The black fog of Blossburg, Montana

Mullan Pass tunnel

A westbound loaded BNSF Railway coal train exits Montana Rail Link’s 3,986-foot-long Mullan Tunnel on Sept. 16, 2006. Tom Danneman As detailed in the February 2010 issue of TRAINS, ventilating exhaust from Mullan Pass tunnel has been a challenge since its completion in 1883. This sequence of photos, taken by TRAINS Art Director Tom Danneman, […]

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The Obscure Ones: Illinois Central Gulf SD40-2s

Click the image to download a PDF of this article as it would appear in TRAINS magazine. Quick: Name one locomotive model to which the word “obscure” would never apply. There’s a high likelihood that, if you watched trains in the 1980s and ’90s, the SD40-2 came quickly to your mind. After all, thousands roamed […]

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BNSF 4617 East at summit of East Ash Hill

Though half of its train continues to ascend a 1.0 percent grade, BNSF 4617 East has crested the summit at East Ash Hill, about seven miles east of Ludlow, Calif., on the morning of Oct. 8, 2009. Within a few thousand feet, all 50 autoracks of BNSF Train V-SDGCLO1-07 (Vehicles, San Diego, Calif. — Clovis, […]

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News & Products for December 17, 2009

Rapido Trains HO scale wide-cupola caboose

HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division SD70M and SD75M diesel locomotives. Burlington Northern Santa Fe, Canadian National, CSX (SD70M), and Ontario Northland. Three road numbers each. Five-pole skew-wound motor with dual flywheels, cab interior, and directional lighting. $149.98. April 2010. Ready-to-run. Genesis series. Athearn Trains Electro-Motive Division SW9/1200 diesel locomotive. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe; Chessie […]

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Bachmann N scale EMD DDA40X diesel locomotive

Bachmann N scale EMD DDA40X diesel locomotive

Bachmann N scale EMD DDA40X diesel locomotive Price: $110 Manufacturer: Bachmann Trains Road numbers: (all Union Pacific) No. 6915, 6927, 6932, 6943 Bachmann’s N scale Union Pacific DDA40X shares many features with its larger cousin. The model’s dimensions are correct, the plastic body is nicely molded, and the paint job is sharp. Twin can motors […]

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Bachmann HO scale EMD DDA40X diesel locomotive

Bachmann HO scale EMD DDA40X diesel locomotive

Bachmann HO scale EMD DDA40X diesel locomotive Now available with a dual-mode Digital Command Control (DCC) decoder, Bachmann’s HO scale model of the 98-foot-long DDA40X has dual motors that make it a powerful puller. This is appropriate, since the prototype’s dual 3,300-hp diesel engines made it the most powerful diesel-electric locomotive ever built. 100 years […]

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Rapido Trains Inc. HO scale steam generator car

Rapido Trains Inc. HO scale steam generator car

Rapido Trains Inc. HO scale steam generator car Featuring wisps of simulated steam escaping from under the carbody, this new HO steam generator car from Rapido Trains accurately models a prototype that kept passengers warm on Canadian railroads. Prior to the diesel era, passenger trains were heated by piping in steam from a locomotive’s boiler. […]

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SPROG 2 – JMRI Digital Command Control Programmer

SPROG 2 - JMRI Digital Command Control Programmer

SPROG 2 – JMRI Digital Command Control Programmer What’s better than Digital Command Control (DCC)? Being able to program it easily. I’ve recently ditched programming my DCC stuff via the controller on the command station and now use a SPROG 2 connected via USB directly to my computer (in my case a Mac, however Windows […]

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