Karl Bond’s HO scale Mantua 0-4-0 with a new motor and DCC sound

0-4-0 model steam locomotive shown in a rail yard.

A Mantua 0-4-0 is the test bed here. I’ve replaced the original open-frame motor with a can motor. I then added a Micro Tsunami and a KA2 module from TCS. No modifications were done concerning electrical pickup. It still only picks up current on the right from the engine’s two wheels, and the four left […]

Read More…

Action on Norfolk Southern’s Crescent Corridor!

It’s not often you get to see railroad history in the making, but these video clips of Norfolk Southern intermodal trains in the Blue Ridge Mountains show just that. You’ll be watching trains 201 and 202, which started running in January of 2013 between Memphis and the Northeast on the Crescent Corridor. This new corridor […]

Read More…

Modeler’s Spotlight Video–Inside Cody’s Office for July 2013

Inside Cody's Office for July 2013

Having trouble viewing this video?   Please visit our Video FAQ page Associate editor Cody Grivno shows you how to cut an stain strip wood for a model railroad project. Cody used these same techniques when scratchbuilding the freight house for the Model Railroader staff’s latest project layout. He’ll also show you some new model […]

Read More…

Building Bay Junction part 1

Neil Besougloff next to layout

Beginning in the January 2011 issue you’ll see the latest Model Railroader project layout, the HO scale Bay Junction on the Milwaukee, Racine & Troy. We built this modern junction town as part of our MR&T club layout, but we’ll show you how you can build the railroad as a standalone island or shelf layout. […]

Read More…

Thin Branch Series: Making puffball trees

Neil Besougloff holding materials for puffball trees.

Having trouble viewing this video?   Please visit our Video FAQ page Need a lot of tree-covered hills on your layout? In this video, MR’s editor Neil Besougloff shows you how to make common puffball trees. This technique models just the treetops, and it’s a great way to fill background hills with trees quickly. […]

Read More…

Thin Branch Series Ballasting a 1950s main line track

Cody ballasting alongside a track.

Having trouble viewing this video?   Please visit our Video FAQ page Cody Grivno, our one-man ballasting crew, shares his tips and techniques for ballasting a well-groomed 1950s mainline track. Cody takes you through the process start to finish on our HO scale Thin Branch project, but his techniques work just as well in other […]

Read More…

Cody’s Workshop Episode 6 – rolled roofing

Cody Grivno placing a structure on a model railroad

Having trouble viewing this video?   Please visit our Video FAQ page Our July visit to the workshop finds Cody finishing the freight house project by adding rolled roofing and final details to the structure. Along the way, Cody will also show you how to prepare a plastic shell for painting, join Atlas and Peco […]

Read More…