Model Railroading > Riding Inside A Model Train, video by Jason Shron

Jason Shron, owner of Rapido trains, writes:

Once before in Rapido's history I felt the need to share my passion for trains with you in a special newsletter. That was back in January 2013, when I finished building the full-size VIA Rail Canada coach in my basement. In the years since, I have heard from a lot of people who were inspired by my efforts to pursue their own passions, as well as a lot of people who thought I was just plain nuts!

Give a model railroader a small camera, and he'll invariably put it on the front of the train to get the engineer's perspective. I have no interest in being a locomotive engineer. My love of trains is all about being a passenger. So I made this video of a passenger's perspective on my HO scale Kingston Subdivision, set in 1980. I hope you enjoy it and I hope it encourages you to take your model railroading to the next level!
 The video was made using a refurbished GoPro Hero 4 Session I picked up for a song on eBay. The coach interior is a photo of my basement coach with the window knocked out in Photoshop and overlaid onto the footage. The sounds were a mix of stuff I recorded on board real VIA trains and some Rapido model sounds. 

This section of the layout is not completely finished yet - there are no signals, for instance - but it is far enough along to make the video I've been wanting to make since I was about seven years old...

Go to YouTube and search for: 

Riding inside a Model Train


 

Really good stuff.

I just watched this video. Fantastic job Jason!

Wow! Very, very nice!

Bruce

Great modeling too, Jason. As we know, close up photos of model trains can be very unforgiving. I really enjoyed the video.

Victor A. Baird
http://www.erstwhilepublications.com

Thanks, guys. Watching this video after I had made it was a dream come true. I've watched it a couple of times a day since we uploaded it.

The audio is from an aborted attempt to get background noise for my full-size train in the basement. I'm glad I kept all the files!

-Jason
 

Wow! Well done!
Coming from a pro sound guy, I love the effects work -- human atmosphere in the background, etc. Was that the beverage cart rolling by at one point? Good stuff!
Just curious, why did you end up dropping the "live" ambient sound ide?  Sounds like you were well on the way.
Oh and then there was that Turbo meet at the station! Very cool!

Bravo!  The way you layed in the sound of the pacing CN F is mind blowing!!
SR

Great job, I really enjoyed watching this and it felt like I was riding the rails.
Joe

Yes, good job, nice work.
Good to see that you've moved into the enjoyment phase.

Jason.  You are having way more fun that is aloud!  :-p   I'm green with envy.

Did you decide to model the scenes in a fall setting after the leaves have fallen?

Cheers,
Jim

He just ran out of foliage material.... ;>)

Absolutely amazing!  I don't blame you for watching it every day.  Beautiful work throughout.

> He just ran out of foliage material.... ;>) =14pxDue to the pandemic!  

Great job on the video! 

bearease Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Wow! Well done!
> Coming from a pro sound guy, I love the effects
> work -- human atmosphere in the background, etc.
> Was that the beverage cart rolling by at one
> point? Good stuff!
> Just curious, why did you end up dropping the
> "live" ambient sound ide?  Sounds like you were
> well on the way.
> Oh and then there was that Turbo meet at the
> station! Very cool!

I wanted the ambient sound in my full-size coach not to include any people. I eventually got a great recording taken from an LRC vestibule. Interior quality with good track noise and no people. I actually have three different MP3 players in my coach. One is the interior sound. One is the blower. One is the vestibule (very squeaky and loud) sound.

Yes, that was the beverage cart in the video. Glad you noticed!

Thanks for your compliments! That passing Turbo was a bear to do, as was the layering of four or five tracks to get the two F units passing by. But it was fun!

-Jason
 

That video was really something and so is the modeling.  

That was flippin cool!!  The ambient noise and the slight reflection of the intior on the glass really sell it.  Amazing!!