Walt Huston
On June 21, 2010 Bill Messecar was visited by a team of AP evaluators who were there to check out his layout and see where he stands regarding several areas of the Achievement Program. Team members Ed Liesse, Dave Liesse and Ken Liesse were accompanied by Walt Huston and were quite happy with the results.
Bill asked us to evaluate his structures for the Structures AP category an we set about that task with vigor. First we looked at a wooden bridge that Bill scratch built from photos taken near Riverside, CA. The bridge is a beauty and earned a Merit Award We next looked at his model of a plumbing supply which was converted from a coal dealer. This is a detail filled work of art that also won a Merit Award.
Next up was Bill’s Chiller House, scratch built from styrene and strip wood, with a few flex straws thrown in for good measure. Photos of the prototype provedthat pipes that looked exactly like those flex straws were indeed a part of the facility and located under the roof just where Bill placed them. He also added special effects such as “wet” areas below the icing platform. Excellent work, and a third Merit Award.
Bill earned three more Merit Awards, one each for the Riverside Freight House, another for the San Bernardino Yard Office and last but certainly not least, the very intricate Jennings Lumber where he added such details as the leather belts used to run the power saws and other machinery. We were not done yet, however, as we also evaluated Bills scenery for the Scenery Certificate. Bill has done a great job of setting his layout in southern California, specifically in Orange country. Bill has quite a few of the Orange packing houses surrounded by entire scenes that are quite eye catching. He has even dribbled a few oranges on the ground outside the loading docks/areas at the packing houses. A very nice touch. Bill earned the Scenery Certificate for his efforts.
Now Bill has earned the Golden Spike, and the Structures and Scenery Certificates, and is working on several other categories as he strives for Master Model Railroader. Stay tuned, I think Bill is on the fast track.
