Trains.com

Subscriber & Member Login

Login, or register today to interact in our online community, comment on articles, receive our newsletter, manage your account online and more!

Yay! 'How It's Made' to feature 'miniature train cars'

3626 views
15 replies
1 rating 2 rating 3 rating 4 rating 5 rating
  • Member since
    December 2001
  • 3,139 posts
Yay! 'How It's Made' to feature 'miniature train cars'
Posted by chutton01 on Saturday, February 16, 2008 1:18 PM

At least I hope it deals with scale model railroading (their segment titles can be a bit wonky - the 'Personal Transporter' segment was not Starfleet Chief Miles O'Brian discussing tachyon tunneling through supercool hydrogen in the Heisenberg Compensator, but was merely Mini-Vans). Anyway, Discovery Channel viewers, set your DVRs or VCRs to Mar 26, 7:00 pm.
For you unfamiliar with "How It's Made", it's a Canadian program (130+ episodes over 10 seasons) which shows the fabrication/assembly/production of various items in the workshop/factory/mill/plant/quarry etc - something like Modern Marvels, except interesting and informative.  Each episode has 4 segments (sometimes the last 2 are related), with funky, cheesy (and yet often catchy) syntherized music in the background, and narration of the process in the foreground (in the US, originally by the soporific Brooks Moore, currently by the equally soporific Zach Fine - the reason for overdubbing from English to...yes, English is so the US audience is not 'perplexed' by metric measurements. Banged Head [banghead]
You will learn something from each segment (OK, perhaps not the toy block one, when they simply ran of things to say about injection molding, and instead talked about the packaging), ranging from products you never heard of (like for me, Opalescent Glass and Orthoses), to processes you didn't know (like the ductile iron pipe one - didn't know they sprayed cement on the inside of the pipe...good railfan segment, as they showed unloading of scrap metal from bathtub gondolas via electromagnet crane, and also at the end the shiny (painted) black iron pipes leaving the mill neatly stacked on TTX flats) to just cool processes (like bending  straight wire into coiled springs - it's just cool to see) to the grotesque (the interior of the eyesocket of a middle-age caucasian man in otherwise good health is rather smooth & pink, much like nasal membranes, which makes sense if you think about it...'Artifical Eyes') - and yes guys, they did cover tampons 'Sanitary Napkins' and sliced up a cornea 'Laser Eye Surgery'.

Hey, Science Channel viewers - have you seen this episode yet (Discovery may be on a different schedule - this is episode 129 - did it stink or was it cool?  If cool, maybe we can get other facets of the hobby featured, although they have done foam board & paints already.  It should be photogenic, and I think they appreciate if you provide a contact at a manufacturer (and I don't think they featured any chinese plants yet, just Canadian, US, & British ones).

  • Member since
    April 2007
  • From: Redneck Land(Little Rock), Arkansas
  • 919 posts
Posted by arkansasrailfan on Saturday, February 16, 2008 2:37 PM
I know that there is a 99.99% chance that it will be toy trains.
It'll be probably MTH or Lionel, because every hear of Atlas trains running under the tree?
The public thinks if it is a train, it MUST be a model train. Because every I meet asks, "Do have a model trains/ train set/ Lionel?" Considering I have a small variety of models(no-O), but no layout, really they hit the surface. One teacher asked me if I could bring my train collection, and I said "do you want me to bring several thousand dollars worth of equipment?" Everyone, I must say, was very astonished!
-Michael It's baaaacccckkkk!!!!!! www.youtube.com/user/wyomingrailfan
  • Member since
    December 2001
  • 3,139 posts
Posted by chutton01 on Saturday, February 16, 2008 2:51 PM

 wyomingrailfan wrote:
I know that there is a 99.99% chance that it will be toy trains.
It'll be probably MTH or Lionel, because every hear of Atlas trains running under the tree?

