Santa Fe Inspiration gallery volume 1

The Santa Fe’s Super Chief is the star of the show on Bob Foltz’s HO Scale New Mexico Division. Here, eastbound No. 18 sweeps past a rock crusher as its A-B-B-A consist of F7 diesel-locomotives slows for the station stop in Lamy. This railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

Traffic enters Bob Foltz’s HO Scale New Mexico Division from this doubleended staging yard on the lower deck. The right end represents Albuquerque, N.M., (west) while the left end represents Raton (east). Santa Fe is above the staging. This railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

A couple of Geeps lead the Las Vegas-to-Albuquerque local into the siding at Waldo while No. 502, the Lamy-to-Santa Fe mixed, heads onto the upper deck of this HO Scale Santa Fe Railway. This railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

Santa Fe no. 3778, one of the railroad’s big 4-8-4 Northerns, easily handles train No. 8, the Fast Mail, as it exits the east end of Apache Canyon. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

A 2-10-2 steam-locomotive helper and an A-B-A consist of F7 diesel-locomotives team up on the climb to Glorieta. Here, they’re approaching the depot in Rowe, a busy business center for cattle ranchers in the area. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

Quite a few passenger trains are switched in Las Vegas, N.M. Here a diner is being pulled from the commissary track so it can be added to Sante Fe train No. 3, the California Limited, when it arrives. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

Bob Foltz's award-winning Castaneda Harvey House model sits just east of the Las Vegas, N.M., Santa Fe Railway depot. This large mission-style model was scratchbuilt. The prototype hotel had a Fred Harvey restaurant that fed passengers during meal stops. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

This super-power Santa Fe steam locomotive hauls a mostly boxcar train upgrade on a Southwest themed model railroad layout. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

These narrow shelves connect the mainline town of Springer with the Raton staging on the lower deck, and the Denver & Rio Grande Western’s Antonito, Colo., staging with the Chili Line to Santa Fe on the upper deck. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the February 2011 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Bob Foltz

Santa Fe no. 3753 hauls a coal train up the incline to Coldwater Gap on Tom and Peggy Noblitt’s HO Scale Santa Fe Railway, Emerald Springs Division. After years operating a 12-by-15-foot model railroad, a move to a home with a large basement let Tom and Peggy Noblitt build their dream layout. This railroad was featured in the May 2013 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Peggy Noblitt.

The Santa Fe station is a fixture on Main Street in Emerald Springs. Tom Noblitt installed a door in the retaining wall (below the white car at right), placing backlit figures in the alcove to model a tunnel from the station to trackside. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the May 2013 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Peggy Noblitt

While a Santa Fe Railway switcher shifts tank cars on the oil refinery spur in the foreground, a coal train climbs the grade toward Coldwater Gap. Tom Noblitt’s wife Peggy built most of the scenery on the layout, including the Coldwater River. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the May 2013 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Peggy Noblitt.

Tom Noblitt's Santa Fe engine terminal bears signs of the railroad’s history. Weed-covered ties show where garden tracks were pulled up to make room for the diesel shop. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the May 2013 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Peggy Noblitt.

When Tom Noblitt laid his Santa Fe main line close to the edge of his layout, he found he had room to add a long-desired logging line, complete with sawmill and pond. This HO Scale railroad was featured in the May 2013 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Peggy Noblitt

A Santa Fe Pacific-type locomotive hauls a train over a bridge on Tom and Peggy Noblitt's large layout featuring the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway. This railroad was featured in the May 2013 issue of Model Railroader. Photo by Peggy Noblitt.

A connection, a bridge, and a well-done modeling sleight-of-hand on Tom and Peggy Noblitt's AT&SF model railroad in HO Scale.

The Santa Fe Railway and predecessors parsing the American Southwest have inspired countless artists and dreamers. Model railroaders using scale equipment and precision tools to re-create these railroad scenes are only the latest in that line.

In this photo gallery, we encourage you to enjoy two fantastic Santa Fe layouts that are inspired. We hope they inspire you on your journey to creating a new model railroad layout, even one based on the Santa Fe!

The first railroad is Tom and Peggy Noblitt’s Santa Fe Railway, Emerald Springs Division. It is the Noblitt’s interpretation of the AT&SF in HO Scale (1:87.1). The large freelanced basement layout measures approximately 28.5 by 55 feet. Trains on the “Emerald Springs” traverse southern Colorado in September 1956. HO Scale steam-locomotive- and diesel-locomotive-hauled trains operate over approximately 192 feet of mainline with 36-inch minimum radii. The maximum grade is 3.5 percent.

The Noblitts used Peco code 75 and Atlas code 83 track on presentable portions of the layout with Atlas code 100 track used in staging areas. Minimum turnouts are Peco no. 6.

L-girder benchwork supports homasote and cork roadbed, plaster-soaked paper towels over cardboard webbing scenery and the track — at 45 to 59-inches high. The backdrop is painted drywall and the operating system is Digitrax’s Digital Command Control.

The second layout is Bob Foltz’s approximately 45-by-47-foot layout based on Santa Fe Railway’s New Mexico Division, specifically northern New Mexico, circa 1951. Trains on this railraod have about 350 feet of mainline track to run on with a minimum of 36-inch radii on mainlines, 30-inch minimum radii on all other standard-gauge sections and 26-inch minimum radii on narrow gauge sections.

Minimum turnouts are no. 6 and maximum 1.5-percent grades on the mains and 3.5-percent on the Santa Fe district.

L-girder benchwork supports cork roadbed, hardshell scenery, tempered hardboard and drywall backdrops, and code 83 (mains) and code 70 (narrow gauge) flextrack 44 to 56.5 inches high.

Foltz operates trains using NCE Corp.’s Digital Command Control system.