Hi Everybody-- Happy New Year !! As a new OGR Forum member who likes to contribute history and how-to ideas, I wanted to share three photographs that depicts the railroad empire that operated for some thirty years in the basement of my old Victorian home in Oakland, CA. I will tell you up front that I came from a broken home-- so, my British grandparents took me in as a baby and raised me as their own son for the first 14-years of my life. My grandfather worked for many years on the Southern Pacific RR. There was no way that I would escape TRAINS as my hobby forever.
I love both O-2 rail and O-3 rail trains and that's why I am getting ready to commence construction on a new O-gauge 160 sq foot layout in my home! It will be top notch and I'll be sure to share a few construction photos with all of you.
For now, let's go back to the time period of 1946--1961 and see what I was exposed to in that house and which made me the envy of every kid in school while growing up !! I'm sure that Rich Melvin and "Hot Water" will like these photos as they are STEAM related......
Photo 1. A fast freight highballs on the mainline pulled by a 4-6-2 SP 'Pacific' .
Photo 2. The three-track mainline shows the double-slip switch arrangement.
Photo 3. The late Victor Shattock (my grandpa 'Dad') and double-headed SP 2-8-2's waiting for an
SP 4-6-2 coming off the branch line.
Note: Scale was 1/2-inch to the foot. (twice O-gauge)... 1/24th full size. Track gauge: 2 1/2-inches.
(known as Gauge-3) in England .. Copper firetube boilers-- boiler pressure 80-100 psi .
"Everything" in photos scratch-built from raw materials by Vic Shattock . Fuel: denatured alcohol in a vaporizing alcohol burner designed by Vic. Controllable like gas on kitchen stove! Lots of BTU's..
If any of you would like to see this RR in operation and if Rich Melvin doesn't mind me telling you,
check out STEAM RAILROADING IN THE BASEMENT on YouTube (Parts 1 and 2)..
Thanks for your attention everybody, at this nostalgic lookback in history!
KRK
