Detroit 3 Railers Visit to Norm Charbonneau's layout

Yes thanks Norm, and wife of course. A very talented guy with an eye for detail. A fun afternoon with Norm and the club.

About all I can say is wow.  That's beautiful.

Thanks Norm, and your wife, for a great time.  Your layout was top notch.  Track was smooth.  The engines just glide though some wonderful landscapes.  Photo-shop out that center rail and it would rival a movie set. 

Wow just a beautiful layout and awesome scenery 

thanks for posting a great video

 

THANKS,ALEX

What a day!  Thank you very much Norm for inviting us in to see your work.  Unbelievable!  When I returned home, I walked downstairs, turned on the lights and looked at my trains.  Shook my head, turned around, turned off the lights and went back upstairs. Captain my Captain!!!

Wonderful layout.Thanks!

It can't be as bad as that!

 

C

Norm C. is DA MAN!

 

His layout is AWESOME as always!

Truly a spectacular display of craftsmanship.  Norm's weathering technique--locomotives, rolling stock, structures, etc.--is about the most effective I have ever seen in O gauge, and his attention to detail is second to none.

Thanks for coming out! I had a great time and would like to do this again when I get some more scenery and detailing done.

 

I learned some new things about Legacy (ENG 99 whoops!) and it's nice to have it hooked up again. I guess I need to find me one of those K4s now.

 

Someone left their jacket, should I bring it to Gratiot??

 

Thanks again guys, what a great time!

Thank you Norm and Deborah. I had a very nice time.

I think going to change my modeling tactics!

Norms meticulous attention to detail reaches a spectacular level of realism.

I appreciate sharing with us not only your layout, but your modeling skills as well.

Keep up the good work!

 

Norm that will work.  I can get it back to them.

Charlie, I never thanked you for organizing this as well. Ever since I have joined the club last year you have been a great lead for our club. With our new website, shirts and soon now planning a club car... it sure has been alot of fun!

Thank you

 

Norm

Amazing how you rebuilt so fast. What was your rationale for going form 3 mains down to two mains.  Thoroughly enjoyed your segments in Lionel Nation. Any chance you can post a layout diagram as I ma interested in your sidings and yards.  

Hi LI, first thing I wanted to do was get rid of the grades I had. At the same time, I wanted to simplify the trackage by doing away with the mostly unused yard at the front of the layout. I went with two mains with x-overs and a passing siding for the sake of simplicity. Running more than two trains at a time was a bit obnoxious and tended to make the layout seem smaller and more crowded. The new trackplan is pared down to trackwork that is better utilized and a bit less busy looking and more realisitic (IMO).

Here's an image of the trackplan (right click and 'view image' for detail):



The benchwork is a bit slimmed down now, no longer will I have towns at either end of the layout. Wilcox and Sheedy have traded locations too.

Thanks for the kind words!

N8, the coaling tower is scratchbuilt, based on the GT prototype that still stands in Durand MI (its sister still stands in Grand Haven MI with a PM Berk). The rigging and chutes were sort of freelanced based on the Walthers HO kit. Someday, I'd like to re-do this thing with proper rigging. I found photos of the rigging (hanging on the walls in the Durand McDonald's!) and would like to do mine a little closer to the proto.

 

Here's some old web pages from 2004:

 

http://norm.beesky.com/gtct.html

 

The image clicking thing only seems to work in IE, not Firefox.

 

I think it's an OK stand-in for a PRR style tower that I've seen photos of:

 

http://www.rr-fallenflags.org/...prr-coal-twr-ago.jpg

 

The PRR interlocking tower is an old Quality Craft/Gloor Craft kit:

 

http://normstrains.blogspot.co...ality-craft-606.html

 

I did the weathering a bit conservatively, and painted it based on the kit's instructions. These show up quite a bit on eBay and I've snagged a second one for my stash.

 

I like your HAM equipment! I'd like to get a Hallicrafters S20r Sky Champion someday. My uncle had one that I used to play with.

 

 

Thanks Norm, Appreciate it and enjoyed all the photos,

 

Are you any relationship to the Baseball great Joe Charbonneau ?

 

 

No but I wish! I used to get asked that when I worked in Erie PA.

That's what I want my layout to grow up to be.

