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The latest and the greatest from Mr. Muffin's Trains

June 30, 2008 - Atlas O ships latest run of 40' Reefers

We received a case from Bob Thatcher at AMHobbies of the 4 different milk cars offered by Atlas O and then received a special run 40' Reefer from GB TV in Wisconsin decorated for Red Crown Prepared Meats. The folks at GB TV included a cool one page summary of the history of the packing company - very interesting.

Milk Car Reefers   Red Crown Reefer

Father's Day 2008 - We had the whole Muffin crowd together in the greater Chicago area for Father's Day. The group included the eldest daughter, Cheesecake and her husband, MrCrepe; the three sons - Crumbcake; MiniMuffin and Croissant; and the Grand Muffins - BlueBerry Muffin; Snack Cake; and Baby Crepe. A good time was had by all. MrMuffin lobbied for trains for Father's Day but the Mrs said it was to be a train-free holiday. We might have snuck some in - thanks Bob!

 

May 27, 2008 - and while we are taking pictures - here's a couple of shots of MTH's Premier Hudson NYC Lines Passenger Set....

   

 

 

May 27, 2008 - Mr Muffin completes his conquest of the "exercise" room....

The Mr has been having great difficulty working on the layout because there are train boxes everywhere. The Mrs insisted that the Mr could have the whole basement once refinished as long as she could have her own "exercise" room with no stinkin' trains. Seeing the Mr's great difficulty with all of the boxes she offered, on a limited basis, for the Mr to display a few pieces in the "exercise" room and he has been busy doing it. Here's a sample of how it looks - for more pictures, check out the "exercise" room photos in the "Our Collection" section of the website.

       

April 15, 2008 - The Muffin's visit Justrains in Delaware

While at York, the Mrs had us run down to Newark Delaware and visited Kirk, Mike and the whole crew at Justrains today. A way big shop, they had about half their stuff for York already packed. The Mrs helped me pick out a pile of Weaver RPO and Baggage Cars in Pennsylvania for us to outfit an express train to run behind some of our PRR electrics.

I snapped some photos - one big store.

     

 

February 10, 2008 - New Layout Wiring Complete

Today, the Mrs. and I completed the wiring on the new layout. Looks wonderful and we used over 2000 feet of wire. Here's a couple of pictures.

   

January 4, 2008 - The Atlas O EMD F units arrive.

Four cases - what did we order? Well, most likely an A-B consist in B&M Minuteman scheme; a pair of A's in NYC and 4 of the DL&W Freight F's. I need to open them and add them to our inventory. We are not going to talk about the fact that Brother Ben got his 2 complete A-B-B-A's in Lackawanna LAST Friday. Hell it was even last year!

December 28, 2007 - The Muffin's wrap up construction in the new basement - we are now ready for trains again!

Last night we put the door knobs on all of the doors and baffles on all of the ceiling cans and called it done. The basement is ready for the trains to come back from storage. Time to start on the bench work. The space is "L" shaped with nice windows, approximately 25' by 20'. Both sides of the L are about 15' across. We put a bathroom down there as the Mr. is almost older than dirt and won't have to go up and down the stairs every 20 minutes. Funny, but we made it big enough for a separate counter for a coffee maker and since we may not always feel like coffee there's enough room for a small refrigerator. Swell.     

 

 

December 1, 2007 - Finally picked up the Lionel Century Club Trainmasters

And, only paid $10 plus shipping MORE than what the guy offered to sell them to me at York. What an idiot. Good thing the Mrs. doesn't keep score. Of course, it could be worse like the half dozen times already I have bought a PRR S-1, then decided it was stupid, sell it and start looking for one again in no time......

November 27, 2007 - Deichman's Depot announces special run WM box cars:

As you can see it is a pair of Western Maryland 40' AAR Box Cars. The Fire Ball logo is in two different sizes. You can reach Len and Ann at deichmansdepot@comcast.net

Back from York - Fall 2007

October 20, 2007 - What oinkers. We were on a mission to have a great time and come back without a second mortgage. Failed. We picked up a second 3rd Rail Greenbrier, plus their late-model Allegheny and a brand new Pennsylvania T-1. Mrs. Muffin got a great deal on an MTH Reading T-1 so now we need the passenger cars, and we bought another Weaver NKP Hudson on closeout. The one that got away was a pair of mint Lionel Century Club II Trainmasters in the FM Demonstrator paint. Dang it.

Atlas O finally announces the Alco C-628's in LV Cornell Red - hot dog. We ordered a pair. In Monon too.

