Weekend Hobby, Crafts and Bodging Thread

Greetings gang. Well it's spring on the calendar but old man winter just decided to dump about eight inches of snow on us here in the midwest. It's a great excuse to stay indoors and get creative.

NOTE: This thread is limited to discussion of hobby-related topics. Please leave other topics, especially politics, at the door.

I'll start with some sad news for model railroad enthusiasts. Malcom Furlow, whose name is instantly recognizable to anyone who's been in the hobby for any length of time, passed away earlier this month at the age of 77. Click here for a full obituary.

For most of the 80s, his byline was a mainstay in the modeling press for his wonderfully imaginative narrow gauge modeling as depicted on his HOn3 Denver & Rio Chama Western. Probably the most popular of his numerous articles were two start-to-finish layout construction series: the San Juan Central and Carbondale Central, both appearing in Model Railroader in 1984 and 1988 respectively.

Yet, as quickly as he burst onto the modeling scene, he all but disappeared to devote his time building a reputation as a fine artist, becoming a renowned painter of vivid, semi-abstract works depicting mostly southwestern themes. I was a big fan of his talents and mostly his wonderful sense of imagination that gave his models character. More than that, Malcolm Furlow had the ability to transform a simple train set on a sheet of plywood into a true miniature world.

Here he is in his heyday. RIP and thanks for the memories.

posted by J.J. Sefton at 05:00 PM

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