Classic Trains Film Archive | Snowy Chicagoland, J. David Ingles Reel 123

Classic Trains Film Archive | Snowy Chicagoland, J. David Ingles Reel 123  – In vintage color footage captured by J. David Ingles, you’ll see that winter’s wrath has arrived in the Windy City! But in the City of Broad Shoulders, a few feet of fresh snow isn’t enough to detour the determined folks from moving […]

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Build a vintage water tower

teal model water tower on garden railway

The inspiration for this structure came to me as I was driving through a small town and a water tank came into view. It was one of those old-fashioned styles of water tanks. I stopped to take some pictures, and later I did research on these types of tanks. This type of structure is referred […]

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Plowing snirt in Nebraska

Snowbound diesel locomotive plowing snirt in Nebraska

  The year was 1978, and I was an assistant roadmaster for the Burlington Northern out of Lincoln, Neb. Through February, the winter weather had been mild and dry, and I’d mostly been overseeing repairs to several sets of outfit cars used to house production gang workers. On the first Tuesday of March, however, a […]

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Guide to N scale metal wheelsets

Color photo of N scale wheelsets in packaging

Last month, I wrote about metal wheelsets offered in HO scale. In this guide to N scale metal wheelsets, I’ll cover the options available for those who model in 1:160 proportion. The case for metal wheelsets N scale wheelsets have come a long way since the 1960s and 1970s. For many years, Micro-Trains N scale […]

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Classic Trains Film Archive | Midwestern and Eastern U.S. cities, J. David Ingles Reel UNK2

Classic Trains Film Archive | Midwestern and Eastern U.S. cities, J. David Ingles Reel UNK2  – Ride along with J. David Ingles in this first installment of Classic Trains Film Archive! Through his vintage color footage, you’ll see Amtrak action in southeast Wisconsin and central Illinois, then ride along eastbound on the Amtrak National Limited […]

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Athearn HO scale EMD SW1500

Title screen of Athearn HO scale EMD SW1500 Product Review video

The Athearn HO scale EMD SW1500 pays a visit to the Jones Island section of our Milwaukee, Racine & Troy staff layout. Model Railroader Senior Editor Cody Grivno discusses the features on the end-cab switcher, which is being offered with light-emitting-diode lighting and a SoundTraxx Tsunami2 sound decoder for the first time. In addition, he […]

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Five tips for disassembling locomotives

Photo of switcher chassis with pile of parts next to it.

My longtime friend Bill Phalen is working on an HO scale layout depicting the Twin Ports of Duluth, Minn., and Superior, Wis. Though his motive power fleet features many railroads from the area, one line wasn’t represented, the Lake Superior Terminal & Transfer. Bill wanted models of four of the LST&T’s six end-cab diesels, so […]

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Athearn HO scale EMD SW1500

Title screen of Athearn HO scale EMD SW1500 Product Review video

The Athearn HO scale EMD SW1500 pays a visit to the Jones Island section of our Milwaukee, Racine & Troy staff layout. Model Railroader Senior Editor Cody Grivno discusses the features on the end-cab switcher, which is being offered with light-emitting-diode lighting and a SoundTraxx Tsunami2 sound decoder for the first time. In addition, he […]

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New HO hopper from Tangent Scale Models

Color photo of HO scale hopper painted black with orange and white graphics.

Tangent Scale Models kicked off 2024 with a splash by releasing a new HO scale four-bay hopper. The model, based on an Illinois Central (IC) Centralia Shops 3,834-cubic-foot capacity prototype, features injection-molded plastic construction, wire grab irons and uncoupling levers, and road-specific details. Paint schemes Paint schemes on the initial release of the Centralia Shops […]

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Stan Trzoniec celebrates 75 years with Lionel trains

black and white photo of boy next to train layout

This adventure started in 1947 at the early age of 5 years old, when Dad unpacked the Lionel train set he’d purchased downtown. We lived in Newark, N.J., on the top floor of a “triple decker” on the north side. My father had a good job as a supervisor at Forster Engineering Company, a firm […]

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