Diesel assists steam on the Central

20180720

Two Fairbanks-Morse diesels, a five-axle “C-Liner” and an older “Erie-built,” doublehead with J-1 Hudson 5273 on eastbound mail train 32 at Millbury Junction, Ohio, 7.5 miles east of Toledo on New York Central’s old LS&MS main line, in September 1955. Philip R. Hastings photo […]

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5 small toy train engines in O and S gauge

K-line porter 0-4-0T steam engine

Here are 5 small toy train engines in O and S gauges from several eras. This isn’t an all-inclusive list, but rather a way to call attention to these often overlooked little workhorses. Many of us have layouts that are under 100 square feet. It’s nice to have engines available that look great pulling trains […]

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Rio Grande 4-6-6-4

20130705

Freshly-shopped Denver & Rio Grande Western 4-6-6-4 No. 3708 is at Wolhurst, Colo., 13.5 miles south of Denver, on a freight bound for Pueblo and Alamosa on the road’s “Joint Line” in June 1949. Ross B. Grenard photo […]

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Menards Johnson’s Texaco Station

Menards Johnson’s Texaco Station

Menards Johnson’s Texaco Station is the latest structure release from the home-improvement chain. Many of its structures are made of wood and a few out of resin. This one is plastic. It isn’t the first one made of the material; previous low-relief buildings like Dave’s Garage, Ray’s Wreckers, and current-production Sinclair Garage are also plastic. […]

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Lionel The Chessie Legacy Greenbrier

Lionel The Chessie Greenbrier front

The Lionel The Chessie Legacy Greenbrier is big. It’s colorful. It’s a steam engine. Should steamers be colorful? Like it or not, fantasy paint schemes on them seem to be an attractive alternative to the prototypical (mostly) black models. This one was featured in 2022’s Volume 2 catalog. A look back at previous offerings indicates […]

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Gleaming SD9 reminds us of Nickel Plate Road’s big switch

Black-and-yellow Nickel Plate Road diesel locomotive in front of trees

  Just when you think recent progress in railroad preservation can’t get any better — I’m thinking here of everything from Big Boy to Reading & Northern 2102 to Silvis Shops to Michigan Central Station — along comes another milestone that, if not quite a blockbuster, is still remarkable. Especially if you’re interested in diesel […]

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Delaware & Hudson passenger trains remembered

Wooden coaches on Albany–Binghamton train 208 at Albany Union Station, circa 1945–46.

Delaware & Hudson passenger trains     All through July 2023, Classic Trains editors are celebrating the grit and grandeur of the Delaware & Hudson in its bicentennial year. Please enjoy this photo gallery of Kansas City Southern passenger trains selected from the files in Kalmbach Media‘s David P. Morgan Library.   Only from Trains.com! […]

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Modeling transition era railcar brakes

The underside of an HO scale caboose model with brake equipment labeled

Q: I am researching transition era railcar brakes. Were there books written on the subject, and are they still available for purchase? – Ron Buddemeier A: The most complete and detailed reference for transition era railcar brakes is the one used by the railroads themselves – the Car Builder’s Cyclopedia of American Practice. This weighty […]

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First run of the Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado

Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado cab detail

With the release of the Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado, it seems that we’ve returned to pre-pandemic manufacturing timelines with the manufacturer. This Legacy engine, cataloged in Lionel’s 2022 Volume II edition, has been delivered in less than a year. This is another product made with tooling acquired from MTH Trains a few years ago. […]

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