January 2026

The January 2026 issue of Model Railroader

Scratchbuild a ballasted deck trestle

Build around in-place track to match prototype

Building a craftsman wood car kit

A few modern updates help bring this once-in-a-lifetime project to completion

The MR&T’s East Troy Industrial Park RR

This HO scale proto-freelanced project railroad features modern urban switching with a museum twist

Bringing the trains back to southern Ontario

The Sun Parlour Lines features bridge traffic on the Chesapeake & Ohio, New York Central, and Pere Marquette

Detail and weather a gondola

Plus learn how to model three loads for this drop-bottom HO scale car

The world of L gauge railroading

There’s a lot of versatility in those little plastic bricks

Build a small stone arch bridge

Learn how to make clay masters, build a mold box, and more with this project

ON TRAINS.COM, pg. 6
The latest features on our website

FROM THE EDITOR, pg. 8
New year, new projects

NEWS AND REVIEWS, pg. 10
Hobby industry news

ASK MR, pg. 18
Veedersburg, Ind., signals

STEP BY STEP, pg. 24
Make your own photo backdrops

TRACKSIDE PHOTOS, pg. 70

INDEX OF ADVERTISERS AND CARTOON pg. 81

TRAINS OF THOUGHT, pg. 82
The long and short of it