Thanks for the comments re: our 2022 display. I've been wanting to get the clockworks running, together with all of the cardboard houses we've squirrelled away over the years.
A few weeks ago, Howard Lamey sent me four of his creations from his extensive collection. Those pretty much blow everything else away
He's a true artist when it comes to these, seemingly boundless in ingenuity, planning, materials, and technique. My favorite of the four is this castle he built from a number of paper tubes of various sizes:
I gotta work out my lighting. Interior lights, with the exception of the tunnel bit, is done, but I need some street lights or something to light the exteriors. Hondo sent me a couple pairs of MTH prewar repro lamps, but they are big, some six to eight inches, so they dwarf the buildings. I have a couple pairs of smaller MTH diecast lamps, so I might try to dig those out. The problem with those is that they are set up for 18v maximums, so battery power is tough. I'm trying to avoid introducing a transformer. I have a couple sets of Dept. 56 lamps, but no idea where those are in the attic.
One piece of the 100-year-old Marklin track has a kink in one rail, so the locos are derailing pretty reliably on that section. I need to find a replacement piece or beat this one back into shape. The Hornby runs over it fairly well, but the Bing and the Marklin jump off every time. I need some trackworkers out there.
I'll post more pics as I have time.
