2020 Model Railroader Readers Choice Winners

The Model Railroader’s 2020 Readers Choice Awards Results are in! View the results below.

We had another year of great model railroading products for this year’s Readers Choice Awards. From locomotives and rolling stock to scenery and structures to track and electronics and more, there were many worthy entries nominated by model manufacturers, but ultimately chosen by you, our readers. The only real limitation we put on the choices was that the products nominated had to be currently available as of this writing. A big thank you to everyone who participated this year, both readers and manufacturers. You make the Model Railroader Readers Choice Awards possible!

HO SCALE DIESEL LOCOMOTIVE

WINNER | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Paragon3 Baldwin Sharknose (Freight)

HONORABLE MENTION | ScaleTrains.com: Rivet Counter Electro-Motive Division (EMD) SD40T-2 “Tunnel Motor”

N SCALE DIESEL LOCOMOTIVE

WINNER | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Paragon3 EMD NW2 / SW7 switchers

HONORABLE MENTION | Kato: EMD Union Pacific SD70ACe #1943 (The Spirit of the Union Pacific)

HO SCALE STEAM LOCOMOTIVE

WINNER | Athearn: Genesis Union Pacific 4-8-8-4 Big Boy

HONORABLE MENTION | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Paragon3 Union Pacific Late 4-6-6-4 Challenger

N SCALE STEAM LOCOMOTIVE

WINNER | Athearn: Union Pacific 4-8-8-4 Big Boy

HONORABLE MENTION | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Paragon3 USRA 2-8-2 Mikados

ELECTRIC LOCOMOTIVE – ANY SCALE

WINNER | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Paragon3 PRR P5a Electric, HO

HONORABLE MENTION | Bachmann Trains: HO scale Siemens ACS-64 (with DCC Sound)

WINNER: Item No. 29504 – The On30 2-6-2T Class 10 Trench Engine harkens back to the action of WWI.

NARROW GAUGE LOCOMOTIVE

WINNER | Bachmann Trains: On30 Baldwin Class 10 2-6-2T Trench Steam Engine (with TCS WOWSound DCC)

HONORABLE MENTION | Roco: 33238 – Steam locomotive 11°, RüK

HO SCALE TRAIN SET

WINNER | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: Trainline Flyer Express

HONORABLE MENTION | Bachmann Trains: Transcontinental (with Digital Sound)

WINNER: Item No. 24025 – The Stallion stampedes through your N scale layout with tons of horsepower!

N SCALE TRAIN SET

WINNER | Bachmann Trains: The Stallion

HONORABLE MENTION | Fleischmann: z21 Digital starter set: electric locomotive class 194 with goods train

HO SCALE PASSENGER CAR

WINNER | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: WalthersProto Union Pacific baggage car no. 5769 with Presidential seal decal as seen on the late Pres. George H.W. Bush commemorative train

HONORABLE MENTION | Atlas Model Railroad Co: Heavyweight single-window coach

HONORABLE MENTION: The Viewliner II baggage car is the latest N Scale Amtrak offering from Kato USA.

N SCALE PASSENGER CARS

WINNER | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Pennsylvania RR P70 passenger cars

HONORABLE MENTION | Kato: Amtrak Viewliner II baggage car

WINNER: Item No. 77205 – The Thomas & Friends HOn3 Red Carriage brings passenger service to your narrow-gauge layout.

NARROW GAUGE PASSENGER CARS

WINNER | Bachmann Trains: HOn3 Thomas & Friends red carriage

HONORABLE MENTION | Roco: 34061 H0e Perswag. 4a. DR grün

HO SCALE PASSENGER CAR SET

WINNER | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: WalthersProto Union Pacific commemorative executive train honoring the late President George H.W. Bush

HONORABLE MENTION | Lionel Trains: Army Hospital train set

HONORABLE MENTION: It’s all aboard for fun with the beautiful Atlas N Scale Modern Commuter Trains.

N SCALE PASSENGER CAR SET

WINNER | Kato: Chicago & North Western Pullman bi-level “400” set

HONORABLE MENTION | Atlas Model Railroad Co.: Modern commuter cars locomotive & car three-pack

HO SCALE BOXCAR

WINNER | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Stockcar with sound

HONORABLE MENTION | Atlas Model Railroad Co.: 40-foot postwar boxcar w/6-foot door

