August 16. 2019 was our monthly meeting. Several items were taken care of including the welcoming of  2 new probationary members and a new student member. Congratulations to all the new members.  On the layout a new backdrop will be installed on the west wall while Gary Presnell helped out with Matt Glassman's switch panel installs fixing one of the Tortise machines near Flushing.

Thanks, to Paul Ewing and Jerry Piatt for cleaning the landscaped area near the front entrance and also kudos to Paul for refurbing our entrance sign. After the meeting, we welcomed a couple of guests from Kalamazoo, MI and started running trains and setting up for our operations session which is next Friday, August 23, 2019. 

Here's Matt Setting cars for next Friday. If you enjoy puzzles we run the biggest electronically interfaced 3D puzzle in the area when we run operations every 4th Friday of the month. If you have never run operations we will pair you up with an experienced operator until you understand the basics of operations at EMRRC.

 Matt Glassman brought in a couple of BSC F68AH Bulkhead Flatcars he has been working on. Introduced in 1969, the Bethlehem Steel Co. (BSC) F68-series of 100-ton, 68’ foot long (over end sills) flats represented a new generation of high-capacity flat cars.  Extremely versatile, the basic design could be equipped from the factory with a variety of appliances to handle different loadings. These units are Rivet Counters from Scale Trains and have a lot of features including a laser-cut deck to be applied by the modeler. 

To see all of the trains running at the club  Click Here. for Friday Night Running at the Club video. If you want to see more pictures of the members and their trains  Click Here. For a schedule of train shows and swap meets in the area Click Here  (this is the latest list) courtesy of the Grand River Valley Railroad  Club in Wyoming, MI.  For 2018 Past Announcements at EMRRC  Click Here. The 2020 Train Show information has been added to the site   Vendors make sure you check as there are applications and information for vendors on the page. Have some fun with model railroading.

Where the heck did summer go? As we move through August we lose about an hour of sunlight by the end of the month.  But, at the Elkhart Model Railroad Club, it is always sunny unless we forget to pay the electric bill or we decide to run a night session. Come by and think about joining and help us pay the electric bill.

 We are always looking for new members who have an interest in computers, apps, artwork, construction, electrical, model buildering, or just want to see and work on a piece of history in the Elkhart area. Do you like Arduino? We would love to talk to you about various projects upcoming.  If you enjoy puzzles we run the biggest electronically interfaced 3D puzzle in the area when we run operations every 4th Friday of the month.  Every Friday we are meeting at the club and have a great time socially and running trains. Speaking of running trains we had several trains running Friday the 2nd at the club. Some trains of note running were the Alaska Railroad, the Virginian, CSX, SOO Line, and NS. Be sure to check out the caboose on the end of the SOO Line train a Milwaukee caboose weathered by David Menges with Pan Pastel weathering powders. Click Here to see our latest  Friday Night Running at the Club video. If you want to see more pictures of the members and their trains  Click Here.  For a schedule of train shows and swap meets in the area Click Here  (this is the latest list) courtesy of the Grand River Valley Railroad  Club in Wyoming, MI.  For 2018 Past Announcements at EMRRC  Click Here. The 2020 Train Show information has been added to the site   Vendors make sure you check as there are applications and information for vendors on the page.Have some fun with model railroading. For a schedule of train shows and swap meets in the area Click Here  (this is the latest list) courtesy of the Grand River Valley Railroad  Club in Wyoming, MI.  For 2018 Past Announcements at EMRRC  Click Here. The 2020 Train Show information has been added to the site   Vendors make sure you check as there are applications and information for vendors on the page.Have some fun with model railroading.  

News for July 12, 2019

A lot of happenings at EMRRC as we coast through the middle of July.   Installation of the new computer is completed. We have some small items to clean up but JMRI is residing happily atop a blistering fast computer running phone throttles and programming with no problems.  We coupled it with a Digitrax PR4 to handle the programming track and the first new roster member is Jeff Cain with his BLI switcher. Just to forewarn everyone you will have to enter your engine back into the roster if you want to program on our system  We still have a copy of the old roster but after 5 years it was disorganized and we decided to go with a clean start. 

A  new dam is taking shape on the Elkhart River thanks to Ron, Jerry, and Charlie. It's a small area but with a lot of detail. Still to come, a walkway, fishermen, and more detail items. 

 Member David Menges got his hands on a set of Walther's Great Circus Train releases a rare HO Scale 1:87 kit series offered in twelve very limited individual monthly releases beginning in 1989. David has been kind enough to let members of EMRRC follow along on FaceBook as he puts together this set.  I am planning on showing all of his work in our Tech Files area but here is a sampling from David.

"John E. Strates immigrated to the United States in 1909 from Greece. He had many odd jobs until he joined a carnival in 1919 as a wrestler taking on any challenger. He acquired the Southern tier shows in 1923 and changed the name to John E. Strates Shows in 1932. He built and managed the carnival up until his death in 1959. His son E. James Strates assumed responsibility of the carnival that still operates today. 

This car was the 6th release in The Great Circus train made by Walters. Stock and elephant cars were 72' in length and unloading ramps were carried on the underside of the car. Stock and elephant cars were coupled directly behind the locomotive to minimize jolting and possibly injuring the animals. Elephant cars are very similar to stock cars but were built to accommodate the weight of the elephants. Also, a larger door, solid walls, and smaller windows or ventilators because elephants are susceptible to pneumonia and must be protected from the cold and drafts. One elephant car could carry up to 13 adult elephants or "bulls" in circus slang regardless of gender. A show with a smaller herd would outfit the extra space with bunks for the handlers. 1/4 of early circus trains would be stock cars. As technology advanced tractors became available and elephant and stock cars became surplus and converted to flat cars".

Of course, after all of this, we had to run some trains I mean we have this huge layout just made for running multiple trains with lots of cars so why not?  One engine that showed up was a Scale Trains GE TIER 4 GEVO, ET44C4. Originally a GE demonstrator it was modified and repainted in Erie, PA.  Here's a shot of the engine on our layout and the real thing passing through Goshen, Indiana.

One interesting note the Navajo Mine is a private railroad and ordered 2 of the engines.  The mine has no connection to the national rail network so the engines had to be trucked the last few miles to the mine's tracks. Click Here for all the action for Friday Night Running at the Club. If you want to see more pictures of trains and members from Friday  Click Here.  For a schedule of train shows and swap meets in the area Click Here  (this is the latest list) courtesy of the Grand River Valley Railroad  Club in Wyoming, MI.  For 2018 Past Announcements at EMRRC  Click Here. The 2020 Train Show information has been added to the site   Vendors make sure you check as there are applications and information for vendors on the page.   Also, 2020 is the Elkhart Model Railroad Club's 70th anniversary. An open house and other events are being planned to celebrate this occasion.  Watch for future news on this.  Have some fun with model railroading.