Layout Tours
Chairman:
Scott Inman
drf2019layouts@pcrnmra.org
Page last updated: April 11, 2019
Layout Tours
There are multiple self-driven layout tour opportunities during the convention, with layouts grouped so that a cluster of layouts can be comfortably visited in a 2-5 hour period from the convention. Also, these self-guided tours provide a great opportunity to meet other modelers, and conversations in the car on the way to visit layouts frequently result in lasting friendships.
Layouts on Tour
There are currently 11 layouts open for self-guided tours during Thursday – Saturday. Here are the layouts that are currently planned. Handouts with maps and addresses will be available upon check-in at Diamond Rails Forever 2019 Registration Desk.
(Subject to change without notice)
DATE: Thursday afternoon/evening (5/2/19)
Owner: Mike Andrews
Name of Railroad: SP & WP in Marysville, CA
Scale: O
City: Yuba City
Brief description: 2-rail O-scale around the room layout of SP and WP lines including Sacramento Shops, Yuba City, Coming, Marysville, Sutter, Binney Jct. and Keddie Wye. 35 x 55 ft room.
Time open: 1 PM – 5 PM
Accessibility (handicap):
Number of guests at a time:
Parking restrictions:
Photos: 
Owner: Gene Kuhn
Name of Railroad: End of Steam
Scale: HO
City: Yuba City
Brief description: End of steam layout and museum. Large purpose-built 2-story building. Models the SP Roseville including Donner Pass. Helix to second floor mezzanine.
Time open: 1 PM – 5 PM
Accessibility (handicap):
Number of guests at a time:
Parking restrictions: .
Photos: 
Owner: Walt Schedler
Name of Railroad: Southern Pacific Shasta Division
Scale: HO
City: Colusa
Brief description: The layout trails the Sacramento River Canyon from Gerber to Weed on the Siskiyou line and to Grass Lake Summit on the Cascade. 24′ x 42′ layout room has a 780 foot mainline (over 13 scale miles) on four levels (to be expanded to 920’). Dunsmuir is highlighted with a full-size track plan using the SP drawings for trackage and buildings. Most local operations of the 1955 period are supported. From Dunsmuir, up the Sacramento River Canyon, you pass through Small, Cantara Loop, Mott, Azalea, Mt. Shasta, Black Butte and arrive at Klamath Falls. The McCloud River Lumber Co and many other local features add to the operational interest. The layout uses NCE throttles and JMRI generated work orders and switchlists. FRS radios are used to communicate with the dispatcher. Much of the signaling is installed along with the dispatcher’s panel. The layout supports up to 20 operators. Be advised that is it not ADA compliant: there are stairs to reach attic however the dispatcher is located downstairs. If you are able to make the climb, you’ll be surprised at the space utilization in an attic space. A Dunsmuir video is at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXQledBINVM. A second video to get a flavor of the layout (but video turned sideways partway thru): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eme6L_gQ21k.
Time open: 1 PM – 5 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Access is up a steep stairway to the bonus room.
Number of guests at a time: 12
Parking restrictions: Plenty of parking available both off driveway (6 cars) and on the street.
Photos: 
Owner: Tidewater Southern Railway Historical Society
Name of Railroad: Tidewater Southern Railway
Scale: HO
City: Stockton
Brief description: In mid-1990 contact was made with the San Joaquin County Fairground in Stockton to investigate whether they would be receptive to a permanent railroad display and museum on the fairground. Fairground management was amenable to our proposal, and the organization was subsequently allocated a 2,400 square foot alcove area in Building No. 1. We started remodel of the alcove area in 1991 and were open to the public during the County Fair by utilizing the modular layout as a display. We were not open to the public during the 1992 County Fair because the permanent layout was under construction, but we were up and running for the county fair in 1993. We have been open to the public for each county fair since that time.
