Southern California Traction Club Links

Current Active and E-Members of the Southern California Traction Club!

This club is now totally committed to exploring, evaluating and adopting the latest in technology for use in enhancing enjoyment of the Hobby. We use DCC along with several systems that allow operation of trains from smart phones and tablets, such as the Roco Z21.

James W. Allen became an E-member of the SCTC in November 2014. He grew up in West Philadelphia in a time when there was a large network of trolley lines in and around the Philadelphia area. His family lived across from Fairmount Park and it had a trolley line that ran open air trolleys in the summer and closed units in the winter until 1946 when it was abandoned. In 1956, he left school and joined the U.S. Air Force during which he finished high school and later would earn an Associate in Science degree. He went to work in 1964 for Sunoco as an auto mechanic and in 1971 became a Service Station Technician (installed, service & repaired any equipment in a service station). He retired in 1971 after 43 years of service. He bought his first trolleys in the 1960s. Since then he has scratch-built HO scale models, built LaBelle models and learned how to use an airbrush for painting. He has repowered his older models, and installed both DCC and sound. Her currently has over 50 models. He is in the process of building another HO scale traction layout with live overhead wire and is always building more trolleys. His favorite lines are Philadelphia area lines such as PRT, PTC, PST, P&W, along with Fast Shore Line and Atlantic City Lines.

Bill Bolton became an E-member of the SCTC in October 2014. The part of Sydney in which he grew up had no railway lines, but it did have tram (streetcar) lines. As a boy he was fascinated by the trams, and was devastated when the North Sydney tram system closed down in 1958. The main Sydney system lasted until 1961, and he used to pester his parents to take him to somewhere he could still ride a tram. In the absence of local trams, he started buying books on US interurbans and streetcar systems, and read them from cover to cover. Fast forward several years and he is a working adult who can now afford models, and he discovers that he can buy HO scale brass models of interurbans and streetcars in Australia so he does! This was the start of traction modeling for him It is an interest has waxed and waned somewhat over the intervening decades, due to demands of a growing family, a professional career and playing music, but it has never left him. He has been fortunate that his career brought him to the US numerous times and he was able to ride most of the active US streetcar systems. An opportunity to meet up with several members of the SCTC crew finally came a few years ago, and has been further cemented through subsequent visits on a couple of OERM Red Car Day weekends. Now retired, he is working on getting his traction modeling stuff organized, so he can look at building another layout!

Darrell Clarke joined the club in July 2016 and began work on a module depicting the Los Angeles Expo Line Sepulveda Station. He also was the first member to successfully produce a credible model of the newest KinkiSharyo Light rail Cars currently operating in Los Angeles.

Andy (A. J. ) Chier joined the club on October 1, 2016. He is currently Manager, Rail Fleet Services with the LACMTA (Los Angeles METRO) Division 14 (Expo Line). He actively supports the Orange Empire Railway Museum as an operator of antique electric railway vehicles. As a modeler, Andy recently scratch-built an operational HO scale model of the Los Angeles Railway Crane Car 9225 and demonstrated it at the July 2017 Great Train Show at Pomona-Fairplex in Pomona, CA. Andy lives in Pasadena and is also currently restoring a 1940s era pick-up truck. Andy became proficient in 3D drawing and printing and has begun to provide very good HO scale models of Los Angeles area transit vehicles both current and historical.

Pete DeBeers joined the club as an Active member in May 2002. He has been in the model railroad hobby most of his life and has accumulated quite a collection of electric railway models in more than one scale. Pete supports almost every club appearance and normally tows the club trailer to club appearances. He also the second largest number of model electric railway vehicles evaluated for club operation. Pete recently obtained his first Android tablet and can operate trains using that device on the Roco Z21 System. Pete lives in Pasadena, CA with his wife Georgia.

Nick Dukellis joined the Southern California Traction Club as an Active Member on July 1, 2020. He is a native Californian and father of two adult sons. He and his wife of over 38 years Becky live in mountains of Kern County. Nick has been a traction modeler since the early 1990s with preferred roads being the Pacific Electric and Los Angeles Transit Lines in the Pre-WWII era. His late father grew up in downtown Los Angeles and recorded the names and descriptions of businesses he remembered so he could those names on his layout. He also enjoys car restoration, herpetology, tropical fish and is a avid birdwatcher.

