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From the Cab
by EIGHTY EIGHTFAN1
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Caution: Imaginations at work.
That’s right, as modelers our imaginations are at work.
If it weren't for our imaginations, there wouldn't be any of the great
layouts that we see grace the popular model railroading magazines and all
over the web.
We can only imagine what our dream layouts would look like, and
sometimes they can end
up looking as we imagined. Sometimes they don't, but close enough that keeps
us happy.
Standing by a mainline that had been in existence for over a hundred years,
us young folks can only imagine what it was like to stand there fifty years
before, and watch a steam loco pass by, on the other side of the coin, an old
timer can't imagine why the railroad switched
to those "New
fangled diesels".
We can walk into an empty room, or basement, and imagine a layout
spread out before us, even before the first chunk of 2 x 4 is cut. In our
minds eye, we can see mountains, hills, farms, and towns. A large
City looms over in that
corner. Over here, we can see a yard filled with rolling stock of all types,
and a bevy of our favorite road names. There, next to the window, an engine
facility, packed with all our motive power,
whether it be Berkshires, Shays, and Pacifics, or the more modern SD80's
and GE Evolutions, or something in between.
Even the things we use to make our railroad empires run took some
imagination. Think about it. Someone, standing behind his controller,
imgained what it must be like to follow the train, instead of standing
in
one spot. What'd we get? Tethered controllers. Well, someone else must have
imagined what it might be like to follow the train without having to plug
into the valance every ten feet. What we got was radio control.
Then, someone imagined, what it'd be like to run two different locos, on
the same line, withou having to turn on and off blocks of tracks. Bingo...we
now have DCC. Of course, if it wasn't for the leaps and bounds that
miniaturization, and electronics took, none of this would have been possible.
But than again, it took some imagination, to make those leaps and bounds
happen.
What can us model railroaders look to the future for?
Only time will tell. But we can only imagine better detailed rolling stock
and super smooth running locos, more animation for the layouts, great
looking scenery details, and more advanced layout construction
materials and techniques.
All's it takes is: a
little imagination..........
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The Gauge e-mag staff
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