Thank you for visiting!
These web pages provide information about the 2006 O Scale West meet.
If you didn't arrive on this page via the O Scale West home page, please click the O Scale West home page, for general information, particularly what you can expect in the way of meet activities.
Activities on Thursday, February 2 include registration, packet pick up for those who pre-registered, clinics, layout visits (must be registered to get the map packet), and movies. Layouts are open for visiting immediately before and after the meet. Some of them are several hour's drive from the meet location. Advance information that lacks street addresses but is sufficient for planning your layout visiting will be posted to this web page (see below) sometime during January. Information about the layouts can be obtained by e-mail after January 1, 2006, or by postal mail, also after that date provided you supply a 9 x 12 self addressed envelope with four ounces of postage on it.
For registrations received before January 1, 2006, the cost to enter the meet is $25. This is a one time fee and is good for all days of the meet, and includes you, your spouse, and children (yours or not) under 18. The cost per table for rental is $35. There is no extra charge for electrical service. Prices increase after December 31, 2005!
For registrations received after December 31, 2004, the cost to enter the meet is $30. This is a one time fee and is good for all days of the meet, and includes you, your spouse, and children (yours or not) under 18. The cost per table for rental is $45. There is no extra charge for electrical service.
Note: you do not have to pre-register to enter the meet. You can register at the door. Prices will be the post-December 31 prices.
The meet will be held in the 25,000 square foot carpeted ballroom of the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara in Santa Clara, CA. Note: The Hyatt Regency was formerly the Westin.
The Hyat Regency Santa Clara Hotel is located about five miles from the San Jose International Airport. There is ample free covered parking. If you come in by airplane or train and are not renting a car, you can get to the hotel via taxi (about $20 from the San Jose airport), or via the light rail line which stops outside the hotel.
The visiting layouts and contests will be in the ballroom. Clinics, because of a need for quieter surroundings, will be held in one of the hotel's meeting rooms.
Because of the change of Westin Santa Clara to the Hyatt Regency Santa Clara, telephone numbers have changed. The new telephone number for reservations is 800-233-1234. Be sure to ask for the O Scale West rate. The fax number is 408-980-3939. The switchboard number is 408-200-1234.
O Scale West has obtained a special rate of $99 per night plus approximately 10% tax for single, double, triple, or quadruple occupancy. There is an extra charge of $15 for a roll-away bed. This rate is available for for the dates of February 1st through February 5th.
The number of rooms available at the special rate on nights other than Thursday-Saturday rate is limited. If you plan on staying in the hotel either of those nights, you should verify that a room is available at that rate before committing to air or train travel tickets. If you need alternative accommodations because the hotel is sold out, please contact Rod Miller using the contact information provided below.
Staying in the hotel is much more convenient, and helps to keep O Scale West's cost for the facility (which determines the prices charged for admission and the table rental cost) as low as can be.
A deposit of one night's lodging is required. Additional hotel contact information is included in the newsletter (see below.)
If you have any difficulties at all with your room reservation please call Bob Plageman at 650-349-1496 or Niel Chichizola at 650-591-4136.
If you are looking to share a room, O Scale West will help you make contact with someone else who also wishes to share. The two of you then work out the details on your own. All we ask is that you contact us after you have made arrangements to that we can remove your entry from the list below.
Here is how it works. Contact O Scale West using the contact information at the bottom of this page. Please provide your arrival and departure dates, how you want to be contacted, and anything else you consider important, such as your smoking preferences, etc. The web page will be updated to add an entry for you. Potential room-mates should contact OSW who will get them in contact with you. After you have made arrangements, be sure to let us know so no more people are referred to you.
The meet schedule is as follows:
This year's meet car is the Red Caboose wood reefer lettered for Western Pacific ice service. Two paint schemes will be available: silver and red.
The cars are assembled and weighted, have metal non-magnetic wheelsets, and include KD couplers that must be installed by the modeler. OSW is the only source for this model decorated for Western Pacific. Note: the wheelsets on the cars will be different from those shown in the photos; the wheelsets in the photos have been painted as part of preparing the cars for layout use. OSW will also have a limited number of conversion kits for modelers wishing to convert these cars for 3-rail operation; the kits will be extra cost.
We will also have for last years flat car meet car more loads from Smokey Mountain Minatures. The loads will include pipes, utility poles, crawler tractor treads, etc. The loads are priced from approximately $10 to $35 each.
The S scale meet car is the Pacific Rail Shops PFE reefer. It will be RTR, a first for Pacific Rail Shops. There will be two paint schemes. Each scheme will have four road numbers available. The paint schemes are the PFE double herald with a black and white UP herald, and the PFE double herald with the color UP herald.
CLICK HERE to view the layout visits schedule.
CLICK HERE to view the clinics schedule.
In general, one is an occasional seller if they are not in the model railroad business full time, and they do not sell at more than two train events in a calendar year. In other words, most of us are occasional sellers.
The following may help to illustrate this: Rod Miller has two tables at OSW. One is for his full-time model railroad-related business; for that table Rod is a business seller, and sales tax is collected and reported for sales made at that table. At his other table Rod sells his personal model railroad items. At that table he is an occasional seller.
Note: if you are in the model railroad business full time in another state, and only sell in California once a year at O Scale West, you are not an occasional seller.
The California Board of Equalization (BOE) requires OSW to collect a simple form from you that attests to your sales tax status as a seller. You must identify yourself (mailing address or California driver's license number) and check one of three boxes, which are:
OSW provides that form. You must complete it and give it to OSW in order to receive your registration packet.
If you have any questions please call Rod Miller. PLEASE do not wait until the last minute as you might be too late for you to get set up as a seller!
The October newsletter (see Newsletter below) will contain a registration form that you can use
to pre-register (note price increase after December 31, 2005.)
Note: if you registered for either the 2004 or 2005 meet, you will receive
the October newsletter.
To obtain a hard copy registration form please send an LSSAE to the O Scale West address below.
The registration form will also available on line after September 1. Click on
to download a printable copy of the form. Note: the Adobe Acrobat program is required to view and print this file. The program is available free from Adobe:
Click here to download acrobat.
Pre-registration is not required. You can register as a walk up at the meet. The $30 registration fee will apply.
Tables sell out before the meet begins, so advance registration is required if you wish to rent one or more tables.
Please note that confirmations of early registration are provided only if you provide a valid (and legible!) e-mail address or a stamped self addressed envelope.
The October newsletter tells you everything you need to know about the meet (if not, please let me know!) Note: if you registered for either the 2004 or 2005 meet, you will receive the October newsletter.
If you did not register for one of those meets and you wish to receive a copy of the the October newsletter when the mass mailing is done, please send an LSSAE with 1 oz. first class postage to the O Scale West address below.
The newsletter will also be available on-line as a PDF file. To download a copy of the newsletter, please click on
Since the newsletter page size is 11 x 17 inches, if you want to print it, try a size reduction to 65%. Depending upon your printer, it may fit on an 8 1/2 x 11 sheet.
Note: the Adobe Acrobat program is required to view and print this file. The program is available free from Adobe:
Click here to download acrobat.
Go back to the general information page.
If you attend the meet, you will receive a survey in your registration packet; please be sure to complete the survey! The survey is the organizing committee's primary tool for getting your feedback, and for testing the waters when a major change is contemplated.
