2026 Meets and Events

About Our Meets and Events

The San Diego Division holds monthly meetings and events every second Saturday of the month and are held at various times and locations in San Diego County or Imperial County. For your information, instead of naming our meetings, "Meetings", we call them "Meets". Our "Events" are called "Events"!

• Our Meets and Events include private model railroad layout tours, quarterly Meets and other events. Our quarterly Meets (held February, May, August and November) can include Clinics, Show & Tell, Lunch, Silent Auctions, Hobo Auctions, contests, swap meets, Bingo for Trains, raffles and door prizes.
• To learn more about the San Diego Division, please feel free to attend one of our Meets or Events as a guest by contacting Rudy Spano at Membership Services on our Contact Us web page.
  • Please provide Rudy with your first and last name and your phone number to be a guest at one of our events. Or to join the San Diego Division, please call Rudy by phone or by email and he will assist you.
• You may also join the National Model Railroad Association on your own and the San Diego Division will be notified of your new membership status. The National Model Railroad Association has an introductory membership offer good for nine months, for only $19.95 and it is called the Rail Pass.
• We welcome all National Model Railroad Association members from the Pacific Southwest Region or any other region in the world, to attend any or all of our Meets and Events.

Meets and Events for 2026

Note: 

All model railroad layout tours have been booked for 2026.

October 10, 2026, Saturday - Model Railroad Layout Tour.

Model Railroad Layout Tour: Dick Trotter is providing the model railroad layout tour for Division members, showcasing his freelance HO scale with DCC & Sound Coyote Pass and Northern Railroad. The railroad features four train routes based loosely in the Southwest (USA).

He has modeled towns such as Yuma and Tucson, Arizona and Santa Fe, New Mexico. The era of the layout is in the 1980s and includes steam locomotives and 1st & 2nd generation diesel-electric locomotives. Dick's model railroad layout has been made for Operation Sessions.

• Date: Saturday, October 10, 2026
• Time: Noon–4 p.m.
• Location: San Diego County. The location will be sent to everyone through the San Diego Division's email list.
• Parking: Street parking.
• Accessible: Unfortunately, the layout is not accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend (or friends) to help take the sting out of gas prices.

About The Railroad:
Dick's museum quality HO scale DCC and Sound layout was first started in 1972 and was designed for switching operations. His model railroad layout has been upgraded and expanded since. The layout was re-built once and expanded twice throughout the years, allowing years and years of model railroad operations for model railroaders in the San Diego area. The scale miles of the railroad have increased greatly over the years due to the two expansions. One of the layout expansions was to make the aisle ways wider, making it easy for people to pass each other during operations. 

The layout has multiple industries including factories located in a downtown city location, a coal loading industry spur, a cement factory, an oil industry spur, grain storage industries, a milling company, a pickle company, an ordinance factory (No smoking near the building, please!), an ice company and more. There are so many industry spurs, that the switching combinations are probably close to infinity (not really), providing a new experience to operators every time operation sessions occur. 

The railroad also has multiple tunnels, bridges, kitbashed buildings, kitbashed rail cars, kitbashed rail car loads and kitbashed locomotives!! I wonder how many times I can write the word kitbased? The layout itself has lots of detail including cars, people, signage, fences, trees, shrubbery, roads, railroad crossings and more. The railroad also has a large fleet of locomotives and rolling stock.

At the front doorway, there are two custom built movable bridges connecting the track on the layout. When these bridges are put in the vertical position, several switches automatically cut off the track power on both sides of the bridge so trains can't accidently run off the track and onto the floor. The backdrops use a combination of painting, photos, thin 3D buildings and half buildings. 

Operation Sessions:
The railroad has been made specifically for Operation Sessions. Today, Operation Sessions have been taking place for over 20 years. Operations can take place with a minimum of two people and a maximum of eight people. The average number of people during an Operation Session is six people. Operations typically take about two hours. The most important part of this model railroad is for the entire crew to have fun.

November 14, 2026, Saturday - Fall Meet

Fall Meet: The Fall Meet is being planned right now. We will have the Fall Meet at the San Diego Model Railroad Museum in Balboa Park. There will be two clinics, a lunch and Bingo for Trains. The clinics will be added to the website shortly.

• Date: Saturday, November 14, 2026.
  
• Time: 9:00 a.m. - 3 p.m.
• Location of the Fall Meet: We will have the Fall Meet at the Pacific Beach Room at the San Diego Model Railroad Museum. The museum is located in Balboa Park in the Casa de Balboa building. The museum's address is 1649 El Prado, San Diego, California 92101-1621
• Entrance: We will enter in the rear doors of the museum. There will not be any charge to enter the museum that day.
• Parking: There is parking behind the museum which is pay parking, unfortunately. The pay parking in Balboa Park will end on January 1, 2027.
• Accessible: The museum is accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend to help take the sting out of gas prices.

