In 1920, when American railroads emerged from 26 months of government control, the prevailing philosophy of freight-train operation was to hang as many cars as possible behind a locomotive and send it out to drag its way along the line. Three locomotive types were ideal for drag freight: 2-10-2, 2-6-6-2, and 2-8-8-2. The 2-10-2 and […]
Herron Rail Video archive In his The Unwanted Berkshires in the Spring 2004 issue of Classic Trains magazine, Jack Polaritz looks at the genesis and careers of Pittsburgh & Lake Erie 9401-9407, the last 2-8-4 design in America. After P&LE dieselized, the engines were stored, then reactivated in 1955 when another New York Central subsidiary, […]
Herron Rail Video archive In his The Unwanted Berkshires in the Spring 2004 issue of Classic Trains magazine, Jack Polaritz looks at the genesis and careers of Pittsburgh & Lake Erie 9401-9407, the last 2-8-4 design in America. After P&LE dieselized, the engines were stored, then reactivated in 1955 when another New York Central subsidiary, […]
Rivarossi HO Union Pacific 4-8-4 Northern steam locomotive Click on chart for a larger image Improved HO 4-8-4 has looks and power This HO 4-8-4 from Rivarossi is a welcome upgrade to an accurate and attractive model originally introduced in 1980. The new engine features RP-25 wheels, improved electrical pickup, flywheel drive, increased weight for […]
Lionel HO 4-6-6-4 Challenger Click on the chart for a larger image Challenger marks Lionel’s return to HO “Challenger” is one of the more dramatic names given to any steam locomotive wheel arrangement, and the new HO scale 4-6-6-4 from Lionel lives up to that moniker. It’s a well-executed model of a well-known group of […]
HOn3 Goose gallops along Click on the chart for a larger image First a bit of history. Let’s roll back the calendar to the early 1930s. The Rio Grande Southern was about to go under unless management could cut costs drastically. Necessity, or in this case desperation, can indeed be the mother of invention. The […]
Bachmann HO USRA heavy 4-8-2 Mountain steam locomotive Will fans of HO scale remember 2003 as the year of the steam locomotive? Perhaps – we’ve already seen several outstanding new releases from a variety of manufacturers. Now Bachmann has stepped forward with its second new steamer of the year, a USRA (United States Railway Administration) […]
The Wabash Railway of 1900 was part of the empire that George Gould inherited from his father Jay. Its lines linked Detroit, Toledo, Chicago, St. Louis, Kansas City, Omaha, and Des Moines, and formed major hubs at Decatur, Ill., and Moberly, Mo. It had just received trackage rights on the rails of the Grand Trunk […]
roadway Limited HO N&W Class A 2-6-6-4 steam locomotive Back in the late ’80s, my wife, Cindy, and I went to see Norfolk & Western Class A 2-6-6-4 no. 1218 when it came through Chicago on a fan trip. I’d seen quite a few other steam locomotives by that time, so I didn’t expect to […]
MTH Trains 1:32 New York Central J-3a Hudson 4-6-4 steam locomotive MTH Trains has released its long-awaited 1:32-proportion model of a New York Central J-3a Hudson with sound. Some of its features may seem unusual to scale modelers, but the model is, generally speaking, a faithful reproduction of its famous prototype. In 1937, Alco built […]
Bachmann’s HO Baldwin 4-6-0 Ten-Wheeler steam locomotive Small enough for most layouts and at home in both freight and passenger service, Bachmann’s new Spectrum line HO 4-6-0 is a well-detailed model of the steam era’s equivalent to the Geep. With detailing that compares favorably to models costing much more, it can stand up to being […]
Bachmann 1:20.3 scale Baldwin narrow gauge 2-6-0 Bachmann’s latest 1:20.3 scale steam locomotive is a tiny narrow gauge Mogul that comes ready-to-run. It’s modeled from an industrial 2-6-0 first built around 1910 by Baldwin Locomotive Works. This model is a first cousin to the larger 2-8-0 reviewed in the May 2002 issue of Model Railroader. […]
