ABOUT US
Our Railroad
Our railroad is HO scale with 30" radius being the tightest curve. The layout is
16' wide by 105' long and has about 2,500 feet of track. We operate with DCC with
detection.
Our Beginnings
The Club known as the Coachella Valley Model
Railroaders is a club for promoting
the hobby of model railroading in the Coachella Valley.
This was
to be accomplished through the construction of a premier display layout
having prototypical train operations and scenic details familiar to the United
States.
The layout
was to be HO scale and be many times larger than feasible for a home layout.
In 1984
the two founding members pooled their financial resources and immediately began
to construct the first display to commemorate the 50th year of the National
Model Railroad Association. This display was placed in the Westfield Mall
(formally Palm Desert Town Center Shopping Mall) for
a two day show, from this display we met additional people with our same
interests of model railroading.
The Coachella Valley Model Railroaders was formed in 1985 by five model
railroaders as an informal group who desired to share their knowledge and
experiences.
Warren, Bill,
Jim, Dick, Bob
The main thrust of the group at that time was to help
fellow members in the construction of their home layouts. Once a week for the
price of coffee and cookies the hosts layout would hear the sounds of drills
and the buzz of saws as his layout quickly grew before his eyes.
It was not
all work for time could always be found to admire a new steam locomotive or a
weathered boxcar. The first real project the club tackled was to build a modular
layout to be displayed and ran at the Westfield Mall (formally Palm Desert Town Center Shopping Mall).
This first effort was done on time and with the diligent efforts of the members
in keeping the display operating through the Christmas Season, it was well
received by the mall customers. This showing also provided exposure to other
desert modelers and the membership began to grow.
The
building of the various home layouts continued as did the expansion of the Clubs
Modular Railroad. Each year the Christmas Shoppers at the Mall were greeted by
an
ever larger and more detailed operating railroad. In 1989 an agreement was
reached with the Riverside County Fair National Date Festival to be included as an exhibit. After the
show at the Mall the layout was moved to the Fairgrounds and installed in the
north end of the Crafts and Hobbies building (formally Home Arts Building). The Modules were further expanded so that
the layout ran the full width of the buildings north wall and twenty feet down
the west wall. Again The exhibit was a great success with club receiving
complements from both the viewing public as well as the Fair Personnel.
The result
of this first Fair Exhibit was that we now had a home year around in the
Crafts and Hobbies building (formally Home Arts Building). The following months saw what looked like total mayhem as the old
modular layout was dismantled and a new larger permanent railroad was
constructed in the center of the north end of the Crafts and Hobbies building
(formally Home Arts Building).
The
building of this layout was unusual in that each member chose a piece of the
layout and erected what he wished in that area. So we had a Three Ring Circus
complete with sideshow on one end and elaborate industrial switching yard on the
other with several yards, siding, towns and villages scattered in between with
vast canyons spanned by mighty bridges connecting it all. For the first season
of our new Railroad we ran what is called a double dogleg layout around the
large U shape that was built. A good operator could keep up to five trains going
at once as long as they all went the same direction.
The Coachella Valley Model Railroaders is anything but static. Each year the
main layout has expanded and grown with the new additions such as DCC. The changing of the track design was to allow two-way running was one of
the greater changes to take place. Every year sees new things in place to entice
the visitor to come and see us. And come and see us they do. The Club is one of
the main attractions during the fair with question and answer sheets that
sometimes put the members on their mettle to answer them. Often times it may be
an old gentleman and his wife from whom the layout elicits a fond memory of some
long past job or pleasure.
The Coachella Valley Model Railroaders is
an active community group with an interest in railroading and model building and
we invite any person of good moral character to join the Club and enjoy the
friendly people who are the Coachella Valley Model Railroaders.
Our Club
The Club currently has 44 regular members from all
occupations.
Retired people, swimming pool contractors, carpenters, electricians, law
enforcement, engineers,
doctors, photographers, pilots, and so on.
Membership is open to anyone with an active interest
in railroads and modeling.
The level of experience ranges from armchair modelers, to novices, to
experts.
For most of us, the fun is in the learning.
Our Beginnings
This was to be accomplished through the construction of a premier display layout having prototypical train operations and scenic details familiar to the United States.
The layout was to be HO scale and be many times larger than feasible for a home layout.
In 1984 the two founding members pooled their financial resources and immediately began to construct the first display to commemorate the 50th year of the National Model Railroad Association. This display was placed in the Westfield Mall (formally Palm Desert Town Center Shopping Mall) for a two day show, from this display we met additional people with our same interests of model railroading.
The Coachella Valley Model Railroaders was formed in 1985 by five model railroaders as an informal group who desired to share their knowledge and experiences.
Warren, Bill, Jim, Dick, Bob
The main thrust of the group at that time was to help fellow members in the construction of their home layouts. Once a week for the price of coffee and cookies the hosts layout would hear the sounds of drills and the buzz of saws as his layout quickly grew before his eyes.
It was not all work for time could always be found to admire a new steam locomotive or a weathered boxcar. The first real project the club tackled was to build a modular layout to be displayed and ran at the Westfield Mall (formally Palm Desert Town Center Shopping Mall). This first effort was done on time and with the diligent efforts of the members in keeping the display operating through the Christmas Season, it was well received by the mall customers. This showing also provided exposure to other desert modelers and the membership began to grow.
