The annual Syracuse Train Fair saw the introduction of John Fleming’s new HO t-trak module where there is an obvious construction discrepancy. This module is a part of an ever expanding HO module collection that FUNTRAK is promoting with the guidance of club member Greg Brockwayleading the way. Greg has been the driving force behind the HO expansion in the club with other members lending support as much as possible. FUNTRAK is well represented at many shows now with multiple layouts in multiple scales. More pictures from Syracuse and Fulton to come. Come to the shows and join in on the fun!

Charlie and Mark

October is not the premier month for model railroaders. The hobby lost anther great one this October when Charlie Hedrich went to the great model railroad in the beyond.

I met Charlie at the National Model Railroad Convention conducted in Washington, DC in 1982. Charlie was a retired Warrant Officer from the Navy and being a sailor myself, we naturally had a lot in common. During the show we got to know each other pretty well and when I found out that Charlie was originally from North Tonawanda, which was close to where I was stationed at the time, we decided we should get together sometime. One thing lead to another and soon enough Charlie and I did get together. Over the years we developed a long lasting friendship that has endured throughout Charlie’s life.

Charlie was especially talented with track work and electronics. Anything he did was done to perfection. He built two N-trak end loops where he would run a Southern railroad passenger train at full speed around the linear layout: BACKWARDS! This amazing feat was possible because of Charlie’s meticulous attention to detail in assembling the track work. It was remarkable to watch that long passenger train traverse the entire layout, up the curved grades to the mountain line and returning without so much as a hint of derailing over that perfect track work.

Over the years Charlie came to visit me many times. In return, I also visited him in his adopted home of Virginia Beach. While there, Charlie and I built many electrical items to support the local N-trak club including a power supply and a few N-trak throttles. Charlie also built a tee yard that brought all the N-trak lines into a yard inside the main layout. This made making train consists easy for the operators since they were inside the layout and not as distracted by the public as when outside the layout. Charlie also made sure he had a vehicle that would support transporting any modules he had and others that may have needed help.

Charlie was life member of the NMRA, although he often disagreed with many of their policies. Even still, Charlie was a staunch supporter of all model railroading endeavors regardless of scale. Whenever he would visit FUNTRAK and me, he would bring along something to support the show. One year he got together with our mutual friend, Mark Bean, and ran a 150 car train on the N-trak layout just to show that this long train could negotiate twelve inch radius corners with a hitch. As expected, this went without any problems.

One of Charlie’s philosophies was that in his life he had met, if he was lucky, about 100,000 people. Today the population of the United States is above 316 million. So Charlie would say that there were over 315 million people who had not had the opportunity yet to learn to dislike him. Therefore, his time to depart had not yet arrived. So in closing, Charlie I’m afraid you have disappointed some 315 million people by not allowing them the honor and privilege of meeting you. But for those of us fortunate enough to have known you, Thank You Very Much! May you rest in peace and enjoy the great layout in the sky.

Brian

The annual FUNTRAK dinner was a huge success, as usual. The food was outstanding, the trains ran well, and new modules were introduced. All this, and a meal included. This annual event has become one of FUNTRAK’s favorite times where everyone can relax and have a good time with no pressure to ensure anything is necessary to entertain anyone but FUNTRAK members. On another note, FUNTRAK attended a show in Little Falls sponsored by the Little Falls Historical Society. This was FUNTRAK’s first show with this organization and everything went well. There are pictures inside from this fun occurrence. We are looking forward to attending many more shows with these fine people. This was also the first successful running of FUNTRAK’s one trak reverse loop where John was able to do some switching and freight maneuvering on the updated one trak tee and following loop. John was very pleased with the overall operations and had a great time sharing his experiences with other club members and the public. FUNTRAK’s other interface module is a work in progress, but should be completed soon.

Fall has arrived and the model railroad season is upon us! FUNTRAK’s adventures in September started out with a trip to Clayton, New York on the Saint Lawrence River. FUNTRAK and pal, Rich Petito, team up to form the “West Winds Train Club” and showcase their joint layouts.

FUNTRAK will next be setting up a small layout at our annual dinner in Mohawk at the Family Fun Center on Sunday, October 12, 2014. Setup should be around noon with dinner planned for 2 o’clock. This traditional event has become a favorite of club members and affords us the opportunity of introducing new modules that may not have all the bugs worked out yet but still want to be tested. 

Club members John Fleming and Brian King recently updated the one-trak tee module with some replacement track to alleviate some problems with the trains entering and leaving the one-trak portion of the tee. A new module is in the works that is more automated than the original, but that is still in the works for the future. The one-trak interface project is a joint effort with Canada, Australia, and America all involved in its construction. Progress is being made but delivery of some hardware items has been a problem. We will keep you informed of the progress on this project as it moves along. Meanwhile, John and Brian also managed to build a new double module that John is installing another crossover on and finishing up with scenery. We are looking forward to seeing it at the aforementioned dinner in October.

FUNTRAK is scheduled for a new show in Little Falls in the middle of October. The future looks bright as Syracuse approaches with FUNTRAK and the Genesee ‘n Ontario group along with other contributors from various places including our Canadian friends from Ottawa Valley. Next will be Fulton and then on to the Oneida County Historical Society for the annual Christmas display. ‘Tis the season so come on out and enjoy the displays.

See you at the shows!
Brian

FUNTRAK and pal, Rich Petito, team up to form the “West Winds Train Club” and showcase their joint layouts. Everyone had a great time in Clayton, New York on the Saint Lawrence River running trains at their annual train show.

