Spaces to Places IV | Installing the Streets, part 4

Gerry Leone recaps his work on the sandpaper street of Westcott, a town on his new HO scale (1:87.1) model railroad. Now it’s time to add rule, order, and realism to the roadways – by means of basic road markings and subtle weathering. Grab your brush, paint, water-soluble decals, and tools, to join in the […]

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Trains LIVE — Geared locomotives

Split video screen showing two people. Trains LIVE — geared locomotives.

Trains LIVE — Geared locomotives — 5-31-2023 — Think of a steam locomotive. Right now, the majority of you have a mental picture of a locomotive with driving wheels connected by rods to the pistons. The pistons move back and forth as steam expands in the cylinders. The rods move, turning the driving wheels. Power […]

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Trains LIVE — Geared locomotives

Split video screen showing two people. Trains LIVE — geared locomotives.

Trains LIVE — Geared locomotives — 5-31-2023 — Think of a steam locomotive. Right now, the majority of you have a mental picture of a locomotive with driving wheels connected by rods to the pistons. The pistons move back and forth as steam expands in the cylinders. The rods move, turning the driving wheels. Power […]

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Working with NCE Switch-8 devices

In this episode, Ben shows how he used NCE Switch-8 devices to control turnouts on the upper staging yard of Model Railroader’s MR&T HO scale layout, with the goal of preparing the railroad for operating sessions. Be sure to follow the exclusive In The Workshop series for tips, tricks, tools, and clever insights, as demonstrated by various members of […]

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Trains LIVE — Walk through Fire

Woman and man in TV interview. Trains LIVE — Walk through fire

Trains LIVE — Walk through Fire — 5-17-2023 — It seemed as if the entire world had been turned upside down. On Feb. 24, 1978, that is what it felt like in the small town of Waverly, Tenn. Two days before, 23 cars of a 96-car Louisville & Nashville Railroad freight train derailed and piled […]

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Spaces to Places IV | Installing the Streets, part 3

It’s time to hit the streets of Westcott, the developing new town on Gerry Leone’s HO scale model railroad. After adding lights to structure interiors, adjusting city blocks, and then building, painting, and weathering sidewalks, our host shows his technique for paving roads made from medium-grit sandpaper! Want to see more of Gerry’s work in […]

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Wiring for Free-Mo

Ben, Eric, and David team up to work through the process for wiring trackwork on Model Railroader’s modular project, but the steps apply to just about any DCC layout. They’ll cover basic techniques for attaching feeder wires to the rails, fixing them to bus wires below the benchwork, and provide other helpful insights along the way! […]

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Trains LIVE — Daytime in the dome

Trains LIVE — Daytime in the dome — 4-19-2023 — In this special episode of Trains LIVE we are talking about an upcoming rail excursion through the Colorado Rockies and California’s Donner Pass. Daytime in the Dome is presented by Lowell Smith and Silver Smith Tours. The excursion features the opportunity to ride aboard a […]

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Trains LIVE — Stay bolts

Two men looking at a steam locomotive firebox under restoration.

Trains LIVE — Stay bolts — 4-15-2023 — Back in our March 15, 2023 episode we visited Spec Machine in Middleton, Wis., for an update on Chicago & North Western steam locomotive No. 1385. The Mid-Continent Railway Museum (North Freedom, Wis.) holds this steam locomotive in their collection and is restoring it to operation. As […]

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