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I have hunted for a variety of antiques and collectibles over the years. From old phonographs and projectors to motion lamps and of course, model trains. I often wonder about how an item ended up where it was when I ran across it. For example, I have a complete collection of the first two years […]
Structures help set the stage for a layout’s look and practicality. There are no bounds to the variety of buildings a modeler can bring to the table (or should we say benchwork). Yet there’s always that one particular building you’ll usually find on most layouts. With great insight from Model Railroader Editor Eric White, let’s […]
If your garden railroad is set in the steam or steam-to-diesel transition era, it’s going to need a coal tower. When I started to gather rolling stock and build my railroad in 2013, there were no commercial coal towers on the market. The only existing product was from Pola, but I couldn’t find one on […]
An Erie Railroad 2-8-4 Berkshire type leads a train of refrigerator cars over Starrucca Viaduct, on the road’s main line east of Susquehanna, Pa. The stone-arch landmark, 1,200 feet long and 110 feet tall, was built in 1848 and remains in service today. Charles A. Elston photo […]
Price: $24.99 Manufacturer Menards 5106 Menard Dr. Eau Claire, WI 54703 menards.com/trains Era: 1930s to present Comments: Cripple Creek Seed & Feed joins the ever-growing lineup of HO scale structures from Menards. The factory-assembled model, which measures 4-⅜” wide x 3-¼” deep x 2-7/16” high, uses medium density fiberboard (MDF) construction and has a scenicked […]
Q: Many of Model Railroader’s articles, reviews, and advertisements focus on products representing the “modern” era, say the 1940s to the present. That’s OK, and much of your audience obviously enjoys modeling contemporary railroading. However, I’m interested in modeling the railroad industry as it was in the 19th century. Can you suggest the names of […]
Chances are good that if you’re building a model railroad, you’ll want to include a bridge. After all, who doesn’t love a good bridge? I can’t speak for anyone else, but when I think of San Francisco, I think Golden Gate. When I think of Duluth, Minn., I think of the Aerial Lift Bridge (well […]
Host Gerry Leone returns to the lower level of his HO scale Bona Vista HO scale double-deck model railroad, with the intent to complete the yard adjacent to the scenes featured in Spaces to Places V. Follow along as he first plans, and then adds urban scenery and structures, plus plenty of gritty, attention-getting details, […]
As many of you know, my primary modeling interest is the early days of the Burlington Northern (1970-1974) in Crookston, Minn., my hometown. One of the rail-served industries that has long intrigued me is the Otter Tail Power Co. (OTPCO) power plant. The 10,000 kilowatt plant, which hugged the banks of the Red Lake River […]
In November 2021 I wrote about modeling a boxcar storage scene based around an ex-Milwaukee Road car in Milbank, S.D. This time around we’ll take a look at a car in the Minnesota Northern RR (MNN) yard in Crookston, Minn., my hometown. Back in 2016 I was invited to the National Model Railroad Association Thousand […]
A tank car begins its descent from the crest of the hump at Union Pacific’s North Plate, Neb., hump yard. The mast atop the hump control tower is for radio communication with switch engines. Wallace W. Abbey photo […]
A Christmas train adds to the Christmas spirit It’s not often that you hear words like “locomotive” or “uncoupled” in a 3-year-old’s vocabulary, but that’s exactly where my wife and I found ourselves Christmas morning in 2022. Our son Micah had always had a fascination with all trains, so much that we often joked that […]
