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Redmond Clinic (Eastside Get Together North) this Thursday, Nov 17

Written by Russ Segner
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Russ Segner

Our regular meeting will be held at the Redmond Old Schoolhouse Community Center on Thursday, Nov 17th. We will meet at 7:00 PM. Additional details including a map can be viewed by clicking here.

A new feature for future clinics will be announced by Alex Brikoff (Rail Photo of the Month contest – click here to view details).

I will be giving the presentation, titled “Elements of Layout Design”. This will be a discussion of examples based on your interests in theme, scenery, operation, and time period.

Bring a model to share. As usual, CJ will have refreshments for us.

Eastside Get-Together (Redmond) Clinic

Tacoma Clinic Report for November

Written by Al Babinsky
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Al Babinsky, Photos by Dale Kraus

3D printed items by Chip Van Gilder

3D printed items by Chip Van Gilder

The clinic was opened by MMR Gene Swanson with 40 attendees including two newcomers, both of them N scalers. Gene asked that the attendees raise their hand when their military branch of service was announced and thanked them for their service. Helen McGovern was presented with an $1800 check for the Emergency Food Network. The contribution was made by the clinic attendees throughout the year.

I (Al Babinsky) asked for a volunteer to take over the clinic report due to the fact that my night time vision is not the best anymore (specially when it rains). It is a once a month job that requires taking notes during the clinic and creating a digital Grab Iron post (adding text and uploading pictures, typically supplied by Dale Kraus).

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Tacoma Clinic

Photos of Eastside Layout Tour on Oct 1

Written by Cliff Green
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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.

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Layout Tour, Narrow Gauge

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

Written by Cliff Green
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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).

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Eastside Get-Together (Redmond) Clinic

Request for Photos of the HO Scale Rawlins, Lincoln, and Greeley Railway in Olympia

Written by Cliff Green
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Robert L Grove

Turntable on Robert Grove's HO scale Rawlins, Lincoln, and Greeley Railway layout (Cliff Green photo)

Turntable on Robert Grove’s HO scale Rawlins, Lincoln, and Greeley Railway layout (Cliff Green photo)

The Rawlins, Lincoln & Greeley Railway was one of the HO scale layouts in Olympia, Washington. It has been dismantled in preparation for a move. After dismantling most of the 9’×13′ three level core of the plan, I realized I had not taken any photographs in the past few years.

Anyone who visited “Central Wyoming in the summer of 1950” who has photos they are willing to share may e-mail digital copies to me at grove25@comcast.net. The RL&G was open during the 2015 and 2016 layout tours and open houses in Olympia. Your help will be appreciated and whatever you have will be accepted with joy.

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Layout Tour, Member Ads, Olympia Clinic

Mt Vernon October 2016 Clinic Report

Written by John O'Connell
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by John O’Connell, Photos by Rich Blake, John O’Connell

Thursday, October 13, Mt Vernon Senior Center

Despite the weather, we had a full house for this much anticipated Clinic. Ted Becker kicked off the evening with introductions: first time guest John Filippone and returnees Tim Silva and Jim Tartas.

Kit Build

Mike O’Brien reported that 25 had signed up for the Kit Build and he is ready to distribute the kits to the clinic members. It’s not too late if you haven’t signed up and chosen a kit. Let Mike at sales@xtrainsmodeltrains.com know and he can help you find the right kit. Plan to bring your in-progress project each month for Show and Tell.

Al Carter shared an important tip for first time builders: due to the molding process, building corners are not always square so it’s vital to “square” the edges on a flat surface, e.g. plate glass with adhesive-backed sand paper. Roger Johnson put together a compendium of helpful tips that he sent out to the distribution list. It is included in the Appendix at the end of this report. Roger also shared a YouTube video on building DPM kits. Find that by clicking here.

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Mt Vernon Clinic

Train Spotting on the Canadian Pacific Railway

Written by Cliff Green
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by George Chambers

Fig-1 Last spike monument at the rest stop on Highway 1 near Craigellachie, B.C.

Fig-1 Last spike monument at the rest stop on Highway 1 near Craigellachie, B.C.

While on a trip this past September to the Canadian Rockies to visit Yoho, Banff, Jasper and Kootenay National Parks my wife Sally and I did some train spotting on the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) in British Columbia and Alberta. On the way to Revelstoke we stopped at a rest area on Highway 1 near Craigellachie. This is the place where on November 7, 1885 the last spike was driven to complete the building of the CPR. There is a stone monument with brass plaques at this historical place (Fig 1). The restroom and gift shop are both built to look like depots. While there, an eastbound empty coal train came by (Fig 2). We were spending the night in Revelstoke, so had the afternoon to visit the Revelstoke Railway Museum for the CPR. Inside on display is a Mikado class P-2k #5468 and business car #4 built in 1929 that you can walk through (Fig 5). There are also many photo displays, two wooden bridges, and a display with CPR tracks, ferry boat and car barges all built in HO scale (Fig 4). The two wooden bridges have old time CPR trains on them, complete with old NMRA hook horn couplers (Fig 3). Upstairs in the second story mezzanine is an HO scale CPR layout modeling the Rogers Pass – Clanwilliam Lake (west of Revelstoke) area with nice scenery, buildings and bridges.

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Articles, Railroad History

Eastside Get Together South Branch (Renton) Clinic Report, October 2016

Written by Cliff Green
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Syd Schofield, Photo by Syd

4th Division, Eastside Get Together South Branch (Renton) Clinic, Thursday October 27, 2016

Note: The November Renton Clinic will be on Tuesday, November 22, 2016, at the Renton Highlands Library. This is a different day of the week than usual, due to the Thanksgiving holiday.

Watching a video on an overhaul of a 2-6-6-2 steam locomotive (1:1 scale) at the Renton October 2016 Clinic.

Watching a video on an overhaul of a 2-6-6-2 steam locomotive (1:1 scale) at the Renton October 2016 Clinic.

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Burien Clinic

Eastside Get Together North Branch (Redmond) Clinic Report, October 2016

Written by Cliff Green
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Syd Schofield, Photos by Syd

4th Division, Eastside Get Together North Branch (Redmond) Clinic, Thursday October 20, 2016

Russ Segner's Sn3 scale blacksmith shop, built out of individual planks.

Russ Segner’s Sn3 scale blacksmith shop, built out of individual planks.

At the Redmond Old School House admin building, Dave Cook brought things to a muted roar around seven PM. There were two “Bring-and-Brag” models, several door prize drawings, and a slide presentation on individual stick construction of model buildings. All this plus coffee and donuts and announcements of upcoming area events.

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Eastside Get-Together (Redmond) Clinic

Seattle-North Next Meeting – November 3, 2016

Written by Jeff Moorman
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By Jeff Moorman

Next Clinic:

The next Seattle-North clinic is Thursday, November 3. I should have posted this notice earlier, but I have had some trouble finalizing an agenda. At a minimum we’ll get an update on the Pacific Science Center Show for 2017, do another installment in our fallen flag series, and discuss some things to consider if we are offered the chance to acquire someone else’s model railroad.

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Seattle-North Clinic