What Did You Run Thanksgiving Day?

Nothing this year as we went to relatives for dinner but last years Thanksgiving will be very memorable.  We had family over and my 7 year old nephew was starting to get bored and as such starting to get into and touch things he shouldn't.  So to rescue the wife and other family members I took him down to the basement where all my trains had been sitting in boxes for the past couple of years.  We spent the next 5 hours getting track out wiring the track and designing a floor layout around the basement.  I found stuff that I had forgotten I even had.  All the trains fired right up and after a few mistakes got the DCS system up and running.  I have 2 remotes so we both ran trains on different tracks the rest of the night.  After everyone left I told my wife that it was time to start a permanent layout again and she agreed and gave me one of the storage areas in the unfinished part of the basement.  Over the past year we have got off to a decent start and she even went to York with me this past October, and it all got its start from that Thanksgiving night last year.

My son was running an RMT MTA switcher and yellow gons filled with legos. Lego Luke skywalker was fighting Boba Fett on the handrails and walkways and the whole train plowed through a Lego wall that Jabbas goons had built several times.

nothing 

Did not get a chance to run trains Thursday but maybe tonight.

Dishwasher

Didn't really run anything, but I did get the Christmas tree set up (two tinplate trains circle the base).  I still need to decorate the tree, but will attend to that tomorrow and then just watch a couple of trains go round-and-round after I decide whether I want Snow Village buildings under the tree or want to use my assortment of tinplate cookie tins.

 

Time permitting today or over the weekend, I may also fuss with the tinplate layout here in my den just a bit.  Haven't run it in quite some time.

 

I spent much of the day just trying to comfort my pooch.  She has arthritis in three legs and has a lot of trouble contending with the nearly foot of snow and bitter cold outside.  She's a real trooper, but she did have several falls on the ice and I had to pick her up to get her on her feet again (being very careful not to fall myself while lifting her 79 pounds).  Not great to see this happen to my best friend, but at 14+ she's doing her best to hang in there.

 

 

Allan:

 

You sure have your priorities correct. No matter how old our pets are, they are part of the family and deserve our best attention. I always enjoy your stories about your "best friend" and I know she enjoys the time with you.

Lee

Very Nice Photo.  I ran my trains on my Christmas layout in the morning which has 5 separate loops.  I ran my S-3, 261 along with my new Milwaukee Road passenger cars.  The passenger cars make a very nice addition to my layout this year.  Also ran my Southern 0-6-0 that is on elevated track around the Christmas tree that has my Lionel Peanuts Rolling Stock.  Then on one of my loops I exchanged out my Southern 2-8-8-2 engines and ran my Southern Crescent Legacy Ps-4.

Ken

Ran nothing, moving in 4 more days but had a great thanksgiving day. 

New snow and old dogs just don't mix, do they?  Nothing is quite as comforting as a dog that has been in the family for years.  I hope she does well.

It started out as normal, Grandkids over (5) and them playing games, my 2 sons and I watched football.

About 6:30 my oldest Grandson (12)came over and said "Pops let's run some trains" , I haven't moved that fast in, well a long time, in the garage we went and then the youngest Grand daughter followed. When the trains were all up and running the 5 year old looked at me as said "papa I cann't see" and up she went on some boxes that just happened to be in the right spot.

 

yes, I had a SUPER thanksgiving

 

Brent

 

 

Ran my Reading Fairbanks-Morse and NYC 783 Hudson.  Swapped the black insulators on my GG1 for white ones (the black ones are more prototypical, but the white look better).  Managed to drop the little things all over the floor in the process, and spent half an hour looking for them.

 

 

Six miles.

 

RM

I'm like the previous poster, We,( whole family), ran the 5k Dana Point Turkey Trot. Fourth year in a row, it has become our favorite family tradition.

Ran my BigBoy and K4 a few laps. Nothing special but it works for now.

 

BigBoy

 

K4

No trains yesterday but does Tuesday evening count?

Gave the venerable Hudson a stretch at the club layout and around the farm

Nice looking Hudson on a great layout, c.sam.  Sometime I would like to come out and see the club layout.  I hear it is really good and you guys seem to have a lot of fun with it.  

 

I must give credit where credit is due.  I was half asleep this morning and so referred to the top  locomotive in my first photo (at the start of this thread) as a Lionel 0-4-0 - which is what I run on my upper BEEPWorld loop most of the time.  But the loco there yesterday (and today) is a recently added RK PS3 0-6-0, which I modified by relocating the front headlight atop the boiler, removing the front coupler, and cutting off all overhang on the cab roof rear overhand, thus getting it just under my self-imposed "nothing longer than a BEEP" rule for that loop. It's a really nice loco and the only non-scale loco (except for BEEPs) I run, even if at that it is the largest loco I have on BEEPWorld: a very good, smooth runner even if it takes forever for it to warm up to where the capacitor is charged and it will come alive, and in particular, great sound, slightly more dynamic and active sounding than the Lionel conventional 0-4-0s I usualy run.

Lee, lets see your Beep World!

I just discovered those locos and am eagerly awaiting the 2014 releases.

Ran the 4-8-2 and a few Christmas cars. Added the K-Line Musical Car this year.

