Once again it’s the annual gathering from around the globe of the AML Nation. This year is even more exciting as this annual event for the first time in history stretches over two full days.

If this is your first time you’re in for a treat and if you’ve come before there’s no reason for you to be any more disappointed than last year. The pregame show is just as much of a tradition as the picnic itself and the share is no different as we prepare to descend on the sleepy town of Rochelle Illinois.

So grab yourself a big bowl of shredded leftover parking lot hotdogs and a tall glass of trackside bottled water and enjoy.

It’s been almost a year now since the disastrous news of the Affa plant closing in China swept across the model railroad world like wildfire. The future looked bleak for the hobby industry and much hand wringing was the note of the day.

We decided to check in again with the president of Arrowhead Models who’d just begun his company and was one of the manufacturers relying on Affa to produce their products when trouble across the Pacific struck. It’s an interesting look behind the scenes that we’re sure you’ll enjoy.

People are fascinating and as far as I’m concerned those of us involved in the hobby of model railroading are as interesting as any.This week two completely different stories tied together by nothing more than a love of this great hobby.

If you’re a regular listener to the podcast you’ll recognize both names as regular contributors to the podcast, the host of Tomstock 2020 and a modeler that regularly posts to the Facebook page.

So it back with a big bowl of shredded thesis papers, a tall glass of used stable water and enjoy!!

Have you ever wondered what it’s like to be a professional model railroad builder? It’s a return visit to one of the premier layout builders in the industry, Lance has been building layouts as his sole source of income for over twenty years, catering primarily to those who demand the highest levels of craftsmanship and realism for their railroads.

In addition to building layouts that operate with bullet proof reliability, Lance creates works of art and that’s what we stopped by to chat about. Our guest has recently published a new book called the art of Model Railroading.

It’s a great episode that we know you’ll enjoy.

Still trying to figure how fast your hotcakes will sell, not sure how far east you can go before you start heading west. You’re waiting for the day that mattresses aren’t on sale, you’ve planned a surprise birthday party for your favorite psychic but he already knew about it.

We can’t help with any of these questions but you’ll get a chance to match skills with our next contestant on the Kelly Questions. So grab yourself a big bowl of shredded pillows, a steaming hot mug of gooey pancake mix and enjoy !!

What do you get when we mix N-scale, garden railroading, two and half inch scale, 1:1 scale, a guy that’s qualified to operate full size locomotives, an Amtrak conductor, a custom painter, DCC decoder installation wizard and a helix building machine?? A guy named Adam with a personality as big the great plains of Kansas and refreshing as a clean pair of underwear. 

This is one interesting dude and I’m glad to call him friend, so grab yourself a tall cool glass of acrylic primer, a big bowl of shredded overalls and enjoy !!!

The “Big Boy” steam locomotive was a big deal, with barely more two dozen built beginning in1941 and then after what seemed like an almost super human job to restore an engine barely good enough to be used for a static display but the Union Pacific railroad along with Ed Dickens and his capable crew achieved the impossible and our very own Adam Pinales was there to witness it all in person.

There’s room for one more in Adam’s Ford Expedition so come along with us as we recreate this exciting railroad event for those unable to attend.

If you’ve been in the hobby for any amount of time, more than likely you’ll recognize the name of our next victim… Errr, I mean guest. His photography is second to none and his numerous magazine and catalog covers are spectacular. 

Ken has ventured into the world social media with a successful YouTube show entitled “What’s Neat This Week.” Along with his newest sidekick Michelle Kempema, he’s taking the hobby on a magical carpet ride.

Grab your favorite Doobie Brothers t-shirt, a warm Mexican Coke and enjoy!!

Some shows are good, some shows are great and some shows are historic. Firefighters are always there when you need them and this time was no different. We here at the AML Nation knew we had something special on our hands but it took a retired fire captain from Miami, Florida to finally identify that at best our efforts were marginally adequate.

So join us for this historic round of Kelly Questions as we learn as much about ourselves as we do about our guest. Enjoy !!

From the deep recesses of “Professor” Tony Cook’s mind, come the musings of a life long model railroad enthusiast and more interesting information on the history of this great hobby.

Life-Like Trains introduced an HO Scale model of EMD’s BL2 in 1989, the first in their series of higher-quality Proto 2000 models.

The release made a big impact on the hobby of model railroading, as it was the first serious attempt by a manufacturer to mass-produce an accurate ready-to-run model.

Plus there’s plenty of TV trivia and we try to answer the question, where would we be without the “Cone of Silence.” Enjoy !!