We are dedicated to preserving and disseminating the historical record of the Tidewater Southern Railway. Our museum houses artifacts and information of the TS, and a railroad display that depicts many of the sites along the Tidewater Southern. Since 1992, the organization has been expanding and transforming the railroad display and the collection and display of historical artifacts.
Time open: 2:30 PM – 7:30 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Accessible.
Number of guests at a time: 12
Parking restrictions: San Joaquin County Fairgrounds
Photos: 
Owner: Noel Wilson
Name of Railroad: Little Truckee Railroad
Scale: HO
City: Rio Linda
Brief description: The Little Truckee Railroad is in a 10′ X 40′ Construction office trailer.
It’s around 65 foot long in a “U” shape dog bone with two track main line.
Each modules has animation on them and and the main line is auto run with sig sys. Auto block sys.can run 4 trains at a time and override on local panels. We are D.C. powered. Room has a one hr. day and night lighting system with Sound around audio system.
Time open: 4 PM – 8 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Accessible
Number of guests at a time:
Parking restrictions: Handicap parking at 7/11 next door and in front of house.
Photos: 
DATE: Friday evening (5/3/19)
Owner: Bill Burg
Name of Railroad: Sacramento Northern Beltline
Scale: HO
City: Sacramento
Brief description: HO scale standard gauge point-to-point shelf layout focusing on industrial switching in Sacramento, 1940s-1950s, including Sacramento Northern, Central California Traction, and Western Pacific. Layout dimensions 11×24 feet, layout area ~54 square feet. Motive power is small diesel and electric locomotives and electric interurbans/streetcars.
Time open: 6 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Not wheelchair accessible (requires step down/ducking under short doorways)
Number of guests at a time: 10 – 12
Parking restrictions: Street parking only, limited to 2 hours until 10pm.
Photos:
Owner: Phil Gulley
Name of Railroad: Union Pacific & Summit County Railroad
Scale: HO
City: Auburn
Brief description: The Union Pacific and Summit County is multi deck HO scale layout in a 30’x48′ purpose-built building. Currently only the Summit County Railroad portion is operational and occupies roughly 30% of the space. The Summit County is a proto-freelance 1952 railroad based on the UP’s Park City branch, hauling coal, ore and livestock. It connects to Union Pacific’s double track transcontinental mainline at Echo. The yet-to-be-built portion models Ogden and the Weber and Echo Canyon portions of UP’s trackage. Mainline is 50% complete and supports 10 operators (maybe 2 more is another portion of railroad is completed by convention time.) The operating system is TT&TO with telephones for communication. The sound equipped, primarily steam engine roster, is controlled with an NCE Radio DCC system. Freight is forwarded with a CC&WB system and all turnouts are Tortoise controlled. Videos can be http://upandscrr.blogspot.com/ and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f44LSTab0zk.
Time open: 6 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Not wheelchair accessible (several short 2-4 step stairs)
Number of guests at a time: 12
Parking restrictions: Large gravel parking area
Photos: 
Owner: Sacramento Model Railroad Historical Society
Name of Railroad: Sierra Central Railroad
Scale: HO & HOn3
City: Sacramento
Brief description: The HO scale Sierra Central Railroad depicts the Southern Pacific’s California Pacific or “Cal-P” line from Oakland to Sacramento and the Western Pacific from Sacramento through the Feather River Canyon to Keddie. Signature scenes on the SP include the historic Davis depot, the Yolo Causeway, and the passenger station, locomotive shops, classification yard, and R Street industrial district in Sacramento. On the WP, you’ll find Marysville, Oroville, Table Mountain, the Honeymoon Tunnels in the Feather River Canyon, Keddie Yard, and the Spanish Creek trestle widely known as “Keddie Wye” as well as a branch line to Quincy. Website: http://www.smrhs.com/about/ho-layout/. Video at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=swt_ZJnNkw
Time open: 6 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Generally accessible but some aisles are very tight – room for wheelchair only so would block passage of other operators.
Number of guests at a time: 10
Parking restrictions: Parking around building and on street.
