thanks guys he is a great guy, funny to . He invited me to dinner so i went. we talked about trains and army all night. he is ex army as well. He actually told me i could come over any time and run them trains. He said he just cant get down there to well any more. But he did tell me if i wanted pics (cuz i asked because i knew you all would want to see) id have to dust the whole layout because he didnt want dirty pics of his artwork out on the net....lol i told him thats not a problem. Id be more then willing. he did tell me many a few storys over coffe and pie. He showed me about six or seven new in the box post war locomotives. He said he got two of each when he was young because he thought they would be valuable later. I am not sure what they were cuz i am not very good at identifying them yet but they were big. and so clean.
that big engine and tender he gave me works really well but it doesnt really like my 027 track almost stops in the corners . my other trains dont do this. i think its just to big for my layout
WOW. And.... WOW!!!!!
Wonderful. Your rite, I'm jealous!!! By all means, spend time with him. I'll bet he has lots of great stories. Soak'm up and pass some along to us.
Bobby
P.S. Would love to see some pics/videos of his layout! If he doesn't mind.
RIP Chewy - best dog I ever had.
What a great story !!!
I was just driving along today after a dump run and well I saw there was a neighborhood yard sale, well I just had to stop you know! So there I am wondering around found various things i needed tools and such. Went to the very last house and was looking , nothing really caught my eye. A older women cam over and asked if i needed help finding anything and i said well if you got any train stuff that would be a good start. So she says" well gimme a sec let me ask my husband" he comes out and hes about 85 and he looks me up and down with my bright orange general lee cane i got says" son heard your looking for trains" i told him" yes sir, just started in the hobby and loving it, just looking to see if i can find anything to add to my layout". He asks me to follow him down some stair into a basement so i do. when i get down there i am just sureal. he had a huge basement with track eveywere. a layout that was so beautiful, but dusty, he hadnt been down there in years he said. he ask me if i liked it and i told him yes sir its remarkable. He had so many trains and such beautiful scenery. he said he started with trains when he was a little boy. been collecting and building since. he built this layout which had to been 40ft by 50 ft ....it was amazing. miles of track im sure. "so" he says what would you like. I was like sir i was just looking for any scenery and any locos or stock i could find. he said son thats not what i asked you. I didnt know what to say. then he said what type of train you like most and i said well i really like the old steam locos....and he said brb ...he walks around his layout and finds this......................................
says" i only ran it once", then sets it on a table if front of me. Told him thats very nice sir. he said oh wait this goes with it to....
im thinking theres no way i can afford these...then he said well what type of power you using so i tell him and he say thats not effeciant son...youll need something much better and sets this down next to the loco and tender...
i am drooling about now cuz he had about 6 of them.... so then he says wait just a minute youll need some of this too.........
by now im wondering how i will tell this nice man i cant afford all this stuff....while he sats these down...
so while hes looking around i start to speak up..i told him sir i cant afford all this...its really nice and your layout is breath taking but i dont have nearly enough money.. then he said why not. so i told him i was a disabled vet and money was tight...he said son i knew you were a vet the minute you called my wife maam.. he said nobody talks like that anymore unless your military...i was shocked and then he says plus your limp i assume you got shot...told him yep and some details because he was very curious...
he told me " son i didnt bring you down here to take your money, i brought you down here cuz i see the light in your eyes, its the crazy about trains look." i laughed along with him ..he said" i want you to have these, and you better take care of them," i said " sir i will they would be in good hands" so i m thinking whats the catch? he looked at me said " son how about $1 dollar ?" i told him " are you sure i dont think your getting a fair deal" he said " son im 85 yrs old, ive lived a long time, no kids they dont understand trains, when i die them vultures will just sell it all off , so go ahead enjoy" I tell him thanks you very much hand him his dollar. he told me i can come back anytime and run trains with him, and i will. he was such a nice man. i actually had dinner with him and his wife tonight. went down and just looked at all the trains. he must have had 40-50 differant engines with more then 200 boxcars, flat cars, cranes, and everything else. just amazing. everything was automated to. well thats my story and im sticking to it. heres a few more pics. I just cant believe the luck i had with trains and yard sales.
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