October 2020

Trolleyville seeks to balance today's news with great modeling news and techniques. We want you to ke
IN THIS ISSUE:

CURRENT EVENTS ..........

Urban Commuter / Light Rail / Modern Streetcar News!

OTHER TRACTION ITEMS ..........

Are You A Fan of Modern Light Rail Operations or Heritage Trams? A Look at Portugal! by Richard Allman

Paul Mayer - Specialty Traction Decal Maker!

Arnie's Model Trains - Your Source For Rare Items!

More 3D Printed Traction Bodies from Volkmar Meier!

CURRENT EVENTS......
Urban Commuter / Light Rail / Modern Streetcar News!
***
LOS ANGELES, CA - On September 8th, Metrolink reinstated two Ventura County Line trains as vehicle
traffic in the San Fernando Valley and Ventura County, California, begins to return to pre-pandemic levels.

Ventura County Line trains 101 and 110 have been restored to serve stations connecting Los Angeles to
Glendale, Burbank, Northridge, Van Nuys, Chatsworth, Simi Valley and Moorpark. The eastbound service
provides the first morning connection from Los Angeles to Ventura County since the pandemic forced
temporary service reductions in March, Metrolink officials said in a press release.

“Our service and schedules are all centered around the needs and safety of our customers,” said Metrolink Chief
Executive Officer Stephanie Wiggins. “We are heartened to see our ridership beginning to rebound and will
continue to restore service in a measured and strategic fashion based on need, our ability to socially distance and
available funding.”

Meanwhile, the California Air Resources Board last week issued a Tier 4 Verification Certificate for Metrolink’s
37 new diesel locomotives after emissions verification testing. The certification confirms Metrolink’s
locomotives continue to meet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Tier 4 standard for diesel engines —
the most stringent emission-reduction designation for engines, Metrolink officials said in a press release. The
Tier 4 certificate is a requirement to receive previously awarded grant funding from South Coast Air Quality
Management District (SCAQMD) for Metrolink’s 40 new locomotives, Series 903-942, which cost $280
million. The final three locomotives will be placed into service this fall.

The EMD F125 "Spirit" is a four-axle passenger diesel locomotive manufactured by Electro-Motive Division
(END)(GM) for the North American market. It is powered by a Caterpillar C175-20 V20 diesel engine rated at
4,700 hp (3,500 kW). The locomotive is capable of traveling at a maximum in-service speed of 125 mph
(201 km/h) pulling consists of up to 10 cars. It was EMD's first new passenger locomotive for the North
American market in 15 years, with the previous passenger locomotive being the EMD DE30AC and DM30AC
built for the Long Island Rail Road.

Features of the F125 include EPA Tier 4 emissions compliance (with exhaust after-treatment), AC traction
systems, extended-range blend and dynamic brakes with HEP regeneration capabilities, advanced crash energy
management (CEM) technology, and a streamlined body design, designed by Vossloh AG of Spain.[2]

WASHINGTON, D.C. - In early September AMTRAK announced plans to furlough 1,950 workers and cut 100
management positions due to contracted operations and pinched finances. Over the past few weeks, the railroad
thoroughly reviewed ts fiscal-year 2021 operating plan and planned service levels, which confirmed reduced
staffing needs for the next fiscal year, Amtrak officials said in a prepared statement.

“While we have implemented initiatives to minimize the number of furloughs and involuntary separations,
significant reductions remain necessary due to the slow recovery of ridership and revenue,” they said.

Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers & Trainmen (BLET) leaders are urging members to ask their U.S.
senators to adequately fund Amtrak, provided the railroad maintains full daily services to prevent the nearly
2,000 job cuts. The furloughs will impact about 400 BLET members.

“Earlier this summer, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Moving Forward Act, which would have
tripled Amtrak funding to nearly $29 billion,” BLET officials said in a press release. “It conditioned the extra
funding on Amtrak maintaining service levels no lower than in 2019, and bars furloughs.”

The layoffs are unacceptable and avoidable, said Transportation Trades Department, AFL-CIO officials in a
statement.

“Congress must immediately provide this carrier with the funding it needs to preserve its operations and keep its
employees on payroll. If lawmakers fail to do so, Amtrak won’t stop at 2,000 jobs,” they said. “The carrier
could ultimately lay off nearly 50 percent of its staff, leaving communities in both urban and rural areas without
a vital transportation lifeline, and sending 10,000 workers to the unemployment line.”

