a ModelersLife

For those of you that don’t know our very own Marcus Neubacher is the Director of Administration for the North Carolina Transportation Museum and every few years or so he’ll get the chance to attend a convention for the Heritage Rail Alliance where the free exchange of information among members and working industry professionals is available. This year the convention was held in Durango Colorado and we hear the ole’ AML Network, decided that we’d need to hear as much of the trip as possible. Of course it took us a while to get there, but eventually we managed to cover a wide range of subjects and produce a podcast well worth listening to. Enjoy!!

Old friends can be the best kind of friends, those folks you haven’t talked to for several years and then strike up a conversation as if you’d seen them yesterday. That’s what this podcast is about, catching up with our old friend Serge Lebel from Sept-Iles Quebec on the north shore of the St. Lawrence River. We first met Serge several years ago when we discovered his O-Scale two rail layout known as the CN Sanmore Subdivision, a fantastic well detailed model railroad that is slowly developing into one of the finest layouts in North America. It’s a great podcast with lots of information and one more sure you’ll enjoy.

It’s another trip to the “Cow Palace” keeping up to date with all the comings and goings at JL Innovative and who better to do it with than the man himself, Chris Costello. There’s a great discussion about the new world of freight car manufacturing plus owning private rail cars and tearing up rail in beautiful downtown Salamanca, New York, all in one easy to open podcast. Enjoy!!

Located just 10 miles west of Horseshoe Curve the “Station Inn” is a unique bed-and-breakfast alongside the old Pennsylvania Railroad mainline. Built in 1866 only a dozen years after the completion of the “Curve,” it became a sanctuary for weary travelers headed east or west and a summer retreat for many folks that lived in the Pittsburgh area. Run by Alex Lang and his wife Leah, it’s become their passion of carrying on the tradition of Tom Davis who originally turned the inn into a rail fanning hot-spot in 1993. Tom was a dear family friend of the Langs and when he passed away, it seemed only natural for them to take over and continue on the tradition that had been started so many years earlier. Alex has been on the podcast before, and this episode is just as entertaining and informative as ever. Enjoy!!

N-Scale is alive and well living in North Carolina, not far from the Hickory Motor Speedway. Scott Teague’s previous layout graced the pages of some of the finest model railroad publications out there, but that wasn’t good enough for Scott and not long after that layout was dismantled and a new one started. Some people just have the knack for getting things done and Scott is certainly one of those folks. The new railroad is well underway and after just two short years of construction, trains are running, and scenery is all but finished with nothing left to do now but add a few details to what is already a beautiful design. This is a great discussion with some of the best N-Scalers in the country and you won’t be disappointed.

There’s plenty of action down at the old “Cow Palace” serving as the world headquarters of Costello Manufacturing and Chris Costello has stopped by to fill us in on all the excitement at the world center of model railroading just north of Bradford, Pennsylvania, and just east of Salamanca, New York. We spend some time talking about the machine that nobody talks about. Learned how 3-D printing is becoming an important division of the vast Costello empire. Plus we discuss the newest release from JL innovative “the Dunmore Caboose” a steel caboose made for the Erie Railroad. So grab yourself a big bowl of steaming hot cow patties, a tall cool glass of 3-D resin and enjoy!!

This episode started out to check with Wallace Locomotive Works, but before we got a chance to do that, we lost a good friend and longtime supporter of the AML Nation. The one and only Ralph Renzetti a.k.a. the MudFather. Ralph was a regular on the Wednesday night chats, ready to lend a helping hand to anyone who might have questions about their modeling, especially when it came to paint and weathering. One of the most talented modelers to ever grace the airwaves of the AML. Ralph was truly an artist, and we were fortunate to know him. However, after a good cry for the first twenty minutes or so, we finally managed to get around to chatting with Chris and find out more about his ever-growing company. It’s a great podcast and one we’re sure you’ll enjoy!!

