Athearn HO SD40T-2

Athearn’s HO scale Electro-Motive Division SD40T-2, first released in 1984, has received an extensive makeover with railroad-specific details, see-through air intakes and dynamic brake fans, and Celcon handrails. The Ready-to-Roll direct-current model has a Quick Plug for conversion to Digital Command Control (DCC). Prototype history. When Southern Pacific commissioned EMD to build the SD40T-2 in […]

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Kato USA HO Amtrak passenger car

Kato USA HO Amtrak passenger car

Kato USA HO Amtrak passenger car An Amtrak Superliner coach and a material handling car are the initial releases in a new line of contemporary HO passenger cars from Kato. Both models are well-detailed and finished in Amtrak’s phase 3 paint scheme of the 1980s with equal-width red, white, and blue stripes. The coach includes […]

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News & Products for the week of November 21, 2007

PS2-CD 4,427-cubic-foot-capacity high-side covered hopper

HO scale locomotivesAlco C-424 and C-425 diesel locomotives. New paint schemes on C-424 are Canadian National (black-and-white stripes), Canadian Pacific (Action Red; maroon and gray), and Cuyahoga Valley Scenic RR (special edition). New paint schemes on C-425 are Burlington Northern, Pennsylvania RR (Brunswick Green), and Seminole Gulf (special edition). New road numbers on C-425s decorated […]

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Trainfest 2007 show report

Electro-Motive Division MP15AC

Trainfest was held November 10-11, 2007, at the Wisconsin Exposition Center at State Fair Park in West Allis, Wis., a suburb of Milwaukee. The two-day show featured more than 130 vendors and manufacturers, 58 model railroad layouts, and 25 clinicians and demonstrations. Attendance for Trainfest was 20,979, a record for the show. Electro-Motive Division MP15AC […]

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American Model Builders Laserkit O scale grain elevator

THIS PRODUCT, part of American Model Builders’ Laserkit line, offers an early 20th-century grain elevator kit in O scale. This is appropriate for the steam and early diesel eras, but driving around the countryside, you could probably find similar structures still in operation today. The kit, modeled on a “Northwestern Line Elevator” plan from a […]

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Atlas O Trainman line O gauge Alco RS-3 locomotive

I’M ON RECORD for both lauding the concept of the Atlas O Trainman line and enjoying its basic, no-frills diesels. Why? Since the Trainman line’s O scale products are very affordable, I think that post-starter set newbies with an interest in scale-sized trains might be likely to plop down their hard-earned bucks for a Trainman […]

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MTH Premier line O gauge USRA 0-6-0 steam switcher

THE SUBJECT OF our attention today is a little steamer that helped us beat the Kaiser and soldiered on through the end of the steam era, providing commendable service to the railroads that operated it: the USRA 0-6-0 steam switcher. America entered World War I in April 1917. In December of that year the U.S. […]

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iHobbyExpo 2007 final show report

New York, New Haven & Hartford class I-5 4-8-4 steam locomotive

iHobbyExpo 2007 was held October 18 through 21 at the Donald E. Stephens convention center in Rosemont, Ill. Below are more model railroad items that were featured at the show. Be sure to click on the link at the bottom of the page to view our preliminary show report to see even more new products, […]

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Good times at the Fairplex Garden Railroad

At the western frontier area, a section of fence can be lowered to allow fair goers a first-hand experience at running a train. The panel holds three buttons that control separate vintage trains. A streamliner skirts the area on the blue line. Don Emmons Railway at a glance Name: Fairplex Garden Railroad Scale: Various, between […]

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PDF: Build a 1:20.3-scale wrecking crane

Build a 1:20.3-scale wrecking crane

Download the PDF of this project here. Click on the icon to download this PDF project. Note: This PDF is formatted to print on your home printer. Most pieces are formatted to fit on a 8.5″ x 11″ piece of paper. For larger parts of the plan, you will see “break lines.” Line up the […]

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Just Plain Folks Figures

Marc Horovitz Vital statistics 1:22.5-scale figuresJust Plain Folk818 Lincoln Ave.Palmyra NJ 08065Price: $8 each (with some exceptions) Fully painted, cast-resin figures in a variety of natural poses Pros and cons Pros: Excellent detail; nicely painted; realistic colors; expressive featuresCons: Some poses a little stiff; mold lines occasionally visible Marc Horovitz Just Plain Folk is coming […]

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