Meanwhile, Amtrak last week also announced a new partnership with Lysol producer Reckitt Benckiser Group
(RB) that will help strengthen disinfection protocols for trains, stations and lounges. The protocols first will
launch in Northeast Corridor stations and Pacific Surfliner trains before expanding across Amtrak’s network.
RB will supply Amtrak with disinfection solutions, including those proven to be effective against the SARS-
CoV2 virus that causes COVID-19. The products will be used in high-touch and high-traffic areas where germs
are most prevalent.

OTHER TRACTION ITEMS:

Are You A Fan of Modern Light Rail Operations or Heritage Trams?
A Look at Portugal!
***
by Richard Allman

Besides modeling and operating HO scale classic trolleys, I am a huge admirer of contemporary
light rail systems. I have visited and photographed many of the US and Canadian systems, and hope
to resume such activities when the current pandemic abates. In September 2019, my wife Suzanne
and I spent eight days in Portugal. We did the usual tourist things, visiting castles, cathedrals, and
ancient street vistas, eating outstanding local cuisine, and visiting the breathtaking Douro Valley
where some of the world’s great wines are made. I also gave Suzanne some time on her own to do
the things she enjoys, such as visiting zoos and gardens, while I pursued my hidden agenda for my
trip, some good old-fashioned tram chasing!

Lisbon is a beautiful city, steeped in history and architectural treasures. Lisbon dominated the age
of exploration in the Sixteenth Century. It also has an extensive tram system and some new light
rail operation running alongside the trams. The old single truck cars traverse winding streets and
steep hills and serve many of the tourist attractions. The one light rail operation in the city, with
more coming, parallels the river Tagus from downtown Lisbon to Belem, site of many of the
spectacular must-see attractions. The Siemens-built light rail vehicles are single-ended; therefore,
loops are needed at both ends. The downtown terminus loops around streets, while off-street loops
are present along the outer end of the line. Service is frequent and reliable, although when we were
there, service west of Belem was suspended for track work.

Carris
 Lisbon Route 28 in Alfama, high above the center of Lisbon.

Lisbon LRV 505 leaving Belem Cutback Loop

Single Truck Carris Car 580 heading for Belem with trolley pole down and pantograph raised!

Inbound Carris Siemens-built LRV 503 approaching Commuter Rail station

Lisbon also has an extensive underground Metro system, almost exclusively underground, and far-
reaching electrified commuter rail operations. Some of the older tram cars operate with trolley
poles, others with pantographs.

On the south side of the Tagus is a vibrant community which is home to Metro do Sul do Tejo, a
three-line light rail operation served with 4-section Combino trams. It opened in 2007. It is largely
on reserved right-of-way with frequent service. The lines climb some impressive hills, and although
the cars were noisier than I expected, they do the job and provide a vital service to a burgeoning
conurbation.
 Metro do Sol Tejo Siemens-built Combino C010 approaching Coca de Pieda!
Almada system in suburbs of Lisbon on south side of Tagus River.

Metro
do Sol Tejo Siemens-built Combino C022 at Fertagus station at Pragal
Almada system in suburbs of Lisbon on south side of Tagus River.

The lines serve several of the busy stations of Fertagus, the commuter line from Lisbon that crosses
the Tagus on the Ponte 25 de Abril, a spectacular bridge that honors the date on which in 1976,
Portugal was liberated from its semi-fascist dictatorship. Fertagus opened in 1999 and provides fast,
frequent service to the southern inner suburbs and exurbs of Lisbon with hourly service to Setubal
and more frequent service as far as Coina, both using bi-level EMU cars, which are always packed.
The ride across the bridge offers an unforgettable view of the river and shorelines. One need not be
a rail fan to be in awe of the sight. The lines also serve the southern ferry terminals for the boats
crossing the Tagus between Lisbon and Cachilas on the south side.

