If a Transcontinental Railroad were Built Today

Union Pacific transcontinental railroad construction crew

Construction crews working westward on the Union Pacific encountered rough going when they reached Utah’s Weber Canyon. Trains collection If you built a transcontinental railroad today from scratch, how long would it take, given the regulatory environment of the modern world? Nobody knows for sure, but the best guess is about 57 years. Here’s a […]

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Year-by-year, a timeline of completing the Transcontinental Railroad

Timeline Union Pacific transcontinenta lrailroad building Archer Wyoming

Union Pacific trains and ocvered wagons congregate near the end of track at Archer, Wyo., in 1867 during construction westward. Union Pacific 1832: Proponents call for transcontinental railroad 1845: New England merchant and traveler, Asa Whitney begins advocacy for Pacific Railroad 1853: Congress appropriates $150,000 for survey of five routes 1855-1860: 12 volumes of findings […]

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3D Track Plans: The HO scale Copper Basin Railway

HO scale Copper Basin Railway 3d track plan

Having trouble viewing this video?   Please visit our Video FAQ page In this exclusive MRVP video, subscribers are treated to a unique 3-D rendering inspired by recent episodes of MRVP’s Taking Care of Business and Drew’s Trackside Adventures. After reading about the railroad in Model Railroading: The Ultimate Guide 2019, you’ll enjoy Ben Lake’s virtual […]

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HO scale Belfast and Vinehaven RR

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Click on the image to download a PDF of the track plan. Name: Belfast & ­Vinehaven RR and Portland & Mystic Line Layout owner: Arnie Hall Scale: HO and HOn3 (1:87.1) Size: 25 x 40 feet Prototype: Freelanced bridge line Locale: New England coast Era: mid-1940s to early 1950s Style: around-the-walls Mainline run: 110 feet […]

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Howard Clark’s HO scale model railroad

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Click on the image to download a PDF of the track plan. Name: Howard Clark’s model railroad Layout owner: Howard Clark Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 10′-8″ x 20′-0″ Theme: freelanced urban railroad, inspired by Baltimore & Ohio, New York Central, and Nickel Plate Road Locale: eastern United States Era: 1950s Style: multi-level walk-in Mainline run: […]

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What’s in a photograph?: Norfolk & Western at Blue Ridge, Va.

View from the cab of a Norfolk & Western 2-6-6-4 steam locomotive on an eastbound freight in 1953 at Blue Ridge, West Virginia. The photograph is black and white with 12 numbered callouts.

1 Split-point derail device. Considered more effective than a lifting-block derail when there is extra risk of cars rolling out onto the main line from a “house track” or “back track” (terms for station trackage other than a passing siding), or from an industry track, especially when there is a descending grade toward the switch, […]

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New model trains for the week of March 21, 2019

InterMountain Railway Co. HO scale Trinity Aluminator coal gondola

HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division F59PHI diesel locomotive. Amtrak (“Stay off the tracks. I pack a punch.” slogan [one road number], “Stay off! Stay Away! Stay Alive!” slogan [one number], blue-and-silver scheme, and Cascades scheme), Metra (Cascades patchout in one number and blue-and-silver patchout), Metropolitan Transport Agency (Montreal), Utah Front Runner, and fantasy paint schemes […]

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How-to Library: Turning Spaces into Places, Part 3

Gerry Leone in front of his multi-level layout.

Having trouble viewing this video?   Please visit our Video FAQ page   In Part 3 of this mini-series, Gerry Leone struggles to figure out the best way to build his undulating roadway. Follow along to see how he works out a solution that incorporates stacked foam insulation board, Sculptamold, and plaster cloth. […]

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Turning Big Boys in 2 x 5 feet

HOscaleeaglecreeknorthernbigboy1

Flemming Ørneholm’s HO scale Eaglecreek & Northern, which was featured in the February 2012 Model Railroader, is a testament to his ingenious use of space. In less than 7 x 12 feet, Flemming’s HO scale layout captures the sprawling vistas of the west along the Union Pacific. With massive UP 4-8-8-4 Big Boys regularly hauling […]

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