There will not be a Thursday evening clinic on the second Thursday of April.

Instead, we’ll be holding the second annual joint program of the Skagit Valley / Whidbey Island and the Mount Vernon clinics.

9:00 AM, Saturday April 14
Mount Vernon Senior Center
1401 Cleveland Street, Mt Vernon

Click Here for map & directions

Rather than having an agenda of sequential clinics throughout the day, we’ll have concurrent sessions at several tables, with a “clinician” actively working on a subject, demonstrating techniques, answering questions, etc. It is an “up close” format, and in some cases, attendees may get to try certain techniques themselves.

There will be a “swap area” where people can bring items for sale, trade or give away. We did this last year and it was hugely successful. There will be no charge for table rent, as we are not looking to commercialize this. You must put your name and price on each item. You do not have to stand by your table and it should be easy to find the owner of something if you are interested in it.
Note: access is only through the rear door (SW corner) – the front door must remain locked.

Doors open at 9:00. Come in, have a cup of coffee and chat with old friends before the morning session begins!

No lunch is provided – you’ll be on your own. There is one “walk up” burger joint a few blocks away; otherwise, eating places are a mile or so north in Mount Vernon. Or, bring your brown bag lunch – an eating area is provided.

Please check the following session listings for more details:


Below is a list of “clinicians” and their subjects. Most of these will either be morning or afternoon sessions, although some may continue from the morning into the afternoon session. Schedule subject to revision.

Morning Session, 10-12 am:
• Tom Buckingham – General layout construction, mounting Tortoise switch machines from above, joining Masonite, bending Micro Engineering flex track, layout lighting using LED’s–strip and flood.
• Alan Murray – Precision wood construction techniques
• Rich Blake – Hand laid track technique and servo control installation for turnout
• Tom Hawkins, Scenery Methods with Ground Goop

Afternoon Session, 1-3 pm:
• Cliff Aaker, Rocks and Roads
• Al Carter – Building Hydrocal Structures
• Mark Malmkar, Electrical Details for Structures
• Ted Becker – Decoder Pro, Locomotive programming, Arduino.

This is a very informal get together with some outstanding modelers sharing their talents, techniques, and secrets. We would love to have you join us!
If you have a topic that you would like to demonstrate, please contact Ted Becker (rail.bird@att.net). It is not too late to add someone – we can set up more tables. Remember, though, that these are not traditional “classroom” type of clinics, but more casual, live demonstrations of various techniques.

What’s Around the Curve?
May 10 – Mt Vernon Clinic, “Bring Your Own Project,” Possible surprise mini clinic

May 19 – The Mt Vernon and Oak Harbor model railroad clinics are arranging a special run on the Lake Whatcom Railway, Wickersham. Clinic attendees, friends and family are invited. This is a special event not open to the public. Fee will be $20 per adult; $12 for children. Plan on being there at 1:00pm.
Fees can be given to Ted at the April 14 clinic, the May 10 clinic or the day of the event. Some of the people from Oak Harbor will have lunch at Bob’s Burgers at Cook Rd & I5 at noon. You are welcome to join them.

RSVP to Ted if you plan to attend. There is a minimum headcount or dollar amount needed to make this happen, so please RSVP as soon as possible. For all of us, wood-be gandy dancers, there is some track work that needs to be completed before our date in May. If you’d like to volunteer to help, call Frank at 360-441-0719. More details to follow as available. The Lake Whatcom Railway is located at Wickersham north of Sedro Woolley on Hwy9. Check out its website: https://www.lakewhatcomrailway.com

September 11-15 – Northern Pacific Railroad Historical Association Convention, Chehalis

September 15-19 – Great Northern Railway Historical Society Convention, Bellingham

For other NMRA events in the area please refer to the 4th Division Grab Iron, online at https://4dpnr.com. If you would like to subscribe to the Grab Iron, go to https://4dpnr.com/grab-iron-overview/.

The Mt Vernon Model Railroad Clinic is a NMRA sanctioned event. The 4th Division of the Pacific Northwest Region of NMRA provides funding of operating budgets for clinics in the division including ours. Thus, NMRA membership is heartily encouraged. If you are not quite ready to sign up for a full membership, you might want to try the 6-month Rail Pass trial membership for only $9.95. It includes 6 months of NMRA Magazine, plus all regular member benefits (except voting). Please let Al Carter know at tabooma@msn.com if you wish to join NMRA.
Another benefit of being an NMRA member is access to the NMRA Partnership program. It’s a member benefit that truly has a tangible payback. The NMRA has partnered with model railroad manufacturers of all sizes, giving them exposure on the NMRA website in return for providing generous discounts to NMRA members.