The platform is now in position on top of my pool table. Those cues on the far wall won’t see any action for the next six weeks or so. Getting the platform on the table is the hardest challenge physically. It would be a snap with two people, but I usually have to muscle it up there on my own.

The oval within an oval track layout is essentially the same one that my dad assembled every year. Dad’s platform was simply painted green with grey paint under the tracks. Mine started out that way, but I’ve since upgraded to fuzzy textured grass, charcoal colored gravel under the tracks, painted streets & parking lots, and a sandy rural road leading to the farm.

This model train set has been in my family since 1951 when my father began setting it up annually at Christmas time. I have been carrying on that tradition for my children and now for my grandchildren. These are the steps it takes to assemble every year.