Tabla de contenidos para December 2024 en Model Railroader

Model railroad cellphone photography tips While reminiscing and revisiting his archive of photos of our dearly departed Milwaukee, Racine & Troy HO scale layout, Assistant Digital Editor Mitch Horner found himself admiring his own work. This work being his photos, all of which were captured with his smartphone. Like any tool, the camera on your smartphone is most useful in experienced hands. In this Trains.com article, Mitch shares tips that are intended to help you better utilize your smartphone camera, and in turn improve your layout photography. Hornby study finds health benefits of model railroading Model railroaders have often espoused the health benefits of the hobby. Now, they have numbers to back up their claims thanks to a new study by Hornby. The U.K.-based model manufacturer and retailer announced the results of…

The Motive Power Industries (MPI) MP36PH-3C, a modern four-axle commuter diesel locomotive, is now available from Atlas Model Railroad Co. The HO scale Master Line model, based on True Line Trains tooling, features injectionmolded plastic and die-cast metal construction, light-emitting-diode lighting, and metal knuckle couplers. Our sample is decorated as Metra 403, part of the Chicago commuter agency’s 401 through 427 series. The full-size units, built between October 2002 and March 2004, were given the model designation MP36PH-3S (the “S” for static inverter for the head-end power [HEP]). In the mid-2010s the static inverters were removed from the units. They were replaced with a Caterpillar engine to power the HEP. A sixth fan was added at this time (the one at the rear of the hood). The commuter units were also…

Price: $60 (without logs), $75 (with logs) Manufacturer KR Models Ltd. No. 100 — 17865 106A Ave. Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T5S 1V8 krmodels.net Era: Early 1900s to 1950s Comments: Loaded and empty skeleton log cars are now available in HO scale from KR Models Ltd. The ready-torun model features injection-molded plastic construction, metal wheelsets, and body-mounted metal couplers. The 40-foot log car has a two-piece plastic body that’s painted brown but unlettered. The upper half features a separate, factory-applied vertical brake staff and freestanding uncoupling levers. Molded details, such as the bolts and straps, are picked in black. The log bunk and truck screw boss are cast as a single part. The underbody consists of a onepiece casting that includes the draftgear box covers. The K-type brake appliances, levers, and…

One afternoon while paging through Volume No. 4 of Jerry DeVos’ hardcover series The Sandy River and Rangeley Lakes Railroad and Predecessors I came upon a couple photos of an SR&RL flatcar loaded with the metal salvaged from cars that had been burned for scrap. Included in the load were four truck assemblies, truss rods, brake wheels, and other indistinguishable lengths of rusted metal rods and pipes along with at least one discarded coupler. Since I had replaced all of the original trucks and underframes on my Bachmann freight cars with low-profile trucks and underframes, I had a whole box of raw materials sitting on a shelf in my train room. So I decided to create a couple “one evening project” flatcar loads for my On30 SR&RL. Let’s keep our…

As we wrap up what has been a busy 90th anniversary year, we would be remiss if we didn’t take a last look at the Milwaukee, Racine & Troy, our HO scale staff layout. By now, many of you are aware that our storied 28 x 54-foot layout was torn down in late July as Model Railroader and other Kalmbach Media properties relocated to new offices in suburban Milwaukee as part of the sale to Firecrown Media. Before the Myrt was dismantled, we took a final photo and video tour of the layout. The version of the MR&T shown here celebrated its 35th anniversary in 2024. A veritable who’s who of modelers laid the foundation for the layout’s success — Dick Christianson, Art Curren, Mike Danneman, Bob Hayden, Jim Hediger,…

Permit me confessions. I ignored Rio Grande’s fabled narrow-gauge operations in Colorado for most of five decades, sniffing that all the equipment looked alike. Only when a friend’s appeal had me join a 2008 photo charter covering Durango & Silverton and Cumbres & Toltec Scenic did I break through my myopia. My goodness, why did I wait so long? Similarly, I ignored the Illinois Railway Museum because I shrugged off its traction roots. A recent visit proves I’m my own worst enemy. Borrowing words Harry Caray made famous at Wrigley Field, HOLY COW! Union, Ill., is northwest of Chicago, less than an hour’s drive from O’Hare International Airport. There, IRM’s main campus occupies a 65-acre site that holds six display barns and two garages that are open to the public. An…

The General Electric Dash 8-40CM diesel locomotive is back in the Rapido Trains product lineup. The redesigned six-axle road locomotive features a newly tooled fuel tank, cab interior, and trucks; railroad-specific details; and full underbody details. General Electric (GE) produced the Dash 8-40CM from February 1990 through March 1994. During the course of the production run, 84 units were built. Canadian National had the largest fleet with 55 units, followed by BC Rail with 26 and Quebec, North Shore & Labrador with three. The sample we received is decorated as BC Rail No. 4626, part of the railroad’s 4601 through 4626 series. BC Rail placed two orders for the Dash 8-40CM. Units 4601 through 4622 were built in 1990. Three years later, engines 4623 through 4626 rolled off the assembly line…

Keeping passenger cars clean Q How do mechanical passenger car washers work? Steve Moore A Keeping passenger cars clean is a never-ending battle as they’re subjected to the same dirt, dust, and grime as locomotives and freight cars. While some minor cleaning, such as washing windows, can be handled en route, extensive cleaning is handled at coach yards and larger terminals. Andy Sperandeo, former Model Railroader editor, explained how car washers worked in his book The Model Railroader’s Guide to Passenger Equipment & Operation (Kalmbach Books, 2006). Here’s what he had to say on the topic: “Coach yards also included cleaning tracks where trains could be cleaned both inside and out. These were typically arranged on platforms on either side of the track to give car cleaners access to the…