Atlas O C-628 in LV Cornell Red

Spring York - 2007

April 21, 2007 - We brought back a Lionel NKP Berkshire and a Weaver NKP Hudson and several MTH passenger cars, including the new RPOs, to go with them. Also got a case or two of Atlas O War Emergency Hoppers in PRR from Justrains. Finally met Bob Thatcher from A&M Hobbies - what a swell guy. Spent most of our time there socking up on Korber parts and begging Atlas O for a C-628 in LV Cornell Red and F units in Erie.   

Lionel's C&O F-19 finally on the track.

February 18, 2007 - Tons of snow on the ground here so a good day to work on the railroad. The Lionel F-19 was unboxed and took over for the Allegheny pulling the C&O George Washington this afternoon. What a gorgeous engine - and with that Vanderbilt tender. Here she is passing a string of milk cars at the ice house.

  

 

Weaver Nickel Plate Road Hudson acquired and put to work.

The Mrs bought this for me at York in April 2006. Here she is pulling some NKP varnish and a string of 36' reefers.

 

Atlas O announces two more special run reefers today!

News flash 5/3/2004 - just when we were getting a handle on new products about to ship, Atlas O sends out another flyer announcing 2 more reefers available only to dealers that participate in their track buys. They are 8125 Fairmont and 8126 Bourk-Donaldson-Taylor. Atlas says that they plan to ship them by July!

Atlas O New Reefers 05032004

Us Muffins back from York!

The Mrs and Mr are back from York, Spring 2004 and had a great time. Atlas showed several new projects, and we ordered several new cars. We found an RS-1 in SusieQ with the matching caboose; picked up a used Mikado in NKP at a good price; and she bought me one of the new MTH Alleghenies in C&O livery for my Easter present - looks like I will have to do more than a card!

Atlas O announces 70 Ton Covered Hoppers in Erie and NKP:

We're going to have to order all of these. The Southern Pacific cars look good too!

Erie

NKP

MTH Empire State Passenger set finally make it to the Muffins:

We just recently received our MTH Premier Passenger Set for the Empire State Hudson - now that's an eyeful of NYC. The Empire State made its inaugural run on December 7, 1941 and was soon lost in the news of the day.  

Atlas announces boat loads of new reefers - both 36' and 40' plus several special runs.

Odds are that they will all show up at the same time and I'll be back in the poor house or the dog house - of maybe have to spend time in both! Please see a summary of these announced reefers here:

Grand Muffin Celeste learns TMCC lesson #1 - Blowing the Whistle:

The Muffins Grand Daughter - little Celeste - learns how to use the TMCC Cab 1 Remote - well at least to blow the whistle. With her sights on replacing Rich Melvin in future OGR TMCC videos, Celeste too a turn at blowing the whistles on several of the Muffin's steamers. With her Dad, Lance, playing a supporting role - she is sure to be a big success.

Celeste, her Dad and the TMCC Cab 1 hard at work

Speaking of "Home for the Holidays" - Crumbcake, Croissant join the MiniMuffin and make it home for the holidays.

Crumbcake pointing out the S-1 - his favorite steamer

The MiniMuffin and his favorites - the Erie Triplexes

Croissant "muffin handles" VA Triplex

Weaver ships the long awaited Vo1000 - a first generation diesel from Baldwin - in Lehigh Valley colors

Weaver's Vo1000 in LV - Photo from Bob Thatcher

Weaver's LV Vo1000 Interior

The Lionel H-7 in Chesapeake and Ohio makes it "home for the holidays"

We picked up our H-7 right before Christmas and got it out of the box and took it for a run on Christmas day. The 2-10-4 Texan took the day off and the H-7 picked up its load of 20 Atlas O C&O hoppers for the day. We have added more shots of the H-7 in "Our Collection" section - but here's one to get you started:

Lionel's H-7 in Chesapeake and Ohio livery

Robert Thatcher announces new Atlas O Reefer

Today, Robert Thatcher of AM Hobbies announced another Atlas O special run reefer - a 40' variety in Lehigh Valley livery. This will be one of my favorites!

Atlas O 40' Woodside Reefer in Lehigh Valley

Brother Yo visits - October 26th:

Brother Yo, or Yojimbo from the OGR Magazine's O gauge Forum, visited the Muffin household and shared dinner and running trains.  He was instrumental in diagnosing a track problem, and suggested that the Muffin's start scenicing by working on the upper level back drops first.

The gentleman from Minnesota was a gracious guest and a pleasure to have visit - we hope that he returns often.

York - Fall 2003:

Mr and Mrs Muffin attended the TCA Eastern Division meet in York, PA October 15th through the 18th. Mr Muffin's birthday was the 15th and it was a very nice way to celebrate. The highlight of the meet was the opening of the new Orange Hall and they had consolidated all of the dealers into one very large building. Mrs Muffin and I had been lifting weights for several weeks in order to be sure we could muscle our way in when the opening bell sounded.

