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From the 5th to the 8th of November, Hammelburg, Bavaria was the site for a meeting of German FREMO-Modelrailroaders (similar to FREEMO in North America). A highlight of this meeting was a layout made of some 20 modules made especially to run PROTO:87 equipment. The standards throughout the layout have been carefully tightened to allow H0Pur(TM) equipment to operate as well [It should be noted that wheels and track form two parts of the system, and you cannot simply mix and match standards without understanding how they work -- Ed.].
The layout was organised by Berthold Kaminski and constructed by two Dutch and two German modellers who brought modules, engines and wagons. It included some 12 turnouts and a fiddle yard and measured over 70 feet in length. The two Stations, Hoelle (Hell) and Spielberg, are both based on prototypes located in northern Bavaria. They feature a Fiberboardplant and a wye which made the hardware for the timetable. By the Sunday, timetable operations were possible.
It was a real pleasure to watch a switcher pushing 12 freight cars over the layout all the way without any derailing. Thanks to Allan Gibson and his wheels, which fit in Austrian Klein-Modellbahnen Freightcars without any adjustment.
This first meeting was more or less for testing the equipment. A subsequent meeting is tentatively planned for February 26th to 28th, 1999 in a little town some 80 miles, 135 km north-east of Frankfurt/Main.
If you would like to know more about FREMO or get involved with Proto:87 FREMO construction, please contact the author at;
Dieburger Straße 45, D-63225 Langen, Germany
Telephone: 49 / 6103 / 201779
Email: Peter_Thomin@of2.maus.de
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