Santa Fe FT’s on Tehachapi

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An A-B-B-A set of Santa Fe FT diesels leads a westbound freight just below famous Tehachapi Loop in 1949. This train met an eastbound Southern Pacific freight at Walong siding on the Loop itself; steam from the SP train’s cab-forward helper is visible in the distance. Linn H. Westcott photo […]

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Mail and express train operations

ErieLackawannamailtrainNo7passesthroughBinghamtonNYin1965withamixtureofheadendcars

Head-end traffic helped cover some of the costs of America’s passenger trains for many years. Contracts with the United States Postal Service covered the transportation of mail, while the Railway Express Agency (REA) provided a nation- wide package delivery service. Small-to-medium-sized railroads forwarded most of the mail in Railway Post Office (RPO) cars and packages […]

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HO scale Pennsylvania RR

PennsylvaniaRR

Name: Pennsylvania RR Layout designer: Brent Monahan Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: layout 51⁄2 x 191⁄2 feet, dioramas 41⁄2 x 17 feet Locale: north of Princeton, N.J., to New York Era: 1959 Style: island (layout) and dioramas Mainline run: 10 feet (visible track) on layout Minimum radius: 30″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 2 percent […]

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HO scale Lime Ridge & Hercules and Portland & Western

LimeRidgeHerculesandPortlandWesternRR

Name: Lime Ridge & Hercules and Portland & Western Layout designer: Steven Otte Scale: HO Size: 8 x 12 feet Theme: Stone and gravel industries Locale: generic Era: late steam to early transition era Style: around-the-walls Mainline run: 63 feet Minimum radius: 15″ Minimum turnout: Atlas 18″ Snap-Switch (rest are no. 4) Maximum grade: 2 […]

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HO scale Pennsylvania RR’s Middle Division

PennsylvaniaRRsMiddleDivision

Name: Pennsylvania RR’s Middle Division Layout designer: Will Darrow Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 24 x 36 feet Prototype: Pennsylvania RR Locale: Mifflin to Lewistown, Pa. Era: steam-to-diesel transition era Style: walk-in Mainline run: 130 feet Minimum radius: 36″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 2 percent Originally appeared in the April 2014 Model Railroader. Click […]

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The O scale Buckeye RR

TheBuckeyeRR

Name: The Buckeye RR Layout designer: Herm Botzow Scale: O (1:48) Size: 37 x 56 feet Locale: northeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania Era: June 1956 Style: walk in Mainline run: 368 feet Minimum radius: 54″ Minimum turnout: no. 5 Maximum grade: 1.5 percent Originally appeared in the April 2014 Model Railroader. Click on the link […]

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