At the show, we were very impressed with the new offerings from Atlas: their new GP-35 in Reading; the Erie Built's and the Double Door Box Cars were on display. Lionel announced the C&O H-7 and what an engine it is.

We picked up a few Atlas cars we were looking for and an MTH Premier J1e Hudson with the PT tender.

We visited B&E Hobbies in downtown York for the first time - a very nice shop. We found there a Downtown Deco 2 stall engine house kit.

We played hang man in the car all of the way out, I got killed, and Mrs Muffin read us The Five People You Meet In Heaven on the way home - that was a great book to share.

 

New Website Features & Updates

11/23/2007 - We added the "Train to Heaven" section to our website.

12/30/2003 - We have added pictures of the new Lionel H-7 in C&O and all of the new Atlas O reefers to our website.

10/29/2003 - Mr. "Bugs" visited the Muffin website today and offered his congratulations on this first cut at an O gauge website. In addition to attempting to photoshop Mrs Muffin's picture into something that would create world war three, he has suggested that the Muffin's add sound and video - so we will be working on that once I figure out what a "wave file" is.

10/25/2003 - Mr. Muffin's Trains website is first published to the web

Recent Media Coverage of Mr. Muffin's Trains

Featured on the OGR O Gauge Forum:

MrMuffin is the official unofficial reporter for the OGR Grandstand meeting at York. His Fall 2007 report was posted on Friday night, 10/19/2007 after the 2:00pm session and the link is included here:

October 19th, 2007 York OGR Grandstand Meeting Report

 

The York Pledge - Fall 2007 Edition..... 10/14/2007 by MrMuffin'sTrains

While I continue to be heavily conflicted on the subject of seeking permission or forgiveness, I think that making an effort, prior to our departures for York and coming face-2-face with the many temptations that await us, to craft a sacred pledge, each of our own choosing, could be our only salvation.

So, following last fall and spring's hardly successful attempt at this; and in the spirit of Brother Yo's O Gauge Confessional, while borrowing heavily from the cherished tradition of New Year's Resolutions, I , MrMuffin, am re-instituting, via this OGR Forum, an official place for each and every one of us to post, for all to see, our individual York Pledges for this the Fall 2007 pilgrimage.

And not that those of you that are not attending York should be smug about the great temptations we attendees will certainly face, please be reminded that you too should be thinking about your own York Pledge, as I for one have bought many a train that was not in the plan because I was not at York and therefore had saved a bundle and should treat myself for my frugalness....

Therefore, to kick us off, I, MrMuffin pledge to:
 
  • Not buy a single steamer even though I think I really need a new one. Okay, well maybe only one if I see a third-rail piece I have been coveting; or maybe the MTH Reading T-1 if it's on blow out; okay - or maybe just a PRR Texan, or Mountain if I can't find a Texan; or, I know, only get one steamer, maybe, like another 3rd Rail Greenbrier but only if it's at a good price, or maybe.....
     
  • Not buy any of the EM-1's that will be for sale cheap because they were repainted in Erie colors following Brother Ben's declaration that that was the next big thing. They then discovered that nobody in his right mind wants an EM-1 painted in Erie....
     
  • Not get mad at Atlas O for a) failing to anounce any additional 36' reefers; b) failing to announce any new engines at York; and c) refusing to give really good hints about the next F’s to be run..... But those 53'6" reefers are so so nice - why why why did I buy only 3 of them?
     
  • Not say anything in my posts about Steve Ross' girlfriend and the studded whatever she was wearing that got me in so much trouble with Mrs Muffin last spring....
     
  • Not pay $900 or more for all of the Lionel steamers that I passed on when they were being blown out for $600 or so 2 years ago
     
  • Not start collecting any new roadnames – particularly not Milwaukee even though the Mrs likes the schemes and I might be able to get away with it
     
  • Not trick MrsMuffin into carrying all of the boxes to the car with my little hesitation move and cough - at least not if it's raining
     
  • Not make MrsMuffin drive all of the way back to Indianapolis with not one but two boxes of china on her lap and some sticky thing with a stupid sign on it like "sunshine makes the flowers dance" stuck next to her head because the car was too full of a “few extra things” for me last time
     
  • Nor once again tell MrsMuffin that the only reason we are going to the grandstand at 2 is because Neil Young will be there, and that the seats have finally been padded, and Ed has the program down to 20 minutes tops..... Last spring she kept muttering - "Oh, please kill me now" while I was trying to take good notes....
     
  • Politely thank Mike for any new tooling in Premier Steamers even if it’s some stupid road down south as Mr Lash is now hintiing. All this west of the Mississippi has been bad enough - but now we are doing trains that ran in the south? Who could possibly care.... Mike - what color is the sky in your world?..... Tony can't tell us which road it is because, like me, he doesn't remember any of the roads that ran in the south.....
     
