I’ve been an On30 modeler since 1981. I first encountered On30 at a train show in Timonium, Maryland that year. At the show I was drawn to a very detailed exhibition layout. It was fully sceniced with scratchbuilt structures, surrounded by textured ground cover and foliage, vehicles, and figures. There were lots of details to find and explore everywhere. The track was hand laid and quite realistic in appearance. The locomotives and cars were subtly weathered and moved effortlessly and reliably around the layout. It seemed that I had found the perfect layout as I stood and watched the trains navigating the trackwork. The only question I had was “What scale is this?”. The locomotive and cars almost appeared to be S scale but the buildings and scenic details such as autos and people figures were too big. One of the men operating this layout approached. “What scale is this” I asked? “On30” he replied. Thus began my lifelong affair with model railroading in On30. Steve Fisher was the man who answered my initial inquiry and with the skill of a barker on the Midway at Ringling Brothers circus he had soon convinced me to join the Manchester Minibunch On30 modular group. Within two weeks I had built my first 2 foot by 4 foot On30 module. So what was the appeal of On30? For one thing it was the realism that this particular group of modelers was able to obtain even though there was very little available that was specifically intended for use in On30. No car kits, no locomotives and no track. Everything had to be built from scratch or heavily kitbashed. The challenge was substantial but the rewards were even greater. I quickly learned how to hand lay track using code 70 rail and ties intended for On3. Turnouts were cobbled up from HO Shinohara switches that had all of their ties removed and then relaid on On3 ties. Since their were no freight cars available commercially one of our member decided to make up the basics of kit with commercially cut basswood and Grandt Line detail parts. He sold them to members of our group. And I also quickly learned how to scratchbuild freight cars from basswood from the rack at the local hobby shop. We used Model Die Casting HO arch bar freight trucks and put Northwest Short Line HO 40 inch wheelsets in them. The results were not only credible they were very realistic. For locomotives we used common HO mechanisms and cobbled up superstructures from basswood and styrene. Grandt Line also offered some of their loco kits with the option to build them in On30. However, these were not “shake-a-box” kits. They require a great deal of skill and patience to build. Garry Cerrone, one of the minibuch’s founding members is particularly gifted in the fine art of locomotive construction and had several articles published in the Narrow Gauge & Short Line Gazette showcasing his skills in converting HO steamers to Forney type and 2-8-0 locomotives. Our entire group benefited from his efforts even to this day. Since that day so many years ago that I found On30 (or perhaps it found me) I have seen what was once a minority scale/gauge combination grow to a viable segment of the model railroading hobby. This is largely due to the efforts of Bachmann Industries...thank you H. Lee Riley. Due to Lee’s efforts we now have a plethora or On30 products to choose from. Life couldn’t be better .