YouTube builds tracks for railroad videography

Camera man filming with train tracks in the background.

From the ground up The roots of railroad videography can be traced back to the late 19th century when French brothers, Louis and Auguste Lumière released Arrivée d’un train (à la Ciotat) as a marketing tool for their developing Cinématographe. While not being fully restricted to many, filming [later video recording] trains was approached for […]

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John Grosner’s New Haven Derby Junction in HO scale

First showcased in the April 2009 issue of Model Railroader, John Grosner’s HO scale (1:87.1) 15 x 19-foot model railroad depicts the sights on and along the tracks of Derby Junction, Conn., in the late 1940s to mid 1950s. In this walking/talking video tour of his basement, John’s attention to fine detail brings New Haven […]

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Midday Modeler – June 7th, 2023

Midday Modeler – June 7th. 2023. It’s a Classic Toy Trains Takeover! Hal and Rene host this week’s episode to give updates on the land of Classic Toy Trains. Hal shows off a new building from Menards, along with providing some maintenance tips for your large locomotives (and shows few small locos as well). Rene […]

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Planning a Layout Design Element

A pencil drawing on graph paper of a track plan depicting Lebanon, Ohio, in 1907

This month I decided to try planning a Layout Design Element. According to Model Railroad Planning editor Tony Koester, who invented the term, a Layout Design Element (LDE) is a visually and operationally recognizable model of a prototype railroad location. An LDE is a notch of realism higher than layouts that are merely inspired by […]

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Preview June and July 2023 Garden Railways content

woman and boy watching man adjust live-steam locomotive model

Preview Garden Railways June and July 2023 content While we may no longer be printing Garden Railways magazine, we’re adding new content to Trains.com every week! Here’s a few recent items, and a preview of what’s coming in the next month. Become a Trains.com member so you don’t miss any of this great content! 7 […]

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Midday Modeler – May 31st, 2023

Midday Modeler – May 31st. 2023. On this week’s episode of Midday Modeler, Eric and Steve serve as your hosts! They go over progress on the project layout, including where the new structures might be placed along with other additions. Steve introduces some hot new items, fresh on the Kalmbach Hobby Store. Questions for the […]

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Big Skies & Iron Rails, Changing Weather

While the landscape of the American West remains constant and wild, the weather under Big Skies is forever changing…and frequently challenging the men, women, and machines working along steel rails. From a safe, temperature-controlled environment, enjoy a closer look at the perils and pure, natural beauty railfan Tom Danneman captured for Big Skies & Iron Rails […]

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Midday Modeler – May 24th, 2023

Midday Modeler – May 24th. 2023. It’s an action packed episode of Midday Modeler this week! David invites Bryson to answer a viewer submitted question about switch layouts. Steve and Eric show off more progress to structures they’ve been working on.  Mitch gives an update on the “Built by Others” series. Cody and Steve takes […]

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