It’s a return to the “Lone Star” state and a visit with locomotive engineer Emory Lehman. We haven’t talked to Emory for a few years since and decided it was about time to check up on what Emory‘s been doing. Things have changed quite a bit with his new job at the BNSF in Temple, Texas, a model railroader living across the street and his friend Mike making major changes to his layout. We also discuss the possible merger of the Norfolk Southern and Union Pacific railroads, and what are the possible effects it will have on railroading across America. Once again, it’s a podcast with little or no direction, that’s lots of fun with great discussion about everything under the sun. Enjoy!!

It’s part two of the Rob Bennett thirty-two-part trilogy as we try to figure out what makes this modeler tick. Is it the vast array of instructional videos he’s created or his fabulous weathering or maybe it’s just simply a love for the hobby that he’s anxious to share with others. Rob tries to learn something everybody while not taking the hobby to seriously whilst learning the operations side of things. He enjoys the hobby anyway he can, and you never know what kind of equipment you’ll see running across his layout. He approaches the hobby with a relaxed approach while enjoying the challenge of weathering and scenery. It’s a great follow up podcast and one we’re sure you’ll enjoy!!

After years of travelling about the country working on transformers, not the plastic kind like you’d see in the movies such as “Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen” but actual transformers that do all sorts of cool electrical things. Our next guest finally settled in Erie, Pennsylvania because like his friend and fellow modeler Mike Hauk his love of shoveling snow seven months of the year bonds these men together. You can thank Rob Bennett’s son for his current layout which occupies approximately a 12‘ x 50‘ space after satisfying his love of European railroads they started over and now have a beautiful layout that mostly reflects the area of Western Pennsylvania. Rob is one of those guys that works at a feverish pace and after what would take most of us decades to complete he’s enjoying making instructional videos. This is a great discussion with a modeler that some would say, “just gets it done.” Enjoy!!

There’s nothing more fun than a visit down the road to Tillsonburg, Ontario with the sole purpose of a visit to the Otter Valley Railroad shop and visit with our friend Lorne James. You can always be sure that there will be lots of editing, lots of dizzying questions and answers with fun being had by all. Lorne stopped by the ModelersLife studios to bring us up to date on all the new cars that he’s having manufactured regardless of today’s turmoil in the retail sector of model railroad industry. As always, it’s lots of fun talking to Lorne and finding out what’s happening in Tillsonburg, Ontario. My back still hurts when I hear that word. Enjoy!!

If you live in the Chicago area and a fan of railroading, you will no doubt be well aware of the Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad that’s been jointly owned by several railroads over the years. With over 320 miles of track in and around Chicago it’s kind of hard to avoid seeing this famous railroad that began in 1896. We here at the ole’ AML world headquarters wanted to find out more and it seemed like a natural progression to simply talk to Dave’s dad Herman, who worked as a conductor on “the Belt” for over 30 years. Plus he spent time on the “City of New Orleans” and the “Broadway Limited” during a short stint with Amtrak. It’s a great podcast and one we’re sure you’ll enjoy.

The Pittsburgh, Bessemer & Lake Erie Railroad Company was founded in 1897 by Andrew Carnegie to haul iron ore and other products from the port at Conneaut, Ohio on the Great Lakes to Carnegie Steel Company plants in Pittsburgh and the surrounding region. At the end of 1925 B&LE operated 228 miles of road on 631 miles of track; at the end of 1970, mileages were 220 and 489. Enter our next guest who’s carefully modeling the B&LE in the early 50’s. Ray Brown has worked all over the United States and finally settled just west of Erie, Pennsylvania for two reasons: To experience as much snow fall as possible and to faithfully recreate the Bessemer and Lake Erie in a fifty by thirty-foot basement on a double and triple deck layout. Introduced to us by our in-house medical staff of one, (Mike Hauk) Ray’s story is a great listen and one we’re sure you’ll enjoy!!