Fred Gurzeler joined the Southern California Traction Club as an Active Member in December 2003. Fred Gurzeler is a native of Santa Monica, California. He has always been fond of trains--as a child he enjoyed playing among the SP freight cars stored off the old Air Line at 14th and Colorado--but didn't start acquiring models until 2000. While the main focus of his collection is Pacific Electric and Los Angeles Railway, he also has traction models from roads such as Milwaukee and IT, a couple of Hamburg streetcars and some odds and ends just because he found the model to be "interesting and unique." A graduate of UCLA, Fred lives in West Los Angeles with his wife and two children. He authored a lesson in the Trolleyville Schoolhouse on HO scale Los Angeles Railway models.

.George Huckaby was one of the initial six original founders of the club in October 1995. George installs and maintains most of the module overhead wires. In 1992, he founded Custom Traxx which is a leader in HO scale model electric railway decals and is also the moderator and webmaster of the Trolleyville Internet site. George is Product Consultant to Bowser Manufacturing for all HO scale Ready-To-Run trolley projects. He has an extensive collection of HO scale traction and railway equipment, totaling over 1000 pieces, and continues to expand the role of Digital Command Control (DCC) in traction modeling. George worked with Train Control Systems to develop the M4T decoder for the Bowser F-line PCC which features automatic car stops and brake light functions. He also introduced the club to the Roco Z21 Command System. The Z21 system permits train operation using a smart phone or tablet. George resides in West Los Angeles, California with his wife, Anne and currently serves as the Club Director.

Scott Jednacz joined the club as an E-member in October 2014. He grew up in the Philadelphia area along the SEPTA Media Line which was then the Philadelphia Suburban Trans'n Company. He grew up around gliders at the Philadelphia Glider Council, learned to fly while in the U.S. Navy and holds a private pilot license. He moved with his family to Oklahoma in 1971, finished college (Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering) and earned a Masters in Engineering Systems degree after his tour of duty. Scott is currently in the process of building his own HO scale traction layout. He currently resides in Bixby, Oklahoma.

Clarence Jones joined the club in February 2016 after meeting the club at a local model train show. He currently works for the Red Cross but is soon to be retired and intends to build his own N scale electric railway layout, leading the club into an entirely new area. Clarence finally got into the modern age with the acquisition of a smart phone.

David Lyman (aka Dan D Sparks) is SCTC lucky Active member #13, joining the club June 28, 2009. David grew up in San Diego where he observed the construction of the San Diego Trolley past his High School in 1981. It was while exploring the high school's library when David discovered the Traction Guidebook which contained photos of San Diego Electric cars. Struck by the fact that in the 1880s San Diego had the beginnings of a trolley empire, and then 100 years later, San Diego had the beginnings of a trolley empire, Dave was hooked. His life long love of trains grew to include, and focus on, the SDERy. Dan D Sparks is Dave's alter-ego to help keep his hobby life separate from his professional life as a cartoon animator. David now lives in Castaic with his wife Cindy and 3 children and his small SDERy HO layout.

Toshisuke Matsumoto joined the club as an Active Member while he was a student at Harbor College in September 1996. He was an integral member of the club during initial startup and was a major contributor, teaching his many modeling skills to the club members during the formative stages of the club. He graduated from Harbor College and returned to his home in Tokyo, Japan in 1998 and became a life member at that time. He still visits the club at least once annually, usually in September and certifies more of this equipment to run on the club modules. He visits the club once each year on his annual trip to the United States each September.

John McWhirter joined the club as an Active Member in 2005 and currently serves on the club Board of Directors. He has been responsible for fabricating interior details for and illuminating many structures. He is responsible for fabricating a television transmission tower complete with flashing lights, using custom built circuitry and illuminating another building using fiber-optics and many other detail items. John is responsible for the introduction of Digital Command Control (DCC) and smart phone technology to the club and has procured both a Roco Z21 and an ESU ECoS 50200 DCC system that permit the operation of trains using a smart phone or tablet as a throttle. John's dedication has resulted in him being known as "Mr. Club". John lives in Ladera Heights, CA. He currently serves as the Club Social Director.

Gram Nylen and his father Greg joined the club on June 26, 2015 as E-members. Gram and his family currently reside in Irvine, CA. He claims to have loved trains ever since "..he was born...". He started out with Thomas and went from there. Currently he has N, HO, & O scale but loves model traction. Despite his young age, he has acquired several HO scale models, including brass models of Pacific Electric Steeple Cab 1624, a Chicago, North Shore & Milwaukee Jewett Combine and a white metal bodied Bowser Jewett Combine among others. Another of Gram's interests is model photography. He is interested in precision detail and so is the entire club. He models Pacific Electric, Los Angeles Railway and a couple other traction railways.

