Category: News

By Ted Becker

A final reminder for the upcoming event.

Saturday April 30, 2022, 10am to 3pm.

Free admission

Mount Vernon Senior Center, 1401 Cleveland Ave, Mount Vernon, Washington

Enter from the parking lot at the rear of the building. Do not use the street entrance on the corner.

Plan on brown bagging for lunch, food services nearby are limited. Fast food joints are a couple miles away.

Everybody is strongly urged to wear a mask. Covid cases are on the rise and we want you to be safe. Masks will be available.

Last minute additions to the merchandise list:

• Plastruct dimensional pieces for building structures
• A variety of building parts
• HOn3 locomotives
• Free 5′ test track – diorama HO
• Trestle pieces in G scale and O scale
• G scale train set
• LGB reefer and caboose

Note to vendors: doors open for setting up at 9:00am. Tables have been tentatively assigned. You can trade with another vendor but it is up to you to make the arrangements.

Any question or comments email Ted Becker: rail.bird@att.net

Al Lowe

The 4D Spring Meet website is up and waiting for your mouse!

Kevin Klettke has once again done a great job preparing the 4D Spring Meet website. Now all you have to do is click here to register.

Details

When & Where: The 2022 4D Spring Meet will be held June 4 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM at the Jackson Conference Center on the Everett Community College campus, 2000 Tower Street, in Everett.

What: There will be clinics, a Make & Take clinic for FastTracks turnouts, and a kitbashed model contest (with almost no paperwork!). The 4th Division’s annual meeting will be held during lunch. We’ll also announce this year’s Grab Iron Award winner, the latest Master Model Railroaders, the election results, and much more.

Why: Register by Monday, May 30 and you’ll get a free lunch! Or, you can register afterward and watch the rest of us eat. Or bring your own lunch. Just come!

Click here to register now!

By CJ Riley

I am looking to share a ride to the PNR convention in Eugene. I can meet at the Edmonds Ferry or anyplace between Port Townsend and Tacoma on the West side. I have a room, just need a ride.

You can contact me at: (360) 437. 8003

CJ Riley

By Ted Becker

Just a reminder, the Mount Vernon Gabfest and Swapmeet is coming up on April 30 from 10am to 3pm at the Mount Vernon Senior Center, 1401 Cleveland Ave. Entrance in rear. Covid vaccinations preferred, masking according to policy in effect for the City of Mount Vernon on the day of the event.

For a small swapmeet there is going to be a ton of stuff available. Here is a partial list of goodies compiled from the lists various vendors have sent me. Scroll all the way to the bottom for a special offering.

All Scales:

Electronics:

• Digitrax BDL168s with harnesses – 18 used.
• TCS decoders – NIP.
• NEC Pro Cab
• Tortoise & Atlas Switch machines
• Soundtrack decoders
• Sound system
• AR-1 Reverser
• Power packs

Tools & Supplies

• Scenery supplies
• Plaster cloth
• Styrene
• Air brushes, Iwata and Aztek
• Pastel chalks
• Hobby tools
• Painted backdrops
• Wire foam cutter
• Hot glue guns

Books:

• SP Daylight
• Assorted other books, some freebies

HO Scale:

Cars:

• Car kits, Intermountain, Red Caboose, Accurail, E&B Valley and others. Stock cars, tank cars, reefers and more.
• Assembled and RTR freight and passenger cars. Some fixer uppers.
• Passenger cars
• Vintage 1950’s rolling stock and locomotives
• BLI Passenger Cars
• Narrow gauge passenger cars
• Ore cars, 2 dozen
• Grain hoppers

Structures & details

• Steel mill, that’s right a sizable model of a steel mill (see additional info on steel mill below.)
• Highway Miniatures
• Figures
• Doors and windows
• Structure kits including a large selection of FSM and other high end craftsman kits.
• Assembled structures, some freebies.
• Couplers
• AmLtd Diaphragms
• Signals
• Micro Engineering switches

Locomotives:

• Brass, steam, ATSF & SP most painted, some DCC
• BLI GN Mikados, factory DCC sound, P2K 2-8-8-2
• Stewart F-units, GN & NP pre-DCC most new in box
• DCC/Sound engines needing repair, bargain priced.
• Varney and English 0-4-0s.
• Other locomotives, DC mostly GN, NP & UP

O Scale:

• Freight car kit.
• GMC bus kit
• 1950s Lionel set with accessories

S scale:

• Several DesPlaines hobbies and other S Scale freight cars

G Scale:

• “Grizzly Flats” depot kit

N,Z: No responses

There will be quite a few free items including several RR books. Some vendors will be offering quantity discounts. At least one vendor is planning some creative ways to boost sales, have fun and provide some bargain prices.

