Honey, I Shrunk the Trains! A Journey To The Belmont Shore Model Railroad Club By Gabriel Duthoy
As you power up your shrinking machine it begins to spark and rattle. A quick glance at the settings reads a shrink ratio of 1 to 160. You take aim at a local locomotive resting in the port of Los Angeles, hit the switch and blast the locomotive with all your machine’s might! It works as you exclaim with joy, “Honey! I Shrunk the trains!” Okay the story above might not be true, but it might fool you for a minute when visiting our local club at The Belmont Shore Model Railroad. Visitors of the club are quickly transported into a detailed rich world ranging from rustic farmlands, mighty mountain ranges, hustling local ports and industries, and bustling art deco downtown streets, all without the use of a super powered sci-fi shrinking machine.
The ‘shrunken’ locomotives are a fun sized 1 to 160 ratio known as N-Scale which can easily fit into the palm of your hand. But don’t let their size fool you, these mighty trains are capable of pulling over 50 train cars as they traverse our 25 by 90 foot layout, 20 scale mile round trip!
Upon visiting, you can find the Belmont Shore Model Railroad Club in our humble pre-World War II ex-army barracks facility. Before heading upstairs to see our predominant layout, members and visitors can view some original N-Trak segments which allow modelers to construct a small segment of track with scenery and connect their segment with other modeler’s segments based on a few simple specifications. Visitors can also check out our railroad museum which highlights some of the extensive and celebrated railroad history of Southern California.
The public is invited to watch steam and modern diesel locomotives come to life on Saturday afternoons and Tuesday nights. The club is open to new members who enjoy model railroading without the need of the large space, time, and funds that come with creating a layout. Belmont Shore’s members are ready and eager to help new members enjoy this dynamic and varied hobby. Whether you are an experienced modeler, an avid train fan, or just simply curious, all are welcome to join us here at the Belmont Shore Model Railroad. So put aside your grueling work on creating the impossible shrinking machine and visit us here at the Belmont Shore Model Railroad!
The Belmont Shore Model Railroad Club is currently raising funds to paint the old Army Barrack and maintain an important piece of history.
Please visit our GoFund me at https://gofund.me/1f093053 to support! We would be most grateful, thank you!
Club Info
Website: https://belmontshorerr.com/
Address: 3601 S Gaffey St Building 824, San Pedro, CA 90731
Number: (310) 831-6262
Visiting Hours: Saturdays 12pm - 4pm & Tuesdays 7pm - 9pm
