Micro-Trains N scale NSC 60-foot high-cube double-door boxcar

A contemporary 60-foot high-cube double-door boxcar with exterior posts is the latest N scale body style from Micro-Trains Line Co. The model, based on a National Steel Car (NSC) prototype, has body-mounted couplers, metal wheels, and a mix of molded and separate, factory-applied details. Exterior Our sample is decorated as TBOX no. 667101, part of […]

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WalthersProto HO scale EMD FP7 and F7B

WalthersProto HO scale EMD FP7 and F7B

Walthers has reissued its HO scale Electro-Motive Division FP7 and F7B diesel locomotives with new tooling and a LokSound 5 Digital Command Control sound decoder. And wow, is it a brute. The pair of locomotives together mustered almost 2⁄3 of a pound of drawbar pull in our benchwork test and wrestled 30 cars up a […]

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Accurail announces custom-decorated cars for “virtual Trainfest”

Three BN two-bay Center Flow covered hoppers painted gray with black graphics.

Accurail, an Elburn, Ill.-based manufacturer of easy-to-build HO scale injection-molded plastic kits, announced the models it will be offering for “virtual Trainfest.” Accurail has a longstanding tradition of producing custom-run cars for the annual train show, which has been on hiatus the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s lineup includes Burlington […]

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Review: Rapido HO scale New Look bus

Three Rapido New Look buses in varying paint schemes

Rapido has returned with the second release of its HO scale New Look buses, and this time the vehicles are packed with an array of intricate details and new features that come together to create a model that impresses with its levels of realism. The New Look buses were originally built by General Motors in […]

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John Vavra’s HO scale Santa Fe Lines

Track plan overview

Facts & features Name: Santa Fe Lines Scale: HO (1:87.1) and HOn3 (36″ narrow gauge) Size: 20 x 22 feet Prototype: Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe and the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Locale: Northern Arizona/Southwestern Colorado Era: 1994 Style: walk-in Mainline run: 150 feet (Santa Fe) plus 110 feet (D&S) Minimum radius: 24″ (ATSF), […]

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What is a mobile decoder?

An array of Digital Command Control decoders sits before a pair of HO scale diesels

Q: In the sidebar “Building consists” on page 39 of the April 2021 issue [add link to digital issue here], the author refers to a “mobile decoder.” What is that, and how does it reinforce something called a DCC track bus? I’m new to DCC and unfamiliar with both of those terms. – Dave Smith, […]

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Model railroad locomotive, freight car, passenger car, structure, detail, weathering supply, electronic/control, and book announcements for October 21, 2021

Maersk Sealand 40-foot high-cube refrigerated intermodal container.

Product news Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about 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 October 21, 2021. HO scale locomotives General Electric Dash 9-44CW diesel locomotive. […]

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