East Troy Industrial Park, Ep. 9 | Laying down roadbed

Hosts David Popp and Bryson Sleppy work together to install the roadbed sections used to support trackwork for the HO scale East Troy Industrial Park (ETIP) project layout. While a variety of roadbed material is available for all scales and track gauges, the guys focus on the process for adding strips of HO scale (1:87.1) […]

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Diagnosing a stubborn diesel

Color photo showing HO scale diesel by white paper towel with streaks of dirt on it.

Q: I recently started working again on my HO scale layout, which features a Digitrax Super Chief Starter Set and Bachmann E-Z Track. I cleaned all of the track and have been testing locomotives. One of the units, an Athearn Genesis HO scale Electro-Motive Division GP38 that has not been used in some time, will […]

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Spaces to Places VII | Kitbash Rebash

Follow host Gerry Leone as he digs into the plans and efforts to rework a structure he initially kitbashed for a previous iteration of his HO scale (1:87.1) Bona Vista model railroad. But first, he ventures back to the old familiar set of his “Off The Rails” series, all with the objective of answering a […]

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News & Products for the week of April 21st 2025

An orange and green model locomotive

News & Products for the week of April 21st 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 April 21st, […]

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WalthersMainline HO EMD SD60

Screen capture from product review video showing HO scale diesel in blue and white paint on layout with title bar in lower left corner.

The WalthersMainline HO EMD SD60 is back, this time with new features. Model Railroader Senior Editor Cody Grivno uses this six-axle road unit to switch cars on our Winston-Salem Southbound Tar Branch project layout. In addition, he shares a condensed history of the Electro-Motive Division road unit and Oakway Leasing No. 9009; highlights the detail […]

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Loads for a fertilizer blend plant

Color photo showing portion of three-bay covered hopper painted light orange.

Q: I have a question about one of the articles in your special issue Best of Industries. On page 16, Rich Cobb wrote about a fertilizer blend plant. Can you tell me what kind of loads a plant like this would receive? — Markus Russ A: We released that special-interest publication in 2021, so I […]

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WalthersMainline HO EMD SD60

Screen capture from product review video showing HO scale diesel in blue and white paint on layout with title bar in lower left corner.

The WalthersMainline HO EMD SD60 is back, this time with new features. Model Railroader Senior Editor Cody Grivno uses this six-axle road unit to switch cars on our Winston-Salem Southbound Tar Branch project layout. In addition, he shares a condensed history of the Electro-Motive Division road unit and Oakway Leasing No. 9009; highlights the detail […]

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News & Products for the week of April 14th 2025

A yellow model caboose

News & Products for the week of April 14th 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 April 14th, […]

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East Troy Industrial Park, Ep. 8 | Installing fascia

In this episode of the HO scale East Troy Industrial Park (ETIP) project layout series, David and Bryson work to install trim panels at the front of the model railroad. These removable fascia panels are both decorative and protective hardboard components that help give the layout a finished look. The guys show you how to […]

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Sound-deadening subroadbed

Color image showing sound-deadening material attached to medium density fiberboard layout surface.

Excessive track noise was one of the main reasons I decided to rebuild my HO scale Daneville & Donner River layout. I hadn’t paid much attention to the noise level until I started using locomotives with sound decoders. That’s when I recognized how the wheel noise from rolling freight cars nearly overpowered the sound of […]

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