About the San Diego Model Railroad Museum
Located in Balboa Park, just minutes north by car of the city of San Diego. The San Diego Model Railroad Museum is home to four model railroad clubs. The museum has its own Garden Scale model railroad exhibit called the Centennial Railway Garden.

The museum is the largest model railroad museum in North America according to the museum's Wikipedia web page. According to the City of San Diego's website and the WorldWideRails website, the San Diego Model Railroad Museum is the largest operating model railroad museum in the world.

The model railroad clubs in the museum include:

• La Mesa Model Railroad Club (HO scale)
• San Diego 3-Railers (O scale)
• San Diego Model Railroad Association (HO scale, HOn3 scale, O scale (2-rail), On3 scale, Z scale)
• San Diego Society of N Scalers (N scale)

The San Diego Model Railroad Museum is also home to the Erwin Welsch Research Library. This library is most likey the largest model train and prototypical railroad museum in all of Southern California. The Erwin Welsch Research Library collection consists of over 10,000 books, serial publications, drawings, manuscripts, maps, sound recordings, computer files/databases, and folders containing additional pieces of railroad memorabilia (including catalogs, timetables, travel brochures, pocket maps, dining car menus, and newspaper clippings). The library also has over 15,000 photographs and slides. 

• The library is a reference library and items may not be checked out. It is not a lending library.
• The librarians are very knowledgeable, when visiting the library make sure to write down your questions so the librarians can assist you.
• The library's contents are indexed online and you can research their collections using the San Diego Model Railroad Museum's website.
• The library is open to the public and can be used by anyone with or without an annual museum pass.

December 12, 2026, Saturday -

 Dinner and Holiday Party.

Layout Tour: The December Dinner and Holiday party is being planned right now. There will be a model railroad layout tour before the Dinner and Holiday Party. We will then drive to Jimmy's Restaurant in Santee for the Dinner and Holiday Party.

• Date: Saturday, December 12, 2026.
  
• Time: To be determined
• Model Railroad Layout Tour: Don Fowler's N scale prototypical point-to-point Southern Pacific’s Mojave Division (Los Angeles to Bakersfield, California). Era: 1975 – 1995. Don uses DCC & Sound for his locomotives.
• Holiday Party and Dinner location: Jimmy's of Santee restaurant. Jimmy's of Santee restaurant is located at 9635 Mission Gorge Road, Santee, California 92071.
• Parking: There is street parking at Don's and there is free parking in the strip mall where Jimmy's of  Santee is located.
• Accessible: The model railroad is not accessible. Jimmy's of Santee restaurant is accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend (or friends) to help take the sting out of gas prices.

Past 2026 Meets and Events

January 10, 2026, Saturday - Model Railroad Layout Tour.

Layout Tour: The January 2026 model railroad layout tour will be hosted by Rudy Spano. We are very pleased to have Rudy showcase his Crystal River and San Juan Railroad HO and HOn3 scale model railroad layout.

The Crystal River Railroad was a coal company and the San Juan Railroad was a marble company. Both of these railroads were located in the beautiful area of Crystal River Valley of Colorado in the era of 1900-1909.

• Date: Saturday, January 10, 2026.
  
• Time:  Noon–2 p.m.
• Location: San Diego County. The address for the model railroad layout will be emailed to San Diego Division members about two week prior to the event, then once again about two days before the event.
• Parking: There is on street parking.
• Accessible: Unfortunately, the model railroad layout is not accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend to help take the sting out of gas prices.

More About Rudy And His Layout
Rudy’s love affair with the beauty and history of the Crystal River Valley in Colorado began with his first visit in the 1970s. His efforts to recreate the standard gauge line south out of Carbondale to Redstone, the narrow gauge Highline up to Coal Basin and the standard gauge line from Redstone to the town of Marble began in 2013. 

Coal Basin was the location of a coal mine, Redstone was the site of the coking operations and Marble was the location of the Marble Quarry and Mill. This is where marble came from for the Lincoln Memorial and for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. It has been said that this marble quarry produces some of the best marble, if not the best marble in the world. The marble from this area in Colorado has been described as gigantic, remarkable, flawless and immense. While there have been times the mine was closed, it is quarry is open today under another company's name.

The layout is steam only with two point to point lines as were the original railroads. The layout is operated using CVP Easy DCC. The scenery and structures are in various stages of completion with almost all trackwork done. Rudy has built the benchwork, installed all the electrical wiring, made the scenery and buildings. There are very little actual rail car kits and buildings to match the prototype.

The Stations Include:

• Carbondale (standard gauge)
• Janeway (standard gauge)
• Redstone (standard gauge)
• Coalbasin (narrow gauge)
• Placita (narrow gauge)
• Medio (narrow gauge)
• Marble (narrow gauge)

To recreate the railroad, Rudy took many pictures of the area in the 1970s, had them developed and has made the photos into reference 3-ring binders and uses them to build structures, scenery, track, bridges, rail cars and more.

