I became a prototype modeler only after starting my business. I
relied on model railroad plans to determine which prototypes to choose. I
then scoured a major library for ORERs, Cycs and RAGs for data to support
them. However, about 2 months after issuing the XL box car I received a
phone call from the late John Stewart. He asked me how I could issue such
a nice model but with such lousy lettering. He said he had all the
lettering diagrams and would be happy to send them to me. Several weeks
later I received about 25 blueprints of lettering and stencil diagrams for many
PRR cars of the early 1900s. He also sent general arrangements for many of
them including the XL. Hell, I didn’t even know this stuff existed. Not
only did I revise the lettering but the model as well. Shortly thereafter
I received a letter from Richard Hendrickson with both praise and
complaint. (The complaint was wrong – he failed to read the instructions
completely.) As you would expect Richard offered to help me any
time. I was discovering that there were sources out there who knew
much more than I. Modelers started contacting me with advice and
information. By the time I issued my sixth kit I was a prototype
modeler. (I subsequently revised all of the previous kits to bring them up
to prototype standards.) Then Byron Rose contacted me with a complaint on
a minor detail. Sound familiar? This began a long association which
raised my skill level immeasurably. Byron demanded perfection. He
reviewed all the kits before issue which is why the assembly instructions were
so complete. Rarely if ever did he tell me the kits were good. I
remember my favorite phrase to him was, “Byron, perfection is the enemy of
excellence.” I learned that there were always guys who knew more than I
about a particular car or railroad. I now knew who to contact for help and
almost everyone in the community was more than willing to open their files for
me. Upon retirement I counted up all the acknowledgements in the kits and
discovered that over 200 modelers and historians had assisted me. – Al
Westerfield
