The Gandy Dancer
The Official Publication of
The Alameda County Central Railroad Society
June 2002
Flag Day June 14
Fair Starts June 21.
| The Gandy DancerThe Official Publication of | June 2002Flag Day June 14 |
| Club Officers: | |
|---|---|
| President |
Vice President Henry Chandler |
| Secretary Dean Lewis |
Treasurer Cathy Chrisman |
| HO Trainmaster Mike Browne |
O Trainmaster George Cumming |
| Newsletter Editor Bob Johnson |
Webmaster Jim Ferreria |
| Visit the club website | |
If you have any information that would be of interest to the membership please contact Bob Johnson, so that it may be included in the next issue. The deadline for submitting information for the July issue will be June 14 with a goal of being mailed and uploaded to the website by June 16. Members are encouraged to submit photos, announcements and other club and model railroad related material for use on the club website. Please contact Jim Ferreria with items for the website, or questions relating to the website. |
| Go to May 2002 Issue | Return to Gandy Dancer Index | Go to July 2002 Issue |
| General News | HO Scale News | O Scale News | Test Your Word Power |
| Friday, June 21 thru Sunday, July 7. | |
| Monday thru Thursday 11:00 AM to 10:00 PM. | Friday, Saturday and Sunday 10:00 AM to 10:00 PM. |
| Thursday, July Fourth 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM. | |
On Sunday, August 4, the O Scalers of ACCRS will host our second annual summer get-together, swap meet and barbecue. Bring your favorite locomotive (or train) and operate it on the Club's O Scale pike. We are equipped for DCC running, as well as traditional ("analog") controls, and the more, the merrier. Hang out with other O Scalers, tell lies, and have some barbecue. This year, we are adding trading tables for all interested in swapping your stuff for somebody else's stuff. Commercial dealers are also welcome (scale O only, please). There is no charge for any of this, but we'd like to know if you are coming--especially if you want a swap table. RSVP to the O Scale Trainmaster, George Cumming
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August 23, 24 and 25. 16th West Coast Nationals. Hours: Friday 8:00 AM to 6:00PM, Saturday 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM and Sunday 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM. Start time for the club display is normally 10:00 AM for this event. |
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The June general business meeting will be held on Friday, June 7th, Big Bertha the club BBQ, will be fired up for those wishing to bring your own meat for the self-service grilling session prior to the meeting. This will be the last of the Friday evening cooking until after the Fair is over. |
The annual Alameda County Fair is only a short time away. The time is fast approaching when projects must be completed and the club building cleaned up for the fair. Pre-fair preparations are always hectic, and additional help is always appreciated. Find out what needs to be done and lend a hand in getting the facility and layouts ready for this major event on the club calendar.
The July edition of the newsletter, will be early and short. The newsletter will return to its normal size and format with the August edition.
Annual Club BBQ 
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The annual post fair club BBQ will be held Friday, August 2 starting with Hors D'Oeurvres at 6:30 PM. Mark your calendar for this family oriented event. The sign-up sheet for the BBQ is on the refrigerator in the locker room. |
A calendar has been posted adjacent to the dispatch panel showing the scheduling of Analog and DCC running for Friday evenings. The letter "A", on the calendar, denotes an analog run night. The letter "D", on the calendar, denotes a DCC run night. The schedule for June is as follows:
Analog: |
Friday, June 7th. |
DCC: |
Friday, June 14th. |
Signup sheets for the annual Alameda County Fair are available in the upstairs meeting room. There are three shifts for each day:
Monday through Thursday: First shift is 11:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Second shift is 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Third shift is 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM. |
Friday, Saturday and Sunday: First shift is 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Second shift is 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM. Third shift is 6:00 PM to 10:00 PM. |
Thursday, July Fourth: First shift is 10:00 AM to 2:00 PM. Second shift is 2:00 PM to 6:00 PM. No third shift, on the Fourth of July as Fair will be closing at 6:00 PM. |
Please note that in prior years we have closed early on a couple of evenings during the small animal changeover. We are required to close, as our front door must be closed during changeover, and fire regulations do not permit us to be open to the public with only one building exit available. We will not receive information on the dates for changeover until the Fair starts, or just before. The club membership will be advised as soon as the dates and times for changeover are known.
The HO scale DCC clinic was held on Saturday, May 18. We had a good turnout with some thirteen members present for the festivities. A lively question and answer session preceded the decoder installation portion of the clinic. Decoder installation in Kato, Proto 2000 and Athearn locomotives was successfully demonstrated. This was a most informative and interesting clinic and it appears that those who attended learned a good deal about installation of decoders in several types of locomotives. In addition, all who attended and participated had a good time. Thanks to Seth and Mike for conducting this clinic. Another clinic may be scheduled later in the summer, if there is enough interest in having another clinic.
The following remarks are from the HO Scale Trainmaster.
With the fair rapidly approaching we need to concentrate on the Kensington project. I would like the Kensington committee get together and resume the work on this project Please. On June 7th we will have a cleaning session on the layout, to get it ready for the fair. Let's have a good showing and a great time this year.
Thanks all, — Mike
The following remarks are from the O Scale Trainmaster.
The DCC operations session, normally held on the first Sunday of the month, is changed this month to SATURDAY, June 1. You will need your club pass. Park and enter on the North side (Gate 12 off Valley Ave.) Operating hours are 10 am to 5 pm. Bring lots of stuff and impress the crowd!
The sign-up sheet for the Fair is posted. Please sign up for your fair share (no pun intended) of dates--this is really how we all "pay our dues" for rent-free quarters. If you can't sign up in person, please call or e-mail me, and let me know what dates you can work. It is very important that we know who will be there, and when. Otherwise, people will have to "cover" when there is no need for them to do so. Even if you will not be running trains, there is still the front door duty. Last year, some of our members got stuck there way too long.
Sunday, August 4, will be a repeat of last year's very successful meet. This year, swap tables will be offered. Save the date, and start boxing up all the junque you want to trade for somebody else's junque.
--George A Cumming Jr. — O Scale Trainmaster
Listed below are this month's questions about American railroad slang. Some terms refer to people and others to equipment, facilities or actions. The answers to these questions will appear in the July issue.
Member Lee Buckner took photos during the March 30, 2002 excursion trip from San Francisco to San Jose and return. The trip was a fundraiser for the Golden Gate Railroad Museum, which will use the proceeds to overhaul and upgrade the boiler to meet current boiler regulations. Many thanks to Lee for sharing his photos of this event with the membership. Photo supplement.
Member Seth Abrahams took photos and some video during a recent brake in run of the Quincy Railroad 2 on the Niles Canyon Railway. Many thanks to Seth for sharing his images of this steam activity with the membership. Quincy Number 2.
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