Click on the links at left to download the image sized appropriately for your computer screen. Oil-burning Union Pacific Challenger no. 3977 pulls a special through the Rocky Mountains on Paul Brennecke’s N scale Grand Line model train layout. Click on the links below to download the image sized appropriately for your computer screen. Download […]
Tag: Free Downloads
Layout Design for Operation
Download this free 14-page PDF to learn what makes one model railroad track plan better for operation than another. Inside this eBook, the editors of Model Railroader magazine discuss how to add realistic operation to freight yards, engine terminals, staging yards, loading zones, and more! […]
Computer desktop wallpaper from the August 2019 Model Railroader
Click on the links at left to download this image sized appropriately for your computer screen. Southern Pacific No. 2, the Sunset Limited, races through Wellton, Ariz., on Ron Mei’s HO scale Sunset Route. Featured in the August 2019 Model Railroader, this 58 x 68-foot layout celebrates SP and other southwestern railroads in the 1950s. […]
Layout Planning Ideas
When creating model railroads, it’s important to give your model cities and scenery the same realistic treatment you give your trains. A well-detailed and realistic downtown scene and scenery can add as much to a model railroad as any lineside industry. Download this free 15-page PDF for layout planning ideas that will bring your layout […]
Computer desktop wallpaper from the July 2019 Model Railroader
Click on the links at left to download the image sized appropriately for your computer screen. Rutland no. 208, an Alco RS-3, passes Duffy’s Coal as it approaches the north end of the Rutland, Vt., freight yard on Gregory Wiggins’ HO scale layout. This month you can download the trackside photo sized appropriately for your […]
Track Planning for Beginners
When it comes to designing your own model railroad layout, getting your ideas down on paper is the first and most important step. Drawing your plan to scale with a reasonable degree of accuracy will ensure you that your plan will fit your space. Download this free 15-page PDF to learn how to draw accurate […]
Computer desktop wallpaper from the June 2019 Model Railroader
Click on the links at left to download the image sized appropriately for your computer screen. Engineer Ed West checks ahead as he eases his outside-frame Baldwin 2-8-0 – a recent acquisition for the Sandy River & Rangeley Lakes – and its local freight up to the platform at Strong, Maine. Model Railroader contributing editor […]
The History of the Transcontinental Railroad
Back in 1869, the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroad worked tirelessly under brutal conditions to drive the last spike, The Golden Spike, at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory, to complete the Transcontinental Railroad. Products could now be manufactured in the east and delivered to the west in under two weeks, benefiting the United States economy, […]
Train Wiring for Beginners
Does your locomotive spark when it moves? Do you have a mass of indistinguishable wires under your layout? Download this free PDF to learn some basic electrical principles, practices, and commonly used products for layout wiring. […]
The History of the Transcontinental Railroad
Back in 1869, the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroad worked tirelessly under brutal conditions to drive the last spike, The Golden Spike, at Promontory Summit, Utah Territory, to complete the Transcontinental Railroad. Products could now be manufactured in the east and delivered to the west in under two weeks, benefiting the United States economy, […]
Computer desktop wallpaper from the May 2019 Model Railroader
Click on the links at left to download the image sized appropriately for your computer screen. Union Pacific no. 8444, an Electro-Motive Diesel SD70ACe, and a patched-out former Southern Pacific General Electric AC4400CW barrel through the countryside on Jeffrey Meyer’s HO scale diorama. This month you can use this image as a computer wallpaper image. […]
Getting Started in Garden Railroading
Looking to get started in garden railroading? Start by reading our free 17-page PDF. Learn the advantages and disadvantages of each garden scale, pick the right scale and gauge for your garden railroad, and gather the right garden railroad supplies for your backyard railroad. […]
