale exhibition railroad shown at the Narrow Gauge Convention in Sydney, Australia and has been featured in at least two issues of Narrow Gauge and Short Line Gazette and surely in other publications.

The layout is set in the Louisiana Swamps 1925. This building was based on a Walker Evans photograph.

More pictures of the Muskrat Ramble Railroad here.

Crawford Notch, NH - Switchman's shack

Located at Crawford Notch, NH just before the switchyard.

The Mine Models of Junior Yamachi

I'm inspired by the models of Japanese modeler Junior Yamachi. His mining buildings in particular intrigue me. I think it has a lot to do with the originality of design. He seems to capture the essence of these mine buildings without totally copying a prototype. I get a bit tired of seeing the same mining models over and over. It seems that American modelers are so focused on creating exact copies of prototypes where as some of the best European and Japanese modelers I've seen seem to approach modeling from more of a Hollywood set design approach. The buildings suggest what might have been instead of making a statement of this is what it was - exactly. I guess you might call it a bit of whimsy.

See more of Junior's modeling