"The Shoreline Special"

The 2025 NASG Convention was held in Norwich, Connecticut from August 6th through August 9th, 2025. At least 167 people attended the event. The Convention was brought to you by the Connecticut S Gaugers, in conjunction with the Bristol S Gaugers and the NASG Convention Committee.

Most photos can be click to see a larger version of them.

Venue

The event was held at the Holiday Inn Norwich, in Norwich, CT.

Convention Car

This year's Convention Car is the Eastern States refrigerator car with plug doors. Eastern States Farmers Exchange was founded in 1918 to serve the farmers of the northeastern United States. It provided them with shipments of seed and fertilizer, as well as transported harvests, such as potatoes. The Exchange eventually merged with the Grange League Federation to form Agway in 1964. Agway effectively disappeared in 1999 when it closed all of its facilities.

The cars are 40-foot cars with the "ERDX" reporting marks. They were built and owned by Merchants Dispatch Transportation (MDT), a subsidiary of the New York Central railroad, and leased to Eastern States Farmers Exchange. The cars were in a group with road numbers from 10000 to 10099, inclusive. They were used by meat and produce packing companies from the late 1940s into the 1970s and could be found all over the U.S.

No S-scale car has ever been factory-produced with this road name (note that Highball Graphics made decals available in S in the past for a modeler to custom-decorate a donor car). The car was manufactured for us by American Models with two road numbers 10019 and 10060. As per usual, it is available with either hi-rail wheels and couplers, or "scale" wheels and couplers. The car has a dark-green body color and white lettering and logo.

As of August 15, the cars are still available. We are in the process of organizing and shipping pre-ordered cars. When that's completed, we will offer the remaining cars for sale in the "Store" section of this web site. Stay tuned.

Viewpoint

Jay Mellon has, for years, done a review of what he saw and experienced at the Conventions. This year's review is a bit shorter than usual. The following are Jay's own words.

"Jamie Bothwell did a good job of selection of venues for the Thursday rail tour (Essex museum). It was a blast riding the train behind a Constellation class live steam engine. And, besides taking in the trolley museum sights, we were treated to several views of osprey nests as we rode through a marshy section of the ride (I should have brought my binoculars). The vendor room had large quantities of Gilbert American Flyer equipment available. In addition, there was lots S scale America/S-Helper Service/American Models product there at manufacturer/individual tables. I learned that a production run of Fox Valley flextrack and turnouts has been completed. Matt Gaudynski needs to determine the effects of tariffs on shipping costs before he can set final prices. He was taking orders for track/turnout products. I was very impressed with the new business of Alan Loizeaux (Empire Trackworks). He has tapped into a significant market demand from numerous scales, in addition to S. There was a robust discussion of ideas to promote S model railroading during the General Meeting on Saturday. Following the banquet meal, we were treated to the live auction by Jamie Bothwell. The New Orleans contingent provided a significant supply of auction items from a deceased member of Crescent City S Gaugers (Perry Torregano). All proceeds from those items were donated to the NASG. It was a successful convention; I enjoyed my time there."

The Vendor Hall

These are three photos that make up a panoramic view of the vendor hall.

American Flyer S & HO

Bill Cucchi

Benn Central Shops

Ben Trousdale offers 3D-printed freight cars, and replacement bolsters for Lionel cylindrical hoppers.

Bonnie's Baubles

Ray Cyr

CB Train Junction

Michael Byle - brick-n-mortar retailer carrying Lionel, American Models, S-Helper Service, S Scale America/Des Plaines, and offering repair services

Classic Shows LLC

Lud Spinelli - he and his family put on four train shows per year, featuring American Flyer

Cohn's Customs

Joshua Cohn

Depot G Hobbies

Jim Marski - brick-n-mortar retailer, including S-scale D&RGW TOFC set with trailers

Art Ferguson

(individual)

David Gove

(individual)

Great Decals!

Bill Mosteller - large offering of various decals in S

Terry Harrison

(individual)

Eric Hopkins

(individual)

Hoquat Hobbies (former)

Jeff Wilson, owner of the former Hoquat Hobbies, showing off his NASG cap.

Dennis Hultay

(individual)

Empire Rail

Tom Murphy

Empire Trackworks

Alan Loizeaux showcased some of his custom turnouts, crossings, wyes, derails, and more. Alan also had the new preliminary S and Sn3 flextrack available for inspection at the Convention. See his full line-up on his web site.

Jeff Madden

Jeff still had quite a few items for sale.

Micro Engineering

Micro Engineering is now the official manufacturer of S-scale standard-gauge flextrack. They have already released the code 70 and code 83 versions earlier this year. The code 100 flextrack is scheduled for this Fall. Separately, Dan Mastrobuono and Bill Lane, together with Brian Jackson are involved in the upcoming ready-to-run S-scale standard-gauge code 100 #6 and #8 turnouts. Bill 3D-printed the CAD design that Brian produced, so that they had something "concrete" to show at this Convention.