Just a loop on tables with a few winter scene ceramic buildings and people from the dollar store but it beats nothing !

Didn't run anything. Was going to but after dinner I was trying to trigger a heart attack by watching my Ravens play the Steelers.

 

Jerry

Dinner at the in-laws. I finally cajoled my father-in-law to break out his trains. I went into the box and found an original '54-'55 Santa Fe 2343 A-A and a freight train. A KW to power it. Needless to say, I set up a loop and fired it up. Still runs. It was his when he was a child.

 

I have been trying to convince him to let me build him a post-war layout. Now the bad news. He's giving the trains to the favored grandson of the sister-in-law.

 

Oh well, it was still enjoyable and started some stories from his childhood.

 

 

We had 17 people over for dinner and no one went down to the train room the entire day. 

Layout's in disarray due to rearrangement, so no photos, but ran the 646 Hudson with a consist of modern repro log dump car and postwar 3662 operating reefer along with the North Pole Express streamliner with the "Route Of The Reindeer" RS-3 up front.

 

Allan, I hope your pooch will continue to enjoy life

 

Pete

For me it was my rather new (bought in February) Lionel 2035.  She runs and smokes like a dream pulling 4 of my silver 2400 series passenger cars.  Photos later. 

My rear end off. Hosted 30 family members. Cooked for 18 hours, then serving, then clean up. I 'm pooped.

 

Gandy

hello guys and gals............

 

I ran my Williams S.F. Geep #2678 and N5C caboose on my TINY 4 by 6 layout for while relaxing from thanksgiving.

 

the woman who loves the S.F. 5011,2678

Tiffany

My son ran his MTH Railking F3 NS Executive A unit double headed with my father in laws Lionel F3 NYC from the early 1950's.  It took a little time to get them sync'd up, but once we did they pulled green Lionel Lines coaches... also from the early 50's.

Two sets of PW Santa Fe diesels. 2383 ABA and 208 AA's

 

Tony Sincius

TCA# 97-45101

My postwar 624 and a string of 6464 postwar cars, with a postwar bay window caboose. 

Well, got my two miles in around noon after it had warmed up into the 30's.  In terms of trains, an MTH Southern GP-9; a Williams Wabash GP-9; a pair of Lionel ATSF F-3's; a pair of Lionel UP Alco FA's; and, since one of our two Christmas trees is now up, a Postwar Lionel 2025 and a 1655.

Curt

Well, now that You Asked, We ran a 4-Unit Diesel set-AC6000 CSX Legacy with 30 cars, A Sante F3 Legacy Pair with Lionel's 18 Inch Stainless Cars, Another Pair of Diesels, Southern Pacific/Western Pacific Legacy with 23 cars, and a set of mixed Passenger Cars pulled with a Legacy NYC GP9.  We had a Fun Thanksgiving, Hope You All enjoyed Your. Day To..LEAPIN LARRY'S LOONEY LINES RAILROAD...YES, all on their own level..

We (one GreatGrandson & GreatGrandson) ran our newly purchased:

 

THOMAS & FRIENDS CHRISTMAS and had a super ball...then we went out and played

basketball and went looking for deer.

 

And Pip the Dog had a lot of fun being involved in all that!!!

 

BTW, did ya know if you turn off THE REMOTE the little fella keeps running  for a while?

 ...not the dog...THOMAS~~

 

 

 

I unpacked & ran my Lionel Polar Railroad freight set (I call it Santa's ground support). The scale legacy K-4 w/hot chocolate mega-steam smoke and all the freight cars. Though I am disappointed that Lionel didn't make a new car this year.

Most of our immediate family was over for The Big Meal.  The interior of our house was decorated, the Christmas tree went up, and out came the tubular track. The PW #665 was set on the track with some Pullman Green Baby Madisons behind it. Up went the throttle on the PW ZW and... the ozone smelled good as did the smoke fluid! That whistle is still magical!

 

Only one real issue: I'm not 10 years old anymore... even carpeted floors are tough on older bones trying to get down to track level to enjoy the action with the grand daughter!

Geez, that's happened to you, too, huh?

Had some family over that we hadn't seen since before I got back into the hobby and put my layout in the basement.

My wife suggested I show my 10-year old nephew the trains. As we walked down the cellar stops he stopped dead when he saw the layout. He turned and yelled "mom, dad, everybody you gotta come down here". Soon everyone was around the layout.

I had not planned on showing the trains so I was not really ready for this. Fortunately my last train session ended with everything in such a position that I did not have to move anything around.

I hit my remote power and it sprang to life. I have to say, the oohs and ahhs when all the layout lights came on made me feel pretty good. I started the Hudson, the Challanger and the Atlantic. Soon they were all moving and the smoke started coming and the chugs and whistles...it was one of those perfect times when everything ran smoothly. My wife then turned out the overhead lights and I just let the trains run. Everyone walked around and they spent a good half hour studying all the scenery and different areas of the layout. I could here the ten year old say "dad, it all looks so real". My face lit up.

The standard set of questions were asked and answered, I have found that pretty much all the newcomers ask the exact same set of questions.

What did I run on Thanksgiving?  Just one engine pulling my most appropriate piece of rolling stock.

 

 

My son ran the Santa Fe Flyer and N & W 611 for family during turkey day festivities.