Q: I have some BNSF General Electric Dash-9 and GEVO units that pull my double-stack and trailer-on-flatcar (TOFC) trains as well as a BNSF Executive train. My question is, what sort of freight cars would be used with GP18s and SD45s in the mid- to late 1960s? – Jim Rohrbach A: If you’re running Dash-9s and GEVOs, […]
Introducing the Lionel Super Chief LionChief set The Lionel Super Chief LionChief toy train set is a good-looking small passenger train set in a road name I really like. Lionel’s no. 84719 Santa Fe Super Chief LionChief set has been in the catalog since 2018, and there are good reasons the train maker keeps […]
Lee Ramsburg wants to know what’s the most number of engines an engineer can operate in a train. Steve Sweeney is in the studio with the answer. […]
Jim Harward writes in to ask what Amtrak carries in its new baggage cars. He also wants to know if employees ride in them and who loads and unloads them. Steve Sweeney did some research, so tune in to learn the answer! […]
Q: Would a subroadbed made of foam board be quieter than plywood? My previous HO scale layout used ½” plywood, and the noise coming from the wheels was so high it interfered with my enjoyment of the sound decoders. Would foam board make that wheel noise less intrusive or is there something else I should […]
Joel Romaine is wondering what Amtrak’s stance is on private passenger cars. Steve Sweeney provides the answer. […]
Chris Roehl writes in to ask where he can find guidelines on where to a place a consolidated stencil on his rail cars? Cody Grivno is in the studio to answer. […]
Scott Snuverink from Eli, Kentucky, photographed a building and wants to know what purpose it serves. Cody Grivno takes a look and provides an answer. […]
Q: I am building a garden railroad in Colorado. Any suggestions as to how I should build and lay my track? – Dennis Dvorak, Colorado Springs, Colo. A: Our sister magazine, Garden Railways, published a whole lot of information about how to build a garden railroad. Model Railroader’s Rene Schweitzer, who comes from GR-land, says that many […]
There is probably no other aspect of our hobby that creates more anxiety and confusion for newcomers than wiring. When you’re starting at absolute ground zero on the learning curve it can be daunting at times. However, at the most basic level, what we’re trying to do is get electricity from a power source to […]
Model train scales come in a handful of commercial sizes. Among the most popular model train scales in North America are HO, N, O and G. However, these letters stand in for very specific ratios that tell modelers what fraction they are using to scale, or model, reality. What is a model train scale? Scales […]
Zach wants to know where he can find good quality automatic crossing bars for his layout, as well as some signals for his “rip” track. Cody Grivno is in the studio with some suggestions. […]
