Definition of Busy

I've been asked why there's been so little progress on my modeling projects in the last few months. After all, I don't have a nine-to-five any more (really a six-to-six, if you count the commute) as a time-sucking monster. Well, as it happens, I really do have a job, NZT Products, and as other entrepreneurs will tell you, self-employment is usually more than a full-time job.

Consequently, I've been working literally seven days a week trying to prepare a pile of products for a big splash at the National Train Show in Sacramento. My only regret was that the rulers weren't ready in time for the show, as I'd planned. They should be en route to my dealers by the end of this week—I hope it'll be worth the wait.



All the same, if ten new products—including my first kit (above)—weren't enough to keep me busier than the proverbial one-armed paperhanger (actually, one-legged is more apropos), I was also hard at work on a "secret project" that was unveiled in Sacramento: a Monster—and I do mean Monster—yard module for ZoCal, the Southern California Z Scale Model Railroading Group. They were in need of some design assistance for their new Z-Bend Track yard module, so I stepped up to the plate.



Some statistics on the Monster Yard (nicknamed the BFY), shown above in a photo courtesy of Jeff Merrill: it measures 3 by 19.5 feet and has 480 feet of track comprised of 787 track sections, 108 switches, and 66 custom-cut pieces. You're looking at 28 parallel tracks down the middle. During the show, it was populated by upwards of a thousand pieces of rolling stock, and reportedly it didn't even look half-full.

I designed the yard using AnyRail software, and the entire plan (the end portions are shown below) was printed full-size in color on three pieces of brushed sheet aluminum that was screwed to wooden frames joined by brass index pins. Track was attached using double-sided foam tape. Principal assembly took place over the course of about a week by Don Fedjur and the ZoCal crew. Think about that timeline: 787 pieces of track to lay in only seven days!





Of special note, all of the track is from Rokuhan, and so the yard served as a massive boost for the manufacturer's public debut in North America. Keita ("Tony") Ichikawa, owner of Rokuhan, was on hand in Sacramento during its final setup, and evidently he was thrilled by it. Stuck back in New Jersey with a bum knee, I missed the opportunity of meeting him and seeing the yard in person. But the yard will be making many road trips after this, so hopefully I should be able to catch up with it someday.

As an aside, a few of the Sacramento attendees were witness to a bit of drama concerning my introductory products. While it was indeed rather distressing for me, I was far more concerned for Stonebridge Models, who took the brunt of the blow. We're all getting ourselves back on track, now, and as a consequence, I have a "new" layout project under way: The Geordie and Daphne Railroad! Winkies all around. Anyway, the way I look at it, unless you're BP, any publicity is good publicity.