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I started making scale models at an early age - airplanes, military, cars, etc. But for me, static models never really cut
it. As kids, my older brother and I always gravitated toward models that *did* things - rockets that blasted off, slot cars
that raced around and around, and trains that trundled back and forth.
Model railroading stuck with me and has become a life-long passion, from humble beginnings of a hodge-podge toy
train set brought by Santa when I was 7, to the present where I've tightened my modeling focus to a specific locale
and timeframe - the Franklin Canyon portion of Santa Fe Railway's Stockton Subdivision in Northern California, circa
1989 to 1995. Admittedly, I also have a few 1980's-era models of interesting Santa Fe, SP, UP, shortline, and
industrial equipment encountered during my "railfanning" days.
The early 1990's is known as Santa Fe's "SuperFleet era" due to the iconic silver-and-red "warbonnet" locomotive
paint scheme resurrected in 1989. I have terrific memories of chasing hotshot intermodal trains led by silver-and-red
and blue-and-yellow Santa Fe consists threading through the Franklin Canyon curves, tunnels, and bridges
surrounded by the golden grass and oak-covered hills of Northern California's sun-drenched coastal range.
I've settled on a model-making philosophy I've dubbed "3-foot modeling":
If a model viewed from 3 feet away looks like its prototype, then it's good enough for me.
Sure, there's always some way to add more exacting detailing or more refined weathering to nearly any model, to the
point where the viewer must get within inches of the model to ever see such things. But I've chosen to not go to such
lengths, in most cases. Rather, my goal is to reproduce the overall experience I had on numerous railfanning trips
in years past - trains rolling by a few hundred feet away surrounded by the local scenery. Rarely did I get so close to
real trains that I could see every tiny little detail.
Below are links to selected models I've made over the years. All are HO scale (1:87) unless noted otherwise.
I add new models as I complete them, so check back now and then!
it. As kids, my older brother and I always gravitated toward models that *did* things - rockets that blasted off, slot cars
that raced around and around, and trains that trundled back and forth.
Model railroading stuck with me and has become a life-long passion, from humble beginnings of a hodge-podge toy
train set brought by Santa when I was 7, to the present where I've tightened my modeling focus to a specific locale
and timeframe - the Franklin Canyon portion of Santa Fe Railway's Stockton Subdivision in Northern California, circa
1989 to 1995. Admittedly, I also have a few 1980's-era models of interesting Santa Fe, SP, UP, shortline, and
industrial equipment encountered during my "railfanning" days.
The early 1990's is known as Santa Fe's "SuperFleet era" due to the iconic silver-and-red "warbonnet" locomotive
paint scheme resurrected in 1989. I have terrific memories of chasing hotshot intermodal trains led by silver-and-red
and blue-and-yellow Santa Fe consists threading through the Franklin Canyon curves, tunnels, and bridges
surrounded by the golden grass and oak-covered hills of Northern California's sun-drenched coastal range.
I've settled on a model-making philosophy I've dubbed "3-foot modeling":
If a model viewed from 3 feet away looks like its prototype, then it's good enough for me.
Sure, there's always some way to add more exacting detailing or more refined weathering to nearly any model, to the
point where the viewer must get within inches of the model to ever see such things. But I've chosen to not go to such
lengths, in most cases. Rather, my goal is to reproduce the overall experience I had on numerous railfanning trips
in years past - trains rolling by a few hundred feet away surrounded by the local scenery. Rarely did I get so close to
real trains that I could see every tiny little detail.
Below are links to selected models I've made over the years. All are HO scale (1:87) unless noted otherwise.
I add new models as I complete them, so check back now and then!
Prototype-Based Scale Model Making
To my model pages:
Diesel Locomotives - Santa Fe, Southern Pacific, Union Pacific, shortlines, industrial motive power
Rolling Stock - mostly freight cars, some maintenance-of-way, a few cabooses, one passenger car
Vehicles and more - intermodal equipment, trucks, automobiles, and more
Free-mo modules, MSS signalling, Layouts - models that don't have wheels
To learn more:
Carquinez Model Railroad Society (CMRS) - the local club I've enjoyed since 2022, located in Crockett CA
US Free-mo - prototype-based modular model railroading for those of us with no room for a home layout
Northern California Free-mo (NorCalF) - the ground-breaking Free-mo group I helped co-found in 1997
Modular Signal System (MSS) - the train signaling system I co-invented for modular model railroads in 2005
Diesel Locomotives - Santa Fe, Southern Pacific, Union Pacific, shortlines, industrial motive power
Rolling Stock - mostly freight cars, some maintenance-of-way, a few cabooses, one passenger car
Vehicles and more - intermodal equipment, trucks, automobiles, and more
Free-mo modules, MSS signalling, Layouts - models that don't have wheels
To learn more:
Carquinez Model Railroad Society (CMRS) - the local club I've enjoyed since 2022, located in Crockett CA
US Free-mo - prototype-based modular model railroading for those of us with no room for a home layout
Northern California Free-mo (NorCalF) - the ground-breaking Free-mo group I helped co-found in 1997
Modular Signal System (MSS) - the train signaling system I co-invented for modular model railroads in 2005
-- About
-- Contact
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-- Links
entire website copyright Gregg Fuhriman
created with CoffeeCup Visual Site Designer
created with CoffeeCup Visual Site Designer
-- Layouts
-- Modules
-- Signalling