Price: $29.99
Manufacturer
Woodland Scenics
P.O. Box 98
Linn Creek, MO 65052
www.woodlandscenics.com
Era: 1940s to 1950s
Comments: As a modeler who has burned out more lightbulbs and light-emitting diodes (LEDs) than he has successfully wired, I was pleased when Woodland Scenics came out with its Just Plug lighting system. By taking all the calculations of voltage and resistance out of electronics, the manufacturer made adding illumination to a layout close to foolproof.
The newest addition to the Just Plug series is a line of illuminated HO and N scale vehicles. Depicting various common vehicles of steam-to-diesel transition-era vintage, these autos and trucks have working headlights and taillights. Some models have additional lights, like the police sedan’s blinking red beacon.
A dozen vehicles are offered in both scales. We evaluated four HO scale models: the Police Car (pictured), Comfy Cruiser (a blue hardtop coupe), Cool Convertible (modeled top down), and Heavy Hauler (a red stakebed truck). All are models of cars and trucks produced in the 1940s and 1950s.
Since cars with their lights on are usually being driven somewhere, the vehicles are modeled with drivers.
Each vehicle comes attached to about 3 feet of magnet wire and includes a Linker Plug, a 2-foot-long pair of wires that includes a dropping resistor, a push-button attachment for the magnet wires, and a plug that goes into a Just Plug Light Hub (sold separately, $16.99). No soldering is necessary. The police car’s blinking beacon is wired separately from its other lights, so it can be controlled separately with another Linker Plug.
I plugged in and tried all four vehicles, and they all worked. The headlights are quite bright for their size, but can be dimmed using the knob on the Light Hub.
Woodland Scenics’ Just Plug vehicles are just the thing to add some light and life to your HO or N scale layout.
