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Daylights roar past Hidden Valley. Dave Rohr's Lionel no.
8307 Southern Pacific GS-4 meets Sergio Daharo's no. 18007 GS-2 on the club's
mid-level trestle.
In this view of the entire layout you can see the heliport
reflected in a mirror above the center access way. High above, in the
distance, fighters are returning from an air strike on a nearby HO layout.
Sergio Deharo's Lionel no. 18018 Southern Ry. 2-8-2 takes
a spin on the club's custom-built turntable, then it's off to the coaling
tower and the water tower for routine locomotive servicing.
A Lionel no. 1700E prewar articulated streamliner owned by
the club's founder, Jerry Brettschneider, blazes past the railroad's backshop
area. You'd better stop, look, and listen before crossing this railroad.
Roman Berdes' postwar nos. 400, 404, 2550, and 2559
B&O Budd RDCs haul another happy load of commuters home after a hard
day's work in Milwaukee. The all-wood structure was custom-made for another
owner and transplanted to the club's layout.
The kids in the gully must not be railfans since they're
ignoring Ken Pabst's no. 602 Seaboard diesel switcher lumbering upgrade with
a heavy load.
Hoppers stand ready at the Lucky Mining Co., the layout's
largest industry. Soon, loaded hoppers will begin their long journey down to
the lower level's commercial fuel dealership.
Norm Nunemaker's Lionel no. 8054 Burlington F3s glide
through a gentle curve on the lower level main line. The layout is a great
showpiece for running those long passenger trains.
Gil Bruck's no. 18816 Chicago & North Western GP38
hooks up to some full tank cars at Sunoco's Milwaukee fuel depot. The
transfer station is custom-made and the storage tanks are commercial vehicle
oil filters available at most auto parts dealers.
Dan Olech's no. 8654 Boston & Maine GP9 hauls repaired
rolling stock out of the railroad's car shop on the middle level.
The following story was published in our September 1997
issue. Since then, the club has relocated to New Berlin, WI, and begun work
on a new layout.
My first quest after moving to Milwaukee from Seattle was finding a good cup
of coffee. Second on the list was a toy train club. I found myself wondering
if there would be an outfit like the one back home, a great group of people
with a neat layout. What I discovered was even better than I had dared to
imagine.
I found an active, vibrant toy train club with more than 100 members, a huge
permanent layout, and smaller, portable layouts for shows, school visits, and
other public events. A club that is celebrating its 50th anniversary, and
claims to be the oldest Lionel club in the country. Sound good to you? Then
come to Milwaukee, the home of the Milwaukee Lionel Railroad Club.
Club activities include a monthly business meeting and a weekly "bring
your trains" operating session. Outreach programs include regular family
activities and two annual open houses. The club also sponsors a monthly train
meet, and it regularly provides entertainment at mall shows as well as a
layout for Trainfest, Milwaukee's premier model railroading event, which
draws 20,000 attendees for a two day show. The main function of the club,
however, is the same as it was 50 years ago: to provide members with a place
to meet and run their trains any time of year.
LET THE LONG TRAINS ROLL
Jerry Brettschneider founded the club in 1947. For nearly 30 years it was
headquartered in his family's basement in Milwaukee's southside. In 1976 the
club moved to rented space in northwestern Milwaukee, and a larger layout was
erected. Tight space forced the club to move again in 1984. The current
location on Fond Du Lac Avenue has ample space for a large layout, a video
and book library, a meeting room, and even a tool room and kitchenette. Club
memorabilia and display cases containing trains donated by members fill the
walls.
The massive 26 x 31 foot layout's concept of operation is simple: to allow
members a chance to run their largest engines and longest trains with a
minimum of interruption. You could call the layout hi rail, although several
Lionel operating accessories are in use. Members can switch rolling stock
from track to track, but the focus of attention is on long trains with tree
stump pulling motive power.
The layout has lower, middle, and upper levels that normally allow five
trains to be in motion at once. It's possible to run a train from the top to
bottom levels, but it is a circuitous route. The lower level has two main
lines, two passing sidings, a small yard that services several industries,
and a branch line to an intermodal facility. Main lines on all three levels
run through a partitioned area on the north side that provides a hidden
staging area.
Though the lower level's focus is mainline running, two interesting areas
allow folks to exercise their switchers. The first is the mainline yard that
contains most of the layout's operating accessories, including the no. 12847
Icing Station, no. 12875 Operating Saw Mill, and a postwar no. 497 Coaling
Station. Just down from the no. 497 is a unique coal dealership, custombuilt
by club member Art Oseland. Sidedump cars on the middle level unload cargo
that slides down a chute to the first level. The coal can be scooped up and
reloaded by the layout's only prewar accessory, a no. 97 Coal Loader. Since a
lot of hard work goes on in this industrial area, a no. 12802 Roadside Diner
serving food to hungry laborers anchors the south end the yard.