Jan Podganski lived in Hawthorne, California when he became a member of the club in 1998. He was a "Big Rig" operator and was qualified to haul dangerous chemicals. He eventually met and married a school teacher from Thailand and moved to that country in 2019. He is a life member of the club due to his many valuable inputs.

Dr. Akihisa Saitoh, a research chemist at the University of Southern California, was introduced to the club by Toshisuke Matsumoto and joined in October 1999. He became a life member in November 2014 when he relocated back to Japan. He participated in the laying of track on one of the club's corner modules and was instrumental in assisting the club in maintaining the club supply of automatic couplers for HO scale multiple unit streetcars, interurbans and subway equipment. Dr. Saitoh lives in Los Angeles but travels over 50% of the time outside of the continental United States. His family resides in Kyoto, Japan.He became a life member of the club in 2018.

Eric Sitiko joined the club in August 2014 as a E-member. He has been interested in model railroading most of his life and has been interested in traction modeling since his early teens. In college, he became involved with a streetcar museum operation and after college became a transit professional working with both heritage and modern streetcars. His interests are both in native Southern California as well as the places that he has lived. He is interested in electric freight operations as well as passenger operations. His modeling is mainly focused in the 1950s, but he does enjoy models of the contemporary equipment that he works with in his career. Eric currently lives in Tucson, Arizona with his wife Julie and cat, Diesel.

Dick and Anjeanette Staley joined the club as Active Members on October 11, 2012 and immediately began making their imprint on the club by donating rolling stock and structures that fit perfectly into one of the modules at specific locations. They are the club's first "team" members, having been married for over 50 years and do almost everything together. Dick is a former Vice-President of a large paper company and Anjeanette, known to most as "AJ", is a former financial officer with a Southern California firm. Anjeanette currently serves on the club Board of Directors. They currently reside in Diamond Bar, CA.

Tom Wright joined the club in August 2015 as an E-member. He currently resides in Ottawa, Canada, where he has been for over 20 years. Despite the politics of being in a capital city, there is plenty of interest in the transportation and the technological heritage, as well as model trains. Tom has worked with the 696 Streetcar Preservation Group, which is preserving a streetcar designed and manufactured in Ottawa before 1930. He is with the HOTRAK club which uses the Freemo standard, developed in California. He is working with Douglas McKercher to get a model electric traction club going in his area so he is focusing on T-Trak (a tabletop module format) in HO scale.

Photos by George Huckaby, Scott Jednacz, Dave Lyman, John McWhirter, Gram Nylen , Eric Sitiko,, Warren Stockton and Tom Wright.

