Leverage

Pulling the correct lever is an important matter for operators of Metra’s Tower A2 in western Chicago in September 2013. This pneumatic lever machine uses brass rods to trigger air pulses to switch more than 100 points on Union Pacific headed due west out of downtown. Photo by Steve Sweeney […]

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Auxiliary tenders

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Southern Railway 2-8-0 No. 630 on a Norfolk Southern excursion carries 10,000 gallons of water in its tender and an additional 12,500 gallons in its auxiliary tender to negate the need for additional water between stops. Allyson Praytor Q I saw a television show where steam locomotives were operating with two tenders instead of just […]

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Ten years on the Tuscarora

Ten years on the Tuscarora

Name: Tuscarora Railroad Scale: 1:20.3 Era: 1910s Age: 10 years Minimum radius: 5′ Total track length: approximately 300′, double reverse loop with sidings Track material: code-250 brass (AMS w/ Sunset Valley switches) Power: Battery R/C and live steam Maximum grade: 2.5% Area: 30′ x 65′ Website: http://tuscarorarailroad.blogspot.com Download a PDF of the article here. […]

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The last dance

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The boiler explosion at Serra, Calif., that destroyed Mikado 3199 and killed its watchman took the classic form of such incidents, with the boiler being catapulted hundreds of yards from the running gear. Jack O. Elwood coll. During the era of steam locomotives, many of us in engine service loved those gallant machines, but we […]

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Video: WalthersMainline HO scale SD70ACe

WalthersMainline HO scale SD70ACe

This HO scale Electro-Motive Diesel SD70ACe from Walthers models a modern era workhorse. Part of the WalthersMainline series the locomotive model includes a SoundTraxx Digital Command Control (DCC) sound decoder. Get a demo of some of the locomotive’s features as it hauls a model train on one of the Model Railroader staff’s project layouts. […]

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Video: WalthersMainline HO scale SD70ACe

WalthersMainline HO scale SD70ACe

This HO scale Electro-Motive Diesel SD70ACe from Walthers models a modern era workhorse. Part of the WalthersMainline series the locomotive model includes a SoundTraxx Digital Command Control (DCC) sound decoder. Get a demo of some of the locomotive’s features as it hauls a model train on one of the Model Railroader staff’s project layouts. […]

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Railroad Reading: Blue-chip investment

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The cover of Yanosey’s first Lehigh Valley book, one of Morning Sun’s early titles. Editor’s note: This story first appeared in the August 2006 issue of Trains Magazine in the “Railroad Reading” section. Recently one of my authors at Morning Sun, who is writing a Lehigh Valley book, came here and immediately stated, “I didn’t […]

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