Anyone ever try to make a working drive in theater?

Since you have the old unit to start on and a great idea it looks like you're the one to do it.  I certainly would like to see you post a thread on the progress of your new project.

The Hobby Shop, in Aberdeen NJ has one on the store layout. I also saw one on a Ntrak module at a Greenberg show. It was playing Kelly's Heroes, to a drive in filled with military vehicles. Both looked neat

some time ago there was an article in Classic Toy Trains of a fellow who did make a drive in for his layout.  He did not gut it but used the entire unit with a slot for the Screen and it looked pretty good I am not sure of the issue But I would look around to see if you can find it

Within the last three of four years someone posted pictures/video here of theirs.  It was compressed - only a few rows for cars, but nice looking.  You could have a lot of fun with a drive in, beyond the screen and movie you could show.  I gotta think about this, almost too much fun not to do one . . . 

In 'ancient train days of old', I remember seeing, I think, in an old Model

Railroader issue, a small portable black & white t.v. someone had worked

into a scene depicting a drive-in.  It wasn't shown how the back of the

t.v. was disguised.

     Hoppy

I saw one years ago. Small TV inside a mountain. I think the name of the place was Trainland USA in Iowa? 

Clem

This might give me something to do with my old iphone/ipads in the future.

I did this for 10 years almost for my 4H club's train layout.

LOL...I like it, and I have that dvd!

You, of all people, would be the one to have tried, I figured.

My worries, thickness of the screen- I'd loose the thick plastic shroud around the screen and then see if I could make it thin as possible...and a plastruct or evergreen frame around it....this is one of those you hang off the back of the car's headrest.

Burlington Route

Classic Toy Trains September 2006

Page 46 Titled DVD Theatear

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the Ocean county club has one as a drive in and one inside a movie theater, you can watch bugs bunny through the window. the kids love it.

I think it would be neat to take a tablet pc and use a wireless mouse and keyboard to search for movies on line. Then show them on the tablet. A number of tablets have very high resolution. If you subscribe to any of the service like Netflix or Hulu Plus you could even get TV shows.

A DVD player with a slot cut in the layout is an easy way to get a working movie. I've even thought about those picture frames that use a usb drive for 'moving' pictures.

Or just wait a few years until these paper thin sheets will act as a video screens!! Then you can really do a scale screen!!

The Rochester P.A.L. Fall Layout(as featured in the Bantam books) has had a working drive-in since the 1950's.

Another option is a mini projector which can be found easily online.  Mounted in a building it would look really cool imho.

SMARTT in Miami mastered that 10 years ago using a laptop and running a movie in it.  The screen had all sorts of deco around it and he used the ticket booth, concession stand and all the trimmings drive in movies had. 

A 7" screen personal DVD player works fine, even a broken one. Just hook it up to a DVD or VHS player under the layout and feed into the "screen". Yes, you can play a DVD in the unit itself, but if the player part is under the layout it may not get enough air circulation to cool it properly (plus it's hard to get to). By running a input wire to the unit, your player can be within easy reach. I built a "frame" around the top and sides of the screen to  have it look more like a drive-in screen.

My friend, Mike Iorio has had one on his layout for many years. I'll try to upload a few this evening. He did a nice job with a sign, cars, speaker poles, concession and an old TV set into the side of a mountain. He recently updated it with a flat screen when the old set died.

Our club, the Boothe Memorial Railway Society, has a drive in theater on the H.O. layout.  I'd post a picture but I usually just take pictures on the O gauge layout!

Don Masso may have one..... paging Don....

Ed

I really want to do one.  They only place it could possibly go would be on yet another palette for my removeable/replacement lake/brewery/secret rocket base, but it would be easy and the site would be perfect.  Beyond a small screen and a movie showing (going to have think about which) there are so many little vignettes you can do:" the popcorm concession stand would be cool in itself - you could do something with that.  A car with the trunk open and three of four guys who were smuggled in getting out, a car with a couple in the backseat and the security guard approaching with his flashlight, a stationwagon backed up with the tailgate open and the kids already in pjamas laying out to watch inside while mom and dad sit on the roof.  And it would be a great use a couple of dozen cars.

