Layouts controlled with a conventional transformer are still as popular and practical as ever. The basic electrical principles of this setup haven’t changed since their origin, but you may find it helpful to refresh your understanding of how things work. William Zuback Of all the questions fielded by the staff of Classic Toy Trains, inquiries […]
Lionel Corporation Tinplate O gauge Nos. 256 electric locomotive and 700-series passenger cars from MTH Locomotive price: $499.95 (no. 11-6061-1) Min. Curve: O-31 Speed range: 3 smph to 65 smph Drawbar pull: 1 lb., 2 oz. Features: Two flywheel-equipped can-style motors, stamped-steel construction, latch couplers, ProtoSound 3.0 sound and DCS command control. Passenger three-car set: […]
O gauge Old Weathered Barn from Woodland Scenics Price: $169.99 (no. BR5865) Dimensions: 10 1/4 inches wide, 7 13/16 inches deep, and 77/8 inches high. Features: fieldstone foundation, shake-shingled roof, hayloft door, grain silo, implement shed, intricately styled paned windows, traditional barn doors, and a printed interior. Power: Just Plug Power Supply (Woodland Scenics Nos. […]
Eric Siegel photo O gauge scale Polar Express 2-8-4 Berkshire from Lionel Locomotive price: $1,349.99 (no. 84685) Min. Curve: O-54 Speed range: 1.6 smph to 100.7 smph Drawbar pull: 2 lb., 12 oz. Features: Lionel Legacy TrainMaster Command Control; RailSounds sound system including CrewTalk dialog, TowerConn announcements, and DynaChuff; Bluetooth connectivity for LionChief app control; […]
HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division GP7 and GP9B diesel locomotives. GP7: Missouri Pacific (Jenks Blue); Pennsylvania RR (Dark Green Locomotive Enamel); Quanah, Acme & Pacific (black-and-yellow scheme, one road number); and St. Louis-San Francisco (black-and-yellow scheme). GP9B: Pennsylvania RR (Dark Green Locomotive Enamel). Four road numbers per scheme unless noted. Factory-installed and painted wire grab […]
TOPEKA, Kan. — The Kansas Court of Appeals has found for BNSF Railway in a case regarding state law on blocked grade crossings, saying in a decision released Friday that federal jurisdiction preempts state law. Officials in Chase County, Kan., had cited the railroad for blocking grade crossings for more than the 10 minutes allowed […]
Pennsylvania Railroad donated K4s No. 1361 to the city of Altoona, Pa., on June 8, 1957, shortly before this photo was taken. J.J. Young Jr. Q Why was Pennsylvania K4s No. 1361 returned to Altoona, Pa., for display instead of being restored to service? – Joseph Reihing, Elizabeth, N.J. A Although the 4-6-2 is in […]
“Glory!” Doubleheaded Southern Railway Ps-4’s depart Charlottesville, Va., with an Atlanta-bound train in 1951. I. W. King My father, I. W. King, grew up in Greenville, S.C., where his father, I. E. King, was a telegraph operator for the Southern Railway. Like most railroad families, they often used the employee pass to visit relatives. Many […]
HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division GP40-2 diesel locomotive. Alaska RR (dark blue and yellow with “Alaska Railroad” on long hood), BNSF Ry. (blue-and-white scheme, one road number), Conrail (“Quality” scheme), GATX Locomotive Group (blue-and-black scheme), Indiana Harbor Belt (orange-and-black scheme, three numbers), Norfolk Southern (Conrail “Quality” scheme patchout, two numbers), and Union Pacific (lighting stripe […]
The skeleton of a desert in progress at Scott Kennedy’s East Bay Union Railroad at one end of his dogbone trackplan. A flagstone plateau supports the track and retains soil while a dry creek provides drainage and a footpath. Nancy Norris In the fleshed-out desert, a dwarf, blue-green olive tree (Olea ‘Little Ollie’) flanks the […]
In the December 2018 issue of Model Railroader, Tom Houle shows how he scratchbuilt an exact O scale model of the Soo Line train depot in Dallas, Wis. As an online bonus, download the cutting diagrams featured in the story, as well as the standard plans for a Wisconsin & Northern depot that he used […]
We didn’t have room to publish all the photos from Eric Brooman’s spectacular HO scale Utah Belt, featured in the December 2018 Model Railroader. Check out these bonus trackside images. […]
