Bill Yancy is very well know in the Proto48 community. For the past several years he has been building a freelance, 14-foot by 20-foot switching layout based on the Northern Alberta area. Currently he is preparing to remodel a couple of sections of his layout and so I thought I would share the current state before construction begins. I hope to provide a follow up as construction begins.

Bill enjoys scratch building highly detailed rolling stock. The beautiful track and scenery Bill as created, really enhances the realism of his work. His attention to detail is evident in the photos he has shared.

The current layout has a town station. The major services on the Alberta Prairie RR are a grain elevator, cement dealer, paper box factory, and large planing mill. There is also an Esso dealer, however it is not served by the railroad.

As mentioned, Bill is updating the design and planning on modernizing his equipment as well. His current plan is to better reflect the agricultural industry in the Alberta area. The planing mill will be replaced with a canola processing plant, the station will be replaced with a propane dealer. Further, the box factory will be replaced with a team track. There are plans to expand the Esso facility as well.

Bill hand laid his track using code 125 rail from Right O’ Way. His turnouts consist of number 6s and number 8s and are fully detailed.

Once Bill has completed the updates to the layout we will be sure to follow up on his progress.