Waited until today to make the weekend report as there’s been quite a bit happening. Saturday was a shorter day, but there were 8 of us out, working on the windows on the west wall. The wind hits this end of the building hard, and Allan made up a panel to fit into the wide open area of the windows, behind the cab of CN 9173. This will really keep the west wind out. We managed to get the panel in place, but there is one spot that prevented it from fitting exactly as planned. Still, it’s in place, and there’s definitely a difference. It will be adjusted this week. Allan has also been working on the cab of 9173, cleaning up the back where the rest of the body was cut off. Also on Saturday we picked up a small donation from a local family. We gained 2 railway crossing lights and 2 bells, a couple of small CNR oil cans, and the new item to the collection, a C&O Ry oil can.
On Sunday, members went to Beamsville to pick up a TH&B caboose stove. This item will be moved into X-759, our |TH&B Boarding Car, and will be a much better representation than the current stove that is on temporary display. We also checked out the stove owners (under construction) O scale layout.
Thanks to our volunteers that came out Saturday, Ken, Neil, Mike, John, Allan, Jim, Nolan, John, and Ken, and the crew on Sunday (which was more than we needed, but worked out great), Ken, Mike, Allan, John, Evan, Mitch, and Ken.

The weather has finally improved enough to get some much needed work done. On March 16 CN 9173 and INCo 8 had some sanding done to clean up more of the rough rust spots. Once the oxidation was cleaned up, the bright yellow came through on INCo 8. On March 17th, Ken and Neil spent some time at the shop working on CN Flanger 56323, managing to get a first coat of the final colour on the car, and it’s looking pretty good. The new paint goes on and covers well. This paint was recommended to us from our friends at the https://albertarailwaymuseum.com/ as they have used it on many pieces of their equipment. If it can stand up to Alberta winters, than it should be just fine for our needs.

Really pleased that we were able to get the first coat of paint on the car. Still a fair amount of work to be done with the paint, but a few good weather days, and some extra help, and this car will have the main body painted fairly quickly. Once the main paint is done, the lettering/number will be applied. The cupola windows are the final pieces of the restoration, and are currently being rebuilt by Alan at his home shop.

What a great return of the Niagara Model Railway Show on Sunday March 6th, with over 400 people coming out to the show. There was a line up before the show started, and by noon, we had already surpassed our previous show. We sold out of chili and hot dogs (after lunch, thankfully), which is actually a first. Our table count increased before the show opened as vendors showed up and realized they had more stuff than they had table space. The show was well and truly sold out. We could fit about 10 more tables in, but we do like having a few layouts for display, so people can see what the possibilities are. We had a lot of returning vendors, but quite a few new ones as well, and over half of the vendors are already booked back in for the October show. There were 3 operating layouts at the show, N, HO, and Lego.

A big thanks to everyone who came out to the show, your attendance was a big boost for the Museum. Thanks to our many new and returning vendors from across Ontario. We hope you all had a great show and we look forward to seeing you in October.

These shows couldn’t be possible without our amazing Museum volunteers. A lot of time and effort goes into making these shows possible. This one was put together in about a month. In that time, we have to find vendors, and get as much information out about the show that we can, to get people through the door. Ken and Ken deal with the majority of the vendors, be it phone, email, etc. Mike was also helping with the vendors before the show. Glen, Aaron, and Jim were looking after the Museum table while John, Rick and Chuck looked after the door. Nolan spent his time looking after his Lego train display. Our kitchen crew, Melody, Jane, Susan and Deanna make sure that our vendors and guests are served good food during the day.

Overall, this was definitely the show that we were hoping for. A good turnout, happy visitors and vendors, and great boost for the Museum. A great start for our 25th Anniversary season! For more information on how to become involved with the Museum, visit our information page at http://nfrm.ca/volunteer.php. You can also keep track of our events onsite and off site on our Facebook page, or at our events page at http://nfrm.ca/events.php.

With most of the focus on the upcoming train show on March 6th, there won’t be much happening until after the show. On Saturday, Feb 26th, Neil torqued all the nuts on the head of the Vulcan and installed the new spark plugs.. Allan was out on Sunday and installed one of the side plates on the flanger carbody, and prepped the one on the other side for installation.

As has been mentioned before, there are a lot of projects being worked on, and planned for completion as soon as the weather allows. Much of this work involves painting equipment. The work includes painting and lettering on Flanger 56323, which is at the point where this work can now be performed. Our GE 25tonner will have a new paint scheme and coat of paint, a variation of the old CN green/yellow. The Whiting Trackmobile will be returned to service for display/demonstration, and the cab of CN 9173, which has been receiving a lot of attention, will also get a coat of paint. One of the biggest projects will be outside the shop as we work to complete the trackwork in our yard. One turnout will be moved, which will allow for a better line on the north track. This is a fairly big job, and we are planning to start the prep work as soon as we can in April. There are still other projects planned, but these are the biggest ones that are really being pushed before the 25th Anniversary.

The Museum is always looking for new members/volunteers to come out and help, on site or off. Members don’t neccesarily need to get dirty working on projects. We can always use help with promotions off site at different shows, and also cataloging of artifacts.

We are in the final days leading up to the return of the Niagara Model Railway Show this coming Sunday, March 6th. The show runs from 10am to 3pm at the Merritton Community Centre at 7 Park Ave in St. Catharines. We are pleased to welcome 45 vendors from across Ontario, some new, and some returning. Show guess can expect to find model trains in many scales, from N to G, along with N scale, HO, and Lego layouts. Admission is $5. Food, drinks and snacks are also available.

Masks are 100% mandatory, and must be worn at all times. Other restrictions have been removed.

www.nfrm.ca/nfmrs.php