Rudy also have has several books that he uses to reference to accurately model steam locomotives, rail cars, structures and scenery.

He uses several reference books. The one book Rudy owns is titled, "The Crystal River Pictorial" by Deli McCoy and Russ Collman, January 1, 2972. The title "The Crystal River Pictorial" has quotes in the title of the front cover of the book.

The other two books Rudy owns are titled, Marble. A Town Built on Dreams, Volume 1 & 2 by Oscar McCollum Jr. Volume 1 is dated January 1, 1992. Volume 2 is dated January 1, 1993.

Rudy also owns a map that is displayed on his wall called the Colorado Railroad Map published by the Colorado Railroad Museum, 17155 West 44th Avenue, Post Office Box 10, Golden, Colorado, 80402. The copyright of the map is from 1969-2009 by the Colorado Railroad Historical Foundation, Inc. The map covers all known Colorado railroads and electric railways, both operating and abandoned.

As of today, all buildings in the Crystal River Valley from 1909 are all gone. 

Rudy is an avid model railroader and has put considerable time and effort into his layout and your participation would be greatly appreciated. Events like these are a great opportunity to learn, share ideas and enjoy the work of our fellow model railroaders.

Follow-up: We had a whopping 34 people attend Rudy's model railroad layout tour!! This was a highly attended model railroad layout tour and everyone had a good time talking with each other, talking to Rudy and enjoying Rudy's expert modeling. Rudy and his wife generously opened their home to everyone at the San Diego Division and in addition, provided drinks and snacks for everyone. It was a beautiful sunny Southern California day.

February 14, 2026, Saturday -

 Winter Meet.

Winter Meet: Our past event details will be added shortly.

• Date: Saturday, February 14, 2026.
  
• Time: 9:00 a.m. to 3 p.m.
• Location: San Diego County.
  
• Parking: There is plenty of parking at the museum.
• Accessible: Yes, the facility is accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend to help take the sting out of gas prices.

March 14, 2026, Saturday -

Model Railroad Layout Tour.

Layout Tour: Chuck Molnar will be providing a model railroad layout tour for the Pacific Southwest Region Model Train Convention The Pacific Southwest Express attendees and for all San Diego Division members not attending The Pacific Southwest Express convention.

Chuck models a HOn3 scale prototypical portion of the narrow-gauge line of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad, from Ridgway to Rico. At the time, the real railroad served the towns of Durango to Ridgway, in Colorado, USA.

If you missed seeing Chuck's model railroad layout in 2024, this would be an excellent opportunity to see his amazing model railroad.

• Date: Saturday, March 14, 2026
• Time: 10:00 a.m. to 3 p.m. (Spend all day if you want and bring a bag lunch and drinks!)
• Location: San Diego County.
  
• Parking: There is on-street parking.
  
• Accessible: The model railroad layout is not accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend to help take the sting out of gas prices.
• More about Chuck and his model railroad layout.
  • An Avid Modeler. Chuck started in the hobby when he was eight and has made about a half a dozen layouts in his lifetime. It is interesting to note that Chuck has built everything on his current model railroad layout. This includes but is not an inclusive list, from building the benchwork, electrical systems, scenery, roads, buildings, trestles, track, switches, painting, trees and weathering. All the trestles on the railroad were designed by Chuck and were hand-built. All the buildings are made from kits, are kit-bashed, scratch built or made using board-by-board kits. Chuck is continually upgrading his railroad with new structures, track work and more.
  • The Concept: The Rio Grande Southern was known as one of the most rugged and iconic narrow-gauge mountain railroads in United States. The railroad was located in Southwestern Colorado.
    • The railroad began construction in 1890 and was completed in two years on December 12, 1891. Construction of the railroad started at both ends of the railroad at the cities of Ridgway and Durango.
    • The railroad spanned approximately 162 miles and went over four mountain passes on steep grades.
    • There were numerous industry spurs and had four notable branch lines on the railroad.
    • The railroad ended operations by the end of 1951, applied for abandonment in April 1952 and the scrapping of the railroad's equipment was officially finished on March 21, 1953.
  • Main Reference Books: The main reference books that Chuck uses for his railroad are 1) The R.G.S. Story: Rio Grande Southern - Vol. I-XII., Collman, Russ, and Dell A. McCoy, Sundance Publications and 2) The Silver San Juan, The Rio Grande Southern, Mallory Hope Ferrell, Pruett Publishing Co.
  • Name Of The Railroad: The name of Chuck's railroad is the Rio Grande Southern.
  • The Scale: The railroad is a HOn3 scale narrow-gauge model railroad.
    