Last updated on November 15, 2020

	James W. Allen became an E-member of the SCTC in November 2014. He grew up in West Philadelphia in a time when there was a large network of trolley lines in and around the Philadelphia area. His family lived across from Fairmount Park and it had a trolley line that ran open air trolleys in the summer and closed units in the winter until 1946 when it was abandoned. In 1956, he left school and joined the U.S. Air Force during which he finished high school and later would earn an Associate in Science degree. He went to work in 1964 for Sunoco as an auto mechanic and in 1971 became a Service Station Technician (installed, service & repaired any equipment in a service station). He retired in 1971 after 43 years of service. He bought his first trolleys in the 1960s. Since then he has scratch-built HO scale models, built LaBelle models and learned how to use an airbrush for painting. He has repowered his older models, and installed both DCC and sound. Her currently has over 50 models. He is in the process of building another HO scale traction layout with live overhead wire and is always building more trolleys. His favorite lines are Philadelphia area lines such as PRT, PTC, PST, P&W, along with Fast Shore Line and Atlantic City Lines.
	Bill Bolton became an E-member of the SCTC in October 2014. The part of Sydney in which he grew up had no railway lines, but it did have tram (streetcar) lines. As a boy he was fascinated by the trams, and was devastated when the North Sydney tram system closed down in 1958. The main Sydney system lasted until 1961, and he used to pester his parents to take him to somewhere he could still ride a tram. In the absence of local trams, he started buying books on US interurbans and streetcar systems, and read them from cover to cover. Fast forward several years and he is a working adult who can now afford models, and he discovers that he can buy HO scale brass models of interurbans and streetcars in Australia so he does! This was the start of traction modeling for him It is an interest has waxed and waned somewhat over the intervening decades, due to demands of a growing family, a professional career and playing music, but it has never left him. He has been fortunate that his career brought him to the US numerous times and he was able to ride most of the active US streetcar systems. An opportunity to meet up with several members of the SCTC crew finally came a few years ago, and has been further cemented through subsequent visits on a couple of OERM Red Car Day weekends. Now retired, he is working on getting his traction modeling stuff organized, so he can look at building another layout!
	Darrell Clarke joined the club in July 2016 and began work on a module depicting the Los Angeles Expo Line Sepulveda Station. He also was the first member to successfully produce a credible model of the newest KinkiSharyo Light rail Cars currently operating in Los Angeles.
	Andy (A. J. ) Chier joined the club on October 1, 2016. He is currently Manager, Rail Fleet Services with the LACMTA (Los Angeles METRO) Division 14 (Expo Line). He actively supports the Orange Empire Railway Museum as an operator of antique electric railway vehicles. As a modeler, Andy recently scratch-built an operational HO scale model of the Los Angeles Railway Crane Car 9225 and demonstrated it at the July 2017 Great Train Show at Pomona-Fairplex in Pomona, CA. Andy lives in Pasadena and is also currently restoring a 1940s era pick-up truck. Andy became proficient in 3D drawing and printing and has begun to provide very good HO scale models of Los Angeles area transit vehicles both current and historical.
	Pete DeBeers joined the club as an Active member in May 2002. He has been in the model railroad hobby most of his life and has accumulated quite a collection of electric railway models in more than one scale. Pete supports almost every club appearance and normally tows the club trailer to club appearances. He also the second largest number of model electric railway vehicles evaluated for club operation. Pete recently obtained his first Android tablet and can operate trains using that device on the Roco Z21 System. Pete lives in Pasadena, CA with his wife Georgia.
	Nick Dukellis joined the Southern California Traction Club as an Active Member on July 1, 2020. He is a native Californian and father of two adult sons. He and his wife of over 38 years Becky live in mountains of Kern County. Nick has been a traction modeler since the early 1990s with preferred roads being the Pacific Electric and Los Angeles Transit Lines in the Pre-WWII era. His late father grew up in downtown Los Angeles and recorded the names and descriptions of businesses he remembered so he could those names on his layout. He also enjoys car restoration, herpetology, tropical fish and is a avid birdwatcher.
	Fred Gurzeler joined the Southern California Traction Club as an Active Member in December 2003. Fred Gurzeler is a native of Santa Monica, California. He has always been fond of trains--as a child he enjoyed playing among the SP freight cars stored off the old Air Line at 14th and Colorado--but didn't start acquiring models until 2000. While the main focus of his collection is Pacific Electric and Los Angeles Railway, he also has traction models from roads such as Milwaukee and IT, a couple of Hamburg streetcars and some odds and ends just because he found the model to be "interesting and unique." A graduate of UCLA, Fred lives in West Los Angeles with his wife and two children. He authored a lesson in the Trolleyville Schoolhouse on HO scale Los Angeles Railway models.
	.George Huckaby was one of the initial six original founders of the club in October 1995. George installs and maintains most of the module overhead wires. In 1992, he founded Custom Traxx which is a leader in HO scale model electric railway decals and is also the moderator and webmaster of the Trolleyville Internet site. George is Product Consultant to Bowser Manufacturing for all HO scale Ready-To-Run trolley projects. He has an extensive collection of HO scale traction and railway equipment, totaling over 1000 pieces, and continues to expand the role of Digital Command Control (DCC) in traction modeling. George worked with Train Control Systems to develop the M4T decoder for the Bowser F-line PCC which features automatic car stops and brake light functions. He also introduced the club to the Roco Z21 Command System. The Z21 system permits train operation using a smart phone or tablet. George resides in West Los Angeles, California with his wife, Anne and currently serves as the Club Director.