Port Lines Hobby Supplies

Brick-n-mortar retailer and manufacturer. Doug was this year's vendor hall organizer. Doug has announced his retirement and the closure of his store, so he was continuing to sell off his inventory.

Pre-Size Model Specialties

Steve Wolcott - freight car loads, freight car parts, freight car kits, passenger car parts, truck kits, bridge abutments, bridge piers, bridge shoes, culverts, tunnel portals, walls

Tom Robichaud

(individual)

Royal Train Equipment

John Royal - gondola & hopper loads (junk, ballast, coal), diecast metal signs, crossbucks, figures, street signs, detailing parts

Scale America

Matt Gaudinsky, representing his own Scale America/Fox Valley Models, and also Des Plaines Hobbies and ScaleTrains, offered some projects in the works. First, the code 138 #5 turnouts ($34 each) and flextrack ($65 for a 6-pack) have been re-run and are awaiting shipment to the U.S. He expects them to arrive sometime in September 2025. Bulk containers are expected to arrive sometime before the year's end. A new round of well cars are expected to be released in kit form in 2026 and ready-to-run in 2027. Several other projects are possibilities. The SD45 kit is well underway, but an appropriate drive system has to still be found or manufactured. For ScaleTrains, pre-production models for the previously-announced reefers are shown. Also shown are early examples of General Steel Casting Corp 53' regular and bulkhead flat cars, and the PS-2 covered two-bay hoppers. These latter cars are presumably scheduled for 2026.

Trains & More LLC

Todd & Bev Metcalf - online retailer of American Flyer, Lionel

Mystic Seaport

Wednesday, August 6

This was a non-rail bus tour that covers the Mystic Seaport Museum. The tour included a one-hour guided tour of Mystic Seaport plus additional time to explore on your own, followed by lunch and a visit to downtown Mystic. The Charles W. Morgan, the last remaining wooden whaleship, was able to be viewed, just in time for our trip.

Ice Breaker

Wednesday, August 6

A great place to meet all of the attendees in a more casual, relaxed environment.

Essex Steam Train & The Shore Line Trolley Museum

Thursday, August 7

This was a bus tour to Valley Railroad Company in Essex, CT. See this web site for a complete listing of the equipment on their premises.

After lunch, we boarded the bus again on to The Shoreline Trolley Museum in East Haven, CT.

Passenger Cars

0-6-0T Engine #2

This tank engine was built in 1941 by H.K. Porter, Inc. It is not operational.

2-8-2 Engine #3025 - The Excursion Train

This was our excursion engine. It was built in 1989 by China-based Tangshan Locomotive and Rolling Stock Works. It is one of the newest steam locomotives built in the world. Tangshan started building steam locomotives in 1880 and was the last steam locomotive builder in the world when it closed in 1999.

2-8-0 Engine #97

This locomotive was built in 1923 by American Locomotive Company (Alco). It is currently awaiting major mechanical repairs and federal inspection.

Engines #902 - #905

These are 80-ton switchers built by GE in the 1940s.

Maintenance Truck

Freight Cars

Caboose

For more information about this caboose, see the Friends of the Valley Railroad web site.

The Excursion Ride

The Shoreline Trolley Museum

The Ladies' Report

Helen Robichaud, Vice President of the Bristol S Gauge Railroaders club, provided this report on the ladies' activities during the Convention.

We set up an NASG Ladies Meeting room (we didn't call it a Hospitality suite since there were two other companies having meetings at the same hotel as NASG). About 14 of us participated in this spontaneous meeting room. Our intention was to allow NASG ladies attending to link up and choose fun activities to do together. On Thursday evening, ten of the ladies worked on puzzles, played cards and games, like Spoons and LFC (Left, Right, Center). Friday morning, Carol Haladyna took the lead and drove four other ladies to a massive book store called "The Book Barn" in Niantic. It features several themed buildings with all sorts of books to explore. Later they enjoyed lunch together. Saturday morning, three ladies finished a puzzle started by Mary Bridge.

NASG General Membership Meeting

Saturday, August 9

Since the NASG, Inc. is a corporation, it is required to have an annual membership meeting. At this meeting the NASG Board of Trustees (BOT) reports any decisions made while they themselves had their annual private BOT meeting, pass on any other news, and open the floor up for any member discussions, questions, and issues. If a vote is taken during this meeting, it becomes part of the official NASG records.

Banquet

Saturday, August 9

The banquet kicks off the last evening's activities with a delicious first-rate meal. Members get to know each other and visit with friends during the meal.

NASG Awards

Saturday, August 9

The NASG offers awards for outstanding service in which members have participated, helping the NASG and S-scale grow, during the previous fiscal year. You can see all of the details about these awards by visiting this page.