A Sunoco oil depot fills a corner on the north end of the yard. Two tracks
service the facility, which features a custom built depot with a great
looking oil transfer stand, custom decorated tanks made from auto oil
filters, and a no. 12848 Oil Derrick to ensure a fresh supply of black gold.
The lower level's other switching area is a branch off the main to an area
called Hidden Valley. A small stream, the Rainbow River, crosses through this
area, which is dominated by the upper level's heights to the west and by the
middle level to the east.
The branch features an intermodal terminal and a no. 12781 Intermodal Crane.
There is also a small railroad shop plus a power station, and a Lionel no. 12931
Electrical Substation kit with a difference. Peer through the transparent
plastic roof, and you can see an electrical generator diorama. Hidden Valley
also has a farm and a well detailed recreation area.
UP THE GRADE
The middle level has two main lines, a major passenger depot, a roundhouse
and engine service facility, and branches to serve industries and other
railroad shops. An access way divides the second level, with the passenger
station on the west and the roundhouse area to the northeast.
The roundhouse and backshop area dominate this level. The engine service area
was custom built for the club's previous layout by Cal Schmahl and
incorporated into the new railroad. In addition to the mammoth roundhouse and
turntable, two Lionel no. 12897 Engine House kits are used as service shops.
A Lionel no. 12767 Steam Clean and Wheel Grind accessory is behind the
roundhouse, and a smaller simulated wash rack stands by the sanding tower.
Helping complete the backshop area are a wood coaling tower and water tower,
also made by Cal.
Part of what makes this layout stand out is the level of detail present in
nearly every location, and clutter is an important aspect of this. Just as
any railroad has its piles of forgotten or broken parts, you'll find the
Milwaukee line just as messy. Truck and wheel sets stand ready for use, cases
of lube oil dot the landscape, old ties and broken rails lay along the right
of way. Old Illinois Central switchers await repair while a nearby crew
hoists up a replacement freight car truck with mobile crane home made using
an old freight car chassis and the boom and control cab of an old Lionel
crane kit.
A Rico station is another highlight of the middle level, where passengers
wait to board an express train while a few tracks away rests a string of
maintenance and work cars. Behind the station a line proceeds northward
upgrade and curves south on an elevated level. This track serves a rolling
stock repair facility and connects to the Lucky Coal Co. mine complex.
This industry features an abandoned tipple (complete with a wrecked gondola)
and two "in service" structures, a Lionel no. 12904 Coaling Station
and a home made three track tipple. Regardless of ongoing train operation,
these tracks and sidings provide an excellent place to store and display
rolling stock. The mine can also be reached by trains serving the upper
level. The mine complex helps to cement the illusion that this is a line with
a purpose, notjust three rail track running in circles.
On the east side of the access area, you'll find a handsome Lionel no. 12905
Grain Elevator painted in Ralston Purina colors, a small factory building,
and a switch leading past the shop area. This track ultimately connects with
another line running from the east end of the lower-level yard to the engine
service facility.
RIDGE RUNNER
Upper level running caters to the rapid transit crowd. It has a single long
loop that provides Budd car commuter service for a large town, Valley View.
The loop is about 38 feet long and includes an impressive trestle crossing
high above Hidden Valley. The trestle was acquired when a local attorney's
layout was disassembled after the sale of his house. The club got quite a
deal: Help break up the layout and the trestle was theirs!
The buildings in Valley View are a mixture of off the shelf kits and
kitbashed structures assembled by Dwight Safter. Most of the downtown
structures are from Walthers or Design Preservation Models, and the homes in
the suburbs are from Buildings Unlimited. Interiors are currently being added
to the downtown buildings since these are easiest for visitors to see.
Additions include curtains, furniture, more people, and in some locations,
photographic backdrop interiors. Beneath the town, buried deep inside the
benchwork is another little gem the subway station.
The subway level is tucked away in the northwest corner of the line. This is
something of a novelty. The subway, (actually an underground trolley)
operates on an independent loop of track. The line was built by one of the
club's junior members, Andy Nunemaker, when he was 15. Andy, now an
electrical engineer working on a master's degree at Harvard, designed it to
fill a nook between the upper and middle levels. Visitors view it by peering
through a small window in the side of the layout. Though the underground
facility looks more like a coal mine than a subway station, residents of
Valley View, Milwaukee's finest suburb, can catch an underground train to
work.
BUILDING THAT MILWAUKEE LIONEL LINE
The benchwork design and assembly techniques are conventional, as are those
used for scenery. The basic platform and wiring took about a year to
complete. Members donated all the construction material and adopted sections
to individually complete the basic scenery of the railroad. Scenicking
included plaster on wire hillsides as well as cut foam. Detail work continues
to this day.
Club member Norm Nunemaker, Andy's dad, assembled most of the benchwork, and
the late Ernie Glasser did the bulk of the painting. Others working on the
layout include Ken Greifenhagen, Art Oseland, Frank Pratt, and Pete Repka.
Track is by GarGraves, with main line curves varying from 40" to
56" radius on the lower level. Cal Schmahl assembled and installed more
than 50 switches throughout the railroad, using GarGraves switches on the
lower and middle levels and Curtis products on the upper Valley View line.