Porto is Portugal’s second largest city, located around 320 km. (192 miles) north of Lisbon, by fast
train around 3 hours. Do not make the journey without a reserved seat! Porto is at the confluence of
the Douro River and the Atlantic Ocean. The city’s waterfront on either side of the Douro quickly
yields to steep hills-almost cliffs-that rise on either side. It is a city rich with history and home to
classic architecture. Its great gift to the world is Port Wine, which must be tasted for a complete
Porto experience. There are 3 heritage tram lines in Porto, which while I was there unfortunately
had very spotty service and on one day, had no service because of a marathon along the route,
providing me with a good reason to return at another time. Porto also is home to one of the most
spectacular light rail operations anywhere, with six routes and two downtown subways, one
carrying five lines and one carrying one route. They intersect in downtown Porto. The 4 trunk
routes are largely on former main line railroad lines which were upgraded to light rail standards and
first entered operation in 2002. The north-south route D, with its own tunnel also runs over the
Dom Luis I bridge across the Douro. The right of way is shared with pedestrians. It offers a
dramatic view of the Porto waterfront. The level of ridership and the service frequency are
extremely high. On the four-route trunk, there is a car, or two-car train every two-three minutes
each way with weekday service on most lines every 8-12 minutes.
 Outbound Bombardier-built Flexity Swift car MP120 on Route C to Izmai
leaving the Fonte do Cuco junction station.

Eurotram
MP051 leading a two-car train northbound on the Dom Luis I bridge on the North-South Route D. Operators must be
aware of pedestrians on the bridge (Porto).

The North-South route D operates every 5-10 minutes. Currently due to air travel interruptions, the
line to the Airport is running every 30 minutes although as air service resumes post-pandemic,
service frequency will increase to every fifteen minutes. Two car types are in service, with a third
under construction. All are of low-floor design. They include the Eurotrams, similar to those in
Strasbourg with their sloping ends and the Flexity Swift stock used on the long lines to Varzim
(Route B) and Ismai (Route C) which are very handsome cars. Since time was limited, after
thoroughly exploring the trunk line, I rode the long route to Varzim, which was unforgettable and
was like riding the Liberty Bell Limited through farmlands and towns, except for the new cars,
double track LRT right-of-way and the dense patronage.

Flexity
Swift car MP108 at Vila do Conde station, near outer terminal on Route-B-Varzim (Porto).
 Outbound Eurotram MP063 on Route A to Matosinhos at Senhora da Hora. There is a tram each
way in this four-line truck every 2-4 minutes. Look at the crowds!

After
crossing the 146 foot high bridge Dom Luis I bridge over the Douro River, Route D
dives into a cliffside tunnel to criss under downtown Porto. Eurotram MP057 in the rear of a two-
car train on this combined light rail and pedestrian bridge.

Portugal is one of the poorer countries in Western Europe, but its people are hard-working, friendly,
and very accommodating and welcoming to visitors. It is very affordable and is a traction fan’s
paradise. I did not get to do nearly enough riding and photography of the systems I visited and did
not even get to see the vintage cars in Sintra, though I saw the right-of -way which is well-
maintained. Next time!

Paul Mayer - Specialty Traction Decal Maker!

***
Paul Mayer operated Shoreline Decals until shortly before his death in 2016. For 26 years, he made HO and O
scale decals as a service to the model railroading hobby. It wasn't as much a business as a passion project. Paul
was a skilled custom painter, and started making decals for himself out of necessity – the traction decals he
wanted did not exist.
Completely self-taught, Paul's first decals were handmade using silk screens, paint and a squeegee. He later
graduated to designing and printing electronically, first using Adobe Pagemaker and later Indesign. Many of the
dozens of often-esoteric decals he made were prompted by chance meetings with other modelers at traction
meets. He would overhear someone saying they needed decals for a particular car, and would offer to make
them.

Paul was born in upstate New York, but moved to the Chicago area in high school. After serving in the Navy
(retiring as a Commander in the reserves), he spent his career as a sales executive for several different
companies selling commercial computer systems. If you flew on Pan Am, American Airlines and others in the
late 1980s, your ticket was probably booked on a mainframe reservation terminal he sold. He is survived by his
wife of 51 years, four children, two daughters-in-law, a son-in-law and six grandchildren.

As you can surmise, Paul did not make a large quantity of any decal, but Custom Traxx has acquired some of
the remaining stock if anyone is interested.

Arnie's Model Trains!

Your Source for Rare Items.
***
Almost every serious model railroader in Southern California by now has heard of or visited the Arnie's Model
Trains / Milepost 38 model and toy trains complex in Westminster, CA. Greg Arnold and his father, Jerry.
pooled resources ands purchased the store in 1977 and renamed it. The store remained located on Westminster
Boulevard until 2007 when they moved to the current location. Unfortunately, Jerry passed away before the
move could be made. Milepost 38, was located in Brea, CA from 2001 to 2014 when it was purchased by a
partnership of Matt Haynes and Greg Arnold and it was and moved into a vacant store next door to Arnie's
Model Trains. Milepost 38 specializes in the larger model trains; G scale, O scale and S scale while Arnie's
Model Trains concentrates on HO and N scales train models.

