Published: February 16, 2008 10:13 pm      

Model Train Show picks up steam

HOOPESTON — Trains will pull into the station at the Hoopeston Civic Center this weekend — model trains, that is.

The second annual Model Train Show, sponsored by the Hoopeston Jaycees and a group of Hoopeston model train enthusiasts, is planned from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 24 at the McFerren Park Civic Center.

Chad Thomas, model train enthusiast, said, “The show’s basically for the kids to come out with their parents to see it.”

Three train layouts will be on display, Thomas said.

One display is from D&N Hobbies of Effingham. Store owners Don and Nancy Barr will feature Thomas the Train, Annie and Clarabelle in their display. The display will cover the entire stage area at the civic center.

The train on the stage will be a G scale, which Thomas said was a larger size set.

Another train enthusiast will come from Terre Haute, Ind.

The Hoopeston group — which includes Thomas, Leonard Compton, Charlie Pajor, Jeff Cole and Mark Butterworth — will show their train layouts just for this show.

Also displayed will be the Oscar Mayer Weiner train, according to Thomas.

Hoopeston’s design will be a 12-foot by 8-foot layout with HO-scale and N-scale combination trains.

In layman’s terms, the HO-scale is smaller than the D&N Hobbies’ trains, and the N-scale trains are even smaller.

In HO-scale, 3.5 millimetres represents 1 real foot; this ratio works out to about 1:87.086.

Building steam

Thomas credits Compton with putting together Hoopeston’s first train show.

Thomas always wanted to have a show, but didn’t know how to begin. It wasn’t until he and Compton got together that the idea began to build steam.

“He (Compton) really deserves the credit. He’s the one that got the show coming here,” Thomas said.

Thomas is eager to have the younger generation develop an interest in model railroading.

Thomas practices what he preaches. His 5-year-old son Devan helps him with some of the layout, which has taken over the family’s basement on West Penn Street. They also work on the models daily.

Thomas has a 27-foot by 34- foot layout spread across his basement. The layout includes 45 working engines.

Of the 45 engines, about six of them are able to sound bells and whistles.

His collection also includes more than 200 freight cars and 1,789 feet of track. Thomas is quick to add he is not yet finished.

Thomas began his hobby when he was 8 years old. Today, the layout in his basement is his 14th design.

Many model train enthusiasts specialize in specific eras or trains, Thomas said. His specialty is the CSX railroad, which runs north and south through Hoopeston.

Small details

Thomas describes his layout as the more modern designs of engines and cars without a caboose.

Village items, like depots, factories and more come in a kit, said Thomas.

Most railroad enthusiasts buy kits from the Walthers Corner Store Series. The pieces are detailed, he said, and prices do vary.

Thomas said some engines cost $19 to $20, while others approach the $200 mark. A handcrafted brass train costs approximately $1,000.

Thomas has one handcrafted brass item, a trackmobile, which is similar to the one used by the Hoopeston ADM grain elevator to move grain cars as ADM loads them with grain. That piece cost $179, he said.

Thomas, who worked 11 years in the landscaping business, favors similar work in his layouts.

“Most people think of model railroaders as people who have never grown up,” he said. “I’d like to tell them differently. It requires construction ability, electrical knowledge, imagination and the need to know how to landscape.”

Thomas added model enthusiasts also need a lot of patience.

Thomas runs The Sharpened Edge, 928 W. Penn St., Hoopeston, a tool and lawnmower blade sharpening business. He also sells and buys model trains on eBay which, he said, supports his model train hobby.

All for the kids

Compton, whose layout era includes the caboose and a time frame from about the 1950s to 1970s, said money raised from the show stays in Hoopeston for different projects for children.

“Proceeds support the Hoopeston Jaycee projects for underprivileged children and their Christmas projects,” he said. “Plus, the city needs playground equipment for the parks such as safety swing seats at McFerren Park.

“We are trying to bring something to a community starving for entertainment, and keep the hobby of model railroading going. It’s all about the kids.”

Door prizes will be offered during each day of the show. A grand prize for the children attending the show will be a complete Thomas the Train HO set donated by the Hoopeston Jaycees.

FYI

The second annual Model Train Show, sponsored by the Hoopeston Jaycees and a group of model train enthusiasts from Hoopeston, is planned from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Feb. 24 at the McFerren Civic Center. Admission is $1 for adults and children older than 12. Admission for children 12 and younger is free.