  • The Making Of: The initial planning of Chuck's Rio Grande Southern began in 1997. Major benchwork was also started in 1997 and progressed over several years. The layout began in Carlsbad in a family home, in a three car garage. The layout was then cut into sections and put into storage for several months in 2005.
    • Later, the layout was moved to a new location near the coast and then reassembled in a purpose-built free-standing building for his railroad and modeling. The total area of the building is 26' X 24' (feet) including the model train workshop. The size of the layout is 18' X 20', the aisles are 2' X 6' and the workshop is an area of 8' X 13'.
    • Interestingly, very little damage was done to the layout during the move because the benchwork was strengthened before the move. In 2006, major work was restarted by putting the sections back together, making the layout slightly bigger than it was in Carlsbad and then improving the electrical work. The layout, in terms of all the track work and scenery, was finished in 2021. As of 2024, the model railroad layout is about 95% complete.

  

  • The Era and Cities: The era of the layout is between 1890-1953. The part of the Rio Grande Southern he models is from Ridgway to Rico. The towns he models on his railroad include Ridgway, Placerville, Ophir and Rico. There are multiple types of structures and are based prototype pictures in the railroad history books. There are also mountain ranges, rivers, creeks, lakes, trestles, trees and other scenery on the model railroad. Name plates of locations and even elevation are located throughout the fascia of the benchwork.
  • Track Work: Please note that all the track and switches are hand-laid using Fast Track jigs and tools. For the track work, Chuck used Micro Engineering rails and spikes. The ties were purchased from the Mt. Albert Scale Lumber Company located in Canada.
    
  • Powering The Locomotives: The layout is designed for walk around control using DCC & Sound using NCE Pro Cabs. (Editor's note. All of Chuck's steam locomotives have sound and working LED lighting. Not only are the front lights working but back-up LED lights installed on the tenders are working, that is, if the prototype had a back-up light.)
    
  • Operation Sessions: The railroad has been made for Operations Sessions. The exact details of his Operations Sessions are still in the planning for Chuck's model railroad layout.
    
  • Webmaster Note 1: Ash Pit. Chuck recently added an ash pit under one section of the railroad tracks. Can you can find this new addition to his railroad? How many model railroaders that you know, have modeled an ash pit for steam locomotives? Have you ever seen a model railroad club that models an ash pit?  
    • For Chuck to add this one new scene to his model railroad layout, it took many hours to accomplish this. Not only did he have to dig into the base of his layout but then had to tear out the track and replace new track afterwards. Please remember to ask Chuck about how complicated it was to add this one small scene.
    • For those model railroaders who love the steam era of the railroad, this is something to think about adding to their own model railroad. This is a very nice prototypical detail and scene.
      
  • Webmaster Note 2: HO Scale Railroad. Chuck also models in HO scale. He recently added HO scale track under his benchwork so that he can run his HO scale trains. Remember to look under his benchwork for a second model railroad layout. 
  • Webmaster Note 3: This Is A Model Railroad Layout Tour We Hope You Won't Miss. Chuck has provided previous layout tours for the San Diego Division in June 2022 and September 2024. Since then, he has made many upgrades to his model railroad layout, including adding new structures and adding new track.
    • Chuck is very active in the model railroad hobby and is also continuing to make resin kit rail cars as well. This will be an excellent opportunity for you to see his better-than-museum quality model railroad layout.
    • This will also be an excellent time to ask Chuck any questions you have about his layout, about modeling and about the model railroad hobby. 
    • Please mark your calendars for Saturday, September 6, 2025.
• Carpooling: Help take the sting out of high gas prices and carpool with a friend.
• Follow-Up: And once again, wow!!! We had a total of 17 people attend the model railroad layout tour and everyone enjoyed spending time with Chuck and talking with other model railroaders. It was a beautiful sunny Southern California day in Del Mar.

April 11, 2026, Saturday -

Model Railroad Layout Tour.

Layout Tour: Joel Shank has two model railroad layout tours for April 2026 in the Brawley, California area. One railroad is the Rio Grande Southern Railroad narrow gauge Sn3 scale 32' X33' museum quality layout which is located in a 1,500 square foot air conditioned building. The other model railroad layout is a HO scale railroad and is located in an air conditioned intermodal container. This will be a very fun-filled and exciting model railroad hobby day. It will be worth it to plan now for this model railroad tour in advance, so you don't miss it.

• Date: Saturday, April 11, 2026.
  
• Time: 11 a.m. -3 p.m. (or later).
  