Auction

Saturday, July 20

Members are encouraged to bring items to the NASG auction, which takes place immediately after all of the formalities of the last evening of the Convention have completed. Ten percent of the proceeds of the auctions provide additional revenue for the NASG, but it is really the entertainment value that makes it all worth while. Jamie Bothwell, our auctioneer, is hilarious!

Clinics

A History of Railroading in Eastern Connecticut
by Pieter Roos
Pieter took us on a tour of the history of railroading in eastern Connecticut.

Hand Lay Track: Tips & Tricks
by Alan Loizeaux
Alan took us through hand laying track with an emphasis on an approach for novices.

Not Another #%@*& Way to Build a Turnout
by Ben Trousdale
Ben showed how he builds turnouts.

LEDs and Their Use
by Chris Monje
Chris outlined the use of LEDs to light up models, buildings, and other things around the layout.

A One Car Circus
by Jamie Soberman
Jamie took us through his journey and experience with circus trains having taken a tour of one in a yard in the 1970s.

Empire Trackworks
by Alan Loizeaux
Alan took us on a tour of his business which is custom-built turnouts and trackwork in S and various other scales.

Different Floor Plans for American Models Heavyweight Pullman Cars
by Jamie Bothwell
Jamie took us through the steps involved in changing the existing American Models Pullman 12-1 into an 8-1-2 and a 12-2.

Simple Modifications to American Flyer
by Mike Byle
Mike took us through various methods he has done to add more realism to American Flyer equipment.

AF Steam Restoration
by Mike Byle
Mike illustrated the ways that he restores American Flyer steam engines.

Forced Perspective
by Jamie Soberman
Jamie presented a participatory clinic on forced perspective. He demonstrated the ins and outs of using different scales to achieve the best results for our layout's backgrounds.

North American Steel Box Cars to the End of Steam, with a focus on modeling in S scale
by Earl Tuson
This presentation covered the most common design families of steel box cars produced for North American railroads. Those cars' relative proportion to the overall box cars will be followed through nearly 50 years of their construction. An emphasis was placed on identifying relevant S scale models and how they can be used to represent some of the most common cars that ran on the rails.

You Might Be a Rivet Counter If...
by Jamie Bothwell
Andrew Malette
If you have ever wondered what rivet counting is, or if you fit into, or have ever fit into, that category of modelling, then this was your lucky chance to evaluate yourself and your modeling.

Model Contests & Displays

The Contest room has items which modelers have officially submitted for judging as per the NASG's Contest Rules, and models displayed just for show. Attendees were able to view the models when the doors were open to admire fellow modelers' work and get inspired. Judges confer as to who won in which category, with the awards presented during Saturday evening's event.

Contest Winners

Master Craftsman

• 1. Diorama: Steve Allen - "Geauga County Maple Sugaring"
• 2. Diorama: Steve Allen - "Haz Brothers Construction"
• 1. Diesel and Electric: (none)
• 2. Diesel and Electric: James Soberman - freelanced Doodlebug
• 1. Freight and MOW: (none)
• 2. Freight and MOW: James Soberman - B&LE box car
• 3. Freight and MOW: Steve Allen - Marble Block on Rutland flat car
• 1. Structures: (none)
• 2. Structures: Buff Buffington - "Jacq Interlocking Tower"
• 3. Structures: Steve Allen - "Halle Brothers Company"

Amateur

• 1. Diorama: Charlie Franklin - "Aaron Blake Sawmill"
• 1. Diesel and Electric: William Monaghan - GE 23-ton boxcab switcher
• 1. Freight and MOW: John S. Turek - Hot-metal car Best-of-Show
• 2. Freight and MOW: David Soberman - M.o.W. kitchen car
• 1. Structures: Christine Poppe - "Luverne Savings and Loan"
• 2. Structures: Art Weller - "Union Fuel"

A.F. Imagineering

• 1. Joshua Cohn - welded rail car

Youth

• 1. Fergus Monaghan - Chevy Hi-rail truck

Photographs

• 1. Black & White: John E. Henning - Sam Powell's Layout
• 1. Color: John E. Henning - Loon Lake Navigation
• 2. Color: John E. Henning - Hoppers at the Black Diamond Tipple

Model Contest Photos

Display Model Photos

Layouts

Video

Pieter Roos recorded a brief video taken at the Convention. You can see it on YouTube. It features the "Lockbourne, Ohio" layout (more near the end of the video), some of the Contest room entries, Ronnie Tonneberger's layout, the Connecticut S Gaugers club layout, and the Vendor Hall.

Connecticut S Gaugers Club Layout

Bristol S-Gaugers Club

They had the display of Bill Boucher's famous circus train.

Portable Layout

Robbie Tonneberger brought his portable layout.

Lockbourne, Ohio

The portable, prototype-based modular layout by Willy Monaghan. Be sure to check out his web site for all of the details. The photos below show the layout from right to left.