	Scott Jednacz joined the club as an E-member in October 2014. He grew up in the Philadelphia area along the SEPTA Media Line which was then the Philadelphia Suburban Trans'n Company. He grew up around gliders at the Philadelphia Glider Council, learned to fly while in the U.S. Navy and holds a private pilot license. He moved with his family to Oklahoma in 1971, finished college (Bachelor's Degree in Mechanical Engineering) and earned a Masters in Engineering Systems degree after his tour of duty. Scott is currently in the process of building his own HO scale traction layout. He currently resides in Bixby, Oklahoma.
	Clarence Jones joined the club in February 2016 after meeting the club at a local model train show. He currently works for the Red Cross but is soon to be retired and intends to build his own N scale electric railway layout, leading the club into an entirely new area. Clarence finally got into the modern age with the acquisition of a smart phone.
	David Lyman (aka Dan D Sparks) is SCTC lucky Active member #13, joining the club June 28, 2009. David grew up in San Diego where he observed the construction of the San Diego Trolley past his High School in 1981. It was while exploring the high school's library when David discovered the Traction Guidebook which contained photos of San Diego Electric cars. Struck by the fact that in the 1880s San Diego had the beginnings of a trolley empire, and then 100 years later, San Diego had the beginnings of a trolley empire, Dave was hooked. His life long love of trains grew to include, and focus on, the SDERy. Dan D Sparks is Dave's alter-ego to help keep his hobby life separate from his professional life as a cartoon animator. David now lives in Castaic with his wife Cindy and 3 children and his small SDERy HO layout.
	Toshisuke Matsumoto joined the club as an Active Member while he was a student at Harbor College in September 1996. He was an integral member of the club during initial startup and was a major contributor, teaching his many modeling skills to the club members during the formative stages of the club. He graduated from Harbor College and returned to his home in Tokyo, Japan in 1998 and became a life member at that time. He still visits the club at least once annually, usually in September and certifies more of this equipment to run on the club modules. He visits the club once each year on his annual trip to the United States each September.
	John McWhirter joined the club as an Active Member in 2005 and currently serves on the club Board of Directors. He has been responsible for fabricating interior details for and illuminating many structures. He is responsible for fabricating a television transmission tower complete with flashing lights, using custom built circuitry and illuminating another building using fiber-optics and many other detail items. John is responsible for the introduction of Digital Command Control (DCC) and smart phone technology to the club and has procured both a Roco Z21 and an ESU ECoS 50200 DCC system that permit the operation of trains using a smart phone or tablet as a throttle. John's dedication has resulted in him being known as "Mr. Club". John lives in Ladera Heights, CA. He currently serves as the Club Social Director.
	Gram Nylen and his father Greg joined the club on June 26, 2015 as E-members. Gram and his family currently reside in Irvine, CA. He claims to have loved trains ever since "..he was born...". He started out with Thomas and went from there. Currently he has N, HO, & O scale but loves model traction. Despite his young age, he has acquired several HO scale models, including brass models of Pacific Electric Steeple Cab 1624, a Chicago, North Shore & Milwaukee Jewett Combine and a white metal bodied Bowser Jewett Combine among others. Another of Gram's interests is model photography. He is interested in precision detail and so is the entire club. He models Pacific Electric, Los Angeles Railway and a couple other traction railways.
	Jan Podganski lived in Hawthorne, California when he became a member of the club in 1998. He was a "Big Rig" operator and was qualified to haul dangerous chemicals. He eventually met and married a school teacher from Thailand and moved to that country in 2019. He is a life member of the club due to his many valuable inputs.
	Dr. Akihisa Saitoh, a research chemist at the University of Southern California, was introduced to the club by Toshisuke Matsumoto and joined in October 1999. He became a life member in November 2014 when he relocated back to Japan. He participated in the laying of track on one of the club's corner modules and was instrumental in assisting the club in maintaining the club supply of automatic couplers for HO scale multiple unit streetcars, interurbans and subway equipment. Dr. Saitoh lives in Los Angeles but travels over 50% of the time outside of the continental United States. His family resides in Kyoto, Japan.He became a life member of the club in 2018.
	Eric Sitiko joined the club in August 2014 as a E-member. He has been interested in model railroading most of his life and has been interested in traction modeling since his early teens. In college, he became involved with a streetcar museum operation and after college became a transit professional working with both heritage and modern streetcars. His interests are both in native Southern California as well as the places that he has lived. He is interested in electric freight operations as well as passenger operations. His modeling is mainly focused in the 1950s, but he does enjoy models of the contemporary equipment that he works with in his career. Eric currently lives in Tucson, Arizona with his wife Julie and cat, Diesel.
	Dick and Anjeanette Staley joined the club as Active Members on October 11, 2012 and immediately began making their imprint on the club by donating rolling stock and structures that fit perfectly into one of the modules at specific locations. They are the club's first "team" members, having been married for over 50 years and do almost everything together. Dick is a former Vice-President of a large paper company and Anjeanette, known to most as "AJ", is a former financial officer with a Southern California firm. Anjeanette currently serves on the club Board of Directors. They currently reside in Diamond Bar, CA.

	Tom Wright joined the club in August 2015 as an E-member. He currently resides in Ottawa, Canada, where he has been for over 20 years. Despite the politics of being in a capital city, there is plenty of interest in the transportation and the technological heritage, as well as model trains. Tom has worked with the 696 Streetcar Preservation Group, which is preserving a streetcar designed and manufactured in Ottawa before 1930. He is with the HOTRAK club which uses the Freemo standard, developed in California. He is working with Douglas McKercher to get a model electric traction club going in his area so he is focusing on T-Trak (a tabletop module format) in HO scale.