Curtis products were used due to the higher profile rail, which more readily
accommodates older equipment.
As with any large layout, the great mystery is wiring. Club member David Rohr
wired most of the layout with the ultimate goal of computer controlled
operation. The club's objective is to have the switches, signals, and
controls feed into an interface panel for the system to be controlled via
computer. Computer hardware problems have prevented the system from being
fully installed. In the interim, the layout is controlled by two ZWs on the
lower level and single ZWs on the middle and upper levels.
DETAILS, DETAILS, DETAILS
The layout successfully captures the mood of a real railroad and makes toy
trains look quite realistic. Industries suggest a reason for the line's
existence, and detailed scenes throughout this miniature world illustrate the
interaction between a railroad and the surrounding community.
For example, the roundhouse and backshop areas have that grimy, cluttered
feel, you can almost smell 30 years' worth of spilled diesel fuel and
lubricants. (Hey, is that an O scale Environmental Protection Agency SWAT
team over there?) Over in the valley, on the west side of the layout, is a
maze of sidings, switches, and shops. Sure, there is a container yard, power
plant, and yet another railway shop building, but fishermen, farmers, and
power walkers also share the landscape.
Many members contribute to the high level of detail of the layout, but Gil
Bruck (whose layout was featured in the July 1996 CTT) is the artist who
creates most of the diorama scenes. He is a master at creating small settings
that bring a smile to anyone looking at the layout. Many of his scenes such
as the amusement park and hobo camp are classic.
Gil enjoys bringing the layout to life and seeing the smiles on the faces of
visitors. He also knows it's a great recruiting tool. "Most members we
get make the decision to join after they see the railroad. People get hooked
when they see this layout."
Gil's dioramas are terrific. He created a Green Bay Packers' camp with four
green and gold houses, O scale cheerleaders with pompons, and a scrimmage
between the offensive and defensive lines. He even has a player going out for
the long bomb. The player was originally an O scale bike rider. Gil
meticulously trimmed away the bicycle, leaving a figure that appears to be
running.
Always trying to find creative ways to fill otherwise unused or unusable
space, Gil filled a gap southwestern corner with a small amusement park,
including a carousel, vendors, more than 50 figures, and even a tiny grill
with O scale hamburgers. He also added a hobo camp to a gully under the main
line featuring an illuminated campfire.
The club's diorama masterpiece is an abandoned railroad junction created by
Roman Berdes. He went beyond placing trackless ties coming out from the curve
by installing unused scale signals, a weathered and abandoned switch tower; a
stripped concrete building foundation, and a water tower converted partially
into a chicken coop.
Does this level of detailing pay off? CTT's art director, Lisa Zehner, echoed
the comment most often heard from visitors:
"Every time I look at it, I see something I didn't see before."
That is exactly what club members want to hear!
Is everybody happy?
Where else can an apartment dweller find a place to run a scale length MTH
Hudson, double head Lionel Dash 8s on a 40 car freight, or run a Weaver
scalelength passenger express gracefully around long curves?
A typical Friday night operating session will find 20 or more people watching
trains, swapping yarns, and exchanging ideas on accessory installation and
repair. More than one session has run past midnight, and the rhythm of the
tinplate wheels seems to make time stop, or at least slow down a little.
"Even if you aren't running a train," one enthusiastic member said,
"it makes you feel great to watch the smiles and hear the surprise in
the voices of visitors."
Friday night operating sessions see everything run from prewar Lionel to the
latest from Lionel LLC, MTH, Weaver, and Williams. You can even find a lone
operator who proudly runs his three rail British trains with the same gusto
as any postwar Lionel enthusiast.
Although members are aware of the current product brand debate, you'll find
no fighting over manufacturers, or a divide between folks operating high
dollar gear versus someone running a little starter set 4 4 2. This is a
group that likes trains, enjoys running their trains, and shares these good
times with each other.
THE FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT
A good sign for the future of the hobby in general, and the Milwaukee club in
particular, is that every monthly business meeting sees new faces. Though there
aren't many members on the south side of the baby boom generation, younger
generation parents and their kids can still be captivated by the sight and
sound of toy trains in action.
At last summer's Open House, three young boys said it all when they turned
the corner and upon entering the layout room exclaimed, in unison, "Gee,
Dad, this is awesome!"
When asked about the future, club president Roman Berdes smiled and with a
gleam in his eye, said "This is a great place, but the only better
location I can think of would be if we could get hold of someplace larger,
like an old elementary school now there we could build a layout."
Special thanks to Dave Altman, club president Roman Berdes, Jerry
Brettschneider, Gil Bruck, Sergio Deharo, Mike Hilbert, Bill Hitchcock, Rick
Jegl, Ted Knutowski, Norm Nunemaker, Dan Olech, Ken Pabst, Dave Rohr, Dwight
Safter, and Rudy Stemplinger for help in preparing this article.
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