News & Products for the week of June 9th 2025

A model passenger train on elevated track

News & Products for the week of June 9th 2025   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of June 9th, […]

Read More…

East Troy Industrial Park, Ep. 13 | DCC system installation

Even though track wiring is in place, our hosts still need to install a Digital Command Control (DCC) system before trains will run on the HO scale (1:87.1) East Troy Industrial Park project layout! David and Bryson first examine the components of the NCE PH5R Power Pro DCC system before working to integrate the parts […]

Read More…

Broadway Limited N scale EMD SW7

Color photo of N scale end-cab switcher painted silver and black with red, white, and blue stripes.

Broadway Limited N scale EMD SW7 Scale: N (1:160) Price: Stealth (no sound), $189.99; with dual-mode Paragon4 sound decoder, $259.99 Era: 1949 to 2000s (varies based on paint scheme) Manufacturer: Broadway Limited Imports, 9 East Tower Circle, Ormond Beach, FL 32174; 386-673-8900; broadway-limited.com Broadway Limited N scale EMD SW7 features: All-wheel electrical pickup Body-mounted couplers […]

Read More…

Atlas HO NSC newsprint boxcar

Color photo of HO scale boxcar painted green and black on white background

The National Steel Car Corp. 50-foot newsprint boxcar is the latest addition to the Master Line from Atlas Model Railroad Co. The model, based on tooling the manufacturer acquired from True Line Trains in 2020, features molded and separate, factory-applied detail parts; 33” metal wheelsets; and body-mounted Accumate couplers. Prototype history Between 1967 and 1971, […]

Read More…

Model Railroader Photo of the Day: The Flying Yankee

A silver streamlined passenger train is entering a forested tunnel on a model railroad layout

It’s June 1937, and the two-year-old Boston & Maine Flying Yankee is still in pristine shape. The train is emerging from the Hoosac Tunnel on Bill Moore’s HO scale Bedford Mountain Division of the B&M. Bill, of Grosse Pointe Park, Mich., also took the photo. Model Railroader‘s Photo of the Day features images from our […]

Read More…

Rapido HO scale PFE refrigerator cars

Color photo of HO scale freight car painted orange, black, and silver on white background

Rapido HO scale PFE refrigerator cars Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Single car, $59.95; six-pack, $359.70 Era: 1957 to 1982 Manufacturer: Rapido Trains, 382 High St., Buffalo, NY 14204; 905-474-3314; rapidotrains.com Features on Rapido HO scale PFE refrigerator cars: 33″ metal wheelsets Body-mounted Lincoln-Washington metal semi-scale couplers Factory-installed and painted wire grab irons Freestanding door rods, […]

Read More…

Model Railroader Photo of the Day: Railroads and paper mills

A model diesel locomotive leads a train across a bridge over a river on a model railroad layout

Railroads and paper mills were important industries in Bellows Falls, Vt., in the mid-1800s, and they still are today. Here, a Springfield Terminal SD26 and a Boston & Maine U30C rumble past the Liberty Paper Products mill. Thomas Nordanberg took the photo on Ole Pade’s HO scale New England-themed layout in Sollentuna, Sweden. Model Railroader‘s […]

Read More…

Burlington Northern renumbering

Color photo of red and gray HO diesel on scenicked base.

Q: I’m building a layout based on the early Burlington Northern in Idaho. I’ve seen a number of photos of renumbered locomotives and cabooses. Most have white numbers and reporting marks, but I’ve seen a few prototype photos online with the data in black. Did BN have a standard font and size for renumbering equipment, […]

Read More…

Cody’s Office | May 2025

Man in gray shirt wearing glasses holding book with model trains on table.

Welcome to the May 2025 installment of Cody’s Office. Thanks for all of the positive feedback from last month’s episode. It’s great to be back! Four new products are featured in the May 2025 episode of Cody’s Office. First up is the Rapido Trains HO scale Electro-Motive Division F40PHM-2 diesel locomotive. The commuter engine is […]

Read More…

Cody’s Office for April 2025

Man in tan shirt with stripes wearing glasses holding book with model trains in foreground

All-new episodes of Cody’s Office are back into production! That’s right, the popular Trains.com Video series returns at the Firecrown Media offices in suburban Milwaukee, Wis. The setting may be different, but Model Railroader Senior Editor Cody Grivno returns with all of your favorite segments, including new products, a modeling tip, and viewer mail. Four […]

Read More…