Dive into the rich history of the Atlas Model Railroad Company with General Manager Matt Moceikis and Sales Manager Ross Medine. Discover how this 100-year-old New Jersey institution evolved from a 1920s tool and die shop into a manufacturing leading manufacturer of in model railroad track, locomotives, and rolling stock. Get the exclusive scoop on […]
Though its history is tied to track, the product line for Atlas Model Railroad Co. has grown and diversified from Z to O scale. General Manager Matt Moceikis and Sale Manager Ross Medine joined Model Railroader and Classic Toy Trains editors Eric White and Rene Schweitzer to discuss what’s in store for the future of […]
Set in Southern California, my HO scale layout includes a Southern Pacific train order office surrounded by a desert scene. Although this arid landscape has sparse vegetation, my scene needed two prominent desert plants – palm trees and cacti – to look complete. I found good artificial palm trees, but commercially available artificial cacti didn’t […]
Midday Modeler – January 29th, 2026 |The Midday Modeler livestream event kicks off 2026 with several members of the Trains.com crew keeping busy in and around the workshop! Enjoy the replay here, and you’ll see David sharing several new books that recently arrived at shop.trains.com — along with a sneak peek at a brand-new book in the […]
News & Products for the week of January 26th 2026 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 January 26th 2026. […]
Command control systems allow more ways than ever to operate your toy train today, and if you’re new (or you’ve been away from the hobby), choosing a system might seem overwhelming. Don’t worry; we’re here to help! Let’s review the choices, along with their pros and cons. Conventional “Conventional” operation means you use a transformer […]
The Atlas O Winter 2026 Premier catalog was recently published on the manufacturer’s website. Highlights include new paint schemes for: Locomotives 2-8-0 Features: Proto-Sound 3.0, real coal load, die-cast metal boiler, O-36 operation Roadnames: Duluth, Missabe and Iron Range; East Tennesee and Western North Carolina, Lake Superior and Ishpeming; Nickel Plate; Wabash; U.S. Army; Canadian […]
Explore the vibrant lithography and nostalgic charm with our latest layout tour, as featured in the Spring 2026 issue of Classic Toy Trains magazine! Join life-long collector Walt Hiteshew, as he operates his 8½ x 17½-foot O gauge display, filled with Marx tinplate treasures winding around hand-sculpted mountains, across a custom-built viaduct, and bustling through village streets […]
“When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.” At least, that was my thought process when I received this MTH Premier Norfolk & Western 18-inch, full-length dome car. Though a beautiful model from 2004, it came with older, 18V lamp bulbs. Initial track power testing immediately revealed several issues: Lights only turning on in the lower […]
News & Products for the week of January 20th 2026 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 January 20th, 2026. […]
The headliner of the spring 2023 Atlas catalog was the SD70MAC, a classic six-axle diesel electric locomotive. The SD70MAC was produced by General Motor’s Electro-Motive Division (EMD) in the 1990s. The SD70MAC was part of the transition from DC to AC traction motors. These AC powered locomotives would prove to be more efficient while in […]
Explore 80 years of model railroading innovation with Athearn’s Jim Wiggin! Ride along with Trains.com hosts Cody Grivno and Lucas Iverson, and you’ll hear Jim outline the company’s evolution from Irv Athearn’s garage to the exacting production of highly detailed Genesis line HO and N scale products. Discover how modern technology like 3D printing and […]
