Click the image to download a PDF of this article as it would appear in TRAINS magazine. Before they were stars: United Railways of Yucatan’s steam power was nearing the end of regular service when these images were made. No. 274 was powering a mixed train at Tecoh, Yuc., on Oct. 4, 1964, two days […]
Shining like the sun, Disney locomotive No. 3 navigates the 7,809-foot loop around the Florida park. It was No. 275 when it operated in Mexico. Jef f Terry Shining like the sun, Disney’s locomotive No. 4 navigates the 7,809-foot loop around the Florida park. It was No. 251 when it steamed on the Yucatan peninsula. […]
The 20-mile, L-shaped Phoenix Valley Metro light rail line serves about 33,000 passengers per day. Commuters use the service to get to U.S. Airways Center, which is home to the Phoenix Suns and Phoenix Mercury basketball teams, Chase Field, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, among other places. In the January 2010 “City Rail” column in […]
A number of years ago I started to experiment with substitutes for white glue to hold down the track and fix the ballast in an attempt to limit the transmission of sound through the benchwork. Part of my solution came in the form of acrylic-latex caulk (the type used around doors and windows). I use […]
GENERAL ELECTRIC’S FOUR-AXLE VERSION OF ITS POPULAR DASH 8 LOCOMOTIVE SERIES was selected by the Santa Fe for high-speed freight operation. The locomotives proved reliable enough for the Santa Fe to acquire more than 80, and 20 years after they were produced Santa Fe successor BNSF still rosters most of them. Standing by for our […]
LIKE THE PEACEFUL ELOI BEING DRAWN TO THE UNDERGROUND TEMPLE OF THE MORLOCKS in the H.G. Wells’ classic novel, The Time Machine, so do hundreds of thousands of people descend into the dim, man-made caverns of New York City. They are fired through the dark, rolling along in chariots of steel through narrow passages only […]
Bachmann 1:20.3-proportion 2-6-6-2T steam locomotive The Biles-Coleman Lumber Co. 2-6-6-2T was never built in 1:1 scale, but that didn’t stop Bachmann from making a well-detailed, smooth-performing model Mallet. The 1:20.3-proportion steam locomotive has plenty of pulling power and a versatile “plug and play” electronic interface for adding a Digital Command Control (DCC) decoder or radio-control […]
Model Rectifier Corp. Tech 6 Sound Controller Most Digital Command Control (DCC) sound decoders sold these days are dual mode, meaning that they will operate on DC layouts as well as DCC layouts. However, on DC layouts, these decoders offer limited access to sound functions and programming. The Model Rectifier Corp. Tech 6 Sound Controller […]
MTH Electric Trains HO scale SD70ACe diesel locomotive Remotely opening couplers set this HO scale SD70ACe from MTH Electric Trains apart from other recent locomotive models. This is a feature that hasn’t before been seen on a ready-to-run HO locomotive. The MTH SD70ACe also has many realistic sound effects and operates on DC, Digital Command […]
Atlas HO scale GP39-2 diesel locomotive Atlas has added to its growing Trainman line of HO scale diesel locomotives with the Electro-Motive Division (EMD) GP39-2. This ready-to-run direct-current (DC) model uses Atlas’ proven five-pole skew-wound motor and features railroad-specific details. Prototype history. When Santa Fe needed a turbocharged four-axle road switcher designed for operations in […]
Walthers HO scale New York Central observation car Price: $69.98 ManufacturerWm. K. WalthersP.O. Box 3039Milwaukee, WI 53201www.walthers.com Era: 1948 to 1967 Comments: A five-bedroom buffet-lounge-observation car completes Walthers HO scale 1948 New York Central 20th Century Limited. The plastic model has many separately applied parts, including rooftop vents and antenna and many underbody details. The […]
Athearn HO acid tank cars Price: $27.98 ManufacturerAthearn Trains2883 E. Spring Street, Suite 100Long Beach, CA 90806-6834www.athearn.com Era: 1970s to present Comments: A great-looking HO scale contemporary acid tank car is now available from Athearn. The 13,600-gallon HO scale car is modeled after a Union Tank Car Co. prototype. The model comes assembled and ready-to-run […]
