HO model train museum

[kbear]

I've wanted to visit this museum since I first found out about it several years ago. So, before the holidays this year I finally made it there. Wow, what a wonderful museum indeed. What their website description won't tell you is that the museum has been recently valued at just over 3 million dollars. I was fortunate enough to have a veteran tour guide give me a behind the scenes look at how it all works and the history behind what makes it all work. Extremely interesting.

If you wish you can read more about the museum.

Here's a short video I put together with images of my visit that day. Hope you enjoy.

 

[Doom!]

@kbear That's way cool!

 

[kbear]

@kbear That's way cool!

Thank you, Doom!. There was so much to see and experience there I don't know if I could've taken it all in in several days. Information overload if you will. I'll return for another visit someday!

 

[Doom!]

Thank you, Doom!. There was so much to see and experience there I don't know if I could've taken it all in in several days. Information overload if you will. I'll return for another visit someday!

I love miniature anything, and have always loved HO scale trains. Never had the room to get one, but always wanted to.

 

[Guest D]

My fil would love that place. He's a train nut lol

 

[kbear]

I love miniature anything, and have always loved HO scale trains. Never had the room to get one, but always wanted to.

I'm with you on that one. I first fell in love with HO scale when I would visit the neighbors literally across the RR tracks when I was a boy. The older boys had an HO track setup in the basement and I would watch them work and play with the trains and freight cars. Those boys (and their father) made their own train whistles out of brass, would stoke a steam boiler while their whistles where connected and blow those whistles. Man, you talk about loud. Yeah, I never had the space for a good HO track setup and still do not.

My fil would love that place. He's a train nut lol

That's very cool! My first memories of my grandfather's train he was the engineer of was when my father lifted me up onto the ladder so I could climb into the cab. I must have been 4 or 5. These were the big green and black Burlington Northern & Santa Fe diesel engines. I do remember all the controls on the dash that looked like a spacecraft to me at that time. Good memories of my grandfather and his trains.

 

[kbear]

The detail that's involved in these dioramas are just unbelievably fantastic.
It's too bad we can't upload video files (mp4). I would upload a couple with the engines blowing their whistles and making locomotive sounds.

 

[desmobob]

Wow! That is amazing.

I live in what used to be a "railroad town," and one of my favorite uncles was an engineer on the Delaware and Hudson railroad. They had a maintenance facility here with a large shop and there was a decent sized yard outside of town. A couple of retired railroaders here have impressive HO layouts.

I messed with some HO train stuff for a short time when I was in high school. Many years later, I tried again with N scale. I bought a lot of rolling stock and locomotives but really didn't have an appropriate place to build a nice layout. I was also frustrated that the N-scale train stuff I bought looked so wonderful in hand but was so small that all the detail was moot as soon as things were a few feet away.

That museum looks spectacular. Thanks for sharing the photos!

 

[kbear]

Wow! That is amazing.

I live in what used to be a "railroad town," and one of my favorite uncles was an engineer on the Delaware and Hudson railroad. They had a maintenance facility here with a large shop and there was a decent sized yard outside of town. A couple of retired railroaders here have impressive HO layouts.

I messed with some HO train stuff for a short time when I was in high school. Many years later, I tried again with N scale. I bought a lot of rolling stock and locomotives but really didn't have an appropriate place to build a nice layout. I was also frustrated that the N-scale train stuff I bought looked so wonderful in hand but was so small that all the detail was moot as soon as things were a few feet away.

That museum looks spectacular. Thanks for sharing the photos!

Very cool about the town you lived in! You're very welcome for the photos I have soooo many of them. I was like a little kid with my jaw on the floor most of the time I was at the Museum . While growing up I lived in a very small neighborhood in the country. Our house was less than a quart mile from a somewhat busy set of rails. We did all the normal things kids would do like smash nickels on the rails, walk the tracks for fallen sugar beets or lumps of coal, or search and find old RR spikes. Back when the days were hot and long and we needed something to keep us out of trouble for a few hours .

 

[Doom!]

The detail that's involved in these dioramas are just unbelievably fantastic.
It's too bad we can't upload video files (mp4). I would upload a couple with the engines blowing their whistles and making locomotive sounds.

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Some serious badassery there!

 

[kbear]

Some serious badassery there!

Indeed! Hard for me to imagine the hours of work that went into building all these then assembling all the individual dioramas together to be placed in their respective locations. Just mind boggling .

 

[kbear]

This came across my YT feed this morning. So cool. If you're into scale trains (HO in particular) then you may enjoy this engine cab ride along video. If possible try and view it on a large screen. IMO it makes it a little more interesting and dramatic. Filmed at the Colorado Model Railroad Museum it takes you on a full ride around the layout loop from staging area back around to the staging area. It's almost 40 minutes long, but has a number of factoids about the model railway. There's no narration just text info. The end will show how it was filmed. I really enjoyed the ride around the loop. Hope you like and enjoy!!!!

ttps://youtu.be/9cULL7QcErQ?si=mGGyZRY8vapEmd_f

 

[RudyF6]

Indeed! Hard for me to imagine the hours of work that went into building all these then assembling all the individual dioramas together to be placed in their respective locations. Just mind boggling .

An uncle used to have quite the setup and he was quite the detail fanatic.
Let's just say the depot restroom needed cleaning real bad!

 

[CertifiedMike]

This set up is insane!!! I would enjoy spending some time here. The details are just awesome!

 

[kbear]

This set up is insane!!! I would enjoy spending some time here. The details are just awesome!

Insane would be a pretty accurate description for sure.

 

[Doom!]

Very cool indeed! I would have enjoyed the vid more without the map pop ups but I understand why they did it. Some great video. That is some serious dedication right there!

 

[kbear]

Very cool indeed! I would have enjoyed the vid more without the map pop ups but I understand why they did it. Some great video. That is some serious dedication right there!

I hear ya. Sorta set me off as well. After a while I just tried to ignore 'em (popup maps). Overall, that was a very unique and interesting perspective of that Model Railroad museum.