• Location: Joel Shank lives in Brawley, California which is east of San Diego. It is a two hour drive, one-way, from San Diego to Brawley. Joel's address will be provided to San Diego Division members through email, two days prior to the layout tour.
• RSVP: Please RSVP to the webmaster This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) let the restaurant know how many people to expect.
• Carpooling: If you are looking for someone to carpool with, please contact the webmaster This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and to arrange carpools. With gas prices so high, please be sure to give cash to the driver.
• Carpooling Update: As of Thursday, April 2, 2026, we have eight people carpooling in three cars, that we know about. There could be more people traveling together that have not informed the San Diego Division which is fine. If you want to try to be part of a car pool but don't know who to contact, please contact the San Diego Division Webmaster and he will try to help you connect with other model railroaders traveling to Brawley. We hope to see you there.
• Lunch: 11:00 a.m. Lunch is at Brownies Diner and it is located at 990 Main Street, Brawley, California 92227. The cross street is S. Cezar Chevaz Street. We will meet for lunch at 11:00 a.m. This will allow us to stretch our legs from the drive from San Diego to Brawley, eat a nice lunch, have a few laughs and then use the facilities before proceeding to the model railroad layout tours.
  
• Layout Tour Time: Approximately 12:30 p.m.
• Leaving Brawely: We will be leaving Brawley at approximately 3:00 p.m. and arriving back into San Diego around 5:00 p.m. If you railfan, then you'll get back into San Diego at a later time.
• Rail Fanning: There are also some good opportunities to railfan before and/or after the layout tours. There are several areas to railfan, including standard gauge and narrow gauge railroads that are located in the Brawley area.
  
• Parking: There is on street parking and you'll enter the property through the driveway.
• Accessible: To be determined.
  
• Masks: Not required.

More about Joel's model railroad: Rio Grande Southern Railroad narrow gauge modeling between Rico and Ridgway, Colorado, USA. The prototypical railroad's era is September 1939, give or take a few months depending upon the Operations Session. In 1952, the railroad went out of business.

The narrow gauge railroad primarily served the mining industry, mining gold and silver. Mines are not modeled. The industries on the railroad include a Pro Patria Mill (in Rico, Colorado), stock bins, coal facilities and oil distributors.

Ninety percent of the buildings are scratch built and the area modeled in Colorado is a very rugged area of terrain.

• The size of the layout is 32' X 33' located inside a 1,500 square foot in an air conditioned building. The railroad was started in 1990 and the layout is finished.
• The scenes on the railroad have actually been recreated from pictures of the area.
  The stations on the railroad are Placerville, Vance Junction, Ophier and Coke Ovens (in Colorado, USA). Rico has a railroad yard and Ridgway railroad yard and a staging yard.
• Bud Smith and Joel are the two who built the railroad. Bud Smith is the artist talent and Joel is the engineer and technical director. The layout has slightly over 3,000 trees and Bud built about 90% of the trees. The entire layout has hand-laid track. The lowest elevation modeled on the railroad is over 5,000 feet and the highest elevation just under 10,000 feet.
• The railroad was designed for Operations Sessions and typically uses four people during an Operations Session. The layout is a point to point railroad. Operations Sessions occur four times a year and only Sn3 modelers attend. About four people are needed for Operations Sessions. One crew starts at one end, the other crew starts at the other end and meets at Vance Junction.
• To control the locomotives Joel uses NCE with DCC & Sound equipped locomotives. The locomotives are P-B-L sound equipped with TCS Wow Sound decoders. The model train building has the layout room, a crew lounge, a work shop, a small kitchen and a bathroom.

May 9, 2026, Saturday - Spring Meet.

The Spring Meet is being held in the Livery Building at the Heritage Park & Museum, at 200 Peyri Drive, Oceanside, California 92058. The Livery Building is two buildings to the left of the HO scale North County Model Railroad Society's building. The activities will include two clinics, lunch, elections and Show & Tell and a model railroad layout tour.

• Date: Saturday, May 9, 2026.
• Time: 9:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. 
• Location for the Spring Meet: The Spring Meet will be held in the Livery Building at the Heritage Park & Museum, 200 Peyri Drive, Oceanside, California 92058. Website: https://www.ci.oceanside.ca.us/government/parks-recreation/special-events/heritage-park
• Location Note: The Livery Building is two buildings to the left of the North County Model Railroad Society's building.
• Lunch: Pizza, cookies and bottled water. There will be a donation of $10.00 for lunch.
• Parking: There is free parking at the Heritage Park & Museum. The parking is located in the front of the park and also behind the park.
• Accessible: The Livery Building and the North County Model Railroad Society's model railroad layout is accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Help take the sting out of high gas prices and carpool with a friend.

