# 3 tons later...



## markoles (Jan 2, 2008)

I posted this over on the aristo site, but thought that some of you on here (that don't go over there or don't post there) might want to discuss some of these ideas...

Hi guys,

Been a busy morning here getting 3 tons of stone off the driveway and on to the railroad!! Open house is next Sunday, so the time is now!! Thank God for the last minute. Otherwise, nothing would ever get done! I think I am also supposed to get some wood mulch. THat'll have to wait for another day!! Railroad is looking good. Need to get out there and run some trains over the next several days to help the ballast settle. 

Too tired to take pictures..

But, I started thinking about why I am doing all this work for people I don't even know. And I don't have a good reason. Maybe I just like running trains and like it when the railroad looks good, too. Any of you have a good reason for sprucing up your railroad? Fine tuning that bad joiner? Fixing bad track plans with ones that make sense? I think it would have taken me ten or more years to have felt the need to make the modifications to the railroad that I have over the past 5 years. I have gotten a little bit of noteriety lately in the form of a magazine article and now the sunday news' living section will have a short story and maybe a picture or two of the railroad. But that's not why I do it. It's just fun, I guess. But it sure is a lot of work to have fun!! And all I did was ballast the main and passing siding! Didn't bother with the storage yard, even though it was begging me to get out the hoe and level it off. The fun stuff comes next in the form of de-boxing 2/3 of my rolling stock. Not sure where I am going to put those cars. Probably have to let them sit out overnight on Saturday.

Those of you who hold open houses: why do you do it? 

Oh well, back to work for real.

Mark


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## Nicholas Savatgy (Dec 17, 2008)

You do it cause you are proud of what you built and want to show it off....


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## altterrain (Jan 2, 2008)

3 tons? I recently installed 40 tons of half inch bluestone gravel to put in a new driveway at my place.









-Brian


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## GG (Jan 1, 2009)

I agree with Nick, 

We put sincere effort into our layouts, they are what we represent and yes, why not show it off?

By doing this we are not braggarts but simply people who want to share personal successes. 

Cudos to those who do want to "share". 

There are those, including myself, who are inspired by what other people are able to accomplish. 

Thank you

gg


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## Nicholas Savatgy (Dec 17, 2008)

GG my man, Hows it hangin? long time no hear... Nice to see you back posting


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## Kovacjr (Jan 2, 2008)

Well Brian. We topped that 2 weeks ago. 100 yards of mulch on a hill in a customers back yard. Planted a full landscape on a hill about 50'x250' 3 guys and all moved by hand. Monday I have 7 pallets of pavers waiting to be laid plus have to finish the firepit I started today.


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## GG (Jan 1, 2009)

Posted By Nicholas Savatgy on 02 Oct 2009 06:10 PM 
GG my man, Hows it hangin? long time no hear... Nice to see you back posting




























Well Nick glad to contribute... been somewhat busy of late.. 
I will be sure to get on board and up-do your smilies...  

Give me a chance to come back to earth... work has been stressful these days. 

gg


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## markoles (Jan 2, 2008)

Okay Okay, 3 tons of stone isn't all that bad!! But it sure seemed like a lot of wheelbarrow loads at the time! 

I am proud of the layout that we've built and sharing it with interested folks is a lot of fun, good point, Nick! 

Maybe I do all this work for the open house because I like meeting the people and watching the look on their faces as they discover the railroad. The reporter last week made a comment about how personalized the whole thing is. And to a large extent, he is right. Even when I exclude the cars I have painted for my own railroad, there is still a very personal nature to this hobby. The rolling stock and locomotives we choose; how we operate our trains; how we lay out the railroad and integrate it with the surroundings; all of it is very personal. Never really thought about it. (Usually too busy having fun playing trains!). Maybe the other thing is the newbie aspect. That excitement from folks who have never really seen a garden railroad is pretty contagious. Here it is almost 1 am on Saturday, and I started masking off a tank car for lettering. That tank car has been sitting down here in the basement for about 4 years waiting for final lettering. I don't even know if I have the screws to put it all back together! 

Later,

Mark


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

Would you believe 200 yards of pulverized granite dust and a petrified tree stump? 

Okay, me neither. 

I host open houses to share what I've done with others, but it's also as much just a day to dedicate to runnin' trains. We had an open house here a few weeks ago, I think I had 10 people stop by all day long. Didn't bother me one bit whether anyone showed up or not; I was outside enjoying the trains. That others can come share in my enjoyment is merely gravy. 

Later, 

K


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## digger (Jan 2, 2008)

I'm with Mark. I get a buzz out of watching people's eyes light up when they first see the layout. There's a "Wow" factor there that's priceless. Four open houses this past summer brought over 700 visitors to our back yard. The largest group came for a public tour our club hosts each year to raise cash and non-perishable food donations for local food banks. We had over 400 visitors that day, during a six-hour period. Tough on the grass, but great for the soul. That one got front page pre-event coverage by our local newspaper, which really boosted the turnout. Our second largest group appeared on Saturday after the National Convention. It was a treat to meet folks from all over the states and a few foreign countries. 


All of the foregoing gave me real incentive to get things in top running order. Years ago, there was a "tonnage factor" involved, while creating the railway. Today, instead of "heavy lifting", we get to enjoy "uplifting". And through it all, I get to "play trains"!










Ed


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## aceinspp (Jan 2, 2008)

Yep 3 tons a breeze I move 36 yards of dirt last year to build a new extension to the RR. Thats two tandum axle dump truck loads all move by hand. Glade Mark spent the time getting his RR ready for a good cause. Just post us some pics. Later RJD


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## markoles (Jan 2, 2008)

Guys,

Not the front page of the paper, but the front page of today's Living section:

http://articles.lancasteronline.com/local/4/242945

I am not sure what I was doing when the guy snapped my picture, but aside from that one, the other pictures turned out great!! That's another thing: what other people notice on your railroad that you are so used to you overlook. (I looked at the pictures and thought 'is that really my railroad?)

Have a great day!

Mark


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