Hosting a virtual operating session

Man with mask operating a model railroad

Hosting a virtual operating session is change. During a thoughtful dinner conversation, a friend quipped: “Count on two things. People always complain about the way things are and they always complain about change.” But our hobby numbers remarkably resourceful people who do change. When COVID-19 protocols had people hunkering down, operating sessions began to reappear, […]

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Model railroad products for the week of February 10, 2022

Five HO scale barrel ore cars in various Canadian National and Ontario Northland paint schemes on white background.

Product news Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about model railroad products like locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. Here are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of February 10, 2022.   HO scale locomotives   […]

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Ask MR: What does a scale test car do?

A yellow scale test car with green signs on the top is pulled behind a train.

    Q: What was the purpose of a scale car? Was it to check the track, and where was it located in the train? Were all Class 1 railroads required to have these cars? Were there measuring instruments in those cars? I do realize that with today’s technology they are obsolete. – Gilles Bouthillier […]

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Sketching with Steve: The Free-Mo modular standard

A sketch of the end of a Free-Mo HO scale layout module, surrounded with text describing the Free-Mo standard.

There are several modular model railroading standards out there, but one you might have heard more about recently is the Free-Mo modular standard. Like most modular standards, the Free-Mo modular standard lets you build a section of model railroad that will connect and operate with others built to the same standard. The cool thing about […]

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In Memoriam: Don Ball

man wearing glasses smiling for photographer wearing breastplate transmitter and headset.

Don Ball, a frequent contributor to Model Railroader magazine, died on January 21 at his home in Blue Springs, Mo. He was 73 years old. Most of Don’s articles focused on projects he was working on for his 37 x 40-foot HO scale Stockton & Copperopolis RR, set in 1895. The topics were wide ranging, […]

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Back on Track: Fascia and upper deck design, Episode 13

It’s a new year with new progress on Gerry Leone’s all-new HO scale layout. Of course, that means a new season of construction videos gets Back on Track right now! In this episode, you’ll see how our host made quick work of his hardboard fascia installation. While work on his upper deck isn’t quite as […]

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Using forced perspective

HO scale scene with gondola in foreground, trees behind track, and N scale structures in the distance.

Visual trickery has been part of model railroading for many years. John Allen used mirrors on his HO scale Gorre & Daphetid to make scenes appear deeper than they really were. John also made inches appear like miles on his model railroad using structures and scenery to create the illusion of distance, a technique known […]

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