INEXPENSIVE IS NOT BAD. Cheap is bad, but not inexpensive. Cheap means flimsy material and poor reliability. Inexpensive means “I’ll take two, instead.” Lionel seems to be steering the K-Line product line in a specific direction – and that direction appears to be smart, economical trains, rather than the high-dollar super-spectacular locomotives we came to […]
Watch Bob’s video introduction of Atlas O’s Industrial Rail starter set. Only from Classic Toy Trains. […]
Here is a video of the MTH RailKing diesel freight set. […]
ALTHOUGH THE SHAPE OF THE P5a BOXCAB bears a strong resemblance to a plastic cheese storage box, don’t let that fool you. This model illustrates the high level of detail that can go into a die-cast metal diesel or locomotive shell. […]
Action video of the SuperStreets sets by K-Line by Lionel can be viewed below. […]
Athearn N scale FP45 and F45 The semi-streamlined successor to Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe warbonnet-clad F units, Electro-Motive Division FP45s served briefly in passenger service but had long freight-hauling careers, as did the F45. The Athearn N scale FP45 and F45 feature many prototype- specific details. Prototype. In 1966, the Atchison, Topeka & Santa […]
Broadway Limited Imports HO scale PRR I1sa 2-10-0 Models of the Pennsylvania RR’s powerful class I1sa Decapod-type locomotives have just been introduced by Broadway Limited Imports. They’re offered in a number of versions that capture the look and feel of PRR’s standard motive power design. The models include automatic dual-mode sound decoders that operate on […]
Zimo Electronk MX31ZL Digital Command Control (DCC) system While this Digital Command Control (DCC) starter set is easy enough for a novice to set up and operate, the Zimo MX31ZL also has a wide array of advanced programming features and operating capabilities that would satisfy expert DCC users. Getting started. I set up the Zimo […]
Atlas HO scale 1932 ARA boxcar You might think there are few significant freight cars that haven’t been represented by HO plastic models. That assumption is a little closer to being true because of this convincing Atlas model of the American Railway Association (ARA) standard boxcar of 1932. In 1932, the ARA, the predecessor of […]
I’M VERY PLEASED TO NOTE that if I was mildly disappointed in Lionel’s scale-detailed GP7 (see November 2008 reviews), the firm’s O gauge rendering of a pinnacle of modern locomotion, the EMD SD70ACe, has more than made up for it in the Department of Wow. The prototype has plenty of detail points to model, and […]
Dennis H. Murphy Boy, what a difference a day can make. Let me back up a bit and fill you in on a big change in my life. Well, at least my “hobby life”. I model N-Scale, and really enjoy the building of models for my layout. I use an airbrush to paint most everything, […]
Walthers HO scale Fairbanks-Morse H-10-44 diesel switcher A semi-streamlined carbody developed by famed industrial designer Raymond Loewy made the Fairbanks-Morse H-10-44 a distinctive entry into the diesel switcher market. Many H-10-44s had careers that spanned 40 years. The new Proto 2000 from Walthers HO scale H-10-44 is available in a version that includes a dual-mode […]
