The most surprising thing here is the sheer size of the vapor column rising off the locomotive roof. It is a dense, tall plume of white, and for a diesel outline unit it reads more like a hard-working steamer letting off pressure. That single detail makes the whole scene memorable.
The layout itself is a large-scale train running indoors on a green foam board surface. Power comes from an MRC Train Power 4 controller sitting near the edge of the board. The consist is a blue and yellow Santa Fe diesel wearing the number 2353, coupled to a Santa Fe freight car, with a caboose bringing up the rear. The marker lights on that caboose are lit, which adds a nice finishing touch to the train.
Getting there took real bench work: small screwdrivers, wiring, a blue case and some cylindrical hand tools were laid out, along with a clear supply bottle. The maker runs the unit on Mega steam and calls that set the finest starter kit they have ever purchased.
One thing is still open. A G scale smoke unit needs a long warm-up period, and the maker was trying to fire the diesel up from cold, so the full behavior once everything reaches temperature remains to be seen. The maker also joked that the locomotive identifies as a vacuum cleaner, which gives a fair sense of how much vapor is pouring out.