Yeah, I wouldn't be surprised if that's what it is - although they have done some model stuff before, it tended toward miniature houses and (just recently) miniature silver sets - however, they did do nice segments on Model Ships (season 6), and (also recently) Steam Powered Models (which were neat).  I was also trying to think Garden Railroad manufacturers in North America or the UK, as that might well be their focus - nice & big & photogenic - oh well, we'll see in March.

  • Member since
    January 2002
  • From: ERIE PA.
  • 1,661 posts
Posted by GAPPLEG on Saturday, February 16, 2008 4:22 PM
I watch it all the time, lately it's been 2 episodes every weekday night at 7:00 est. Now that I'm retired I've seen some episodes on during the day . somethimes repeats. Always interesting.
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, February 16, 2008 5:06 PM
what i always think is kind of neat is that all the stuff made on the show is done in N. america, when it's products that you'd think would be made overseas.
  • Member since
    July 2004
  • From: Lewiston ID
  • 1,710 posts
Posted by reklein on Saturday, February 16, 2008 6:48 PM
Gapplegg!!! Dude!!! No daytime TV!!!! You gotta get out man and enjoy life. You won't be able to enjoy your retirement if you start wastin the day watchin TV. Take a road trip. rake the yard, do the dishes. anything but daytime TV. That'll killyou quicker than anything. Don't forget to walk at least a mile a day or Bike 4-6 miles. Exercise the heart vigorously. Otherwise we'll end up writin you off dude. OK,rant over.Smile [:)]
In Lewiston Idaho,where they filmed Breakheart pass.
  • Member since
    April 2003
  • 305,205 posts
Posted by Anonymous on Saturday, February 16, 2008 6:56 PM

No, it is the retirees that sit on the porch that die.

The rest will live forever enjoying stuff like how it's made.

That show was rather good, you can even look it up on the internet and watch previous shows.

  • Member since
    October 2003
  • From: San Francisco Bay Area
  • 1,090 posts
Posted by on30francisco on Saturday, February 16, 2008 7:02 PM

 reklein wrote:
Gapplegg!!! Dude!!! No daytime TV!!!! You gotta get out man and enjoy life. You won't be able to enjoy your retirement if you start wastin the day watchin TV. Take a road trip. rake the yard, do the dishes. anything but daytime TV. That'll killyou quicker than anything. Don't forget to walk at least a mile a day or Bike 4-6 miles. Exercise the heart vigorously. Otherwise we'll end up writin you off dude. OK,rant over.Smile [:)]

That's what VCRs or DVD recorders are for. Record it and watch it when it's convenient for you. 

  • Member since
    January 2003
  • From: Rock Springs Wy.
  • 1,967 posts
Posted by miniwyo on Saturday, February 16, 2008 9:37 PM
Its a pretty cool show. According to thier website, That secment was at Weaver Models in Northumberland PA.

RJ

"Something hidden, Go and find it. Go and look behind the ranges, Something lost behind the ranges. Lost and waiting for you. Go." The Explorers - Rudyard Kipling

http://sweetwater-photography.com/

  • Member since
    March 2007
  • 599 posts
Posted by Milepost 266.2 on Saturday, February 16, 2008 9:40 PM

 miniwyo wrote:
Its a pretty cool show. According to thier website, That secment was at Weaver Models in Northumberland PA.

 

The Pennsylvania Cable Network did a nice, in-depth tour of the Weaver Model factory.  Injection molding, paintshop, lettering, the works.  Ran at least a 1/2 hour.  

Their factory tours are always fascinating.

  • Member since
    July 2006
  • 3,312 posts
Posted by locoi1sa on Saturday, February 16, 2008 9:51 PM
  I love the show. The first time I watched it the wife came in and heard only the music and thought it was some cheap porn movie playing. When she saw it wasnt we laughed and watched the rest of the show together. Then I asked her how she knows what a cheap porn movie sounds like. They need more narrating and less music.

 I pray every day I break even, Cause I can really use the money!

