Well Bob, I’ve had your “Dispatch” article filed away for seven years before the planets aligned to allow me to do the project! You have written many articles and reviews over the years that have been helpful. I know how hard it is to chronicle the work: harder for me than the project itself. But then I’m a non-verbal guy and a hunt and peck typist as well. Currently I have 2 long articles sitting at publishers with no indication of when or if they will be printed, so I’m not inclined to do more, but probably will get over it <g>.
Roger From: Bob Werre Sent: Friday, November 23, 2012 7:32 AM To: [email protected] Subject: Re: {S-Scale List} Inspiration (was Dispatch "Meet an S Gauger") Thanks Roger, from this Houston guy! Peter is great at documenting all his efforts--in my case I just do my projects thinking nobody wants to see what I'm up to. It's fairly easy to show new rolling stock or scenery but rebuilding an engine I sometimes find painful enough not to worry about writing an article (think having a wisdom tooth removed), so I don't do it often. One good thing is to have some response to what we've written. In today's information overload, it's easy to understand why articles quickly get swept into the 'dumpster of useless articles'. I think this is the result of going 'deeper' into our hobby. Remember at one time most of us would accept any boxcar painted for the NYC as being accurate, then we became rivet counters! at one time any control system would run our trains, then we got into command control and sound--this is all great, but it requires time to figure things out. We all strive for great scenery, structures and realistic backgrounds not to mention actually running the darn things, but if you're planning to do these things before the grim reaper gets you, you better get cracking! So we do hope that some of the articles will find a place in your modeling life, save you some time and much frustration. Bob Werre PhotoTraxx On 11/21/12 5:03 PM, Roger Nulton wrote: While I have not yet received my “Dispatch”, I wanted to second Ed’s comments about Peter Vanvliet. He does a great job with the NASG website and with his “Peter’s Model Railroading” website. Guys like Peter, who take the time to share their modeling projects, inspire me to try things that I would probably not otherwise attempt, or would struggle with. A case in point is the attached pair of Alco models brass RS-2’s. Once a mainstay of my diesel fleet, they have been languishing in their boxes under the layout with crumbling gear towers for more than 10 years. Then Bob Werre had an article in the April 2007 “Dispatch” on how he replaced his original Alco drive unit with one from North Yard. When these drives became available again, I acquired 2 from Railmaster Hobbies. The last inspiration for the project came when Peter described how he used the drive unit in a Railmaster RS-1 on his website. Taking a break from layout building, I recently completed the upgrading of my Alcos by installing the new drive units and DCC sound. While I did not do things exactly like Bob or Peter did, I most certainly benefitted from following their path. My thanks to these 2 guys from Houston, and to all those authors whose shared efforts have improved my modeling skills so much over the years. Roger Nulton From: Ed Kozlowsky Sent: Saturday, November 17, 2012 12:22 PM To: [email protected] ; S Scale Group Subject: {S-Scale List} Dispatch "Meet an S Gauger" I read with great enjoyment the article on Peter Vanvliet. I've read his web site from stem to stern over the years and enjoy his thorough approach. The N content is just as enjoyable as the S, good craftsmanship is good craftsmanship whatever the scale. For those of us who don't get around to the meets, this series is the best part of the magazine and worth the price of membership. I'd also like to say that I'm very pleased with the on-line membership directory. It has all the information that the print version had, and is instantly available without wading through a pile of magazines. There are very few people today without internet access unless they intentionally avoid it for personal reasons. The advantages of instant communication and the availability of endless resources make its use too difficult to resist. My thank to those that keep the NASG going through many hours of volunteer effort. Ed Kozlowsky Sanford, Maine sscale.org
