The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

eayet ever eyrevgewetet ray eenenereveretenenet¥eene TY RACT MENT ane cot netemman saxe-saesb = ses Ls ess WE ULhbe THE OSHAWA TIMES, Soturday, February 19, 1966 3A rr aE Vuln. uuaeenaunennuegeeaceesn cyte 44S MEER MRE HHUA AYE EAT EER == tates a Ui RAILRSAD wu These Trains Always Travel On Time Oshawa once had the repu- tation as '"'the city where trains run up and down ine main street." Now the trains run around city' and district basements -- scale models that is. This is National Model Rail- roading Week and to cele- brate; members of the Na- tional Model Railroading Asso- ciation in this area--four in Oshawa, three in Pickering and one each in Whitby, Bay Ridges and Bowmanville -- are visiting each others' homes to discuss mutual prob- lems about their hobby and pick up a few new ideas. The' NMRA _ encompasses members in Canada and the United States with associated chapters in many. other coun- triés throughout the world. Oshawa and district mem- bers are under the jurisdic- tion of the Niagara Frontier Region of the NMRA. Devotees of the hobby usual- ly pattern their equipment to a specific railroaé, such as Canadian National, Canadian Pacific or New York Central, and the cost depends on how deeply the enthusiast goes into it. The minimum expense is about $30 or $40 and from there the cost could climb several hundred dollars. A recent survey by a model railroading magazine _ esti- mates the cost of the hobby after the initial outlay at approximately $100 a year-- which amounts to less than $2 a week. HAROLD MIDWOOD of $2 Sharpe st., Scarborough, @ machinist at The Osh- awa Times, is shown with one of his model engines. He is a member of the ' Queen City Model Railroad- ' ers and the NMRA. | EARLY PAY WAS SMALL ' Don Messer was paid $12.50 a 'week in 1939 to organize an oldtime band. for a Charlotte- town radio station. | AVOIDED TELEVISION Danny Kaye vision offers for 15 years be- fore contracting for his first weekly series in 1962. refused tele- Some model railroading hobbyists have also turned it into a business proposition, building "rolling stock'? and selling it to other hobbyists who are limited for time. One of the most important things the NMRA has done for its members since it was formed a couple of years before the Second World War, was to standardize equip- ment of the. various manu- turers to make their products compatible -- with the excep- tion of couplers (car hook- ups) which is made by about seven different manufactur- ing companies and each is different. What is the difference be- tween the toy electric trains one buys for their children and the model trains hobby- ists have in their basement, an enthusiast was asked "A model railroader's 'equipment is closer to scale, authenticity and prototype," was the reply, "but some hobbyists have some very at- tractive displays using the toy trains.' If suddenly you are becom- ing interested in model rail- roading as a time-consuming hobby, enthusiasts are quick to point out that it is a never- ending road. A line is never completed. "It's like a real railroad, never Static and always changing," the hobbyist said. "Tf you feel your line is com- pleted, then it is time to tear it down and start over again." TRACK BY HOUR For easy operating, the model railroad is built about 45 inches off the floor. The engines, freight and passen- ger cars are assembled from kits, and' each railroad tie is placed individually. Each foot of track usually takes about an hour to put in its proper place. Model railroader Harvey Rice Sr. of 856 Florell dr., and his son, Harvey Jr., have been avid model railroading enthusiasis since 1932. Ray Crossley of 374 Orange eres. has worked at his hobby e HARVEY RICE Sr., right and Harvey Rice Jr., 19, left, work on a portion of their huge model railroad line. This father and son team have been model rail- road enthusiasts since 1952. for the last six years and now has more than 200 feet of track in his basement. Leo McKay of 618 Rosemere ave. is a 15-year veteran of the hobby and he too has more than 200 feet of track for his equipment. Other city and district en- thusiasts are Donald McLean of 214 Dearborn ave.; William Seltzer of 932 Bayview ave., Whitby; and Douglas Hately of 91 Queen st., Bowmanville. SLOT RACING All p fh dels, of cars in stock. We also have available complete racing facilities with very reason- Pollard's Hobby CS onop 92 Simcoe N. 723-9512 PARIS...ROME... NEW YORK THE LATEST IN Spring Fashions Colette TO MAKE YOUR FEET LOOK LOVELIER. 26 King W. Also in Hamiltoa ELECTROHOME PARKWAY TELEVISION FULL YEAR PARTS and SERVICE WARRANTY 918 SIMCOE ST. N. 723-3043 "We Service What We Self . . , Ourselves"