I thought it would be fun to make a citrus train for the garden railroad. I like to reuse broken hobby items from my junk box, and I had several pieces to build my train inexpensively. Certain livestock trains had a car — usually a converted long caboose — called a drover’s caboose for the drovers (cowboys) to […]
DCC install for n scale | As the crew nears completion of the State Line Route N scale (1:160) model railroad, it’s time to get the locomotives ready to run. In this episode, David Popp shares how to install a Train Control Systems (TCS) AMD4 DCC decoder into an N scale Atlas diesel locomotive. Follow […]
Lionel postwar Santa Fe F3s: Lionel O gauge Santa Fe F3 diesels have been star performers on three-rail layouts for almost 75 years. And why not? Every different version of the beautiful models, with red- and silver-painted plastic body shells detailed with yellow stripes and Santa Fe decals, looks stunning. So it’s little wonder that […]
Modeling freight car loads: Kalmbach Media will be releasing Keith Kohlmann’s new book Model Realistic Freight Car Loads at the end of June. The 112-page book will feature a variety of loads, including farm machinery, heavy equipment, steel and metal products, assorted vehicles, forest products, and building materials. Seeing the announcement for the book on […]
Make a Lake, Part 2! In the previous video of this mini-series, host Gerry Leone launched an effort to add a realistic water feature to his HO scale Bona Vista RR. Now, he’s following up the groundwork and bridge construction by shaping the landforms along the shores. He also turns his attention to forming the […]
Common name: Rainbow bush, variegated elephant bush Botanical name: Portulacaria afra f. variegata Plant type: Perennial Plant size: 4′ high x 4′ wide (easily kept much lower) USDA Hardiness Zones: 10-11 (protected in other zones) Cultural needs: Gravelly, well drained, neutral, or slightly acidic soil; full sun The elephants and deer-like kudu of South Africa […]
2022 National Garden Railway Convention preview: The Denver Garden Railway Society welcomes you to Denver this June! This year’s event will be held at the Crowne Plaza hotel, and will include an ice cream social, a BBQ at the Colorado Railroad Museum, daily bus tours to the railways on display, and pre- and post-convention tours. […]
Antique Trackmobiles in railroading, is one way to describe them. The photographer of Pennsylvania Railroad No. 445 uses “doodlebug” in his caption. They’re more descriptively described as “rubber tired switchers” on a Pennsylvania Railroad railfan site. Whatever you call them, the trackless locomotives once employed by railroads are clearly ancestors of today’s Trackmobiles and similar […]
Detailing the train station scene on the N scale State Line Route is the focus of this video. David Popp is ready to install the train depot on the layout, but there some small projects to complete. First, David shows he made an Amtrak sign for the train depot. Then he installs interior and exterior […]
Increase traction of PIKO switcher: I bought a PIKO America GE 25-ton engine for my railway. As I ran the little diesel on my layout, it went around a couple of times nicely over the trestle and under the tunnel. I hooked two cars to the engine, and sent it on its way again. As […]
How to buy a toy train is a subject I’m frequently asked about. My focus is on trains and accessories from the post-World War II era, but I venture into the prewar and modern periods, too. In the past 25 years, Atlas, K-Line, Lionel, MTH, Williams, Weaver, and others have produced locomotives and rolling stock […]
Transporting a damaged locomotive: Morning came early on Monday, July 21, 2014. The evening before I’d returned from Cleveland, Ohio, after attending the National Model Railroad Association National Convention and National Train Show. Naturally, I was pretty tired from the busy week. When the alarm went off, I flipped on the radio to listen to […]
