Trains-N-Towns^TM, the Official Newsletter of BIGIndoorTrains.com and BIGChristmasTrains.com

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In this Issue

Several years ago, our daughter's children's chorus took part in Memorial Day activities at a large cemetery. In preparation, the children learned the anthems of each military branch, as well as "God Bless America." Afterwards, many adults came forward to tell the young people how well they sang. Frankly, up to that point, it was much like any other "performance." But on their way out of the cemetery, the kids noticed that a group of former Marines had informally gathered in one corner. Some were in old uniforms; many were in street clothes, but you could tell they had been comrades in arms. The director brought the kids quietly nearby and led the chorus in an a capella rendition of the Marines Hymn. Soon everyone nearby had fallen silent to listen to the voices of children who, thanks to the bravery and sacrifices of others, had no real concept of war. The hush that followed was broken only by the sobs of grown men. All the speeches and ceremonies that had gone before did not express gratitude as profoundly as the voices of those children.

This month, I want to give a heartfelt "Thank you" to those who have sacrificed to help make this country great and strong, as well as to everyone who is working to protect and improve the lives of others today, whether in our military forces, in classrooms, in fire stations, in precincts, in emergency rooms, or a thousand other places where "promoting the general welfare" comes down to "looking out for" other people. May God help and protect you as you strive to help and protect others.

Now for the train stuff. Since our On30 readers now have access to a very nice family of articulated locomotives, I thought it would be nice to publish something about the history of these beasts. With the permission of the South East Pennsylvania Garden Railway society, I have published and expanded on an introduction to Mallet compound engines. For folks who want more details, I've also provided links to early 20th century publications about how those complicated mechanisms worked.

Also, as we approach Memorial Day, Flag Day, and Independence Day, I thought it would be nice to create some building projects to help us celebrate our heritage, with a nod to the music of George M. Cohan and John Phillip Sousa. And here's a secret: even if you don't want to build the little houses, a handful of readers have enjoyed downloading the storefront graphics and decoupaging them to cutout boards, a la Cat's Meow. They make great gifts - just don't start selling them, or we'll have a falling out. :-)

And, yes, we've added some Father's Day gift "hints." But the best hint of all is that our primer pages offer a library of easy, inexpensive projects, with free downloadable graphics and instructions, to dress up any railroad or holiday village. And the gift you make yourself has something you can't buy in the stores.

Finally, please accept our warm wishes for a great summer (or winter, for those of you who live "Down Under"). And please especially enjoy any time you can spend with your family in the coming days.

Topics discussed in this update include:

• New Article: Building (Tinplate-Style) Flag Day Storefronts
• New Article: Introduction to Mallets
• Father's Day Hints

New Article: Building (Tinplate-Style) Flag Day Storefronts

http://bigindoortrains.com/primer/buildings/lackie/flag_day_stores/flag_day_storefronts.htm

New Article: Introduction to Mallets

About a century ago, locomotive engineer and inventor Anatole Mallet designed a kind of locomotive that would use steam twice. This allowed one locomotive to do the work of two, especially when hauling very long or heavy trains that weren't in a hurry to get anywhere. Mallet's designs influenced many subsequent locomotives that weren't even Mallets, technically speaking. The N&W's Mallets ran daily right up to the end of the steam era.

This article from our Family Garden Trains pages applies to many of our Big Indoor Train readers as well. MTH and other suppliers have provided O gauge models of Mallets and similar locomotives for years. But Bachmann has recently added a VERY nice 2-6-6-2 On30 Mallet that comes with a DCC control board already installed, and with the option of sound and several road names. If you've wondered about adding one of these steamboat-sized "centipedes" to your railroad, click the following link for more information.

http://btcomm.com/trains/primer/prototype/mallets/mallets.htm

Father's Day Hints

• On30 Starter Sets - If you haven't tried out On30 yet, this is the best way to get started. These scale trains work both with holiday villages and with O scale accessories (in fact, they look great on the same railroad as Lionel trains), but they have amazing detail and fit in anywhere you can set up a loop of HO track. Click the following link for more information:
  http://bigtrainstore.com/on_30/on30_starter_sets.htm

• Lionel O Gauge Starter Sets - A quality train set will help Dad get his railroad started off right. Note: Several great Lionel starter sets are available through your choice of Amazon vendors now. Most Lionel starter sets for 2009 are still available. (New shipments will have to get here before the 2010 trains are in stock most places.) Click the following link for more information:
  http://bigtrainstore.com/o_gauge/o_gauge.htm

• Sports Train Collections These HO scale (indoor) train collections commemorate Dad's favorite team. They are subscription trains, meaning you get (and pay for) one piece at a time, starting with the locomotive. But they are very finely painted. They also have a 1-year "satisfaction" warranty from Collectibles today, and a limited lifetime warranty from Bachmann trains. If you don't live near me, consider starting your collection now while your favorite baseball team still has a chance of not finishing in the basement. :-) If you live near me, get started anyhow; there's always next year. Click the following link for more information.
  http://bigchristmastrains.com/sports_trains/sports_trains.htm

• Build Your Own Gifts! Visit our Primer Articles for dozens of inexpensive projects you could easily wrap up (literally) by Father's Day. Projects include buildings and accessories, realistic 3-D-looking city backgrounds, fun tinplate-style stations, and much, much more. Click the following link for more information.
  http://bigindoortrains.com/primer/primer.htm

Keep in Touch

Each month, we get more interest in this newsletter, in the site, and in the trains and towns we discuss. We welcome your questions as indicators of what we should be working on next (also, we always try to answer reader questions quickly). In addition, if you have any photos, tips, or articles you'd like to share with your fellow hobbyists, please let us know. The hobby grows best when we all learn together.

In the meantime, please accept our very best wishes for a great season!

Paul Race

BigIndoorTrains.com
BigChristmasTrains.com
FamilyGardenTrains.com

To view the Trains-N-Towns^TM newsletter for May, 2010, click on the following link:

http://bigindoortrains.com/trains_n_towns/10_05_newsletter_indoor.htm

To read more, or to look at recommended Garden Railroading and Display Railroad products, you may click on the index pages below.