Happy SWSAT...great stuff posted so far as always! Below are a few shots of one of only two steam engines on my "roster". CNJ 0-6-0 switcher #107 is a Weaver brass model that is very near and dear to my heart.
My paternal grandfather was a fireman/engineer on the Jersey Central (CNJ). Unfortunately, he died at 58 (when I was 2 years old) and I had no memories of him. My family had no known "railroading" photos of him....so all I had to go by were the stories that my Dad told me about his Dad's days on the railroad. The rest was left up to my imagination. I grew up being fascinated my trains and railroading.
Now, to fast forward a bit...
I had spent over 30 years searching for--and hoping to find--just one photo of my grandfather working on the railroad. Then out of the blue, about 6-7 years ago, I got a call from my Mom. While cleaning up and purging some "junk" that accumulated over time, she stumbled upon a few old photos of my grandfather "working on the railroad". It felt like winning the lottery to me!
One of the photos discovered (see below...I've posted this before here on the Forum) is of my grandfather in the cab of the "real" CNJ #107 taken near the large coaling tower in the CNJ's Ashley, PA yard.
I already owned this Weaver engine when my family gave me the new-found photos of my grandfather; however, it was not numbered "107" like the one in the photo. I really wanted my engine to be "107", and since this was prior to me getting involved with weathering and detailing work, I decided to send it back to Weaver to have them change the road numbers and weather it for me.
Ever since then, it's been displayed on a shelf in my home office next to a replica of the Ashley coaling tower that was scratch-built by Forum member Alex M.
I was looking up at "107" the other day and figured it was time to take her down and shoot a few photos to share here. I plan to add Kadee scale couplers, a few more details, and probably my own "touches" to the weathering when I find the time.
Thanks for reading this...and if you made it this far, I hope you enjoyed my story!
The Weaver model...
My grandfather...and the "real" CNJ #107...