Plus this special offering from the Whatcom-Skagit Model Railroad Club:

Eastside Clinic will be held on THURSDAY, April 21, 2022 at 7:00 PM (lobby opens at 6:45 PM) PDT

The Eastside Clinic is inviting everyone to the April Clinic to be held virtually on ZOOM this Thursday, April 21, starting at 7:00 PM with our virtual lobby opening at 6:45 PM.  So be sure and save the date for the April Eastside Clinic this Thursday!  The log in info for the clinic is below.    

Topic: Eastside Clinic for April 2022
Time: April 21, 2022, 06:45 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join the Zoom Meeting at:
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81258361097?pwd=ZTlOWVA1b083YVhyY2RFSDdoc3hLZz09

Meeting ID: 812 5836 1097
Passcode: 064672

Our Clinic this month is titled “Miniatur Wunderland Railway in Hamburg” and will be presented by Magnus Christerson.  The largest model railroad in the world, as certified by Guinness World Records, is Miniatur Wunderland in Hamburg, Germany. In his clinic, Magnus will guide us on a tour of the layout which he visited in the fall of 2021.  During the tour, he will discuss how it was built, currently operated and future expansion plans. 

You can also learn more about the layout at these links:

https://www.miniatur-wunderland.com/
https://www.youtube.com/user/MiWuLaTV
https://www.instagram.com/miniaturwunderland/

Alex Brikoff, 04/18/2022    

By Ted Becker

Topic for April is the finale of Ron Hopkins’ excellent series on scratch building, Part III: Parts and Details. Part III will describe creating a wide range of elements (such as ladders, pallets, chimneys, doors, windows, corbels, roof vents, etc), a few larger bits (like pipe racks, cabinets, and benches), and conclude with some thoughts about interior detailing with examples.

Coming up on April 30 is the Mount Vernon Gabfest and Swapmeet 10am to 3pm at the MV Senior Center. A ton of great items for sale. Most of it HO but other scales represented to. Watch the Grab Iron for a list of merchandise available and final details of the meet. Email me if you have questions: rail.bird@att.net.

The May clinic topic will be The Northern Pacific in Sedro Woolley presented by Kent Sullivan. Kent is an expert on Northern Pacific history. The amount of railroading done by the NP in Sedro Woolley was a surprise to me and Kent does an excellent job of presenting the material with lots of photos and maps.

Beyond May I expect to take the usual summer break and look forward to resuming clinics in September. Keep your fingers crossed that the rumblings about a new uprising of the virus are not true and we can resume in person clinics. For those of you who wish for the Zoom clinics to continue I ask for your help to twist the arm of a volunteer to assist with doing a hybrid presentation. I can do one or the other but not both without help.

4dpnrOrganizer MountVernon is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Mount Vernon Clinic, April 2022
Time: Apr 18, 2022 06:30 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/83719820748?pwd=MG5pblBTN2NvWTdJdzZBR2VoWVlBUT09

Meeting ID: 837 1982 0748
Passcode: 700313

Clinic chairman Rich Blake will be presenting the April clinic. This one will be on techniques for creating rust and other weathering effects using paint layering, salt and hairspray. Clinic will be on April 13th at 7PM. 

ZOOM LINK

4dpnrOrganizer SkagitValleyWhidbey is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: SV&W April Clinic
Time: Apr 13, 2022 07:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/81497755526?pwd=eXVNQUk4NXRweHhuV2xVUnNRWVBldz09

Meeting ID: 814 9775 5526
Passcode: 783700
One tap mobile
+12532158782,,81497755526#,,,,*783700# US (Tacoma)

Al Lowe

Hold the date!

The 2022 4D Spring Meet will be held June 4 from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM at the Jackson Conference Center on the Everett Community College campus, 2000 Tower Street, in Everett. Click here for a Google map.

There will be some great clinics, a model contest (with no paperwork!), and a DPM kitbashing session. The 4th Division’s annual meeting will be held during the lunch hour. We’ll also announce the Grab Iron Award winner, some new Master Model Railroaders, and much more.

Register by Monday, May 30 and get your lunch for free! Or register afterward and you can watch the rest of us eat. Or you could bring your own lunch. We just want you to come!

More information to follow soon!