Lee.....a drive in theater would be the perfect cover for a secret rocket base.  You have to do it!

I'm pretty sure I have a scenery book from a few years ago that has a drive in theater featured....they used a portable dvd player. 

I heard I was being paged. Here is a poor shot but you get the idea.

Bob - Another reason to head to the CLRRC open house next month. They have one on the layout!!

Couple of thoughts to add...

Miller Engrg (Chris) once had a functioning drive-in theater kit in at least a couple scales...HO, I'm sure of.  It featured the neat entry sign with chase lights, etc.  (still available, I believe).  It disappeared from Miller's product line after they lost their source of LCD screens.  For a while there was some hope it might come back if a new supplier could be secured.  Then, later, in talking with Chris at a York meeting a couple years ago, the whole concept/effort was dropped.  Nonetheless, today's inexpensive portable DVD's make re-creation of the main screen not that difficult a job, as earlier postings have suggested.

Second thought...re B/W TV scene recalled...   I believe that was in the infamous, ubiquitous Bantam book "Model Railroading" from the 50's showing pictures of the Rochester Police Boy's Club layouts (sic)....you know, the four seasons layouts, one of which had an ol' B/W boob-tube TV buried in the side of a mountain with an array of autos before it....voila!..a drive-in theatah!

More recently, tho', there's been several nifty scenes either from the pages of OGR, CTT, or from the Sunday photo spreads on this forum.

I always thought it was a dandy way to make use of the over-abundance of diecast convertible models of autos.  The only thing lacking was a variety of PG-13 to R-rated (or ?-rated ) couples 'enjoying' the movie () in the convertibles.  I mean, Dennis (Arttista) could create a whole new series for this concept!.....eh??

KD

Here's one I did a while back, for a fellow forum member.

LINK

https://ogrforum.com/t...movie-screen-project

Thanks,

Alex

Famous, and still there:

Yes, I made one for my layout. I used an 8" diagonal TV monitor. About $40.00 at Walmart a year ago or so. The monitor allows you to input movies from many sources...broadcast tv, DVD, VHS and probably computer.

I made the cover for the screen from Foamcore board and wood strips.

I did make my own DVD consisting of those "Intermission" shorts we all remember from our younger days..."Let's all go to the lobby..." along with movie trailers from the 50's and actual Drive-in Theater "warnings" about damaged speakers and such.

Youtube is full of these type shots along with cartoons. etc.

You are only limited by your imagination. My DVD is over one hour long and has only 8 minutes of actual "Our Feature Attraction". The rest is previews, concession ads and warnings. Those Drive-in movie-goers get the short end of the stick at this place but hey...how many are watching the screen anyway?

Mark

Those are great!  I love the idea of the warnings and concession stand ads. Thanks for the inspiration.

I have used a drive-in theater in some of my Christmas displays over the years. The first that I used in a display goes back to 1971. That one I used a old(now) 8mm projector to show movies on a screen that I built.

In 1981 I changed from a film movie to using a screen with a rear mounted slide projector showing on the screen.

 Over the years as technology has taken us forward so has our options of using different media.

In some of our theaters I have used a car that is rockin' as the movie goes on.

Nope, Lee can't possibly do one...not plain or especially with a secret pop up rocket launch pad{on hinges} likened to Interantional rescue/Thundebirds....even he isn't that good!

{hope lee doesn't see this part....that gaunlet hurled at him should nudge him enough...hehehe}

"Thomas the tank engine playing"...seriously, that's just craziness..a train movie on a layout........................Sweet!

Alright, the son and I will mark the calender....."road trip"!

Below is a photo of Mike Iorio's drive-in at night. I have better pictures, but I'm hoping they will be in a future article.

Something else to add would be a z scaled train that would be in the drive in with kids riding on it like some had back in the day.

I remember those!  That was the main reason I wanted to go to the drive-in.  When I was a pre-teen. (Had to clarify that!)

THere's a set-up like this on the display layout at Philip's Toy Mart in Nashville.  Every time I've been in there it's been playing "Thomas the Tank Engine."

Nice topic-brought back memories. Here's a sample

Snack Bar Space

from here Drive-in Movie Ads