Rapido Trains HO TurboTrain 2.0

Futuristic toy train painted in red, white, and black colors on a model base with green grass and a tan concrete culvert in front of a blue sky backdrop with white fluffy clouds.

Rapido Trains Inc. has released an updated version of its highly detailed HO scale model of United Aircraft’s TurboTrain. The firm is calling this release TurboTrain 2.0. Much like the real high-speed train sets developed and built in the late 1960s and then upgraded through their service lives, Rapido’s own HO scale model of the […]

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Menards HO scale Grandma’s House

Color photo of HO scale house with blue siding and gray roof on scenicked base with a tree in the front yard, shrubs, a motorcycle, and figures.

Price: $49.99 Manufacturer Menards 5106 Menard Dr. Eau Claire, WI 54703 menards.com/trains Era: 1930s to present Comments: Kids on the porch swing, a dog in the front yard, and a neatly manicured yard. Those are just some of the highlights of Grandma’s House, a new HO scale structure from Menards. The two-story house has laser-cut […]

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Rapido HO PFE R-40-28 refrigerator car

Color photo of HO scale refrigerator car painted orange and black on white background.

Pacific Fruit Express class R-40-27 and R-40-28 ice cooled refrigerator cars are now available in HO scale from Rapido Trains. The models, offered for the first time in plastic, are scaled from prototype blueprints and field measurements. Product features include wire grab irons; prototype-specific brake wheel, running boards, and cooling fan housings; and body-mounted Lincoln-Washington […]

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Walthers HO ACF 5250 review

Color photo of HO scale covered hopper painted gray with red and black graphics on white background

A newly tooled American Car & Foundry 5,250-cubic-foot capacity four-bay Center Flow covered hopper has joined the WalthersMainline product range. The injection-molded plastic HO scale model features prototype-specific hatches and outlet gates, 36″ metal wheels on plastic axles, and body-mounted Proto-Max couplers. Prototype history American Car & Foundry introduced the 5250 Center Flow in 1964. […]

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N scale EMD NW2 from Broadway Limited

Color photo of N scale end-cab switcher painted gray with yellow stripe.

Broadway Limited has released a new run of its N scale Electro-Motive Division NW2 diesel locomotive. The end-cab switcher features a die-cast metal body and chassis, all-wheel electrical pickup, factory-applied detail parts, and body-mounted couplers. The prototype Electro-Motive Division built the NW2 from February 1939 through December 1949. Production was paused from 1942 to 1945 […]

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Athearn Genesis HO EMD GP38-2 review

Color photo of HO scale diesel locomotive painted orange and black on white background

  An upgraded HO scale Electro-Motive Division GP38-2 is available from Athearn. The Genesis-series model is now offered with illuminated number boxes and class lights, along with light-emitting-diode lighting and all-wheel drive and electrical pickup. Prototype history Electro-Motive Division produced the GP38-2 from January 1972 through July 1986. During the course of the production run, […]

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Aurora Miniatures HO scale SD50F

Color photo showing front end of HO scale diesel painted gray and orange on white background.

A General Motors Diesel Ltd. SD50F is the second HO scale road locomotive released by Aurora Miniatures North America Inc. The six-axle unit, based on a prototype built for Canadian National, features an injection-molded plastic body; a heavy, die-cast zinc alloy chassis; and an assortment of light-emitting-diode lighting features. Prototype history Canadian National ordered two […]

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Athearn N F89-F flatcar review

Color photo of N scale flatcar with trailer load on white background.

Price: Flatcar only, $43.99; flatcar with 45-foot trailer, $69.99 Manufacturer Athearn Trains 2904 Research Rd. Champaign, IL 61822 athearn.com Road names: Trailer Train (mineral red and yellow schemes), Kansas City Southern, and Southern Pacific. Three road numbers per scheme (two without trailer, one with). Era: 1960s+ to 1990s+ (varies by paint scheme) Comments: Athearn recently […]

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Atlas HO NSC newsprint boxcar

Color photo of HO scale boxcar painted green and black on white background

The National Steel Car Corp. 50-foot newsprint boxcar is the latest addition to the Master Line from Atlas Model Railroad Co. The model, based on tooling the manufacturer acquired from True Line Trains in 2020, features molded and separate, factory-applied detail parts; 33” metal wheelsets; and body-mounted Accumate couplers. Prototype history Between 1967 and 1971, […]

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Rapido HO scale EMD F40PHM-2

Color photo of streamline diesel locomotive

The Electro-Motive Division F40PHM-2 is the latest HO scale commuter diesel from Rapido Trains. The four-axle unit uses plastic and die-cast metal construction and has numerous factory-applied detail parts and an assortment of lighting functions. Prototype history Electro-Motive Division produced the F40PHM-2 between October 1991 and December 1992. Initial assembly was done in London, Ontario, […]

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Bluford Shops N scale mill gondola

Color photo showing B end details of N scale gondola.

A 52’-6”, 15-panel gondola with factory-dented sides is now available from Bluford Shops. The N scale injection-molded plastic model, offered with light, medium, and heavy denting, features metal wheelsets, body-mounted couplers, and railroad-specific end and hand brake options. Prototype history The Bluford Shops model is based on a  design developed by the Erie RR and […]

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Otter Valley Railroad N scale gondola

Color photo of N scale freight car painted black with white graphics.

Price: Single car, $37.99; six-pack, $219.99 Manufacturer Otter Valley Railroad Inc. 37 Tillson St., Unit E Tillsonburg, Ontario, Canada N4G 0B7 ovrtrains.com Road names: American Iron & Metal Co. (20000 and 21000 series), Midwest Railcar Corp., Triple M Metal, and XRMX. Also available painted black with data only. Six to 12 road numbers per paint […]

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