a ModelersLife

This the final installment of Blair Kooistra's thirty-seven-day extensive railroad photography expedition across the United States, undertaken after his retirement from working as a full-time railroad dispatcher. Blair used the trip to continue lifelong passion for railroad photography, documenting freight trains, railroad infrastructure, industrial landscapes, and model railroads along the way. Starting from his home in Texas, he traveled across the Midwest, photographing working railroads, freight trains, and industrial landscapes. He continued eastbound and down through the Appalachians, documenting railroad operations and touring model railroad layouts. The trip combined his professional railroad experience, decades of photography, and ties to the model railroading community, yielding an extensive collection of photographs. So grab yourself a big bowl of shredded film cannisters, a tall cool glass of Kodak D-76 film developer and enjoy!!

On this edition of "a ModelersLife" we welcome back Michael Petersen one of the co-founders of Iowa Scaled Engineering located somewhere in Colorado. ISE has been bringing engineering innovation mostly through electronics to the hobby of model railroading for several years while helping layout builders create sophisticated railroads that are more fun to operate. Michael founded the company with Nathan Holmes and together their work sits at the intersection of engineering and a passion for the hobby. In this podcast we'll find out what's new and explore some of the challenges behind designing specialized products. Plus, we talk about the ideas, creativity, and engineering decisions that go from concept to a successful product that builders can use on their own layouts. It's a great podcast and one we're sure you'll enjoy!!

Right from the beginning the goal of Midwest Model Railroad was to be different, be bold, daring and willing to take chances in order to create one of the most successful model railroad shops in the lower forty-eight. Enter Brayden Anderson a young twenty something who became the general manager of the store at an age when most are still just trying to find their way. For most people Brayden's age being the manager at a large modern model-train store and distribution center near Kansas City, with a 15,000-square-foot facility and more than 100,000 products in stock and a goal to ship orders within one business day could quickly become quite over-whelming even for the most experienced veteran. Store owner Stephen Atwell needed someone who could handle retail management, warehouse operations, customer service, and have some model-railroad expertise. This is a real incite into the retail side of hobby and a podcast we're sure you'll enjoy !!    

Steve Goaring's Illinois Terminal Railroad, O'Fallon Branch, is a terrific example of prototype-focused HO scale model railroading. It recreates a relatively obscure Southern Illinois branch line and, rather than simply building a generic railroad, Steve researched the prototype and built the layout around how the railroad actually operated. For the basic concept he modeled the Illinois Terminal's Troy Junction–O'Fallon branch in 1961, in HO scale. The layout is approximately 12 × 21 feet, with about 75 feet of mainline. It represents the line from Troy Junction through O'Fallon to the St. Ellen coal mine. The prototype is particularly interesting because this wasn't a big mainline railroad. It was a relatively short branch, but it connected with several important railroads and generated substantial freight traffic. This a great podcast with an experienced modeler that does a nice job of explaining the overall concept.

David Popp has brought knowledge and joy to model railroaders around the world for well over two decades, with his deep his enthusiasm for the hobby, and his ability to make even the most complicated modeling subjects approachable, David has become one of the hobby's most recognizable and trusted voices. Whether he's talking about layouts, operations, scenery, locomotives, tools, or the people who make this hobby great, his enthusiasm is contagious. David has a wonderful ability to remind model railroaders that this hobby isn't about building the perfect railroad. It's about having fun, learning something new, sharing ideas, and enjoying the journey. That's why David Popp doesn't just bring knowledge to model railroaders around the world—he brings joy, enthusiasm, and a genuine love for the hobby. So grab yourself a big bowl of unfettered happiness, a tall cool glass of infectious personality and enjoy !!!