Spring Meet Schedule:

• Clinic 1: 9:00 a.m. Lynne Miller will share information about culinary entrepreneur Fred Harvey and the legacy of the Harvey Girls. Lynne will share information about culinary entrepreneur Fred Harvey and the legacy of the Harvey Girls. Her talk will include a PowerPoint presentation with time for a Question and Answer period. Lynne Miller is the Treasurer of the Harvey Girl Historical Society which is housed at the Southern California Railway Museum in Perris, California.
• Clinic 2: 10:30 a.m. Pete Leach, a Master Model Railroader (MMR), will discuss the history of the commercial ice industry from its beginning and how it relates to the railroad. Pete will include examples of how he developed realistic models and operations for the ice business for his model railroad layout.
• Lunch: 11:30 a.m. Pizza, cookies, bottled water. 
• Elections: 12:15 p.m.
• Show & Tell. 12:30 p.m. We are asking as many people as possible to present a five minute Show & Tell.
  • Show & Tell is a time to bring a project or model and show your model railroading work or discuss any topic about model railroading.
  • You can also talk about something concerning any real railroad, either historical or present day information.
  • If you make a PowerPoint presentation, it will be easier to see for everyone.
  • Please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and let him know you'd like to participate in Show & Tell.
• Self-Guided Layout Tour: (After Show & Tell has ended.) The North County Model Railroad Society has a beautiful HO scale "Inland and Southern Pacific Railroad" model railroad layout that is located inside the Train Depot building in Heritage Park.
  • Location: North County Model Railroad Society (HO scale), Heritage Park & Museum, 230 Peyri Drive, Oceanside, California 92058. www.ncmrs.org 
  • The model railroad layout is opened from 10:00 a.m.–3 p.m.
  • The North County Model Railroad Society was founded in 1990 and has been in several different locations in North County. The club began construction of its current layout, in its latest home in Heritage Park, on June 18, 2014.
  • The club's railroad is a two-level layout modeling from San Diego to Oceanside, then through Temecula and ending in Colton, California. The layout includes railroad stations, railroad yards, a helix, industry spurs, many towns, multiple industries, multiple tunnels, bridges and more. The layout has nighttime capability including buildings with lighting, street lighting and has thunder and lightning effects. 
  • The club is open to the public, has Wednesday Work Nights and the layout has been designed with Operations Sessions in mind.
  • The club has regular Operations Sessions throughout the year.
  • The club invites model railroaders of all ages to join their HO scale model railroad club.
  • If you are looking to join a HO scale model railroad club, this is a good time to meet fellow model railroaders and find out more about their club and the membership fees.
  • The club's layout is accessible.
• Follow-Up: We had 18 people attend the Spring Meet and had two fantastic clinics and two excellent Show & Tells.

June 13, 2026, Saturday -

Model Railroad Layout Tour.

Layout Tour: Dick Roberts will be providing a model railroad layout tour for Division members showcasing his multi-level HO scale Nevada County Railroad (NCRR) model railroad layout. Dick uses DCC and Sound using a hand throttles to control his locomotives or by using Wifi in conjunction with an app.

• Date: Saturday, June 13, 2026.
  
• Time: 10:00 a.m.–2 p.m.
• Location: San Diego County.
  
• Parking: Street parking.
• Accessible: Unfortunately, the layout is not accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Pets: No pets or service animals, please.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend to help take the sting out of gas prices.
• Model Railroad Layout Description: Dick's has an exceptional 21 x 24-foot HO scale model railroad layout models the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad. Dick's layout is set in the spring of 1920 modeling the Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad (NCNGRR) and connected the cities of Nevada City and Grass Valley with the Central Pacific (then Southern Pacific Railroad) at Colfax, all in Northern California.
• More About The Railroad: The Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad was built around 1875 and in 1913, the Board of Directors proposed a plan was change the railroad to standard gauge for the entire line but the board never initiated the conversion. In 1987, Dick provided the funds and the Nevada County Railroad was born in HO scale. The layout has been featured in several model railroad magazines. The tructures and scenery follow the prototype as closely as possible with minor modifications for the slightly larger standard gauge rolling stock.  
• Cities And Areas Served On The Railroad:
  • Nevada City
  • Colfax
  • Town Talk
  • Union Hill
  • Peardale
  • Glenbrook
  • Coleman
  • Idaho-Maryland Mine
  • Grass Valley
  • East Grass Valley
  • North San Juan
  • Sacramento
  • Reno
  • Oilville
• Some Technical Details:
  • The steam locomotives are controlled by Digitrax and have DCC & Sound for realistic operation. The decoders are by SoundTraxx. 
  • The turnouts are controlled by slow motion switch motors which are operated by recessed trackside controls.
  • The railroad has been designed for Operation Sessions using RailOp software. Operation Sessions typically take place once a month.
  • The length of the main track is 178 feet (in real feet). 
  • The layout has two levels of engineering aisleways. 
  • The layout is called a mushroom design layout. While there are two levels of trackage, only one level of trackage is visible in any scene on the railroad, compared to a double-deck model railroad layout where the tracks are stacked and are also visible to people in any scene.
  • There are no duck-unders on the railroad.
  • A unique feature of the layout is a track elevator that connects the two levels of track and this eliminates the need for a helix or long grades.
• Follow-up: There were 18 people who attended the model railroad layout. For anyone who has not seen Dick's model railroad layout, you missed a spectacular railroad. 