 I started with nothing and still have most of it left!

  • Member since
    January 2003
  • From: Rock Springs Wy.
  • 1,967 posts
Posted by miniwyo on Sunday, February 17, 2008 12:46 AM
 Milepost 266.2 wrote:

 miniwyo wrote:
Its a pretty cool show. According to thier website, That secment was at Weaver Models in Northumberland PA.

 

The Pennsylvania Cable Network did a nice, in-depth tour of the Weaver Model factory.  Injection molding, paintshop, lettering, the works.  Ran at least a 1/2 hour.  

Their factory tours are always fascinating.

 

I agree. When I was in the 6th grade, I got to go on a tour of the local coal fired power plant. That was really fun. But now I am in the business of building plants, so its not so fun anymore :P Although I would like to know what they do to our gas when they get it in the cryo plant at the next stop down the pipe...... 

RJ

"Something hidden, Go and find it. Go and look behind the ranges, Something lost behind the ranges. Lost and waiting for you. Go." The Explorers - Rudyard Kipling

http://sweetwater-photography.com/

  • Member since
    June 2006
  • From: Sweden
  • 1,808 posts
Posted by Lillen on Sunday, February 17, 2008 8:48 AM

I think it's an OK show but sometime a bit to simple. But the killer for me was when they started narrating it in Swedish. It really sucks since a lot of the thing get translated wrong and you can hear and understand what they where meant to be saying. It totally ruins the show for me. Same thing with "deadliest catch", excellent series and then they started narrating it in Swedish. That is plain terrible. So now I cancelled my discovery and got a history channel instead. I just can't stand listening to narrating that isn't in the original language.

 

Magnus

Unless otherwise mentioned it's HO and about the 50's. Magnus
  • Member since
    June 2004
  • From: Orig: Tyler Texas. Lived in seven countries, now live in Sundown, Louisiana
  • 25,640 posts
Posted by jeffrey-wimberly on Sunday, February 17, 2008 9:01 AM
 miniwyo wrote:
Its a pretty cool show. According to thier website, That secment was at Weaver Models in Northumberland PA.
As I figured. 1/48th -  O Scale.

Running Bear, Sundown, Louisiana
          Joined June, 2004

Dr. Frankendiesel aka Scott Running Bear
Space Mouse for president!
15 year veteran fire fighter
Collector of Apple //e's
Running Bear Enterprises
History Channel Club life member.
beatus homo qui invenit sapientiam


  • Member since
    January 2003
  • From: CA
  • 337 posts
Posted by DavidGSmith on Sunday, February 17, 2008 9:25 AM

There is another show on Discovery channel, its all about trains. The guy in it is English and a lot ofthe show shows Europeon stuff but they also show north American, last week it was on the transcontiental railways in the US. There was a long picture of a challenger running with a passenger train. It was a railfan trip but had some excellent shots. Also some narrow gauge.

Dave

  • Member since
    December 2001
  • 3,139 posts
Posted by chutton01 on Sunday, February 17, 2008 11:22 AM

 jeffrey-wimberly wrote:
 miniwyo wrote:
Its a pretty cool show. According to thier website, That secment was at Weaver Models in Northumberland PA.
As I figured. 1/48th -  O Scale.

That's great then, as Weaver makes some nice looking models (don't know how they track & ride because that's not my scale, but the ones in the hobby shop & in MR ads I've seen look good).  First get the Science/Discovery geeks to see nice looking realistic scale models (and how they're made, of course) and pique their interest, then we can worry about the different scales (as opposed to H-I-M showing production of, say, Annie, Clarabel, and the Troublesome Trucks...)

Subscriber & Member Login

Login, or register today to interact in our online community, comment on articles, receive our newsletter, manage your account online and more!

Users Online

There are no community member online

Search the Community

ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Model Railroader Newsletter See all
Sign up for our FREE e-newsletter and get model railroad news in your inbox!