PIKO SmartControl wlan DCC system

Color photo showing components of Digital Command Control system

PIKO is a well-known European manufacturer that has a following among G scale modelers in the United States. More recently, the firm has released HO scale engines for the North American market, including a Whitcomb 65-ton switcher and Krauss-Maffei ML-4000 diesel-hydraulic locomotive. However, PIKO is also a producer of Digital Command Control (DCC) products, ranging […]

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How-to Library | Installing an N scale TCS Keep-Alive

From start to finish, David Popp shares his techniques for installing a TCS KA-N1 Keep-Alive Capacitor into an N scale (1:160) modern diesel locomotive for use on his recently completed T-Trak module, as well as in Model Railroader magazine’s MR&T State Line Route project railroad (as featured in the January 2022 issue and Trains.com Video series)! […]

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News & Products for the week of July 22nd 2024

A model locomotive in a green and yellow paint scheme

News & Products for the week of July 22nd 2024   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of July 22nd […]

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N scale Reading T-1 from Broadway Limited

Screen capture of N scale steam locomotive on scenicked model railroad.

An N scale Reading T-1 from Broadway Limited recently visited our Milwaukee, Racine & Troy State Line Route layout. Join Senior Editor Cody Grivno as he gives a short history of the full-size 4-8-4; points out the many separate, factory-applied details on the model; and demonstrates the light and sound functions on the Paragon4-equipped steam […]

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N scale Reading T-1 from Broadway Limited

Screen capture of N scale steam locomotive on scenicked model railroad.

An N scale Reading T-1 from Broadway Limited recently visited our Milwaukee, Racine & Troy State Line Route layout. Join Senior Editor Cody Grivno as he gives a short history of the full-size 4-8-4; points out the many separate, factory-applied details on the model; and demonstrates the light and sound functions on the Paragon4-equipped steam […]

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News & Products for the week of July 15th 2024

A model locomotive in a red and black paint scheme

News & Products for the week of July 15th 2024   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of July 15th […]

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Trains.com Insider Exclusive | To hoard, or not to hoard

Should it stay or should it go? Model Railroader magazine editors Eric White and Bryson Sleppy talk about the reasons to keep or discard rare, unique, special, irreplaceable model railroad “treasures”. From rolling stock to tools to modeling supplies, if you question whether or not you should keep something in your collection, they have answers! […]

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News & Products for the week of July 8th 2024

A computer scan of a locomotive

News & Products for the week of July 8th 2024   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of July 8th […]

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News & Products for the week of July 1st 2024

A model locomotive in a city of Chicago paint scheme

News & Products for the week of July 1st 2024   Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of July 1st […]

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Five train layouts you can visit this summer

Large model train layout with full-scale red caboose in the background

Planning your travel for this summer? Be sure to include some model trains in those plans! These five train layouts throughout the country (and world) are all worth a visit this summer. Colorado Model Railroad Museum Featuring more than 500 HO scale locomotives, 80 scale miles of track, and tens of thousands of handmade trees, […]

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Model Railroader After Hours MIDDAY SPECIAL | June 25, 2024

Model Railroader After Hours | June 25, 2024. After Hours is an informal livestream hosted by Trains.com staff members… after the “work” of the day is done, there’s aways something else fun! Although David Popp typically hosts this Trains.com LIVE EVENT, he and other Trains.com staff members have been rather busy dismantling Model Railroader magazines’s […]

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Planning a modular show layout with LEGO

A group of LEGO module bricks in place on the planning board

When I joined North Georgia Modurail, I noticed early on that the club had a hard time planning show layouts. The layout would be planned on paper, but inevitably changes had to be made at the last minute. My inspiration came while watching my 4-year-old son play with his LEGO. The bricks were a small-scale […]

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