It’s my view that every grampa should have an electric train to share with their grand children. Our train just happens to be a little larger than most. The tracks are 15” gage - meaning there is 15” between the rails. This makes the engine and the cars of the train large enough to ride in and that is a COOL thing! Another post below shows our engine for the railroad But just an engine and an assortment of rail cars wasn’t nearly enough for our little pike. We needed an inspection car as well and no ordinary inspection car would do.

I fashioned a narrow bodied model ‘T’ body from scrap steel in the shop. An old propane tank was the starting point for the sidecar to hold Phoebe. Various details were fabricated and welded on making a sharp little inspection car like no other on earth. We christened the little buggy the Phoebemobile.

When it came time for running gear I decided to get really creative. Anybody could have four wheels on their car... but nobody had thought of having only three! So I engineered the undercarriage and welded it up according to plan. I even added some massive weights underneath, slung real low to make it all stable, no matter what speed we decided to travel. It rolled great on the shop floor and onto the test rails without a hitch. Janis & Phoebe’s mom weren’t so sure however and insisted I test it thoroughly on the big track before Phoebe was allowed to ride.

I took it outside and carefully placed it in the rails using my trusty little tractor. The Phoebemobilee rolled perfectly! That is it rolled perfectly until the first corner. I quickly discovered why there are so few trains out in the real world with only three wheels... for it didn’t stay on the tracks. Now the Phoebemobile is destined to be a lawn ornament until I can find the time to re-engineer it with four wheels.

Every once in a while the greatest and most creative of my ideas isn’t quite as brilliant as I first imagine. It’s back to the drawing board in Yarrow...

-grampa dan