 

Super, Norm!

Thanks for posting Charlie.Looks like a great time!  Super job on the layout Norm!

Great video, again Norm is my inspirational 3 railer. Great Norm!

john

Norm-

 

That might be my jacket.  Black with orange inside.  Aviator style.  Probably too big for you!  Either Gratiot or next time you hit Wild Bills!

Norm.....(with jaw dropped to the floor and drooling)....your layout has got to be moved to my place!!  I can have my layout torn down in a weekend if we can make a deal!!!  OK......to bet back to reality here.....this has got to be one of most beautiful layouts that has ever been built..perhaps THE most beautiful.  Everything about it is perfect down to the smallest detail.  WOW.....!!

 

Alan

Look like you guys had a ton of fun, I am going to have to join your group sometime, once I find some free time!

Norm, first off, well done on getting so much accomplished and looking good.  Curious as to why you eliminated your grades and made it such a priority to do so?  IIRC, yours were rather modest and also elevated the track as it ran along your backrop, allowing for some vertical seperation and an easier view of the trains. Operationally, I would think with broad curves and today's cruise controlled locomotives they would not have been such a problem.  I'm asking because I was considering some grades on my new pike similar to what you have eliminated.

 

Thanks

Remember Bob, I said anything left behind gets weathered! I'll bring it to GV...

 

Troy, I just didn't like the look of the grade-separated roadbeds anymore. After the roundhouse and TT was put in around '06, the grades tended to interfere with access to the yard at times.

 

Thanks again for the compliments guys...

 

 

 

 

 

Thanks Norm for having us over.  Also thanks for sharing your scenery techniques with everyone.  A great layout to learn from as well as have fun running trains on it.

Norm,

Thanks to you and your wife for having us over.  What a spectacular job you have done!  Maybe I should have left the K4 over for some weathering.  See your soon.

Thanks Norm and Deborah.  It's great to talk trains for an afternoon.  Your layout is a work of art and am happy you shared it with us.

Charlie you video editing skills are looking good.  Easy when you have such a great layout to show off.

Dan

What a great layout!  You guys get around.

 

John

Wow, spectacular layout!

Thanks for the video of Norm's layout. That is an amazing display of detailing and realism. Also Norm thanks for posting the layout design. 

Thank You Charlie, there is nothing about this video that I don't like. The camera shots are great and the back ground chatter of toy train types talking about all the technical aspects of what went into the building of the layout is far better to the ears then any musical sound track I can think of.

 

Norm, your craftsmanship is truely first rate. From your buildings to your landscape work all go to pull the viewer into the scene. Then along comes one of the trains to grab the attention like passengers at a station and transport us from one vignette to another.

I have to tell you buddy I have never been one to appreciate why anyone would take a perfectly new and beautiful train and degrade it with weathering. But wow, you make it look so real.  I can't believe how I was looking at every little detail and wondering how you did that.

 

All I can say is when I grow up in the hobby I wont to be able to do that.

 

Thank's for sharing,

Mario E.

Norm,

 

Just fantastic!  Mario could not have said it better! Incredible!  Charlie nice job as well!  Norm how did you make the retaining wall?  I like to do that for one of my commercial buildings.  Could you share a tip and  a design?

 

 

Chris

Norm's layout is a rebuild. He has boxes of buildings and scenery still to be place on this one. I hope he invites us back when he's done.  

Well, that is one of the most realistic looking layouts I've ever seen!  Thanks for posting!

I really enjoyed the video.  The distances between the details just seemed right, as if you were traveling down the tracks. Things closer as you get by town and further away as you go out. That’s excellent craftsmanship, thanks for sharing.

I have to especially join Mario, Alan(leavingtracks,) Allan Miller, and Vulcan in the spirit of their praise of your beautiful layout, Norm. Your exceptional gifts at making a detail or a place look real are on the level of artwork. I admire your work tremendously and have saved many pictures of scenes, all along, to review and be inspired.

 

When you announced, sometime back, that you were disassembling your previous layout, I was sorry to hear it and hoped to see this new one as soon as possible. You certainly did not disappoint ! Seeing your continued accomplishment with this new masterpiece will be a real treat for us all, I am sure.

Congratulations on such a success.

Frank