  • Not try to match PRRBill in ordering the same number of to-be-announced P5a's, or whatever they are called, even though they look real cool and I would love to MU them.... Mike - are you out of new electrics yet? We need re-issues of the FF-2's.... TRy finding a Premier GG-1 on eBay that isn't Conrail or Re-rail or whatever.....
     
  • Not make Mrs Muffin hunt and hunt and hunt for K-Line C&O passenger cars that she knows I had once and sold before I knew that I really wanted them..... Maybe I will get her to hunt for the Readings instead.....
     
  • Not beg Kirk, like I did last time, to bring me all 8 or whatever Atlas O WE hoppers in PRR then have to explain to MrsMuffin that the PRR was a farm team for the mighty Erie when she was going through our inventory sheets while paying the bill saying "heh - why are we buying these when we just sold all of the PRR steamers we had to buy Greenbriers?"

    Only by taking such a bold step can we benefit from each others support as we face this most difficult time of year. That's right - it's time to stand up and pledge!

    So come on now - how about the rest of you birds?

     
    		•

    New Thread on "The Importance of limits....." 01/27/2007 by MrMuffin'sTrains

    I mean I grew up understanding the importance of limits.... Like sticking to a single drink type when going out - such as forgoing a Harvey wallbanger after a glass of merlot.... asking out my girl friend's best friend..... asking one of my sons to hold my ice cream cone for a minute while I tied my shoes.... stuff like that....

    That's why since we sold off an entire estates worth of HO and reinvested it all into say one or two steamers in O, I have stuck pretty religiously to eastern roads.... Of course, I was pretty good at even limiting that for awhile as in no stinkin' PRR... until PRRBill and others came along with some cool pictures, and MTH, those - well you know, "Fella's" came out with that FF-2.... Then that led to some PRR madisons and that S-1, then Bob Thatcher's custom run 36' ers, then the "why don't we have any GG-1's?" from the Mrs followed by GG-1's for Christmas....

    I digress....

    Anyway - limitations - I have dutifully stuck with Eastern Roads.... I can easily ignore the siren call of the Santa Fe - they were always considered "guests" in Chicago..... and held up pretty good through the onslaught of the various electrics labeled Milwaukee Road in those fabulous paint schemes sent by the "Fellas" above and the kind people from Weaver.... Plus those Indian trains from the guys with the orange boxes.....

    But now - I have noticed my flipping through the MTH catalog and pausing oh, so slowly, as I pass the pages with the Milwaukee electrics.... and in the new Lionel catalog - the newly announced Milwaukee madisons.... My C&O GW's are real real nice so these Milwaukees would be.....

    I wonder if the Rock Island ever ran any of these fancy pants engines east?....

    and and and.... that Texas Special.... I think even Brother Yo used to talk about the Texas Special.... it's special alright.....

    The Mrs Dad's family came from Milwaukee.... so that might be a reason to have a piece or two - just to show - never run it - maybe leave it upstairs on the shelves in the family room - you know - kind of like a family history thing....

    And we have been to Texas and one has to have souvenirs right? Remembrances of life’s little adventures?... When was it we were in Texas - was it Austin or Houston? One of those "txn" places - they all look the same....

    Maybe I just need to snap myself out of this and order one of those new WM Challengers with the expectation that the tax refund I am still fantasing we will get, we will actually get this year.... and then keep my head down and start looking for WM hoppers to go with it.....

    Reminds me sort of when I took my sons back to DisneyWorld as teenagers and asked them if it was how they remembered it - and they said no.... It's a lot smaller but where did all of these girls come from?
     

    Featured on the OGR O Gauge Forum:

    A response to the thread: When trains crash, do you laugh or cry?

    "Recently, we were having a big time running session and one of the couplers gave out on a string of Weaver hoppers.... I didn't see it...

    The caboose and about a half dozen hoppers got rear ended by the EM-1 spreading hopper cars everyhwere....

    Coming into the scene from the opposite direction was another big steamer - Lionel's 2-10-4 in C&O... plowing into the hoppers derailed it and flipped it on its side, pulling several of the Atlas O hoppers with it....

    To make matters worse, the Texan's caboose was then rear ended by a Triplex coming through the curve - spreading more hoppers....

    While I started to cry, Mrs Muffin hit the crash sound button on her DCS remote - and that made me laugh - but now I get all teary-eyed every time somebody plays that sound sequence...

    My sons were thrilled - they were managing trains on some of the other loops so they weren't involved and grateful for it.... Their first reaction was to head for the stairs...

    Reminds me of the time when they were little and I was showing them how you can make a rocket out of a large soda bottle and the hose - only to send it flying through the storm door....

    They ran then too...." - MrMuffinsTrains 10/21/2003

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