HO scale Greenville & Ohio RR

HOscaleGreenvilleOhio1

Name: Greenville & Ohio RR Layout owner: Jack Varadi Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 131⁄2 x 23 feet Theme: freelanced short line Locale: Ohio, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina, and South Carolina Era: 1940s to 1950s Style: walk-in Mainline run: 160 feet Minimum radius: 26″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 3 percent Benchwork: L-girder Height: 48″ […]

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HO scale Western Sierra Lines

HOscaleWesternSierraLines1

Name: Western Sierra Lines Layout owner: Roseville Roundhouse Model RR Club Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 17 x 30 feet Prototypes: Southern Pacific, Union Pacific Locale: Central California Era: mixed Style: walk-in Mainline run: 200 feet Minimum radius: 30″ (main), 24″ (short line) Minimum turnouts: no. 6 (main), no. 4 (yards and industries) Maximum grade: 2 […]

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HO scale Georgia Northeastern RR 2019 update

Diesel locomotive on a layout

Thomas Klimoski’s HO scale Georgia Northeastern was featured in Great Model Railroads 2020 and several other Model Railroader magazine articles. Tom shot this video that highlights the actions of the GNRR North Local as it switches Argos Cement and the Team Track. The video also showcases his recent weathering of several two bay covered hopper […]

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Remembering Boston & Maine Railroad freight trains

8BMmountain

All this month — October 2019 — Classic Trains editors are celebrating the heritage, history, and images of the Boston & Maine Railroad. Please enjoy this photo gallery of images from the David P. Morgan Library archives at Kalmbach Media that include B&M steam-powered freight trains through time. You might also enjoy this B&M history […]

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10 gems of layout wisdom

gems_wisdom

Carl uses red parts of his nos. 342 culvert loader and 345 culvert unloader to accentuate no. 2031 Rock Island Alcos. Carl Rygiewicz The best part of building and operating a layout, irrespective of its size or scale, is realizing how much you have learned and being eager to share a few lessons and insights […]

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How to lay track for smooth operation

track on pink foam board

Good tracklaying has a direct bearing on your railroad’s performance, so take the time to do a good job and it’ll pay off in a smooth-operating layout. Roadbed is used under model track to simulate the layer of crushed rock that supports prototype track. Shaped cork or flexible plastic foam roadbed bends easily so it […]

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MBTA begins Foxborough service trial

MBTA

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority debuts its pilot program offering commuter service to Foxborough, Mass., today as part of its fall revision of commuter train schedules. The Foxborough trains, serving a community which had previously only seen trains for New England Patriots football games and other special events at Gillette Stadium, are being […]

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New model trains for the week of October 24, 2019

Accurail HO scale assorted freight cars

HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division F-series diesel locomotives. Burlington Northern (Northern Pacific “Pinetree” scheme patchout; F7A, F7B, and F7A-B set in one road number each), Denver & Rio Grande Western (Aspen Gold, silver, and black; F9B in one number; F9A-B set in two numbers), Milwaukee Road (1970s orange and black; F7A in one number and […]

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New products from the December 2019 issue of Classic Toy Trains magazine

mr_boxcar

Conductor’s car: The no. 279-4380 Milwaukee Road lighted caboose from Menards includes an illuminated interior and two alternating LED red marker lights that illuminate with track power. The O gauge caboose is 7 1/2 inches long, and 2 1/2 inches high, and it operates on curves as tight as O-27. Metal wheels and operating couplers […]

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Connecticut governor’s plan would cut Metro-North travel times, fund new equipment

MetroNorth_Bridgeport_Lassen

HARTFORD, Conn. — Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont wants to reduce Metro-North travel times to and from New York by up to 15 minutes, part of a $5 billion plan to upgrade commuter rail service in the state, the Hartford Courant reports. The commuter-rail plan is part of a larger transportation package, yet to be unveiled, […]

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Ask Trains: What equipment was involved in the making of ‘3:10 to Yuma’?

Q: Can you tell me what the train in the movie, “3:10 to Yuma” consisted of? — Frank Latorre, Baltimore A: Regarding the question of the origin of the railroad equipment on both versions of “3:10 to Yuma,” from the website, Obscure Train Movies, I found this information on the original 1957 3:10 to Yuma: […]

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