2013 Christmas Photo Album

A&SL,

That is an Ertl NYC Maintenance van, and its over by the switch now.  It was inexpensive...

The snow is an easy four-step process:

1. Double layer of cotton batting
2. Snow-Tex "glop" for piles
3. Spray everything with water/glue mix and sprinkle with Woodland Scenics large flake snow.
4. Coat everything with spray glitter (self adhesive), either silver or "diamond dust".   Be careful, it covers everything!

after that, I just poured a small stream of Woodland Scenics Realistic water down the gutters and let it self-level, or maybe using a small foam brush to get it to spread.

I used the same water, in layers, for the canal.

makes me cold just looking at it!

Thanks for the comments!

Passenger Train Collector - Yes, hoping to get another cat, its amazing how attached we get to our pets.

For whatever reasons, cats just seem to like laying under Christmas trees, here is an

another photo of two of our other cats under the tree.

ours haven't done it this year, but our platform was well protected last year.

the black one gets possesed at times.....

Last minute shopping for your tree? Great deals to be had here!

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Peter

 What great posts!

Those SF F's do remind me of Christmas!

Wonderful Christmas layouts again this year!  So amazing to see what everybody is able to put together for the holidays.  Here are some photos from ours this year...

Merry Christmas to all!

It's freezing out there. The Hiawatha is late. They are crossing the Cascades on Christmas eve. Everyone is safe and riding in style. The crew are warm in their electric motor. All is good. Don

From the Northern Pacific Railway Museum in Toppenish, WA last weekend.  They had 10-12 layouts (over 40 operating trains) on display as part of their 10th Annual Toy Train Christmas.  The displays ranged from Z to G with 4-5 HO displays and one each larger winter scene layouts in O, S and G.  This event runs annually every weekend from Thanksgiving to Christmas.  The fact these folks pull 5,000 visitors at $6 each in the middle of nowhere is almost as amazing as the LHS (there is one about 3 exits up the highway) not sponsoring it or not trying to sell boxed Christmas sets at the event or even across the street (but I digress). 

NPRM http://www.nprymuseum.org/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages...nish/225189807620046

News story http://www.yakimaherald.com/ne...of-holiday-nostalgia

It was dark inside so I didn't take many videos or pictures.  Regretfully this is all I shot on my phone although the links I provided have some additional pictures.  The volunteers only have a few days to set up these temporary layouts at their own expense.  They take up space used for other exhibits throughout the rest of the year.  The video sequence is LGB, Lionel then S.  The S shows a Challenger running most of the time with Big Boy blowing its horn going up the grade at the end.

Sam, what a beautiful Christmas layout. Shows that a lot of effort went into it. Very nice job and Merry Christmas to you and your family.

I do both O Gauge and N Scale, but I really love how O Gauge lends itself to themed layouts at Halloween and Christmas, etc.  Simply awesome photos by all who have posted before me.

This is the 3^rd year since my return to trains that we have put up a village with a train.  The first two years were both on train tables.  This year, was the first, however, that we incorporated the Christmas Tree like I see in many photos.  I say we, because my wife was okay on the idea of having the trains around the tree.  But, man, it is not as easy in person as what I see on the internet, trying not to step on or knock over things.

As you can see in the photos, we combined the Walt Disney World Monorail with the Lionel Christmas Train.  I know the Matterhorn at Disneyland is not a ski resort, but for our layout, we’re considering the Mr. Christmas ski resort as our Matterhorn, LOL.

Took countless photos in the dark trying to get those “night photos” but none came out any good.  Maybe I need to upgrade my camera. 

I wanted to use the integrated roadbed for the track so as not to get the cotton into the engines, but went ahead and used the tubular tracks so that the train noise didn’t drown out the sounds from all of the musical Christmas items.  Maybe after today’s festivities, I will put down the integrated road bed and leave the musical items off.

Merry Christmas everyone!

A few more photos.

The MTH Christmas Trolley (my first ever Christmas themed train purchase in 2011) operating along Big Box Retail Road in another part of the house

And then to top it off (pun intended), an aerial view of the Christmas Tree Train Village from up above in my RC Cessna that one of the village residents has taken for a spin this Christmas Day.

Merry Christmas, Santa came by played with my sons CSX SD40-2 and my GN SD24 and Left him a Bachman Empire Builder with a ATSF 4-8-4 3780

http://youtu.be/sSB7wIlqEX8

http://youtu.be/3y-V6V0-eXk

Thank you!  With this the only time of year that we set up and run the trains, it is pretty amazing being able to take over nearly half of the living room to create this fun, festive Christmas display!

-Sam

A day late, but here is this year's setup.  Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas.

Don

SAM M

What are you using as a base,  Just like the different look, as to how a lot

of stuff fit in the area !!!

Thanks

I kept it very simple this year. This is my "new-old" train set. It is a mix of Bing and Ives. A church member gave it to me. It was her grandfather's train, and she wanted it to go to some home where it would be cared for, run, and appreciated. All I had to do was clean the track and lube all the moving parts. It runs just like the day it was made.

Here is the guard cat on duty. He is really intrigued by this train. He just sits there and watches it go around the tree.

Chris

LVHR

My little Christmas village.  Wanted to decorate the carousel with Christmas theme stuff, but didn't make it.  Next year for sure.

Must say that this is the one that gets me the most, right here.

Russell, that's a great photo. Next year's Christmas card?

Fantastic!!

My main base is 3 sections - built with plywood on 2x4s, with ceiling tiles on top of that.  With some shims underneath, it is about 5" off the ground - matching the height of our fireplace.  A 4th section is built up in the left corner in a similar fashion, with some features just sheets of 1/2", 1", and 2" foam.

Thanks for asking!

-Sam

Just realized I hadn't shared my video with the trains running...

-Sam

Did the train come with Rudolph characters or did you make that?  Nice Christmas display!

Layout has eight trains running simultaneously and a trolley.  Every year it comes apart for the Super Bowl party and then started up again in October.  Have a Happy New Year!

It did not. They are Rudolph figures that can be found as sets or as ornaments. I got some at a local toy store years ago. The rest I searched for and bought through Amazon this year. There are two special cars caring them, one a converted flatcar and the other hand made from a pair of extra trucks and a piece of plastic. 

Sam

Christmas set up on outside sunporch   Television people put a 2 minute spot on local news   on the 24th  - the man who belived -

Chris,

Nice shots of the kids! Looks like they had lots of fun at Christmas! But I don't see Abby the Tabby. How is she doing? Mine insisted on parking his rump right in the middle of all the action. He did not want to miss anything.

Chris

LVHR

My trains kind of take over the living room at Christmas time

Ron

Sam,  Great video and beautiful layout.

How did you do the snow on the tops of the Polar Express cars ?

Doug

Brian (PTC) Please go check out this https://ogrforum.com/t...73#23956019147568073

Here is Christmas at our house...

Thanks Doug - much appreciated!  The snow is simply some white cotton fabric cut to fit the roofs of the cars and either hot glued out white glued on.  I did it a few years ago and couldn't be happier with how it turned out.  

Sam

Pretty basic 1947 Berkshire with work cars 054 track.