HO SCALE BOXCAR KIT

WINNER | ScaleTrains.com: Kit Classics HO Scale Evans 5100 RBL boxcar

HONORABLE MENTION | Tangent Scale Models: PRR Shops X58 class boxcar kit

N SCALE BOXCAR

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co.: Trainman 50′-6″ boxcar

HONORABLE MENTION | Bachmann Trains: Old-Time boxcar

HO SCALE HOPPER CAR/COVERED HOPPER

WINNER | ScaleTrains.com: Rivet Counter Gunderson 5188 covered hopper

HONORABLE MENTION | Athearn: Genesis ACF 4600 Center Flow covered hopper

N SCALE HOPPER CAR/COVERED HOPPER

WINNER | ScaleTrains.com: Rivet Counter Gunderson 5188 covered hopper

HONORABLE MENTION | Athearn: ACF 4600 Center Flow covered hopper

HO SCALE GONDOLA

WINNER | Tangent Scale Models: Bethlehem Steel 70-ton riveted gondola

HONORABLE MENTION | Atlas Model Railroad Co.: Trainman Evans gondola

N SCALE GONDOLA

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co: Thrall gondola

HONORABLE MENTION | Bachmann Trains: 40-foot gondola

HO SCALE FLATCAR/INTERMODAL CAR

WINNER | ScaleTrains.com: Rivet Counter Bethlehem Steel Co. F68AH bulkhead flatcar

HONORABLE MENTION | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: WalthersMainline Thrall 5-unit rebuilt 40-foot well car

N SCALE FLATCAR/INTERMODAL CAR

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co: 48-foot bulkhead flatcar

HONORABLE MENTION | Micro-Trains Line Co: 68-foot DODX flatcar

HO SCALE REFRIGERATOR/INSULATED CAR

WINNER | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: WalthersMainline 40-foot early reefer

HONORABLE MENTION | Moloco: Fruit Growers Express 50-foot RBL boxcar

HO SCALE TANK CAR

WINNER | ScaleTrains.com: Rivet Counter Trinity 31,000 gallon tank car with head shields

HONORABLE MENTION | Tangent Scale Models: GATC 8,000 gallon tank car

N SCALE TANK CAR

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co: 20,700 gallon tank cars

HONORABLE MENTION | Broadway Limited Imports, LLC: Cryogenic tank car

WINNER: The end never looked so good as it does with these colorful Atlas cabooses.

HO SCALE CABOOSE/MAINTENANCE OF WAY

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co: HO & N scale extended-vision cabooses

HONORABLE MENTION | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: WalthersMainline HO scale I.C.C. extended wide-vision caboose

HO SCALE STRUCTURE KITS

WINNER | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: Cornerstone modern suburban station kit

HONORABLE MENTION | Woodland Scenics: Woodland Station

N SCALE STRUCTURE KITS

WINNER | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: Cornerstone Merchant’s Row III kit

HONORABLE MENTION | Woodland Scenics: Country Cottage

O SCALE STRUCTURE KITS

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Deuce’s Bike Shop

HONORABLE MENTION (TIE) | Bachmann Trains: Plasticville Union Station

HONORABLE MENTION (TIE) | Lionel Trains: Olson House

HO SCALE BUILT-UP STRUCTURE

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Deuce’s Parts & Repair billboard

HONORABLE MENTION | Menards: Sprecher Brewery

N SCALE BUILT-UP STRUCTURE

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Rustic Cabin

HONORABLE MENTION | Bachmann Trains: Plasticville Country Church

O GAUGE BUILT-UP STRUCTURE

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Old Windmill

HONORABLE MENTION | Menards: Piggly Wiggly grocery store

VEHICLES – ANY SCALE

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co: HO and N Ford pickup trucks

HONORABLE MENTION | Woodland Scenics: Cool Convertible

FIGURES – ANY SCALE

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Rail workers

HONORABLE MENTION | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: SceneMaster UPS delivery personnel

WINNER: An entire 2 amp DCC system in the palm of your hand.

DCC SYSTEM

WINNER | NCE: PowerCab

HONORABLE MENTION | Digitrax: Zephyr Express

WINNER: WiFi enabled Sound Decoders with Smartphone App Controller for DC, DCC, and Dead Rail.

NON-DCC COMMAND CONTROL SYSTEM

WINNER | WiFi Model Railroad LLC: LocoFi

HONORABLE MENTION | Ring Engineering: Rail Pro RPK-1 Starter Kit

WINNER: Iowa Scaled Engineering’s ProtoThrottle, a wireless handheld DCC control stand throttle. The ultimate prototypical control!

LOCOMOTIVE CONTROL AND SOUND

WINNER | Iowa Scaled Engineering: ProtoThrottle Realistic Control Stand Throttle

HONORABLE MENTION | Kato: Sound Box

DC POWER PACK

WINNER | Model Rectifier Corp: Throttlepack 9950

HONORABLE MENTION | Kato: Smart Device Controller

WINNER: The most realistic sound for realistic models: Tsunami2 Digital Sound Decoders.

