Quick Look: BlueRail Trains App upgrade

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Price: Free Manufacturer BlueRail Trains 2540½ Foothill Dr. Vista, CA 92084-6578 www.bluerailtrains.com Comments: For modelers who use BlueRail Trains or Bachmann E-Z App Bluetooth train control, a recent upgrade adds consisting and speed matching functionality. BlueRail Trains introduced its Bluetooth control system a couple of years ago. A touch screen on a smartphone, tablet, or […]

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Locomotives’ minimum speed

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An ammeter in a GP40-2 with the short-time rating plate below. Note the duplicate time chart listed on the gauge as well. Chris Guss Q Why is it that a D.C. traction locomotive can stay below its continuous full-power minimum speed limit for only 30 minutes while an A.C. traction unit can grind away in […]

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New products from the September 2017 issue of Classic Toy Trains

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SURVEYORS OF THE SEA LANES: Menards has bolstered its O gauge product line with two more flatcars with helicopter loads. The no. 279-3398 is a U.S. Navy flatcar with Navy MH60R anti-submarine warfare helicopter onboard. The no. 29-3396 U.S. Coast Guard flatcar with general-purpose MH65 rescue and patrol helicopter will handle operations closer to shore. […]

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InterMountain N scale SD40-2 with sound

InterMountain N scale SD40-2

InterMountain N scale SD40-2 Our review sample features a split die-cast metal frame and ESU LokSound decoder. The metal contacts were bent down to make better electrical contact. A newly tooled N scale SD40-2 with a detail level that rivals larger scale models joins the InterMountain Ry. roster. For the most part the 1:160-proportion model […]

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WalthersProto HO scale EMD GP35 diesel

WalthersProto HO scale EMD GP35 diesel locomotive

WalthersProto HO scale EMD GP35 diesel locomotive The WalthersProto GP35 has a die-cast metal frame. A metal weight surrounds the motor and flywheels and supports the decoder and speaker enclosure. The model has the thin side sill of a Phase II locomotive, as well as the later raised inertial filter hatch. The BN engine has […]

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Atlas HO scale FMC 5347 boxcar

Atlas HO scale FMC 5347 boxcar

Atlas HO scale FMC 5347 boxcar Separately applied brake hardware and wire brake rods are just some of the underbody details on the Atlas HO scale FMC 5347 boxcar. A new HO scale boxcar based on a 1970s prototype has been released by Atlas Model Railroad Co. The FMC 5,347-cubic-foot-capacity boxcar features a one-piece injection-molded […]

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Quick Look: Tangent HO 40-foot Mini Hy-Cube boxcar

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Tangent HO 40-foot Mini Hy-Cube boxcar Price: $44.95 Manufacturer Tangent Scale Models P.O. Box 6514 Asheville, NC 28816 www.tangentscalemodels.com Era: 1967 to 1990 (as decorated) Road names: Chicago, Burlington & Quincy; Burlington Northern; Denver & Rio Grande Western; Illinois Central; Milwaukee Road; and Northern Pacific. Multiple road numbers per scheme. Undecorated kit also available. Comments: […]

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New model trains for the week of July 13, 2017

Rapido Trains HO scale General Motors Diesel Division SW1200RS diesel locomotive

Rapido Trains HO scale General Motors Diesel Division SW1200RS diesel locomotive HO scale locomotives General Motors Diesel Division SW1200RS diesel locomotive. Canadian National (“wet noodle” herald with black cab and red/orange cab, and North America scheme with small “wet noodle” herald) and Canadian Pacific (block and script lettering, Action Red with 5” stripes and Multimark […]

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Mike McGrattan’s Memorial Train visits the C&W

Mike McGrattan Memorial Train

Mike McGrattan was a father, husband and empathetic citizen. He was also a well known N scale modeler and an employee of Rapido Trains. Mike passed away about a year ago, but he is far from forgotten. In his memory, members of The Railwire online community organized a special passenger train which has visited and […]

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