Model railroading is certainly not limited to one gender as this picture attests. FUNTRAK’s recent acquisition of an Army airfield fascinates the ladies with the fine detail and animated objects. The girls are intently watching the spinning propeller on the small airplane and eagerly await the arrival of the train bringing supplies and armament to the Army. This was only a small portion of the layout the West Winds group presented at Clayton this year.

The annual show is a laid back treasure for model railroaders. There are numerous dealers as well as layouts. There is little pressure to keep things going all the time. The public is always accommodating and easily entertained with our fine running trains. This has been especially true with the t-trak concept since no two layouts ever seem to be the same. This is a huge advantage over many other methods of displaying trains since there is always something “new”.  Further contributing factors to the success of t-trak are the ease of transportation and the small size of the modules. The challenge of scenery has been pretty much overcome by most of the participants in this concept of modular railroading. The myth of long trains has also been dispelled. The small radius curves do not deter folks from running realistic length trains on these layouts.

August saw a full and exciting month for FUNTRAK!

The month kicked off with the 12th Annual FUNTRAK Picnik! Brian was delighted that all of his children and King nephews were at the family function. Attendance was up this year with almost 100 guests. Everyone had a great time and we’re already planning for next year. Mark your calendar: Sunday, August 2, 2015.

FUNTRAK was pleased to host the small fry from the local day care facility and share trains with them. FUNTRAK has long been an advocate of education and hands on participation in model railroading and will continue to promote the hobby in whatever venues present themselves.

Next up for FUNTRAK is the Fonda Fair. This week long event has become an annual ritual for FUNTRAK and club members are looking forward to it again this year.

See you there!
Brian

Local Cooperstown neighbors were treated to a personal tour of the FUNTRAK layout and running trains when Brian hosted some children from the nearby day care establishment. The children were fascinated with the trains and had many, many questions. Brian did his best to answer any and all that he could. The trains ran well with a few problems that were quickly remedied without too much fuss. Each of the children was given a flashlight which they found useful in investigating the details on the layout. This is where the future of model railroading is going to come from so it was a great opportunity to entertain them and answer their myriad of questions. Hopefully, this will peak their interests and get them more involved in model railroading in the future. It is always a pleasure to see the smiling faces of happy children who are having a good time while learning new things.

The 2014 FUNTRAK PicNik has come and gone. As usual, everyone had an outstanding time. Prizes were awarded to all the participants so nobody left without some kind of memento. These ranged from tarps to multimeters to screwdriver sets. There were enough prizes to go all around and one and all received something. The food was plentiful and cooked to perfection by our Canadian friend David King. There was the possibility of some confusion with names this year—What was the confusion? Brian’s brother and nephew were both in attendance, along with our Canadian friend: all three are named David King! Folks did manage to figure out who was who after a while.

With all three of David King’s boys in attendance, along with all of Brian and Roseanne’s children it made for one big happy King family. Attendance was up this year with total population somewhere near the century mark. The fifty-fifty went extremely well and helps support the PicNik. Bobby Miller was this year’s lucky winner.

Besides the fun and games, food, and camaraderie, there were plenty of trains running too. FUNTRAK club members kept six layouts operating in the basement for the entire PicNik. Friends Mike and Al from Albany supplied some additional T-trak modules which enhanced the overall size and running capabilities of the layout.

All in all, another fantastic time for all the revelers at the annual event. Number twelve is scheduled for August 2, 2015. Mark your calendar and don’t miss this exciting event.

It was a dark and dreary morning. You fool, it’s always dark and dreary at 4:00 am in the morning!

So this is the beginning of Whirlwind III. David and Brian started out in Cooperstown and headed out to pick up the remaining individuals going along on this journey. John was picked up in Herkimer and then onto Saint Johnsville where Lorenzo met the group to continue to Amsterdam. In Amsterdam the remainder of the troupe was collected with Mike and Al. Finally, when everyone was gathered, we were off to Boston.

First stop, George Sellios’ Franklin and South Manchester. We hooked up with Ernie in Peabody and proceeded to George’s. We were warmly welcomed by George and kindly allowed to take pictures of this treasure of a layout. The level of detail is indescribable! This is truly a wonder of the model railroad world. If the opportunity presents itself, do not miss this layout.

After a while, the group gathered together again and moved on down the street to a local hobby shop. The N scale selection was minimal, but Lionel, HO, and plastic models were abundant. On to lunch. Ernie led us to a local establishment where we were treated to excellent cuisine.

Following this it was off to Ernie’s wonderful N scale layout where we were afforded the opportunity to operate a great fleet of finely tuned locomotives.

Our schedule called for our meeting Pete Laier next around 3:00pm, so we left Ernie’s on our trek to Pete’s. After a small mix-up in directions we finally arrived at Pete’s place. Here we were warmly greeted by Pete and his wife who welcomed us with open arms. Pete’s Arcadia Terminal is a compact, highly operable, around the wall, shelf style layout.

Although not large, there are a tremendous amount of operations possible on this beautifully scenicked railroad.

After running the railroad for around an hour, we were off again on our way back. Along the way we managed to stop at Shepaug Hobbies where we were able to find a large cache of N scale supplies available.

The next leg of our trip took us to the Steaming Tender for dinner. This is an old railroad station turned into a restaurant with fabulous food and fantastic railroad surroundings. Following a very satisfying meal, we were off on the final leg of our trip back home. In Amsterdam we dropped off Lorenzo, Mike and Al then continued to Herkimer where John departed. Lastly, David and Brian finished up the trip when they arrived back in Cooperstown around Midnight. All in all, a wonderful and full day of all kinds of railroad fun. Whirlwind IV is being considered in the near future!

Brian