DCC SOUND DECODER

WINNER | SoundTraxx: Tsunami2 Digital Sound Decoders

HONORABLE MENTION | ESU, LLC: LokSound 5 DCC

SWITCH MACHINES

WINNER | Circuitron: Switch machines

HONORABLE MENTION | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: Switch machine 5-packs

WINNER: Bring prototypical signaling to your layout with the Atlas All-Scales Signal System.

SIGNAL CONTROL

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co: All-Scales Signal System – HO signals

HONORABLE MENTION | Azatrax, LLC: TS2 block signal control circuit with infrared train detection

LIGHTING

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Medium U.S. Flag & Pole w/Spotlight

HONORABLE MENTION | Model Rectifier Corp: Light Genie

WINNER: Bring your whole train to life with Tsunami SoundCar!

MISCELLANEOUS ELECTRONICS

WINNER | SoundTraxx: Tsunami SoundCar Digital Sound Decoder

HONORABLE MENTION | Train Control Systems (TCS): KA1 Keep-Alive Device

TREES

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Cherry Blossom Trees

HONORABLE MENTION | Bachmann Trains: 5″-6″ Pine Trees with Snow (HO Scale)

GRASS APPLICATORS

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: Static King

HONORABLE MENTION | Noch: GrassMaster 2.0

TERRAIN

WINNER | Woodland Scenics: 18″ Shaper Sheet

HONORABLE MENTION | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: Cornerstone Concrete Culverts Kit

BACKDROPS

WINNER | Wm. K. Walthers Inc: SceneMaster Backgrounds

HONORABLE MENTION | Affordable Model Railroads / Railroadbackdrops.com: Backdrops

WINNER: The track with real “flex appeal” – Atlas HO Code 83 Flextrack.

HONORABLE MENTION: HO Code 83 Flex-Trak, model track with so much detail, many modelers prefer it to hand laid track.

HO SCALE FLEXTRACK – FAVORITE BRAND

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co

HONORABLE MENTION | Micro Engineering

WINNER: Take your layout building to the next level with Atlas N Code 55 Flextrack.

HONORABLE MENTION: N scale Code 70 Flex-Trak with wood grain detail and scale size spikes  and tie plates.

N SCALE FLEXTRACK – FAVORITE BRAND

WINNER | Atlas Model Railroad Co

HONORABLE MENTION | Micro Engineering

HO SCALE SECTIONAL TRACK

WINNER | Kato: Unitrack

HONORABLE MENTION | Bachmann Trains: E-Z Track

WINNER: The HO Ladder Track System for compact yards, utilizes five no. 5 turnouts, 5a thru 5e, code 83 or 70 rail.

TURNOUTS – ANY SCALE

WINNER | Micro Engineering: Ladder Track System

HONORABLE MENTION | Peco (Pritchard Patent Product Co. Ltd.): Streamline HOn3 right- and left-hand Unifrog turnouts

HONORABLE MENTION: Thank you for supporting us from the staff at Yankeedabbler.com.

NORTHEAST REGION

WINNER | TrainLand: Lynbrook, NY

HONORABLE MENTION | YankeeDabbler Hobbies: Bellmawr, NJ

SOUTHEAST REGION

WINNER | Little Choo Choo Shop Inc.: Spencer, NC

HONORABLE MENTION | TrainMaster Models: Buford, GA

WINNER: Lombard Hobbies…Your HO & N Scale value pricing leader for over 40 years!

MIDWEST REGION

WINNER | Lombard Hobbies: Lombard, IL

HONORABLE MENTION | Spring Creek Model Trains: Deshler, NE

SOUTHWEST REGION

WINNER | Discount Model Trains: Addison, TX

HONORABLE MENTION | Papa Ben’s Train Place: Houston, TX

WESTERN REGION

WINNER | Caboose: Lakewood, CO

HONORABLE MENTION | The Original Whistle Stop: Pasadena, CA

WINNER | ModelTrainStuff.com

HONORABLE MENTION | Walthers.com

WINNER: Dwarvin’s Lamplighter system provides the unique no-wiring solution for N, O, and HO scale.

HONORABLE MENTION: Rapido Trains HO Scale Canadian Pacific Royal Hudson.

WINNER | Dwarvin: Lamplighter Fiber Optic Lighting System

HONORABLE MENTION | Rapido Trains: HO Scale Royal Hudson Classes H1-c, H1-d, H1-e

2020 Model Railroader Readers Choice Winners

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