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Display Layouts and Showrooms is the latest 100-page special or extra issue of Classic Toy Trains. The editors and artists responsible for the magazine are working overtime to make this unique publication the most informative and attractive it can be. The question, “Want a sip?” usually causes another person to ask about the beverage in […]
Editor’s note: This manuscript was purchased in December 1990 for Model Railroader magazine. Over the years, it made its way around the office and finally landed in my hands last fall. Dave Ingles was a friend of mine, and with his passing and my becoming editor of CTT, it seemed fitting to finally share his […]
Verlyn Noring received his first train set when he was 5 years old. Today, he still admires that Marx No. 999 set, which is proudly displayed on his fireplace mantle. In 1982, Verlyn and Louise attended the LCCA convention in Dearborn, Mich. They spotted a custom painted postwar Christmas train set for sale. Like many […]
Model railroading — in any scale — can be a challenging hobby for people with disabilities, whether caused by illness, accident, or age. In addition, visitors who use a wheelchair or walker may find it difficult to view distant points on a large layout. The pike shown here was built with such limitations in mind. […]
As a child, I had done the typical progression from Marx wind-up trains to Lionel O-27 to HO. As a teenager, I put them away. Then in 1993, I saw a French JEP Toy Train set similar to Lionel and Marx. When I saw the JEP running, it reminded me how much fun the Lionel […]
A version of this article appeared in the December 2017 issue of Classic Toy Trains. Whenever Classic Toy Trains features a layout distinguished by snowy scenes and Santa Claus plus his reindeer, readers naturally assume whoever built it did so while a blizzard raged and icicles formed on eaves and downspouts. They can’t help envisioning […]
I recently bought a Weaver O gauge E8 A-A pair online. Eagerly, I waited for its delivery. Once it arrived, I quickly put it on my layout. Sadly, it was “Dead as a brick.” The pair was sold as “functional.” Contacting the seller, I was told, “We didn’t have any reason to think they didn’t […]
Every six months, photos of O gauge trains traversing the snowy hills and quaint villages of a sprawling layout arrive at the office. What a treat! And they represent the outstanding modeling done by Gordon Hough with help from his mother, Jeannie, who finishes the scenery and paints the backdrops. No matter fast I try […]
Greg Hurd’s Central Division of Glacier Gorge RR Gauge: SDimensions: 14 x 31 feetTrack and switches: Gilbert American Flyer, GarGraves, K-Line (diameters range from 40 to 62 inches)Motive power: American Models, Gilbert American Flyer, Lionel American Flyer, Rex Engineering, S-Helper ServiceRolling stock: Ace Trains, Ambroid, American Models, Gilbert American Flyer, JC Models, Kinsman, Lionel American […]
Dimensions: 9 x 17½ feetTrack: Lionel tubular (diameters range from 31 to 72 inches)Switches: K-Line, LionelMotive power: Atlas O, K-Line, Lionel (postwar, modern), MTH Electric, Trains, WilliamsRolling stock: K-Line, Lionel (post-war, modern), MTHControls: Lionel postwar type-ZW transformers (3)Accessories: American Flyer, Colber, Lionel, MTHStructures: Lionel, Menards, MTH See the layout in action on Trains.com […]
Walt Downer’s collection of Lionel Factory Layouts Ever since Walt Downer can remember, he has been fascinated by things that move. That desire to see something move explains the approach Walt has taken to collecting Lionel trains and accessories from the postwar era. Passionate about Lionel history, he set out to build a great collection […]
When you look at any model railroad, it’s the details that grab your attention—the people at the station, barrels by the wayside, or maybe a weathered locomotive or car. A recent trip to Sand Patch, Pa., inspired this small but important platform used by the maintenance-of-way department to unload materials for work along the line. […]