With some common ownership, both stores offer pleasant atmosphere, knowledgeable staff and ample parking
right in front of both stores to help you with your model train needs. One feature of both stores is the periodic
acquisition of model train collections from various sources. some of these collections contain priceless older
hobby items not seen for many years but sorely missed. These are made available to customers at sometimes
unbelievable prices.

One of the items that some modelers desire are the Athearn "Blue Box" kits. These were one of the staples of
the HO scale model railroad hobby for decades until they fell victim to the shift of model manufacturing to
offshore facilities beginning in the late 1980s and the trend away from kits to Ready-To-Run models.

But during September 2020, Arnie's acquired a large amount of these "Blue Box" HO scale kits and has most of
them inside in the air-conditioned store and others outside the front door under the "bargain tent". Shown below
are some of those inside the store:

There are additional Athearn "Blue Box" kits elsewhere in the store as shown below left. The bargain tent which
is available to shoppers during store hours which are currently 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM Monday through Saturday
is shown below right:
The next photo shows Greg Arnold, principal owner of Arnie's Train Store, now at it's second location, holding
one of the many bargains available in the tent. It you look closely, you can see more historical Athearn "Blue
Box" kits to Greg's right. Under this tent there are items priced as low as $1.98, and none of it is "junk". Greg
was relating to us how "It's all fun"* and is clearly the happiest model train store owner we have encountered.

So if you are a "Blue Box" fan, it is "just common sense"* to get over there ASAP!

By the way, for the trolley and urban rail transit fans, George Huckaby of Custom Traxx joined the staff in
March and is available usually on Fridays.

The state closed the Edwards Avenue Bridge, adjacent to the store, for one year in June 2020 for replacement
due to the widening of the I-405 freeway. This forces some detours to get to the store especially from the north.
So check your iPhone and other map aids before coming. You can also check the store website,
www.arniesmodeltrains.com for up-to-date routing to the store and access to their eBay store for additional
bargains.

This is Arnie's Model Trains, 6452 Industry Way, Westminster, CA , 714-893-1015,

www.arniesmodeltrains.com.
* Repeated Greg Arnold sayings.....

More 3D Printed Traction Bodies from Volkmar Meier!

***
Volkmar Meier (Interurban Traction Models) continues to increase his proficiency and involvement in the 3D
printed traction field. In June, he provided samples of the following HO scale models:

1. Cincinnati & Lake Erie 1929 "Hi-Speed" Interurbans, Series 110-129. **

2. Washington D.C. 1935 Saint Louis Car Company Pre-PCC car, Series 1051-1060.

3. Cincinnati Car Company Curve Side Car.

4. Brookville Three-Unit Low Floor Light Rail Transit Car.

All four of these cars have floors designed for the Bowser HO scale traction units. They also have a 10mm by
10mm opening in the floor between the motor mounts for an overhead wire/two rail power switch, which by
being accessible without disassembling the car, increases the flexibility of operation of the units.

**This car is currently available on the Interurban Traction Models website in N scale in three versions:

1. Original 1929-1939 C&LE "Red Devil" Version, SKU #160-1005.

2. Cedar Rapids and Iowa City Version, SKU #160-1004.

 3. Lehigh Valley Transit "Easton Limited", SKU 160-1002.

It has been not decided at press time how the HO scale units will be available to the modelers. But Custom
Traxx has been evaluating the units and has developed decals for the C&LE 1929 "Hi-Speed" Interurban (CN-
115) and the Washington D.C. Pre-PCC (CN-1051DC) and they are now available on the Custom Traxx
website.

Pre-
production model of C&LE "Red Devil" 119 finished using Custom Traxx decal set CN-115!

Pre-production model of Washington D.C. Transit 1053 finished using Custom Traxx decal set CN-1051DC!

Custom Traxx had not started work on the next two of the Volkmar cars when this issue went to press. The
Curveside car was originally a model of the four cars built for the Dayton & Troy Railway in 1929, numbered
201 through 204. When that line quit in 1932, the cars were returned to the Cincinnati Car Co to be re-sold in
1938 to the Lehigh Valley Transit (LVT) to run on the Allentown-Easton Line. Then in 1949 the cars were sold
to Speedrail where only one was serviceable as their #66. We were going to finish this car as one of the LVT
cars when we obtained some Speedrail #66 decals from James Mayer, son of Jim Mayer who operated Shoreline
Model for many years. So we'll have to see how this car emerges.

