Small town depot from Menards
Price: $79.99 (No. 279-4437) Features: Rural train station with interior lighting, external detail pieces, and nine figures, sights-to-see billboard, cargo boxes, and luggage with hand truck. Power supply sold separately. Order online at www.Menards.com/Trains
Every kid’s parents probably told him or her, “Good things come in small packages.” Of course, we rarely believed them. But this new O gauge structure may prove Mom and Dad told the truth. The new rural train station from Menards is terrific, and it is small!
You may recall that Menards’ previous O gauge depot (Classic Toy Trains, January, 2017) was a large building suitable for most station stops between major metropolitan centers. It was just the right size for towns that weren’t deemed worthy of a marble shrine to transit or a poured concrete monolith.
What about those smaller station stops along the line? For every Dayton or Indianapolis or Omaha, there were two or three Danvilles, Farmer Cities, or Mansfields. The No. 279-4437 rural station may fit that bill.
This station has a compact footprint (roughly 9½ x 10½ inches), and it has all the essentials. The building is raised, and the base is decorated with grass. The walls are made to replicate large rough bricks or, more likely, rough stone construction. The walls are painted reddish brown. Something in my mind associated the style and color with the East Coast or the Midwest.
The station has steps leading up from roadside. There is a platform going around all four sides of the building. On the street-side platform you’ll find two passengers, two railroad workers, some trashcans, a hand truck with luggage, and the ever-watchful Jack the German Shepherd.
There are bay windows on both the street and rail sides. The street side also has a billboard showing ads and what looks like events happening in Menardsville.
Two workers wearing hard hats stand on the right-side platform. The left-side platform is narrow and has no figures, but it does have three shrubs (or small trees) planted nearby. The trackside platform has two cargo crates and two passengers. The track side mirrors the street side with five windows and a door.
There is ample room for adding detail pieces, perhaps a newsboy, vending machines, or more travelers and their luggage.
Up top, the green roof is well executed with seemingly interlocking shingles. If you run a finger over the roof, you can easily feel the shingle “cuts” in the roofing material. There are dormers on the street side and track side, and each has a window with a frame and four panes. The right and left sides also have second-story windows of the same design.
The ground-level and upper-level windows have frames with multiple-pane windows installed. All the windows have a bit of an extension or ledge that may be wide enough for a 1:48 scale pigeon or flowerpot!
This compact rural station is a structure possessing both charm and utility for an O gauge railroad.
If you want something larger or more realistic than a vintage Marx passenger station, but have limited real estate, you may want to consider adding this depot to your town. The residents of Menardsville will appreciate it.
