Updating Lionel s Classic Toy Trains September 2004

Transcription

1 Updating Lionel s Classic Toy Trains September 2004

2 layout Dean Bittick based his O gauge railroad on Lionel s showroom pike story and photos by Jon Bauer DEAN BITTICK APPRECIATES the classics. For example, he collects and restores antique automobiles, with the overall aim of showing his different Model A Fords to new generations of enthusiasts. The same reasoning is behind his terrific O gauge railroad, which is modeled after the layout built in Lionel s sales showroom in New York City in Dean didn t duplicate that legendary layout rail for rail. Instead he did his very best to update its classic design in a way that is sure to inspire others to build model railroads. Kughn and CTT connections The wheels started turning for Dean after he read the premier issue of CLAS- SIC TOY TRAINS magazine way back in An avid collector of postwar Lionel trains and classic cars, he devoured the cover story about Richard Kughn, then owner of Lionel Trains Inc. Kughn collected toy trains and antique cars and housed them at Carail, his private museum in Detroit. Dick Kughn was living Dean s dream. I wanted to build a really nice layout and combine it with my interest in antique cars. Dick had done that, which is why I contacted him about visiting Carail. He graciously invited me to stop by for a personal tour during a national Model A convention that was being held in nearby Dearborn. After that visit, an awestruck Dean left Michigan determined to start work on an O gauge layout in the 1,600-squarefoot, climate-controlled structure next to his Missouri house. Besides his vintage cars, this structure would come to house an 11- by 21-foot model railroad. I had built layouts since I was a boy, so I knew how to handle the wiring and electrical work. But I didn t know a lot about landscaping. Then I saw the February 1992 issue of CLASSIC TOY TRAINS, with the great 1. Dean Bittick s prized Lionel no. 2544W Super Chief train from 1959 eases to a stop in front of a station scene inspired by Lionel s famed 1949 New York showroom O gauge layout. article on the 1949 New York showroom layout, and realized I wanted something just like that. Dean used schematics of Lionel s layout as the basis for his re-creation. He included many of the elements originally found on that O gauge masterpiece. Among these highlights are a river and waterfall in the foreground, a no. 313 bascule bridge traversing the river, passenger platforms, a mountain, and an elevated track encircling a small town of Plasticville models. The layout that Dean finished in 1997 isn t a complete replica of Lionel s showroom display. However, comparing photographs of that vintage railroad and Dean s contemporary classic reveals a number of similarities. My layout is close to Lionel s, but I had to stray away from the schematics for a couple of reasons, Dean says. First, I didn t have enough space. That layout was huge, 16 by 32 feet, so this one is scaled back. Second, I added American Flyer S gauge track near the top of the mountain. Lionel s main competition was the A.C. Gilbert Co., so you would have never seen that in the New York showroom, Dean laughs. But I wanted forced perspective. The smaller gauge gives the illusion that a train is farther away and so makes the mountain look even bigger and taller. The Flyer line reminds me of the rivalry between the two firms and one I had with my cousin. He was a Flyer guy, and I was Lionel. As kids, we endlessly debated which brand was better. When Dean isn t playing with his Lionels, he zips around in this stunning 1931 Model A Ford Deluxe Roadster. September 2004 classictoytrains.com 57

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4 No more debates Looking at Dean s picturesque layout, there is no doubt as to the winner of that debate. He enjoys talking about building the railroad just as much as he does running trains. The accessories are mainly Lionel postwar pieces, along with some modern reissues. Many of those on the layout, such as the water tower, log loader, station platform, and Lionel City station, were included in the 1949 display. Something that was harder than I thought, but important, was to have the tracks be straight, Dean explains. I took a lot of time to get them absolutely straight, because that s what you see if you go down to a real track. In the center of Dean s layout is an icon from the 1949 showroom: the J.L.C. Manufacturing Co. I wanted to have my own version as a way of saying thanks to Joshua Lionel Cowen for all his company did to make my childhood more fun, Dean says. One accessory that wouldn t have been found on the original showroom layout is an impressive stainless-steel bridge. That bridge heralded Dean s transition from toy train collector to hobby professional. I needed a bridge to go over one of the log loaders, and nothing else would work, Dean recalls. So I designed one with help from a friend of mine. That humble yet impressive structure turned out to be the beginning of Stainless Unlimited, a firm that fabricates a wide variety of O gauge, S gauge, and Large scale bridges from stainless steel in a variety of styles and lengths. Dean and Jim Ballmann do much of their business by mail order and the Internet (stainlessunlimited.com). Scenery and details Frankly, it s impossible to miss the details Dean has put into his layout, though it takes time to see all of them. The more you look at Dean s layout, the more likely you are to see something that you hadn t seen before. Arttista and Plasticville figures inject life into a range of vignettes that are pulled straight from the heartland. Men work along the tracks, swimmers float on a river, and hobos make dinner over an open fire. The bluffs recall the slate in Missouri and elsewhere in the Midwest. So does 2. A Lionel no Texas Special F3 A-B combination guides a freight train through the Ozarks on a summer day in this beautiful part of Dean s layout. Jim Peters painted the picturesque mural. September 2004 classictoytrains.com 59

