I know it feels way too soon to end the Southern Pacific Burbank Branch N scale layout.
However, in August 2025 I came across an issue of Railroad Model Craftsman that I had not read yet. That issue featured Tom Johnson’s Cass County HO scale layout, and as soon as I finished the article, I was hooked.
So, I decided to switch to HO scale and create my own freelanced short line railroad. The decision to leave N scale was not easy, but several factors pushed me in that direction. First, I appreciate the overall reliability of HO track and rolling stock. Second, the larger scale is easier to work with, especially since my eyesight is not what it was twenty years ago. Finally, the sheer availability of HO scale products makes planning and building much simpler.
Buffalo Creek & Western
Then, I started planning an HO scale switching layout based on grain elevator operations in Montana in 1985. I did extensive research on short lines and grain traffic, and through that process I came up with the name Buffalo Creek & Western.
Sure, I enjoyed returning to the hobby in November 2024, and the Burbank Branch layout picked up right where I had left off in 2009 with my former SP Coast Line in N scale. I have always been a fan of the Espee and I probably always will, but I felt the need to work on something fresh.
Even though I have been a committed N scaler for decades, this time I wanted to give HO scale a serious try. So, I hosted a few operating sessions on the Burbank Branch and slowly refined the modeling skills that had been dormant for fifteen years.
Now, I feel ready to move on and start something new.
Here is the new BC&W blog, where I document the progress. There is also a YouTube channel.
So far, I have focused on rolling stock and structures. Soon, I will dismantle the Burbank Branch to make room for the Buffalo Creek & Western.
