My first train set (or locomotive) was…?
I got my first train set for Christmas in 1948 — I was 3 years old. I had no idea I was going to get a train. I remember my mom coming into my bedroom and waking me up not too long after I went to bed. She led me down the stairs to the first floor and over to the Christmas tree. My dad was on the floor there with the train running around the tree. The Gilbert Whistling Circus billboard was in the middle of the ring of track, with its activation button near the transformer. Dad said, “Push the button,” and the whistle made a loud and wonderful noise.
At only 3 years old, I didn’t get to play with it without my dad by my side to supervise. Since he was a Depression era guy, I think the train was more for him. His family couldn’t afford one when he was growing up. Never the less, it is my most remembered Christmas because of the train.
My first train was an American Flyer No. 312 Pennsylvania K5 with only three freight cars: A No. 625 Shell tank car, No. 632 LNE hopper, and a No. 630 Reading caboose were in the Gilbert No. 4607A set.
That set is still in my hands and displayed on a shelf in my train room. I always put it on my layout during the Christmas season. And yes, the circus billboard is always on my layout and still whistling for the people who visit.
My trains are primarily from this era (i.e., prewar, postwar, modern, digital)…?
Probably half of my trains are postwar Gilbert American Flyer, but I started buying American Flyer by Lionel in 1979 when they re-introduced the brand in 1979. It started with just three freight cars and expanded over time. I never stopped my collecting with any period, as I have Lionel Flyer through all its stages of different products. This includes Legacy and FlyerChief engines.
I also have quite a bit of American Models’ products including sets, separate engines, passenger cars, and freight cars. These run well and they make styles of engines Gilbert and Lionel haven’t made in Flyer. One of the best is their GGI, which is absolutely to scale. It makes the typical Lionel and MTH versions look unrealistic.
My biggest modeling success has been…?
This takes a lot of thought since the hobby has been in my life for 74 years. In reality there are a few high notes and not just one. First, I would mention my layout, as it has been featured in CTT magazine and the S Gaugian. It is a toy train layout with almost every one of the Gilbert accessories on it, along with a few Lionel and Marx. It has no landscaping, and the board is covered with green outdoor carpet. It is what a 10 year old would have, not a 50 year old who loves making scenery.
Second, I think it’s the friendships I have made with people who enjoy American Flyer and S gauge trains. I have been in a train club in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area since I moved here in 1997. These guys are some of the greatest people I have ever been associated with.
Third is my ability to repair Gilbert Flyer as well as some of the later stuff too. I wrote a column in the S Gaugian about repairing Flyer for 10 years and now I write one for the NASG Dispatch on the same topic. I have a ton of parts and replacement items for Flyer. I guess that makes me sort of an expert.
My biggest modeling mistake was…?
This is a bit easier. I think the biggest mistake is the next one. I know that sounds odd, but I make mistakes all the time — what I couldn’t fix right, when I didn’t buy an item I wanted, when I find out I didn’t know about an alternative to an article I wrote, and so on…
When I’m not enjoying my trains I’m usually (other hobbies or activities)…?
My other primary interest surrounds the American Civil War. My undergraduate degree is in history, so I have always read about it even though it was never part of my career. The Civil War became my focus in history. Now I am Vice Chairman of The North Central Texas Civil War Round Table. We have almost 100 members and feature a speaker monthly. I also collect relics from the war. My latest acquisition is a rifled musket dated 1861 that I got in Vicksburg.
What advice would you give a new hobbyist?
If I were talking to a new person in the hobby I would say one word, “network.” If you want to make the hobby fun, you need to learn a lot about it. How is that accomplished? People in the hobby! I learn so much now, as well as then, from the people I’ve met in the hobby. People are like vacuum cleaners; they suck up information about things they love to be involved with. In networking, you can learn quickly from others — you don’t have to do the research to learn it.
Bill Clark writes the “S Gauge Now and Then” column for CTT. In addition to his work for CTT, he’s written more than 60 articles for the S Gaugian and currently writes a column for the NASG Dispatch.