Photos: 
Owner: Roseville Roundhouse Model Railroad Club
Name of Railroad: Western Sierra Lines
Scale: HO & N
City: Sacramento
Brief description: The HO scale layout is a 17’X 30′ “Z” shaped layout. . Track is Atlas Code 83 with a minimum radius of 30″ and a maximum grade of 2% on the mains. The layout has a 200′ long double mainline which is complete. In addition, the layout includes a mountainous short line designed to highlight geared steam and other short/slow equipment. This has a minimum radius of 24″ and a max grade of 4%. The Layout utilizes DCC which is provided by an Model Rectifier Corporation (MRC) Prodigy Wireless DCC system with one wireless base unit and six booster units to control seven Power Districts. In addition, the shortline has the ability to operate a straight DC at the flick of a switch. This gives club members an opportunity to run older equipment that has not been converted.
The N scale layout now extends to 15ft by 25ft. The original horseshoe shape has been extended by 5ft by 10ft. Operation is by either DC or DCC.
Time open: 5 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Accessible
Number of guests at a time: 20+
Parking restrictions: The Grounds – Placer County fairgrounds
Photos: 
Owner: Terry Schmidt
Name of Railroad: Denver & Welch River Southern
Scale: HOn3
City: Gold River
Brief description: The D&WRS is a freelance HOn3 layout based on the D&RGW and the RGS. It is an around-the-room with peninsula configuration and operated as a point-to-point. Double deck staging is undecorated, but the remainder of the railroad is essentially complete. The layout is 14’ by 14’ overall with an average height of 53.” Digitrax DCC is used for control.
Time open: 6 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap): The layout is accessible; however, the viewing height is impractical for anyone in a wheelchair.
Number of guests at a time: 5
Parking restrictions: None
Photos: 
DATE: Saturday evening (5/4/19)
Owner: Bill Burg
Name of Railroad: Sacramento Northern Beltline
Scale: HO
City:Sacramento
Brief description: HO scale standard gauge point-to-point shelf layout focusing on industrial switching in Sacramento, 1940s-1950s, including Sacramento Northern, Central California Traction, and Western Pacific. Layout dimensions 11×24 feet, layout area ~54 square feet. Motive power is small diesel and electric locomotives and electric interurbans/streetcars.
Time open: 7 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Not wheelchair accessible (requires step down/ducking under short doorways)
Number of guests at a time: 10 – 12
Parking restrictions: Street parking only, limited to 2 hours until 10pm.
Photos:
Owner: Tom Weissgerber
Name of Railroad: Union Pacific Columbia River Gorge
Scale: HO
City: Folsom
Brief description: Tom Weissgerber’s Columbia River Gorge loosely follows the prototype from Portland to Pocatello on a 15’x37’ double tier shelf-like layout featuring staging yards at each end feeding classification yards. TT&TO operations facilitated by fast clocks, car cards, and way bills. This layout is superbly detailed with excellent scenes. The engine servicing facilities, forests, and scratch built structures give this layout top notch quality. The layout is operated mostly by steam, but there are a few diesels here and there in service. The realistic scenery along the gorge and through The Dalles, Oregon is excellent.
Time open: 6:30 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap): Not wheelchair accessible. One step down into room and one pinch point where two can squeeze by.
Number of guests at a time: 7
Parking restrictions: Sloped driveway but not too steep.
Photos: 
Owner: George Hardy
Name of Railroad: Spokane, Portland and Seattle
Scale: HO
City:
Brief description:
Time open: 6:00 PM – 10 PM
Accessibility (handicap):
Number of guests at a time:
Parking restrictions:
Getting There
All layout tours and operating sessions are self-guided, with carpooling encouraged. Handouts with maps and addresses will be available upon check-in at the Diamond Rails Forever 2019 Registration Desk.
Scott Inman
Layout Tours Chairman
drf2019layouts@pcrnmra.org