By JUDY BERGERON
Newsfeatures writer

Advocate staff photos by Mandy Lunn Dr. Cheryl Warren, left, and Bob Schilling, both members of the N-Scale Club, work on track in a corner section of a typical modular layout.

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This time, members are heading to the Great American Train Show Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 20 and 21, at the Centroplex. They’ll be bringing two model railroad layouts and joining other clubs participating in this traveling show, which will include seven operating railroads, 225 tables of vendors and exhibits, free workshops and some 10,000-plus trains.

"We’ll be taking an N-scale layout and an O-scale layout," said N-scale club member Bob Schilling. "Scale refers to the proportion of the model to real life."

Schilling explained, as an example, that in N-scale layouts the ratio is 1:160, compared to the larger O-scale where the difference is 1:48. Altogether, there are seven scales in which to model.

The layouts are built in units or modules, which adhere to a national standard and must be 24 to 36 inches deep and 2, 4, 6 or 8 feet long. Most have a skyboard, or background, and are bolted together and connected at their tracks.

"You can take one of these modules out, and can run it anywhere in America," Schilling said.

The club’s N-scale display at the show will encompass four corners and six straight modules, he added. What’s constructed on each module is up to its builder, and runs from ultra-modern cities to mini-towns from yesteryear.

"I like the step back," Schilling said, as he surveyed his nostalgic town with its bustling railroad yard, quaint houses and old-fashioned storefronts.

Schilling’s love of trains goes back to the age of 12, the year an American Flyer train awaited him under the tree Christmas morning.

"I got a 4-foot by 8-foot board and set it up in the basement, and went from there," he said with a grin. "Before long, I had taken over the family ping pong table."

Several years ago when his boss suggested he take up a stress-relieving hobby, Schilling replied, "I’ve got one, trains!" But then he took it a step further, venturing into the N-scale Club’s Wednesday night "running of the trains."

"When I walked in here, I knew this is where I wanted to be," he said, standing amid the large, modular layouts built 40 inches off the floor of the clubhouse at 125 S. Donmoor.

Many apparently share Schilling’s view, as the club attracts men, women and children, retirees and Ph.D.s, some as members, some just as frequent visitors who stop in on Wednesdays to build modules, run trains or just to watch.

"It’s very family-oriented," he said. "We have a lot of Boy Scouts and such coming through."

Schilling added that sometimes a module is taken on as a family project, with wives tending to enjoy the decorating end of the construction.

And decorating can be detailing such as dry-brush painting a church or positioning players in a baseball field, to finding just the right furniture to place atop a rooftop sunbathing spot.

Schilling noted that many of the tiny signs that hang on buildings or are glued to trucks, tankers, and the like are made by copying a larger version of a label on a color laser printer and shrinking it down to size.

And then there’s the dirt, as in the road bed between each of those little tracks. That’s usually ground cork covered with a glue-and-water mixture to secure it to the board.

"A lot of these things are scratch-built," Schilling said, with modelers using their imaginations to construct town features such as a drive-in from the ’40s or a mountainous background fashioned of wall insulation.

This weekend’s Great American Train Show likewise is family-friendly, gearing some of its activities toward children. Not only are children under 12 admitted free, but there will be a "Big Fun Railroad" set up just for them. Here, the younger set will be able to run seven trains in a giant display. Play areas with wooden train sets are also popular attractions.

Contrasting with the giant display, youngsters will also be able to see trains so tiny they will fit in their hands.

The show will run from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. each day. Admission is $6 adults, with children under 12 admitted free. For $1 off admission, bring a printout of the Baton Rouge show’s page from the Great American Train Show website, www.gats.com

The local model railroad clubs run their trains each Wednesday from 7 to 9 p.m. at their headquarters, 125 S. Donmoor. For more information, contact Bob Coon, 767-2620 or Bob Schilling, 272-4433.

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