July 11, 2026, Saturday -

Model Railroad Layout Tour.

Layout Tour: Wayne Pierce will be showcasing his On30 narrow gauge Minieton Railroad & Lumber Co. for this model railroad layout tour. Wayne will be providing lunch to all guests and at no charge to you.

• • Date: Saturday, July 11, 2026.
    
  • Time: 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.
  • Location: San Diego County.
    
  • Lunch: Noon to 1 p.m. Wayne will be providing lunch and drinks for everyone who attends.
  • Parking: On street parking
  • Accessible: Yes, the layout is accessible.
  • Masks: Not required.
  • Pets: No pets or service animals, please.
  • Carpooling: Carpool with a friend to help take the sting out of gas prices.
  • About On30 scale: What is On30 scale model railroading? On30 scale is modeling a narrow gauge railroad in O scale (1:48) and the narrow gauge track is HO (1:87) scale track.
    • On Wayne's On30 model railroad, all the buildings, vehicles, people, scenery and roads are O scale. The track is HO (1:87) scale track.
    • However, the size of most of the rolling stock on the railroad is On3 narrow gauge with On3 couplers, and all the rolling stock have On30 trucks and wheelsets.
  • About Wayne's Model Railroad Layout & Tour: Wayne's layout is a fictional On30 model railroad in the era of the 1950s to the 1970s, named the Minieton Railroad & Lumber Co.

• • The Name Of The Railroad: In 1978, the name of the railroad was originally going to be named the Mini Town Mine Railroad. But when Wayne was painting a sign for the railroad, he misspelled the railroad name and the new spelling became Minieton. Wayne liked the new name and decided to name his railroad the Minieton Railroad & Lumber Co.
    • The railroad is based on the fictional Minieton Railroad & Lumber Co. purchasing a defunct section of one of the railroad lines, in 1952, from the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad (1870-1992) and then the Minieton Railroad continued railroad operations on this line into the 1970s.
  • Steam Locomotives: You'll find that all of the locomotives on the layout are steam locomotives.
    • Wayne has a variety of steam locomotive models.
    • Can you determine how many different steam locomotives are on the layout?
    • Can you name each of the locomotive models? If not, ask Wayne.
    • For your information, it seems that trying to find new On30 steam locomotives is a difficult thing to do today.

• Details: Many things on Wayne's layout are custom made, so please remember to look for the small details such as newspapers, trash, boxes, garbage cans, pizza boxes, doughnut boxes, Amazon packages and there is much, much more.
  • Remember to look at the power lines on the telephone poles. Ask Wayne to show you the power lines and ask him the name of the power line brand.
• Modeling: Wayne's layout has a small town, industries, railroad yards, an engine house, a turntable, tunnels, trestles, sidings, industry spurs and more.
  • Make sure to look at the weathering on trains, buildings, vehicles and roads.The buildings are either kits or are built board by board.
• Scenes: In addition, be sure to look for small scenes that he's made on the layout, such as men working at re-roof a building. Can you find this building? How many scenes can you find on his layout? There is road construction scenes, home scenes and a photographer scene. How many scenes can you find?
• DCC & Sound: Wayne uses DCC/Sound and NCE Power Cabs to control the locomotives. DCC means Digital Command Control and the Digital Command Control Wikipedia web page is located here online.
  • According to the DCC Wikipedia web page, "Digital Command Control (DCC) is a standard for a system for the digital operation of model railways that permits locomotives on the same electrical section of track to be independently controlled." What this means is that each locomotive (and sometimes rail cars) have computers (called decoders) inside of them to control the locomotives.
  • Having computers inside the locomotives allows very realistic slow and incremental movement of the locomotives.
  • When speakers are added to a locomotive, the sound typically is very realistic and makes model railroading even more fun. In addition, a rail car such as an air conditioned refrigerator rail car or passenger car might have a computer and speakers inside to make realistic sounds of that car.
    
• Operation Sessions: The railroad was also originally designed as a modeling layout only, with one or two continuous loops. After talking with several model railroad friends, Wayne changed his layout to be designed for Operations Sessions.
  • Operation Sessions is when a model railroad is run like the real railroad.
  • Wayne uses Car Cards for his Operation Sessions.
• Follow-Up: What a fantastic model railroad layout tour! It was a beautiful Southern California day with 22 people attending. Wayne had lunch catered with incredibly delicious tacos that included three types of meat, rice, beans, lettuce, cheese, two types of taco sauce and plenty of drinks. Here is a big thank you to Wayne for his hospitality and generosity.

August 8, 2026, Saturday Summer Meet.-

Summer Meet: The San Diego Division is happy to present its Summer Meet this August with a swap meet, pot luck and several clinics. The swap meet is a very popular event that takes place in August. Here are the details.