Have you ever wondered what happens to all those great model railroad clubs that don’t own their own building or eventually the owner of a private home that houses club passes away?? The most common answer is nothing and so was the case with the Southern Pacific Model Railway club in Rocky Hill, New Jersey. Except in this case a successful TV who also happens to be a lifelong model railroader decided to step in and save the day. James Murray and his wife, Melyssa, who live a short distance away in Princeton, came to the rescue after an article was published in the Wall Street Journal. This is one of the most heartwarming stories we’ve come across since doing the podcast and James was happy to share the story as he walked us through the adventures of buying the Pacific Southern Railway Club.

It’s a return visit to White Rose Hobbies, in York, Pennsylvania. Only this time we’re talking with the non-model railroad partner get Thomas who apparently is in charge of ordering paint. We still haven’t gotten around to talking about some their great stories from the days of working on the Norfolk Southern but with White Rose agreeing to be the full-time sponsor of the podcast, we’ll look forward to it in the future!! However, we here at the old AML nation enjoy hearing about the behind-the-scenes world model railroad retail and everything that goes into it along with it. This is just one of those classic ModelersLife conversations with a returning guest that really has no direction other than to enjoy each other‘s company. It’s a great podcast and one we’re sure you’ll enjoy.

While it might seem to the naked eye that the preservation of America’s railroads from the past is sporadic at best, we here at the AML Nation would argue that it’s exactly the opposite. Recently, we had the chance to talk with Bryan Lalevee from the Norfolk and Western Business Car 300 Preservation Society an enthusiastic group of volunteers that’s already completed the restoration of one beautiful car. No. 300 was built by the Pullman Co. in June of 1917 and served Norfolk & Western for its career before being inherited by Norfolk Southern in 1982. It saw sporadic use during and eventually sold at auction in 1987 to a private individual. It traveled across the United States and Canada behind Amtrak and VIA Rail Canada until 1991 when it was put into a warehouse.

Have you ever stumbled across a website and an hour later realized you’re still looking at it because of how much material was available?? That’s what happened to us at the ole’ AML World Headquarters in downtown Busted Knuckle, Kentucky. Surfin’ the internet we stumbled across “Hawkins Rails” one of the most comprehensive railfanning websites you’ll ever find. Whether it’s mainline railroading or looking for an obscure shoreline you’ll most likely find it on Hawkins Rails. Starting with Jack Hawkins in the 1940’s it wasn’t to many years until his son Ralph started to enjoy standing trackside with his Dad. These days Ralph and his daughter Ella are carrying on the tradition of Hawkins Rails and the site just grows and grows. This is a great podcast with lots of great information about railfanning for the past seventy plus years.

On this podcast, we welcome back Ralph Renzetti a.k.a. “The Mudfather.” The Evel Overlord had lots of questions about paint, glues and everything else that’s needed to build an award-winning model. There’s plenty of discussion on the mixing of paints, which ones are best suited for each individual application and lots more. Ralph Renzetti as well-known among his peers as an expert modeler and extremely knowledgeable about everything that’s required to build that prize running model that’s the centerpiece of your layout. He’s always willing to share his thoughts on a wide variety of topics without hesitation. It’s a great podcast and one we’re sure you’ll enjoy.

RPM Meets have created a community for sharing information and experiences about and around the hobby of model railroading, what others are doing in the hobby, why they’re doing and what each individual is trying to accomplish. There are many RPM events throughout the country. Some are national conferences like the Chicagoland or St. Louis events, while others are one or two-day local meets with a focus on displaying models and sharing a few clinics. Mr. RPM, Eric Hansmann joins us to discuss what’s happening in the world of RPM meets.

Details, details, details, with today’s HO and N-scale locomotive manufactures delivering engines with just about every detail you can imagine, we here at the old AML headquarters have discovered someone that’s producing even more details for every facet of your layout, including locomotives and rolling stock. Chris Wallace is like almost everyone else in the hobby having been a model railroader for as long as he can remember but here’s the twist, he’s also a full-time 1:1 railroader that’s discovered 3-D printers and a need for many details that haven’t been available up till now. Whether it’s trash cans, air conditioners, fire hydrants, tiedown chain, runaround hoses, or a whole host of details for specific locomotives Wallace Locomotives Works is your one stop shop. Tell ‘em Lionel sent you and see if that helps!!