Spring Break Update

It's been a little quiet since it's Spring Break week at RIT, but here's some photos of recent progress to share. More photos on our Facebook fan page, join up and follow along! Our next major public event is the Imagine RIT Festival on May 3, 2014! We will be hosting a public open house throughout the day, stop by and visit!

 Elliot and David install track on the B&O branch - Feb. 2014

Matt and Jimmy install power feeders on the B&O branch - Feb. 2014

Niagara Falls, looking west from the chemical plant - Feb. 2014

 

Phil works on track and sidings in Albion - Feb. 2014

 Matt works on track at the B&O terminal, Otto cuts more flextrack - Feb. 2014

Jimmy and Phil cut masonite for the Albion backdrop - Mar. 2014

A flurry of activity in the club room - Mar. 2014

Otto, Jimmy, and Phil work on Albion backdrop - Mar. 2014

Phil and David work on backdrops in Albion and Lockport - Mar. 2014

Taking a break for some railfanning at the Amtrak station in downtown Rochester - Mar. 2014

R&IT celebrates second Golden Spike with RIT President Destler

On March 11, 2014, the RIT Model Railroad Club hosted a special open house to mark the completion of the main line of the second version of the Rochester & Irondequoit Terminal Railroad with RIT President William Destler. Representing Student Government was president Paul Darragh. Also in attendance was NCE DCC founder and lead designer Jim Scorse, an RIT Electrical Engineering alum from the class of '73. Also joining us was Jim Otto, another NCE employee and local model railroader, as well as reporters and photographers from Reporter Magazine and RIT University News.

Alumni member and club co-founder Otto Vondrak welcomed guests and made introductions while club president Matt Glazer ran a steam-powered passenger train from Irondequoit Yard, meeting an R&IT Alco-powered freight train that vice president Elliot Courtney ran from Niagara Falls Yard. The two trains met roughly halfway between CP 373 and Albion, where we had first joined rails back in November. Matt welcomed our guests and said a few words of introduction, explaining how his early interest in trains led to him joining the club and helping to design and build our new model railroad.

RIT President Destler drives the "golden spike" with RITMRC president Matt Glazer. RIT University News Photo

The site was prepared with two "golden spikes," and the first one was driven by President Destler and Matt Glazer. The second spike was driven by Matt Glazer and Elliot Courtney. Following the completion of the ceremony and the appropriate photo ops, the freight train was backed into Albion siding so that President Destler could take the throttle of the steam engine and continue with tour with Elliot as his guide. The president was very interested in what we had created, having seen the previous version of the R&IT, and asked many questions. He was also very interested that we were using a DCC system designed and manufactured right here in Rochester by an RIT grad!

 RITMRC vice president Elliot Courtney guides President Destler around the layout as club members and visitors look on. RIT University News Photo

We can't thank our club members enough for all of their hard work this year that made this day possible, especially in the weeks leading up to this special event. Thanks also goes out to our alumni and all past members of the club who kept our traditions alive all these years. It is very exciting to see the new layout take shape and make progress each week, and we have much to look forward to over the next few years as we continue to grow and develop the latest, greatest version of the R&IT!

 The rest of the afternoon and evening was spent running trains. Here we have a special four-way meet with the Rochester & Southern branch line job running along side the CSX main. A CSX freight is holding for an R&IT train coming off the Falls Road Secondary and about to cross over. Meanwhile, an R&S coal train destined for Kodak crosses overhead on the Belt Line branch.

Thank you also to all of our fans and community supporters, we couldn't do what we do without your help! Follow us on our web site and on our Facebook fan page for the latest news and updates.

"SHIP AND TRAVEL GENESEE ROUTE"

RMRRC Open House and Work Session update

Our Saturday was very busy, combining a visit to the Rochester Model Railroad Club in the morning with an abbreviated work session in the afternoon. Several members met up in the city to visit the RMRRC on the occasion of their 75th anniversary. Founded as the Kodak City Model Railroad Club in 1939, the group has been going strong despite a number of moves over the years. Our first club advisor, the late Prof. James F. Scudder, was a member of this club, having joined in 1962.

The home road of the RMRRC is the Seneca Valley Lines, a fictional railroad loosely based on the route and operations of the old Lehigh Valley Railroad from Jersey City to Buffalo. The layout is quite large and features many scenes faithfully modeled after the real thing, such as the station at Geneva, the scene at Rochester Jct., and the old Lackawanna terminal in Buffalo. Many of these scenes are long gone in real life, but they live in on model form. We also visited the small train show where we picked up many items at bargain prices for our personal and club collections!

After our visit, we walked a couple of blocks over to Dinosaur BBQ, housed on the old Lehigh Valley passenger terminal that dates from 1905. Trains no longer call at the station (the last service was in the 1950s), but it has been home to tasty barbecue since 1995. Alongside the restaurant are some ruins of the old Rochester Subway and its Court Street station. We made time for a history lesson and took a quick look around before heading back to RIT.

The remains of Court Street station on the Rochester Subway. Structure at left carried a roadway into the Lehigh Valley freight yard. Dinosaur BBQ is just out of view at left. The Rundel Library in the background was built over the Subway tracks in 1934. Photo source: RochesterSubway.com

Upon our arrival, we quickly split up into teams to tackle various clean-up jobs. One team swept the entire layout and removed all equipment. Everything was brought out to our temporary work station in the hallway for inspection (weight, wheels, and couplers). Another team removed everything from under the layout, swept and vacuumed, and carefully replaced anything going back into storage. A third group vacuumed the surface of the layout and also polished all tracks with a Brite Boy abrasive block. Some temporary fascia panels were hung to help protect clothing from being snagged on exposed benchwork. Floors were swept, empty boxes thrown away, and the general appearance of the room was improved dramatically.

The first RITMRC Golden Spike Ceremony was held on April 1, 1997. From left to right, Rob "Fro" Ranger (Secretary), Joe Wolff (Treasurer), Otto Vondrak (Vice President), Tom Rohatsch (President), Prof. Jim Scudder (Advisor). Photo by Scott Spitzer

We're getting ready to host a special Open House to celebrate the driving of the "Golden Spike" with RIT president William Destler on Tuesday, March 11, at 1:30 p.m. Come down and join us for this historic event!

March 1 Work Session Update

 

Otto, Jimmy, and Phil apply the first coat of drywall mud to the Albion backdrop.

Saturday's work session was a bit quieter than normal, but we still got plenty of work done. Matt G., Phil, David S. and James continued finishing work on the backdrops in Albion and Lockport, sanding and priming the surfaces and getting them ready for sky blue paint. Meanwhile, Phil and Otto shored up our sagging helix with additional beams and legs.

 Plaster cloth applied to David's scenery test diorama.

Matt G. installed feeders on the B&O branch, and Otto installed another layer of street surface over the Rochester Subway scene. We played around with some possible scenarios for the Niagara Food Terminal and put together a list of parts to order. David S. continued work on our scenery diorama, applying a plaster hardshell with help from Otto and Matt. Otto also rationalized our giant tub of scenery materials to help save space.

Our next meeting is Tuesday, March 4.

We will be attending the Rochester Model Railroad 75th Anniversary  Club Open House on Saturday, March 8.