• Date: Saturday, August 8, 2026.
  
• Time: 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
  • Swap Meet: 9:00 a.m.-noon.
  • Pot Luck: Noon–1 p.m. Pot luck. We are asking last names beginning with A-M bring an entree or side dish and N-Z please bring a dessert.
  • Show & Tell and Clinic: 1 p.m.–3:00 p.m. 
• Location: Hope Lutheran Church, 6749 Tait St, San Diego, California 92111. The church is located in Linda Vista. Linda Vista is located just north of the Fashion Valley Mall. 
• Parking: There is free parking in the church parking lot.
• Accessible: The church is accessible.
• Masks: Not required.
• Carpooling: Carpool with a friend to help take the sting out of gas prices.

Swap Meet: The Swap Meet starts at 9:00 a.m. and ends at noon.

• The Swap Meet is completely free for both buyers and sellers.
• Buyers: Please remember to bring cash to purchase model train items and prototype items.
  • There is no entrance fee for buyers.
• Sellers: Here's a good opportunity to sell your model train items of any scale. Please bring your locomotives, rolling stock, scenery, tools and any other model train items you want to sell. Also, prototype items can be sold at the swap meet.
  • There is no entrance fee for sellers.
  • The tables for the sellers are free.
  • The Division will NOT be taking a percentage of your sell price.

Potluck Lunch: We asking for main dishes, side dishes and deserts. From noon to 1 p.m.

• Last names starting with A-M are asked to bring a main dish.
• Last names starting with N-Z are asked to bring a side dish or dessert.
• The Division will bring drinks, plates, utensils and napkins.

Show & Tell: This is a time to bring a project or model and show off your model railroading work or discuss any topic about model railroading. You can also talk about something concerning any real railroad, either historical or present day information. Most people keep their presentation to about five minutes. We would like several people to participate in the Show & Tell portion of the Spring Meet. Please This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and let him know you'd like to participate in Show & Tell.

Clinic: Scale, Gauge and Track. By Tim Harris and Mike Hampson. This is a two hour clinic.

• This clinic will have have an overview of the different scales around the country, defining gauge and track code and weight. Did you know that there are at least 129 difference scales in the world today? What are the most popular scales? What is the smallest scale? What is the largest scale? What does HOn3, HOn30 and On30 mean exactly? These are some of the questions we are going to try to answer.
• We welcome questions and discussion during the presentation.

September, 2026, Saturday-Wednesday, 2026 PSR Convention

2026 PSR Convention: The PSR "All Aboard for 2026" Model Train Convention is a fun five filled days that will include the Welcome Reception, model railroad clinics, modular railroad layouts, contests, model railroad layout tours, operation sessions, a swap meet, Bingo, Hobo & Silent Auction, Hobo Breakfast and Awards Banquet.

• Date: Wednesday-Sunday, September 9-13, 2026.
• Location: DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel San Diego-Mission Valley Hotel, 7450 Hazard Center Drive, San Diego, California 92108, USA.
• Events: Welcome Reception, Clinics, modular railroad layouts, contests, model railroad layout tours, operation sessions, a swap meet, Bingo, Hobo Auction, Hobo Breakfast and Awards Banquet.
• Convention Web Page: The 2026 PSR Convention web page is here.
• Registration: You can register for the convention here.
• Parking: There is free mall parking for all day passes.
• Accessible: The hotel is accessible.
• Masks: Not required.

If you are late in registering for the convention, we encourage you to register today. This is the only model train convention that takes place in San Diego and this convention takes place only once every four years. 

The 2026 PSR Convention is more than just a model railroad convention—it is an opportunity to immerse yourself in the hobby, learn from others, discover new possibilities for your own model railroad, meet new friends, reconnect with longtime friends, share in the excitement of a hobby enjoyed by generations of model railroaders and create memories that will last long after the convention is over.

There are many activities that will that you won't want to miss. There will be multiple new clinics, including hands-on clinics, model railroad layout tours, modular model railroad layouts, particiipate in operation sessions, contests, raffles and much more. 

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Note: Pacific Daylight Time starts March 8, 2026 and Pacific Standard Time starts November 1, 2026. In the USA, in general, Daylight Time starts the second Sunday of March and Standard Time begins the first Sunday in November. In Europe, summer time begins the last Sunday of March and ends on the last Sunday in October.

We do not have a physical office, permanent meeting room or a model railroad layout. Each month, we meet at various locations throughout San Diego County, with the exception of during a pandemic, we hold virtual meetings.

[Covid-19 and other pandemic Information: Our Division provided virtual Meets during the Covid pandemic of 2020 and during the first half of 2021. Our in-person Meets started back in August 2021. If another pandemic occurs, we will keep you informed on the status of all our meetings. In the meantime, masks are optional at all our in-person Meets and Events for this year, unless otherwise noted due or when required by state or federal law.]