Q: Here are several photos of an HO scale wall hanging diorama that I bought at a garage sale. I’m trying to learn more about it. However, I can’t make out the artist’s last name on the back and I can’t find an address or phone number for the company whose name is also stamped […]
Q: I model some small industries and businesses in the early 1950s. Were pallets and forklifts in common use at that time? – Chris Gabel, Loveland, Colo. A: As you alluded to, the development of the pallet went hand-in-hand with the development of the hand-operated pallet jack and its motorized version, the forklift. Prior to […]
Q: I saw some kind work train on my local BNSF line today that I’ve never seen before and I was curious as to what it was. The thing that surprised me the most is it looks like double stack well cars were converted to MOW duty. Is that the case? – James Cox, Portales, […]
Q: I’ve searched all over the internet for information on how to build a model railroad when you’re in a wheelchair, but I’ve found nothing. Nada! Zilch! Can you help, please? I’m desperate! – Joe Kienlen, Conshohocken, Pa. A: Though we haven’t run an article specifically about how to build a layout while using a […]
Q: Are Atlas turnouts “DCC friendly” in the way Walthers turnouts are advertised? Do I need to do anything special to make Snap-Switches and other track products operate properly on a Digitrax DCC powered layout? – Edward Gardineer, East Berne, N.Y. A: Before I answer your question, I have to give you two caveats. First, […]
Q: Where did Pelle Søeborg get the parts for his utility poles? They’re the most correctly done of any I have seen. – James Bodnar, Brunswick, Ohio A: Luckily, Pelle wrote an article for us explaining not only what parts he used, but how he used them. “Quick and easy utility poles” was published in […]
Q: After five decades away from model railroading, I dug into my trove of old N scale track, locomotives, and rolling stock, and built a small, old-school, direct-current layout. I moved on to build a sizable layout with new Atlas flextrack affixed to a Homasote surface. Track laying was completed by mid-summer last year. But after the […]
Question: In the days when passenger trains carried open-platform observation cars, which passengers were allowed to occupy the platform? Was this subject to permission of the conductor, payment of an extra charge, or was it simply on a first-come, first-served basis? — John W. Eiszner, Indianapolis Answer: Open-platform cars and their successors, the round and […]
Q: I have an old Rivarossi locomotive from a Northern Pacific passenger set. Have you ever run an article on adding a DCC decoder to one of these? – Chuck Kvasnicka, Chicago, Ill. A: Former DCC Corner columnist Mike Polsgrove ran a column titled “Installing a decoder in a Rivarossi locomotive” in our April 2006 […]
Q: Recently, while driving along a highway in the vicinity of Lindsay, Mont., I came across a long, continuous line of covered hoppers. The photograph I took hardly does it justice. These cars stretched on for the better part of eight miles across the Montana prairie. I’d never seen such a thing before. From what […]
Q: I recently purchased the Kato 20th Century Limited in N scale. The documentation with the set says that run-through service was provided with the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe. Where can I find information on which ATSF cars were used for this service and where would they be cut into the NYC consist? – […]
Q: Have the model railroad manufacturers ever considered making the wheels on car trucks free-wheeling, or more specifically, independent of the axles? It seems to me that trucks would bind less on tighter radius curves if each wheel could rotate independently. – Wilt Nelson, Leesburg, Fla. A: Wheels and axles on model trains are solid […]
