Skip to main content

Northern Pacific Parlor Car 1799 Move and Restoration

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

Richard Anderson, Executive Director, Northwest Railway Museum

Note from Kent Sullivan: Hello regional NMRA friends, I am helping Richard Anderson of the Northwest Railway Museum in Snoqualmie to get the word out about saving this amazing all-wood Northern Pacific passenger car. It is rare in the extreme to find one in such complete condition. The issue is a chunk of money needs to be raised quickly in order to move it very soon, before the property owners condemn and destroy it. (It’s horrible to consider this happening but that’s exactly what is in store for the car in a couple of months.) The total cost to rehabilitate this car, if it can be moved soon, is projected to be far less than the typical restoration these days, due its superior overall condition.

Please, if you can donate to help raise the first chunk of money, contact Richard. His contact info is at the bottom of this posting. And, please forward this posting to anyone you know who might have an interest in helping – NP enthusiast or otherwise. The link is https://4dpnr.com/northern-pacific-parlor-car-1799-move-and-restoration/. Merry Christmas.

Read More

Northwest Railway Museum, Railroad History

Nominations Needed for 2017 Golden Grab Iron Service Award

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

By Jim Sabol

Go Ahead — Nominate Someone!

Do you know someone who has been beating his brains out promoting our hobby and helping modelers (which is the same thing). Holding open houses. Giving clinics. Writing articles. Helping kids become interested in our hobby. Please consider nominating him or her for the Golden GrabIron Service Award (click here to see previous awardees) for 2017. Send your nominations, and how we can reach you, to jimsabol@msn.com or give them personally to previous awardees Ted Becker or Jim Younkins.

Thank you.

Grab-Iron

Westside Clinic in Bremerton on Tuesday, Dec 13th, Home for Layout Needed

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

Bill Hupé

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!

Tuesday December 13th is our Clinic. Subject for the clinic will be … Suggestions? Anyone from the Tacoma Clinic or the east side of the sound that can volunteer?

We will have a “Dirty Santa” gift exchange. Bring a wrapped gift. Something that has been hanging around and you no longer want. Or something new. Pass it on to one of your buddies. Value? Up to $15.

As usual there will be a “Show and Tell” and “Model of the Month”. Bring your family or a friend who is interested in Model railroading. Refreshments will be provided. Donations for the Kitsap Food bank will be collected.

Read More

Westside Local Clinic

Eastside Get Together South (Renton) Clinic Report for November 2016 – David Yadock Presentation

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

Article and Photos by Syd Schofield

4th Division, Eastside Get Together South Branch (Renton) Clinic, Tuesday November 22, 2016

Attendees at the Renton Clinic November meeting

Attendees at the Renton Clinic November meeting

Due to the Thanksgiving holiday we moved the meeting night up from the usual fourth Thursday to the fourth Tuesday. Russ Segner convened the gathering at 6:30 pm as we were in the Renton Highlands library and they are rather set in their ways on available conference room hours. These are very nice KCLS (King County Library System) facilities for meetings, but due to scheduling difficulties, the location may change for future meetings. There will be a Grab Iron post when that happens.

Read More

Burien Clinic

Eastside Get Together North (Redmond) Clinic Report for November – Elements of Layout Design

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

Article and Photos by Cliff Green

Dave Enger's tugboat, a Revell 1:108 scale model

Dave Enger’s tugboat, a Revell 1:108 scale model

The carpool I rode in to the Redmond Clinic (“The Bothell Express”, Alex Brikoff driving) was full and lively, and I specially enjoyed meeting Mark Allen for the first time and chatting about his marine salvage company (Underwater Admiralty Sciences). Syd Schofield, the Eastside Get Together Clinic Reporter (both Redmond and Renton) was sick and unable to take notes, so I was happy to fill in as temporary clinic reporter.

The date was November 17th, 2016, and the clinic was well attended with 22 people, including one for the first time (welcome, Zack Newman!). After David Cook provided a clinic welcome and discussed events happening around the area, Alex Brikoff talked about the “Photo Contest of the Month” he will be organizing for the Redmond Clinic starting in January – click here for details.

Read More

Eastside Get-Together (Redmond) Clinic

Skagit Valley and Whidbey Clinic November 2016 Report – UK Railfanning, Nebraska Layouts, and the Palace Car Co

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

Article and Photos by Rich Thom

Fig 1 - Dave Clarke's GN Class F8 2-8-0

Fig 1 – Dave Clarke’s GN Class F8 2-8-0

The Skagit Valley & Whidbey (SV&W) NMRA Clinic’s November meeting, held on Nov. 9th at the group’s Summerhill venue in Oak Harbor, attracted 24 participants and rewarded all with a diverse evening of both prototype and model railroading. The clinic included a detailed look at the products of new clinic member Mark Malmkar, who with wife Chris recently moved from Nebraska to the Pacific Northwest – quite a transition for sure! – to be closer to family who had gravitated to this corner of the country.

Read More

Skagit Valley and Whidbey Island Clinic

Photos of Eastside Layout Tour on Oct 1

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

Cliff Green

Port scene on Kevin Klettke's Washington Northern HO scale layout (Cliff Green photo)

Port scene on Kevin Klettke’s Washington Northern HO scale layout (Cliff Green photo)

The 4th Division (PNR, NMRA) is fortunate to have a large number of excellent layouts, and I try to view them whenever there is a layout tour or open house. In particular, I’ve attended the well organized Olympia Layout Tour many times (thanks go to Scott Buckley and others for putting this together every year), and view as many layouts as I can on PNR Regional Conventions and other open house occasions.

Russ Segner organized an Eastside Layout Tour this year, split into two separate days, and I was able to attend the second tour on Oct 1. The Grab Iron post for that event, which contains descriptions of each layout, can be viewed by clicking here. There were four layouts open on that day, ranging in location from Fife to Newcastle, WA.

This is a selected set of photos that I took that day (I will upload photos of a couple of my Olympia Layout Tour visits in a future post). As is always the case on Grab Iron posts, clicking on the small image in a post will display the larger sized (and more detailed) image.

Read More

Layout Tour, Narrow Gauge

Rail Photo of the Month Contest at Eastside Get-Together North Clinic (Redmond)

Written by Cliff Green
Leave a Comment

Alex Brikoff

The Redmond Clinic (Eastside Get-Together North Branch) will have a new way for you to gain peer recognition for your best model and prototype photographs. In January 2017, we will be starting a new Rail Photo of the Month Contest.

Rail Photo Categories

There will be four rotating categories of photos. Each month will feature photos from one of the four categories. The categories are:

  • Prototype – Color: January, May
  • Prototype – Black and White: February, June
  • Model – Color: March
  • Model – Black and White: April
Entry Requirements
  • The photograph(s) must be originally taken by the person entering them in the contest.
  • The photograph(s) must be either originally taken on film or digital capture and presented as an unmounted or loose print.
  • The minimum size of print should be no smaller than 5 x 7 inches.
  • The entry (or entries) should have the owner’s name on the back of the print(s).

Read More

Eastside Get-Together (Redmond) Clinic