Fleet fillers: The inexpensive and versatile Lionel 6424 flatcar

Lionel 6424 postwar O gauge flatcar

Consider how many things need to be moved on a railroad. Now think about how many of them are transported (or could be) on flatcars. Lionel’s postwar No. 6424 is really a no-brainer for Fleet Filler status. It comes in a number of iterations, plain or with racks affixed for the lading of various items. […]

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HO scale Chicago & North Western Northern Memories

HO scale Chicago & North Western Northern Memories

The layout at a glance Name: Chicago & North Western Memories Layout owner: John Mueller Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 32 x 39 feet Prototype: C&NW Locale: northern Wisconsin Era: 1953 Style: around the walls Mainline run: 230 feet Minimum radius: 24″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 3 percent Benchwork: L girder, open grid, and […]

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HO scale Midwest & Southern Atlantic RR

HO scale Midwest & Southern Atlantic RR

The layout at a glance Name: Midwest & Southern Atlantic RR Layout owner: Dale Martell Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 8 x 22 feet Theme: freelanced Locale: Midwest to western North Carolina Era: 1954 Style: walk-in Mainline run: 78 feet Minimum radius: 24″ (main), 18″ (sidings) Minimum turnout: Peco small radius Maximum grade: 1.5 percent Benchwork: […]

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The story of Squaw Valley

F7A 4219 and F3A 6709 bracket three B units on an Asheville-bound Southern Railway freight along the French Broad River in April 1966.

Downhill skiing buffs immediately think of the winter vacation destination (and site of the 1960 winter Olympics) in California’s Sierra Nevada mountains when “Squaw Valley” is mentioned. More than 50 years ago, the name Squaw Valley came to the mountains of Western North Carolina under entirely different circumstances. To set the stage, I was a […]

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