Volcanoes DO belong on layouts

Model of a volcano

There is a cartoon on page 81 of the November 2017 Model Railroader which seems to say that a volcano can’t be put on a model railroad layout. Our model railroad club (South Hills Model RR Club) uses the free-mo modular standards for the layout that we assemble for shows and we DO have a […]

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New model trains for the week of October 5, 2017

Atlas Model Railroad Co. HO scale standard- and wide-cupola cabooses

HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division SDP40F diesel locomotive. Amtrak (phase I and II schemes). Four road numbers each. Road-number-specific details, detailed cab interior, and factory-installed and painted wire grab irons. Direct-current model with 21-pin connector for Digital Command Control decoder, $219.99; with dual-mode SoundTraxx Tsunami2 sound decoder, $309.98. September 2018. Genesis series. Athearn Trains, 800-338-4639, […]

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HO scale Granite Falls Ethanol RR

HOscaleGraniteFallsEthanolRR

Name: Granite Falls Ethanol RR Layout owner: Rolf Malmborg Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 13 x 24 feet Prototype: BNSF Ry., Union Pacific, Southern Pacific, and Canadian Pacific Locale: Minnesota, North Dakota, and Montana Era: 2013 Style: walk-in Mainline run: 180 feet Minimum radius: 22″ Minimum turnout: no. 8 (main), no. 6 (staging and industry sidings) […]

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HO scale Great Midwestern RR

HOscaleGreatMidwesternRR

Name: Great Midwestern RR Layout owner: Pete Walton Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 36′-6″ x 63′-0″ Prototype: freelance Locale: generic Midwest, based on northwest Illinois Era: 1950s Style: around the walls Mainline Run: 600 feet Minimum Radius: 27″ (yard), 31″ (main) Minimum Turnout: no. 4 (yard), no. 8 (main) Maximum Grade: 2 percent Benchwork: open grid […]

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HO scale H&R Steel Co.

HOscaleHRSteelCo

Name: H&R Steel Co. Layout owner: Mike Rabbitt Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 18 x 33 feet Theme: integrated steel mill Locale: Midwest United States Era: steam-to-diesel transition era Style: walk-in Mainline run: 135 feet Minimum radius: 30” (main), 12″ (mill) Minimum turnout: no. 3 (in mill) Maximum grade: 1.5 percent Benchwork: open grid Height: 46″ […]

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HO scale Pacific & Eastern

HOscalePacificandEastern1

Name: Pacific & Eastern Layout owner: Rogue Valley Model Railroad Club Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 26 x 52 feet Prototype: semi-freelanced Locale: southern Oregon Era: 1989 Style: double-deck walk-in Mainline run: 531 feet Minimum radius: 34″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 (main), no. 4 (sidings) Maximum grade: 2.5 percent (main), 4 percent (logging branch) Benchwork: engineered […]

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N scale Danforth, Hadley & Northern RR

NscaleDanforthHadleyandNorthern

Name: Danforth, Hadley & Northern RR Layout owner: Ken Chick Scale: N (1:160) Size: 38 x 52 feet Prototype: freelanced, based on Northern Pacific Locale: Central Montana Era: 1954 Style: walkaround Mainline run: 400 feet Minimum radius: 24″ (main), 20″ (branch) Minimum turnout: no. 5 (main), no. 4 (industrial spurs) Maximum grade: 1.5 percent (main), 2.25 […]

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N scale Pennsylvania RR

NscalePennsylvaniaRR

Name: Pennsylvania RR Layout owner: Chris Broughton Scale: N (1:160) Size: 18 x 27 feet Prototype: Pennsylvania RR Locale: Eastern U.S. Era: 1954 Style: modular walk-in Mainline run: 85 feet Minimum radius: 20″ Minimum turnout: no. 7 (yards and industries), no. 10 (crossovers) Maximum grade: none Benchwork: Free-moN modules Height: 50″ Roadbed: cork Track: Atlas […]

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On30 Otter Creek & Ripton

On30OtterCreekandRipton

Name: Otter Creek & Ripton Layout owner: David McLeod Scale: On30 (1:48, 30″ gauge) Size: 12 x 15 feet Theme: freelanced New England narrow gauge short line Locale: central Vermont Era: 1912 Style: around-the-walls with peninsula Mainline run: 61 feet Minimum radius: 24″ (main), 18″ (branch) Minimum turnout: Peco medium radius Maximum grade: 4.5 percent […]

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Video: ScaleTrainscom HO scale SD40-2

ScaleTrains.com HO scale SD40-2 diesel locomotive

This HO scale SD40-2 from ScaleTrains.com is part of the firm’s Rivet Counter series. Our Norfolk Southern version features an admiral cab and bristles with other roadname-specific detail. The HO scale diesel locomotive also came factory equipped with an ESU LokSound decoder. Follow along as senior editor Dana Kawala uses the SD40-2 to work a […]

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