A rural farmhouse for your garden railroad

garden railroad farmhouse front

When I started my garden railroad, around 1994 or 1995, I built structures from drawings printed in old Model Railroader issues. At the time, I was looking for something to build for the contest at the National Garden Railway Convention in Orlando, Fla. (mid 1996). I found drawings in the January 1992 issue (p. 124)  […]

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Texas on a turntable

Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad Burlington Route

At the Burlington Route’s Centralia, Ill., engine terminal in September 1954, a hostler rides the turntable with 2-10-4 6313 as sister 6311 and a Mikado stand in the distance. Philip R. Hastings photo […]

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Scout plans train meet as fundraiser for club

GFW Trainfair flyer

A northern Illinois model railroader is using his – and others – love of the hobby as a Boy Scout project to raise funds for a large-scale railroad group to expand its facilities. George Werderich, who appears on the toy-train oriented GFW Trains Channel on YouTube, is organizing GFW Trainfair as a community service project […]

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Postwar and modern Lionel trains mix on this layout

Postwar and modern Lionel trains on Richard Shutt's layout.

Postwar and modern Lionel trains mix on Richard Shutt’s layout! The 21 x 24-foot O gauge display, featured in the March-April 2022 Classic Toy Trains, is built for operation. His lifelong interest in the Norfolk & Western Ry. matches a deep-seated fascination with trains and accessories from the post-World War II period. It also includes […]

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Scout plans train meet as fundraiser for club

GFW Trainfest flyer

A northern Illinois model railroader is using his – and others – love of the hobby as a Boy Scout project to raise funds for a large-scale railroad group to expand its facilities. George Werderich, who appears on the toy-train oriented GFW Trains Channel on YouTube, is organizing GFW Trainfest as a community service project […]

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Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on Bob’s Train Box 79

Atlas St. Patrick's Day boxcar.

Bob’s Train Box Episode 79 Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on Bob’s Train Box Episode 79! Bob Keller and CTT editor Hal Miller check out the latest O gauge holiday boxcar from Atlas O. They also look at buildings from Menards including the Halls of Handsome Barbershop, Cripple Creek Tractor Repair, and Sacred Heart Hospital. The […]

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Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on Bob’s Train Box 79

Atlas St. Patrick's Day boxcar.

Bob’s Train Box Episode 79 Celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on Bob’s Train Box Episode 79! Bob Keller and CTT editor Hal Miller check out the latest O gauge holiday boxcar from Atlas O. They also look at buildings from Menards including the Halls of Handsome Barbershop, Cripple Creek Tractor Repair, and Sacred Heart Hospital. The […]

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East Broad Top’s Mount Union Yard

East Broad Top Railroad

Railfans mill around the East Broad Top’s dual-gauge yard at Mount Union, Pa., as Mikado No. 14 waits with their excursion train in the 1950s. The “Timber Transfer” overhead crane was used to lift standard-gauge cars so their trucks could be changed for passage over the EBT. Charles Small photo […]

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Menards O gauge Valley Motors car dealership building

Menards O gauge car dealership structure

Menards has released a new O gauge auto dealership building called Valley Motors. It features lighting, die-cast vehicles, figures, and lots of detail. It would be at home on a layout set in the 1940s to today. The structure harkens back to an era where American cars and trucks were heavy – probably made of […]

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Garden railroad MI Jack Crane

Model gantry crane on a garden railroad

A garden railroad MI Jack Crane: Something unique, something different, that’s what I needed to endure the long winter of the Midwest when outdoor railroading comes to a dead stop! A building project. If you are thinking about railroading in the period 2020, you must recognize the dramatic change to containerized shipping. What better way […]

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Rehab My Railroad: Printed backdrop installation, Episode 14

Man standing near an unfinished model train layout in an episode that will discuss printed backdrop installation.

A printed backdrop installation might be the focus of this episode, but first, David Popp shares how he protects the new toggle switch installation along the fascia of the HO scale Jones Island layout section. Meanwhile, Eric White works to trim and secure a printed paper backdrop installation to the wall behind the industrial tank […]

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