A track worker hammers in spikes on a turnout. Steve Smedley Rusty track spikes near Canadian Pacific tracks at Brookfield, Wis, in 2012. Karl Riek The Golden Spike of the first transcontinental railroad was but one of millions in the nearly 2,000-mile route between Sacramento, Calif., and Omaha, Neb. Spikes date back to the first […]
Notable U.S. and Canadian railroad completions Trains: Rick Johnson Promontory Summit, Utah, may have hosted North America’s most famous final-spike ceremony, but the event on May 10, 1869, was not unique. Not all railroads had a completion “moment:” the New York Central is an example of a railroad formed through a series of mergers and […]
Railroad spike diagram Rick Johnson SPIKE dimensions are precise and have been set by such groups as the American Railway Engineering and Maintenance-of-Way Association for decades. Spikes are made of relatively low-carbon steel, which is softer than the steel used in rail and spike mauls. This is important because when a spike is driven, it […]
A simple track cleaning car inspired by John D. Allen and the master model railroader’s Gorre & Daphetid Railroad. Lou Sassi Being an admirer of the late John D. Allen, I read with interest every article I can find concerning his Gorre & Daphetid Railroad. In the process I’ve learned of an interesting device John […]
Wm. K. Walthers Inc. HO scale Electro-Motive Division Phase II GP9 with low short hood HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division Phase II GP9 with low short hood. Chicago & North Western, Burlington Northern, Milwaukee Road, Canadian Pacific, Norfolk Southern, and Wisconsin & Southern. Four road numbers per scheme (two each in direct current and Digital […]
The latest name train from Wm. K. Walthers is the HO scale Milwaukee Road Twin Cities Hiawatha. Walthers HO scale Milwaukee Road 63-foot Railway Post Office Walthers HO scale Milwaukee Road 75-foot express car Walthers HO scale Milwaukee Road 498-series 52-seat coach Walthers HO scale Milwaukee Road 535-series 52-seat coach Walthers HO scale Milwaukee Road […]
MRVP’s Charlie Conway continues his UK visit with fellow MRVP Contributing Editor Kathy Millatt. This time Chas gets to explore Kathy’s beautiful home, garden, and HO scale New Haven layout! Of course, cameras were rolling to capture the tour, interview, and a quick look around Kathy’s neighborhood. […]
Follow Charlie Conway, as he visits the UK to see fellow MRVP Contributing Editor Kathy Millatt. Chas arrived just in time to capture Kathy on the set of the popular British TV show, The Great Model Railway Challenge! Catch exclusive behind the scene views of the set and the astonishing sights at the hosting Fawley […]
Rail-Scale-Models acquired the design and production rights to Rusty Stumps Scale Models’ Laser-Cut Craftsman Kits product line in March 2019. The structure line features more than 20 buildings in HO, S, and O scales. The deal follows Rail-Scale-Models’ 2018 acquisition of Rusty Stumps Scale Models Laser-Cut Details line. Rusty Stumps Scale Models will continue to […]
Missed a part? [Read Part 1] [Read Part 2] Excellent low-end O gauge sets As nice as the O-27 outfits were, the kids poring through a Lionel wishbook didn’t stop with them. They spent lots of time checking out the O gauge sets, believing that Lionel saved the best of its 1954 product line for […]
1. Retired but still active, Jerry and Alison Ogden maintain their Possum Creek Railroad to stay lush, with wall-to-wall plants they bought from Miniature Plant Kingdom. At this stage, six years after its initial construction, the trackplan still works and access is easy, but several unruly or languishing plants have been replaced. Jerry started with […]
Workers who built the first Transcontinental Railroad, by hand, in the late 1860s labored through grueling heat, biting winter cold, snow, attacks from Native American tribes, and long, long work days. Learn how they did it with this excerpt from one of Trains’ newest DVD’s, Journey To Promontory, available from the Kalmbach Hobby Store. […]