5 1 Layout at a glance Dean Bittick s O gauge layout Dimensions: 11 by 21 feet Track: American Flyer S, Lionel O gauge tubular Switches: Lionel Locomotives: American Flyer, Lionel (postwar, modern) Rolling stock: American Flyer, Lionel (postwar, modern) Controls: Lionel KW (1), ZW (3) transformer, conventional control Accessories: Lionel (postwar, modern), Marx, MTH Structures: Buildings Unlimited, Lionel, Plasticville Vehicles: Dinky, Eastwood, Lionel, Matchbox Figures: Arttista, Plasticville 3 21'-0" Three Lionel ZW transformers and a KW transformer power Dean s layout. To the left and right of the transformers are switch and accessory controllers '-0" Illustration by Kellie Jaeger the ballast which, though made from cat litter, looks like it had been brought from a nearby quarry. Hundreds of Moondog Express rubber ties give the tracks the look of an actual railway. Bittick Mountain rises four feet from the base track. For this massive scenic feature, Dean began with Hydrocal for the hardshell contours. Woodland Scenics landscape material then provided the rustic look that he desired. This is a scene from the Midwest, so I knew it was important to get all of these details right, he says. Five tunnels bore through the mountain. In addition to the American Flyer loop at the top, the layout includes double- and single-track tunnels at ground level, and a reverse loop on the elevated track. The O gauge lines mimic those on the 1949 layout. Because of the space I had to work with, the tunnels were a real challenge because the trains come out on a curve. Dean adds, Let me say, there s not a lot of clearance on the side. You can slide a piece of paper between the train and the tunnel opening, but that s about all. 60 Classic Toy Trains September 2004

6 4. Spectacular Lionel postwar horsepower rumbles out of adjacent tunnel bores. Press Dean and he ll admit that he prefers the no. 726 Berkshire (left) to the nos Rio Grande F3 or 2339 Wabash GP7. On a separate diorama in Dean s train room, die-cast metal planes await flight instructions at the Plasticville airport, complete with Plasticville hangers and a Lionel no. 197 rotating radar antenna. The river and waterfall posed another challenge. I had never made anything like them, Dean confesses. He plunged ahead and used Enviro-Tex and Hydrocal, with exquisite results. Years after its completion, the river looks fresh and inviting, and the fall drops gracefully into a churning basin. Three tracks span the basin of the waterfall on a wooden trestle that was handcrafted by Wayne Berry, another friend and fellow hobbyist. The river seemingly stretches miles into the distant landscape, thanks to the spectacular mural that was painted in 2000, after the layout was finished. Matching colors used in the landscape, Jim Peters visually extended the layout into the artwork. The mural is so detailed that it flows with the layout, Dean says. You can look into it and see cattle grazing, plowed fields, and the river. It s really a continuation of the layout. When Jim completed the mural, he told me he had added a surprise, Dean says. I looked and there was my house! Kind of a neat touch that puts me right in the layout. Nine trains at once The layout can run nine trains, including a trolley and inspection car. Dean prefers running his trains to seeing them on display along a wall. Trains are often rotated from shelves to track. These are wonderfully crafted toys that are meant to be used, Dean says. I tried to make this a running layout, September 2004 classictoytrains.com 61

7 one that would run as many trains as possible, continuously, in a small space. I also wanted lots of action, just the way I did when I was a kid. At night, when the only lights are those coming from the layout, it s beautiful. Today, Dean s collection includes more than 75 locomotives and hundreds of pieces of rolling stock. Among his favorites are pristine examples of the nos. 726 Berkshire and 773 Hudson, plus the no. 2544W Super O Super Chief streamlined passenger outfit from Dean, a professor of business and marketing at East Central College in Missouri, focuses on Lionel s products as well as its marketing programs. He analyzes the firm s catalogs and showroom 5. Lionel purists may be surprised to discover that Dean added an S gauge line in the mountain. The slightly smaller American Flyer freight train suggests that the mountain is larger and farther away than it really is. 6. Scrap metal and coal operations help support the economy of Dean s railroad. Vintage Lionel accessories and a replica of the J.L.C. Manufacturing Co. from the 1949 New York showroom layout dominate this area. layout to learn how toy trains became so popular with the public. The Lionel catalogs are classics, Dean says. The showroom display was brilliant. Open to the public, it was designed so dealers could come in and see new trains in action. They would go home and put what they liked in their own storefront windows. Very smart. Just the way Dean saw what Dick Kughn had done at Carail, and then went back to his home to build his own layout. When I set a goal, Dean says with a smile, I just dig in and work at it. I always wanted to have a national champion Model A Ford, and I managed to do that. My other goal was to have a top-notch layout for these wonderful trains. Having it featured in CLAS- SIC TOY TRAINS is like having another national champion. T 62 Classic Toy Trains September 2004