An honor, again

This is one that never gets old - seeing the Onondaga Cutoff on the cover of Model Railroader magazine!

 This is the third time I have had this honor, and each time it reminds me of the long and fascinating journey of this hobby and how it weaves into and out of life.  For me and for many railroading is in the blood, so to speak, and seeing our work be featured is a great feeling.  I hope in creating content like this that young people today can be inspired like I was when I was a child.

Life this year has been a crucible again - a fervent mix of responsibility to family, work, community, finance, and hobby, all of them intermingled and with little time to spare.  It was time to change internet providers, time for a new (to us) car, a time of banks changing hands, extra projects (even including a strike) at work while dealing with scarce funds and insecurity amongst managers, all while maintaining the house and layout.  'Life the 40's' as regular readers know is a constant theme here.  And 2025 is living up to the expectations!

With this sort of intensity we blink and weeks or months pass.  And in any case it is harder and harder to think things through or reflect on faith in others or in coming together when there is no time for it.  I am hopeful that this wonderful experience of another MR cover will help me look back on this era and be reminded that good things can come at any time.  Do the work, try to make what you are doing a bit better each time, and with a bit of luck, a new door can open.

I am grateful for the opportunity and for all the assistance and inspiration that has made the OC what it is.  I hope this continues the work of giving back!

Minoa & Euclid - On the Cover of Railroad Model Craftsman!

The Onondaga Cutoff is known for is Conrail operations, and now it will also be known for one of the roads that interchange with Conrail - the Minoa & Euclid, a Morristown & Erie-owned shortline on former DL&W track.  And, it's now featured on the cover of Railroad Model Craftsman!

This is a thrill, and a surreal honor to see M&E Alcos at CP 282, crossing the Conrail main line enroute to interchange at Onondaga Yard on the cover of an international model railroad magazine!  I am grateful to RMC editor Otto Vondrak for his vision to feature this part of the Onondaga Cutoff in Railroad Model Craftsman.  The story behind the cover photo is a first-hand account of fans chasing the M&E's day job, ME-1, while they work at Euclid Yard to switch the Peter Doelger Brewery and then make their interchange run to Conrail and return.  You'll meet the crew and follow the train over the route all the way to Onondaga Yard and back.  

Also interesting Central New York State content in this month's RMC is the article on kitbashing an interlocking tower - this one labeled for East Syracuse, SY Tower, which is up at Dewitt Yard on the prototype not far at all from the Onondaga Cutoff main line.  

It is an exciting time for the Onondaga Cutoff - thanks for all the support!

Conrail on the Onondaga Cutoff - On the Cover of Model Railroader!

There are still surprises in life.  

I'm thrilled to present the August 2021 cover for Model Railroader magazine, with a neat kitbashing article taking the cover - a kitbashing piece I wrote for the Conrail C30-7A!  

This blog has an entry from several years ago describing the build, and in discussing with one of the Senior Associate Editors at MR, he advised that I should pitch it to the Editor.  I did, and it was accepted; I moved ahead with the whole piece.  It was submitted in January 2021 and in just 7 months was printed - with a cover shot to boot!  

This is the second MR cover shot for the Onondaga Cutoff, but the first with Conrail locomotives front and center.  Ever since Mike Tylick's pieces on building a junction module based on the Boston Line in the late 1980's, I have hoped to get Conrail, my 'home' prototype and modeled railroad, on the cover - and here we are.  

The whole thing is surreal and too-good-to-be-true, a lifelong dream achieved at 44 years of age.   From the start of this blog through to now is quite a journey and God willing there is quite a bit more left in the tank.  In some ways I think I'm just getting going, although this one is going to be hard to top.  May the best be yet to come!  

The Book! Guide to Signals & Interlockings - now available for presale!

 I am excited to announce the presale for my new book - Guide to Signals & Interlockings , now listed at Kalmbach Media:   https://kalmbachhobbystore.com/product/book/12824

This book is the culmination of 2 years of effort from a variety of contributors and reviewers, as well as the art and editorial team at Kalmbach.  Writing the text and assembling the photos was a major part of evenings and weekends for me through much of the chaos of 2020 and in many ways was a bright silver lining to a difficult year.  Special thanks are due to many:  Eric White, Lisa Schroeder, Hal Miller and Carl Swanson at Kalmbach, Tony Koester, Jerry Dziedzic, Mark Hemphill, Dave Barraza, Joe Relation, Rich Wisneski, Jack Trabachino, Bill Darnaby, Nick Anshant, J. Alex Lang, to name a few.  The greatest thanks are due to my wife Kristen and my kids Susie, Teddy, Pete, who had to deal with a lot of nights of me being distracted and preoccupied!  I am grateful for all the support of each of these people.  

In a small reminder of life going on, it is listed with a shipping date of March 8, 2021.  March 8 is the birthday of my late sister who would have turned 43 this year, and who without question would have been thrilled with this.  She wasn't a train person, by any means, but she was a family person that would have been very excited for her big brother.  It's something worth reflecting on.

It is still surreal to see the cover for sale online, at a site I have admired for years.  I am really pleased at how nicely the Kalmbach team made this look, and am very excited to see it in print!  I am hopeful it will help readers understand railroad signaling more, and that it will inspire beginners and advanced modelers alike to work and include signals where prototypical on their railroads.  It is an exciting time in the hobby and I am grateful for the opportunity to contribute at this level.

~Dave

On the Cover of Model Railroader!!!

Continuing with the theme of balance in the wake of a challenging few months, I am thrilled to announce that the Onondaga Cutoff has been featured in an article published in Model Railroader magazine! 

While I knew the article was coming, I had no idea that it was in consideration for a cover shot, and so that will live as one of the best surprises I've had, ever.  I am still in a state of shock weeks after the author copy arrived in the mail.  I'm so thankful to be able to contribute, and hopeful that perhaps somewhere a young person will see this and be inspired as I was so many times in my youth.  Coming from a non-model railroad family, this magazine was a wonderful source of excitement for me when I was able to get my hands on it. 

Regular readers will remember the article published in Model Railroad Planning ('MRP') 2018, which gave an overview of the layout and its origins.  That one got the train rolling, so to speak, and I was able to build on that momentum to develop several article concepts for the main magazine.

This article is the first of those to be published.  It is part of the September 2019 issue of MR, on the shelves now, which has several articles coordinated around the idea of running model trains over '24 hours' including simulated dusk, darkness, and dawn, as well as with the lights on.  One of the early goals for operating trains on the 'OC' was to simulate a rolling schedule on the railroad, including round-the-clock operation and the challenges (and mystique) that changing light conditions bring to prototype railroad operations.  This has proved very popular with operators on the OC, so my writing is centered on getting your room and layout surfaces lit for operations, with photos and some ideas to help it come together.   

As a subscriber for some 35 years, it's one of the life goals I have had, and now it's on the books!  Thanks for your support.  This is a wonderful hobby to share.  More to come as always, but this highlight will remain for a long, long time!