Video: GoodDeals DCC Test Track

GoodDeals DCC Test Track

At the National Train Show 2016 held in Indianapolis, Ind., the Model Railroader staff came across a line of professionally built test tracks from Good Deals DCC. Gary Cohn, president of Good Deals DCC, custom-built a 15-foot long version for the Model Railroader workshop. Follow along as Gary shows senior editor Dana Kawala how to […]

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Digitrax DCS240 Command Station

Digitrax DCS240 Command Station

Digitrax DCS240 Command Station It isn’t often that a DCC manufacturer releases a new command station, so the new Digitrax DCS240 has drawn interest. After all, their DCS100 and DCS200 command stations have been around for 20 and 16 years, respectively. The big attention grabber is the statement the unit can “run up to 400 […]

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Walthers HO scale SD45 diesel

Walthers HO scale SD45 diesel locomotive

Walthers HO scale SD45 diesel locomotive From its flared radiators to its Flexicoil trucks, the HO scale SD45 from WalthersProto captures the look of this second-generation diesel. All the versions offered also feature roadname- and era-specific detailing. I tested a Wisconsin Central Ry. version that came equipped with a SoundTraxx Tsunami decoder. The prototype. With […]

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Quick Look: TCS WOWSound Steam Version 4 DCC sound decoder

TCS WOWSound Steam Version 4 DCC sound decoder

TCS WOWSound Steam Version 4 DCC sound decoder Price: $129.95 (decoder with Keep-Alive), $109.95 (decoder only) Manufacturer Train Control Systems P.O. Box 341 Blooming Glen, PA 18911 www.tcsdcc.com Comments: The WOWSound steam decoder, first reviewed in the October 2014 Model Railroader, is now better than ever with this Version 4 release. Our test sample included […]

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Atlas N scale General Electric B36-7 diesel

Atlas N scale B36-7 diesel

Atlas N scale B36-7 diesel Packing 3,600 hp under its hood, the General Electric B36-7 was just what Seaboard System wanted when it placed an order for 120 units in 1985, more than doubling the production total of the locomotive. Now, Atlas Model Railroad Co. has re-released its line of B-B truck Dash-7s in new […]

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Quick Look: Moloco HO General American 50-foot insulated boxcar

Moloco HO General American 50-foot insulated boxcar

Moloco HO General American 50-foot insulated boxcar Price: $49.99 Manufacturer Moloco 302-5025 Harvard Rd. Mississauga, ON L5M 0W6 Canada www.molocotrains.com Road names: Conrail, Milwaukee Road (Hydra-Cushion), Missouri Pacific, Rock Island, and Wabash. Four road numbers per scheme. Era: 1987 to late 1990s (as decorated) Comments: Moloco has released a new run of highly detailed HO […]

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Video: GoodDeals DCC Test Track

GoodDeals DCC Test Track

At the National Train Show 2016 held in Indianapolis, Ind., the Model Railroader staff came across a line of professionally built test tracks from Good Deals DCC. Gary Cohn, president of Good Deals DCC, custom-built a 15-foot long version for the Model Railroader workshop. Follow along as Gary shows senior editor Dana Kawala how to […]

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Build a newspaper vending machine

Build a newspaper vending machine

Add some interest to your railroad by building a newspaper vending machine. Jack Verducci provides full-size PDF drawings. For the full article, read the December 2016 issue. Note: These drawings are full-size for 1/2″ scale. To make them in other scales, follow the chart below. For 1:32 scale, reduce the drawings to 75% For 1:22.5 […]

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Beyond Alberta spruce

conifers2

1. The two darker trees on the right are Jean’s Dilly Alberta spruce (Picea glauca ‘Jean’s Dilly’, Zones 3-8), unpruned. The lighter-colored tree above the railtruck is a pruned dwarf Alberta spruce (Picea glauca ‘Conica’, Zones 4-8—author’s former garden railroad). Don Parker 2. Miniature moss false cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Squarrosa Minima’, Zones 4-8) is scale-appropriate […]

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Blue Pyramid cypress

pyramid_unpruned

Unpruned Nancy Norris Common name: Blue Pyramid cypress Latin name: Cupressus arizonica ‘Blue Pyramid’ Plant type: Dwarf conifer USDA Hardiness Zones: 6-9 Cultural needs: Average-to-poor well-drained soil; sun or light shade Plant size: Fast growing to 20′ in 10 years but easily pruned annually to stay under 3′ Pruned Nancy Norris Blue Pyramids are just […]

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Proxxon Tools disc sander

sander1

Marc Horovitz Disc sander Proxxon Tools PO Box 1909 Hickory NC 28603 Price: $300 Website: www.proxxon.com 9 3/4″ disc sander (#TSG 250/E); cast-aluminum housing; double ball-bearing spindle; aluminum, tilting work table; electronic speed control; adjustable miter gauge; owner’s manual; approximate footprint: 11″ x 11″; height, 14″ Pros: Solid construction; easily replacable sanding discs; variable-speed motor; […]

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