Sometimes modeling projects come about in unusual ways. Clark Propst, whose modeling work has appeared in the pages of Model Railroader, had a NorthWest Short Line (NWSL) HO scale Milwaukee Road 2-6-2 Prairie steam locomotive. He wanted me to improve the running qualities of the brass model and customize it to match the railroad’s 900-series locomotives. The project took almost two months to complete. Other people contributed to the finished model’s success, including Ken Clark, who advised me about motor replacement; Gary Schrader, who provided input on drivers; and Ted Douglas of the Milwaukee Road Historical Association, who shared prototype photos and offered many detailed suggestions. Peter Hall began model railroading with unpainted wooden trains when he was 4. His working career spanned 46 years, starting with the U.S. Navy…

At some point, many model railroaders wished they could have a company make items for their layout. Jason Shron has managed to make this work as a business for the past 20 years as founder and president of Rapido Trains Inc. “I was living in England, a place called Birmingham. And I was doing a Ph.D. in history of art,” said Jason in a recent interview with Senior Editor Cody Grivno and me. “I really was miserable. I just wanted to be doing trains all day. So all my spare time, I’d been working on my models.” Jason was building models of VIA Rail passenger cars that weren’t available elsewhere. “I built a layout in our living room in England; a very narrow shelf that was just a place to…

Send us your photos Trackside Photos is a showcase for the work of Model Railroader readers. Send your photos (digital images 5 megapixels or larger) on a flash drive to: Model Railroader, Trackside Photos, 18650 W. Corporate Dr., Suite 103, Brookfield, WI 53045; or email them to us at editor@modelrailroader.com.…

HO scale General Electric Dash 8-40C diesel locomotive. New paint schemes on this six-axle road unit from Atlas Model Railroad Co. include Rock Island Rail (red and yellow), Cimarron Valley (blue and yellow), CSX (YN2 with white roof), and Providence & Worcester (orange and yellow). The HO scale model, offered in one to three road numbers per scheme, features plastic and die-cast metal construction, a five-pole skewwound motor with dual flywheels, and factory-installed and painted crew figures. The GE Dash 8-40C is equipped with front or front and rear ditch lights as appropriate. Direct current models are priced between $199.95 and $209.95. Versions with a dual-mode ESU LokSound decoder are $309.95 to $319.95. Atlas Model Railroad Co., 908-687-0880, shop.atlasrr.com HO scale locomotives • Alco 4-8-8-4 “Big Boy” steam loco motive with Snowbus…

The American Car & Foundry 2,970-cubic-foot capacity two-bay Center Flow covered hopper is now part of Athearn’s Genesis series. The N scale model, which we last reviewed in the June 2010 issue, still features injectionmolded plastic construction, bodymounted couplers, and metal wheelsets. Among the product upgrades are rubber train line hoses; separate, factory-applied uncoupling levers; and lower-shelf couplers on cars decorated for Burlington Northern and CSX. American Car & Foundry unveiled its first Center Flow covered hopper in June 1961. Over the following decades, the car was offered in cubic foot capacities ranging from 2,700 to 6,600 with two, three, and four bays; continuous, elongated, and round hatch covers; and various outlet gates. The Greenbrier Companies uses the Center Flow design today. The full-size 2970 covered hoppers were designed to transport bentonite…

Most model railroad visits begin in a basement. This one began in a pub. Sir Rod Stewart, CBE, had brought his two teenage sons, his tour manager, and other family members to the local pub to watch Scotland play Switzerland in the European Championship Group round. Rod and his sons are keen football (soccer in America) fans. An early goal for Scotland had the lads in high spirits, but Sir Rod was philosophical. “You can see which is the better team,” he said quietly. An answering goal from the Swiss quieted spirits a bit, but Rod’s older son was confident: “Dad! Dad! Dad!, if we can hold on for a draw, then beat Hungary on Sunday, we could advance!” What’s clearly advancing is Rod’s model railroad. The layout he had…

As we wrap up our 90th anniversary year, it’s time to unveil the names of the people who will be inaugurated into the Model Railroader Hall of Fame. While this has been a project of Model Railroader magazine, our hope is that this will be picked up by the National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) and contributed to by modelers and publications in North America and abroad. We opened up voting to our readers through surveys on Trains.com, and we were thrilled to get the input of thousands of people, who also sent us their nominations for potential members, either through the website or by sending us e-mails. Here are the winners, in alphabetical order. John Allen John is the reason this all started. I was giving a tour of the…

I suspect all of us let our minds wander away from focusing on the direct path to an objective now and then. What if this? What if that? Some of the world’s most important discoveries have been made by someone indulging in a bit of daydreaming. Where model railroaders are concerned, we might wonder what we’d do if we had a million bucks to invest in our next model railroad, or a gymnasium to put it in. Or we think about modeling in a different, often larger, scale. I can’t help but think about modeling one of the Wabash branch lines that was home to its fleet of Moguls (2-6-0s) in O fine scale (Proto:48), or maybe the queen of East Coast 3-footers, the East Tennessee & Western North Carolina,…