Cincinnati
Car Co. 10 window Curveside Car!
The next photo is of the floor of the Brookville Liberty model, looking from the bottom with the units, L to R A,
C and B. Note that the cutouts for the A and B shells allow a Bowser power truck or a Bowser trailing truck.
The standard powering method is a Bowser power truck in the A unit, connected to a Bowser motor in the C
unit and a trailing truck in the B unit. However, when we locate the perfect double ended motor/flywheel
combination, we will be trying power trucks in both the A and B units connected to the C unit mounted motor.

At press time, there had been no decision as to what road will be the final dress of the Brookville unit. The
Brookville sections are shown in the next photo, starting at the top with the roof equipment for the (l to r) B, C
and A sections and three body sections, B, C and A themselves and at the bottom the three unit chassis with the
Bowser trailing truck installed in the C section and the Bowser power truck installed in the A section.

Volkmar has been working on this 3D printed model for a few years now. Custom Traxx received the first pre-
production kit in July 2018 painted by Volkmar himself as Oklahoma City 201801. In February 2019 he printed
another kit which ended up painted by Custom Traxx as Detroit 291. Both of these cars have been operating on
the Southern California Traction Club's (SCTC) Light Rail Vehicle Display since they were equipped with
decoders. At this time, it is planned to finish this car as one of the Dallas cars, 302. Decals are currently in
development by Custom Traxx.

But there have been improvements in this third issue. There is a revised rear wall for the cab in both the A and B
sections which can be affixed to the chassis with screws or cement. Separate roof equipment for all three
sections are supplied. The A and B shells are different in the rear interface area with the C unit as they have
added horizontal bracing at the ends to prevent these ends from spreading apart. Windows and windshields, as
usual have been supplied.

Installing the Bowser power train is pretty straightforward except in a few areas. First of all 2-56 screws are
used where the Volkmar hex head screws were not provided. It is highly recommended that a #50 drill and a #2-
56 tap be used to prepare any hole before installing the screws. I chose to use a hex head 1/4" 2-56 screw to
fasten the trailing truck to the C unit floor and to secure the motor mounts to the C unit floor due to the firm grip
that the hex head wrench had on the hex head. Again we are using the Bowser/AFFA dynamically balance
motor flywheel combination from a scrapped PCC car

The major installation effort will be the finding a longer drive shaft to fill the gap between the flywheel with the
hex shaped hole in the end of the flywheel and the power truck.

A former Stewart part #233, shown above bottom (black) was used as the main drive line in all of Bowser's
recently produced HO scale R-T-R trolleys. It connected the flywheel to the power truck. After installing our
Bowser/AFFA motor-flywheel combination, we measured the distance between the right edge of the flywheel
and the left edge of the power truck "socket". It was between 36.3 mm and 40.8 mm. The reason for the range is
the amount of "play" in both coupling and the forward and backward movement of the power truck. The
hexagonal coupling must go into the flywheel and the other end has up to 4 mm of horizontal play in its
coupling at the power truck. A closer view of this area is in the next photo.
 But we were in possession of a supply of the parts Bowser made using both ends of the #233 part so that they
could be connected using various lengths of a 2mm rod. See examples in the next photos. At press time, we
were not aware if Bowser still had these parts but they are available from Custom Traxx for $2.00 (one 1417
and one 1418).

Bowser Part 1417 - Driveline Coupling Hex Flywheel Bowser Part 1418 - Driveline Coupling Hex Flywheel

Remember to allow some vertical movement in the new drive shaft for track undulations but not enough for the
shaft to fall out. After much experimentation the length of our brass 2mm shaft was 36mm + .5mm or 10 scale
feet + .5 scale foot. This range should work for most modelers depending where the flywheel is mounted on the
motor shaft and where the other coupling is mounted on it's shaft. We cut long and shortened bit by bit until we
had the optimum performance. Also we did all this testing in the DC mode before decoders were installed.

Testing of this drive began on the afternoon of September 30th on the Light Rail Vehicle Display (LRVD) of the
Southern California Traction Club (SCTC) which had been assembled in the home of John McWhirter, a club
member for over 15 years.

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