David has a guest? A virtual guest, that is. But he’s certainly no stranger to MRVP! By way of virtual meeting software, Off The Rails host Gerry Leone checks out the Underground action, lets us know about his new layout progress, and even offers up a great tip. […]
The turntable build gets temporarily tabled, but David still has plenty of projects to keep him busy in the basement. Today’s effort involves roughing up a set of On30 gons to make the sides of the car look worn and ragged from heavy use. Even David is amazed how realistic the results of his technique […]
Another laser-cut wood struture is on the horizon for David’s On30 logging-themed layout. After he preps the parts for construction, David then returns to making a good-lookin’ gon appear even worse for wear on the inside! […]
Ready for another Underground update? David Popp hunkers down to take on the challenge of building a fueling stage for his On30 Olympia Logging Co. layout. After a quick overview of his modeling project and the laser-cut wood kit components, you’ll see how David tests and preps parts with stain. […]
Charles Angelo Irace GarGraves Phantom Line flexible track is manufactured with the middle rail chemically treated to a deep black color. The wood ties are also more realistic than the stamped-metal ones found on traditional track, but I like to paint the GarGraves ties to better resemble the creosote-treated ones found on real railroads. In […]
In popularity, the postwar Lionel gang car is exceeded by only the trolley car in terms of Auto-Pilot fun on the tinplate rails. Lionel’s release of the 1950s favorite lives up to its reputation. Both the gang car and trolley operate on the same concept. The car runs in one direction until it hits an […]
MTH brings us a B-class switcher. As Al Staufer noted in his book Pennsy Power, few electrified railways could dedicate electric locomotives simply to the task of switching cars. But the Pennsylvania Railroad, with its vast network of yards and terminals under wire, could. In 1926, the Pennsy’s Altoona, Pa., shops began producing these little […]
Cab units are a staple of O gauge model railroading. They are crowd pleasers and are updated every few years with new features or improvements. A corollary of that statement is the increased expectations on the part of hobbyists. The greater the level of detail you see, the more you expect. The better the low-end […]
It’s been written about a lot before, but here are some more ballasting tips for tubular track. It can make your right-of-way look more realistic, but the bottom line is have fun and don’t stress about it. Don’t overdo It is pretty common to completely fill in the area between two tracks with a bed […]
Stepping into the “wayback” machine, Lionel’s 0-4-0 steam switcher is a model of the Pennsylvania Railroad’s B6-class 0-6-0. Just before World War II, Lionel made several variations of its B6 switcher, two of which – Nos. 1662 and 1663 – used 0-4-0 instead of 0-6-0 wheel arrangements. The model was in and out of the […]
The Lionel operating milk car’s chute is made so that the milk barrels can only be put in the correct way. However, once inside the chute, the barrels can become jammed if the car tips over. Here are some tips for keeping this car in service. Classic Toy Trains file A version of this article […]
Creating the scene The examples shown here are from the backdrops on my O gauge layout, which is set against distant hills. I broke each sketch down to three levels of scenery: the foreground (tree line), the intermediate level (nearby hills), and the background (mountains). I needed to use only three colors, one for each […]
