The MTH Premier Hudson is a modern classic

The MTH Premier Hudson Pacemaker front end

The MTH Premier Hudson is a modern incarnation of arguably the most iconic steam locomotive ever made in O scale. The classic 4-6-4 wheel arrangement, originally offered in by Lionel in 1937, can be seen on artwork from decades ago and carried on today by the works of artists like Angela Trotta Thomas. Due to […]

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Menards Johnson’s Texaco Station

Menards Johnson’s Texaco Station

Menards Johnson’s Texaco Station is the latest structure release from the home-improvement chain. Many of its structures are made of wood and a few out of resin. This one is plastic. It isn’t the first one made of the material; previous low-relief buildings like Dave’s Garage, Ray’s Wreckers, and current-production Sinclair Garage are also plastic. […]

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Lionel The Chessie Legacy Greenbrier

Lionel The Chessie Greenbrier front

The Lionel The Chessie Legacy Greenbrier is big. It’s colorful. It’s a steam engine. Should steamers be colorful? Like it or not, fantasy paint schemes on them seem to be an attractive alternative to the prototypical (mostly) black models. This one was featured in 2022’s Volume 2 catalog. A look back at previous offerings indicates […]

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Bachmann N scale Siemens SC-44 Charger

Screen shot from Bachmann N scale SC-44 Charger Product Review video.

The Bachmann Trains N scale Siemens SC-44 Charger diesel locomotive recently visited our Milwaukee, Racine & Troy State Line Route layout. Model Railroader editor Eric White and senior editor Cody Grivno discuss the features on the modern engine and take it for lap on our 4 x 12-foot layout. Paint schemes on the Bachmann N […]

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A look at the Lionel 2023 Volume 2 catalog

screenshot of model steam locomotive in catalog

The Lionel 2023 Volume 2 catalog is here! Sometimes Christmas does come twice a year, in the world of toy trains this celebration is typically associated with a catalog drop. For Lionel, that takes place in January and July. I typically can find something in each catalog that gets me excited for what’s to come. […]

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A look at the Atlas P42 locomotive

blue and silver model locomotive

The latest Premier locomotive from Atlas has hit the shelves! The P42 Genesis locomotive was developed from a previous MTH tooling that Atlas O acquired during the MTH tooling sale three or so years ago. This O gauge Premier line model sports some great Amtrak paint schemes The P42 was expected to be announced in […]

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First run of the Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado

Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado cab detail

With the release of the Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado, it seems that we’ve returned to pre-pandemic manufacturing timelines with the manufacturer. This Legacy engine, cataloged in Lionel’s 2022 Volume II edition, has been delivered in less than a year. This is another product made with tooling acquired from MTH Trains a few years ago. […]

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The MTH VO1000 diesel is a solid switcher

MTH VO1000 diesel

The MTH VO1000 diesel is a  good-running, heavy, and well detailed model of the Baldwin switcher. The latest run features Protosound 3.0 with freight sound effects, LED lighting, and a fan-driven smoke unit. In addition to the four road names produced by the manufacturer, there have also been several other special runs commissioned. Read more […]

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Checking out the 3rd Rail GP9 locomotive

3rd Rail GP9 locomotive

The 3rd Rail GP9 locomotive models the durable first-generation diesel-electric workhorse. The follow-on to the GP7, it was perhaps the exclamation point on the phrase, “Steam is gone and it’s not coming back!” General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division produced a whopping 4,257 including 165 cabless units between 1954 and 1963. GP stands  for “general purpose” and […]

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K-Line O gauge Amtrak F40PH

K-Line O gauge Amtrak F40PH

The K-Line O gauge Amtrak F40PH has launched fans of the National Passenger Rail Corp. into heaven. Not only are there a host of toy-like Amtrak engines and cars available, there has also been a virtual explosion of scale and semi-scale gear in the colors of their favorite federal program. If the E8 is a […]

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Rapido Trains HO scale P-S New Haven County-series baggage-lounge cars

Orange, silver, and black model train passenger cars showing silver baggage door with two small windows.

Rapido Trains HO scale P-S New Haven County-series baggage-lounge cars: Rapido Trains has been a great friend to New Haven passenger train modelers, providing icons such as the EP-5 electric passenger locomotive, EMD FL9s, and an ever-growing fleet of HO scale NH Pullman-Standard stainless-steel and lightweight Osgood-Bradley passenger cars. The most recent additions are the […]

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The MTH Baldwin VO1000 is a sturdy O gauge switcher

MTH Baldwin VO1000 front view

The MTH Baldwin VO1000 switcher has arrived. This Premier line model was announced in mid-April 2022. It’s a solid locomotive for any size layout with wonderfully detailed features. It’s not uncommon for MTH to put smaller locomotives like the VO1000 in its scale RailKing lineup; however, for this run we get a purple box and […]

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