Q: I am a fan of the Penn Central RR. While visiting my local hobby shop, I saw a model of a PC caboose with a white stripe down the middle. Is it prototypical? And why the white stripe? – Mark Kroll A: Yes. Although it was uncommon, that was a prototypical scheme. I’ve seen it […]
Q: I have a couple of questions about the benchwork construction of your Spartanburg Subdivision. How large did you cut the plywood sheet? Did you attach the 1x4s to the top of the plywood sheet, or at the sides? Where did the trim pieces go? How large was the sheet of foam you put in […]
Q: When I run a unit coal train of Bethgon Coalporter gondolas, should the colored (rotary) ends face toward the front or the rear of the train? Which is most prototypical? – Nathan Penn, Monmouth, Ill. A: If possible, a double-rotary-ended car should be the first car in the train, since the coupler on the locomotive […]
Q: The axles stick in the journal boxes of some of my rolling stock. I tried scraping them out and lubricating them. Any help would be appreciated. – Christopher Kramer, Chicago A: Depending on what tool you’re using, scraping them out might be making the bearing surfaces rougher, worsening your problem. And lubricating axle bearing […]
How do I use paper turnout templates? Q: I’m looking to get back into model railroading and I’m having a hard time deciding on a layout. I’ve confused myself by looking at hundreds of plans, drawing possible layouts and trying design software. I would like to be able to use paper track templates, but I […]
Q: Next Christmas I’d like to build a small automatic direct-current layout to put in my wife’s shop window. How is it possible to make sure that when a train arrives at the station and stops, a switch is triggered, the polarity is reversed, and another train departs in the opposite direction? – Ferruccio Felletti, […]
Recent scratchbuilding efforts prompted me to come up with a simple glue applicator that would put a small amount of adhesive precisely where I wanted it. There are many commercial products to do this, but none were exactly what I needed. I took a sewing needle, measured its diameter, and drilled a slightly smaller hole […]
Q: My N scale layout is set in 1933. Several years ago, someone whose railroading knowledge I respect told me that running boards on early freight cars weren’t painted since they would be dangerously slippery when wet. However, all the models I see sold now have the running boards painted the same color as the […]
Q: When superelevating track curves with shims, is the shim placed with one of its sides along the track centerline or in the middle of the line? – Robert, last name not given A: Superelevation is where the rail on the outside of a curve is elevated slightly above the inner rail so trains transiting […]
Q: I’m relatively new to the hobby and am seriously thinking about expanding my 4 x 8-foot HO scale layout to something larger. When I read about all the great layouts that appear in your magazine every month, I often wonder how you keep a large layout clean and free from dust. Right now I […]
Q: How would a car card or waybill be noted or used for reefers needing icing or cattle needing feed and water along the way between the car’s origin and distant final destination? – Dick Piehl, Whitewater, Wis. A: Both activities are governed by time – the first by the practical limit of how long […]
Q: I’ve given up counting rivets; now I’m into what I call chronological accuracy. My layout is set in 1956. I’m OK with choosing appropriate vehicles and diesels for that era, and I learned that yellow stop signs were replaced by standardized red signs in the late 1950s, but other questions remain. When were roof walks […]