The building of the various home layouts continued as did the expansion of the Clubs Modular Railroad. Each year the Christmas Shoppers at the Mall were greeted by an ever larger and more detailed operating railroad. In 1989 an agreement was reached with the Riverside County Fair National Date Festival to be included as an exhibit. After the show at the Mall the layout was moved to the Fairgrounds and installed in the north end of the Crafts and Hobbies building (formally Home Arts Building). The Modules were further expanded so that the layout ran the full width of the buildings north wall and twenty feet down the west wall. Again The exhibit was a great success with club receiving complements from both the viewing public as well as the Fair Personnel.
The result of this first Fair Exhibit was that we now had a home year around in the Crafts and Hobbies building (formally Home Arts Building). The following months saw what looked like total mayhem as the old modular layout was dismantled and a new larger permanent railroad was constructed in the center of the north end of the Crafts and Hobbies building (formally Home Arts Building).
The building of this layout was unusual in that each member chose a piece of the layout and erected what he wished in that area. So we had a Three Ring Circus complete with sideshow on one end and elaborate industrial switching yard on the other with several yards, siding, towns and villages scattered in between with vast canyons spanned by mighty bridges connecting it all. For the first season of our new Railroad we ran what is called a double dogleg layout around the large U shape that was built. A good operator could keep up to five trains going at once as long as they all went the same direction.
The Coachella Valley Model Railroaders is anything but static. Each year the main layout has expanded and grown with the new additions such as DCC. The changing of the track design was to allow two-way running was one of the greater changes to take place. Every year sees new things in place to entice the visitor to come and see us. And come and see us they do. The Club is one of the main attractions during the fair with question and answer sheets that sometimes put the members on their mettle to answer them. Often times it may be an old gentleman and his wife from whom the layout elicits a fond memory of some long past job or pleasure.
The Coachella Valley Model Railroaders is an active community group with an interest in railroading and model building and we invite any person of good moral character to join the Club and enjoy the friendly people who are the Coachella Valley Model Railroaders.
Retired people, swimming pool contractors, carpenters, electricians, law enforcement, engineers,
doctors, photographers, pilots, and so on.
The level of experience ranges from armchair modelers, to novices, to experts.
For most of us, the fun is in the learning.
For a limited time, new members can join for half price, only $75.00 for the first year and we waived the one time fee.
To become a regular member, you must:
Be at least 18 years of age
Complete a membership application
Complete a 4-month probationary period
Pay a one time $100 membership fee
and the $150 yearly dues
Be approved by the members
Member Guidelines
Run trains, enjoy the camaraderie, and contribute to our fair-ground commitment: Maintain the cleanliness and appearance of our building and restroom, a reasonable requirement considering what we get in return.
Check your engines and rolling stock before you place them on the layout. This means couplers AND clean wheels for your engines and rolling stock. Dirty wheels cause dirty tracks and DCC problems. If you have operating issues, please remove your equipment so others can continue operating while you use the work bench to correct your problem.The last car in a consist should have an EOT indicator, a lighted car, or resistance wheels so that our track detection will see it.To avoid loco address conflicts, check the Engine Dispatch Board located in the workbench area to ensure that your loco’s address is not being used. Then list your name and your loco’s address. Before leaving, remove your information from the board.No food or drinks inside the layout. Spills do happen which cause problems. Please keep the layout clean.Before placing your train on
or removing it from the layout, make certain that the yard’s
lead-track power is off. With power on, a system short can
occur. No big deal. However, that short could also foul up your
engine’s decoder. Very big deal!
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Our Meetings
The Coachella Valley Model Railroaders meet most Wednesday's from 2 - 6 and Saturdays from 10 - 2. The club is located on the Riverside County Fair National Date Festival Fairgrounds in Indio. You must contact us in advance for access as they have a security gate we will need to get you in. Type in info@cvmrr.com
We hold our annual membership meeting along
with our election of officers on the first Wednesday in December.
Visitors are always welcome on any meeting or session night.
The Club has formal, click for
By-Laws and elected
officers, but we work to keep the atmosphere informal.
Getting Started
How do you get started?
How do you learn it all?
There are a number of magazines and videos dedicated
to model railroading,
as well as how to books on every facet of the hobby.
You can find them at most hobby stores.
Visit a hobby shop specializing in model
railroading.
Look around.
You will be amazed at what you can find.
Since you learn more by doing than any other
way,
the real secret to getting started is to just jump in and get your feet
wet.
Club membership can also help
you can learn from the experiences of others.
Model railroading is a hobby for the whole
family,
and one that you can enjoy at home or as a member of a Club.
Information
THIS IS A MAILING ADDRESS ONLY, NOT THE
LOCATION OF CLUB LAYOUT:
Coachella Valley Model Railroaders
43714 Commanche St.
Indio, CA 92203-2630
Visitors are always welcome on any meeting or session night.
How do you learn it all?
as well as how to books on every facet of the hobby.
You can find them at most hobby stores.
Look around.
You will be amazed at what you can find.
the real secret to getting started is to just jump in and get your feet wet.
Club membership can also help
you can learn from the experiences of others.
and one that you can enjoy at home or as a member of a Club.
43714 Commanche St.
Indio, CA 92203-2630
Location of Layout is on the Riverside County Fairgrounds
In the Crafts and Hobbies building
Riverside County Fairgrounds
82-503 Highway 111
Indio, CA 92201-5633
Email: info@cvmrr.com
Alex, President
Gaylon, Vice President
Jim D., Vice President
Ski, Vice President, Lionel Division
Jim H., Secretary/Treasurer