Layout tour of the Texas, Colorado & Western

This is a video layout tour of Ron Marsh’s N-scale layout, the Texas Colorado & Western Railway. The TC&W is a protolanced model of BNSF operations From Fort Worth, TX, into central Colorado in 2008. The layout is a double deck, point-to-point style with approximately 100 feet of visible mainline, a 9 1/2 turn helix […]

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Ellis & Eastern to take over Minnesota Southern trackage NEWSWIRE

Sioux Falls, S.D. Google Maps SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — In an exemption notice filed with the U.S. Surface Transportation Board, the Ellis & Eastern Railroad said it has reached an agreement with the Buffalo Ridge Regional Railroad Authority to lease and operate 41 miles of track in southwestern Minnesota currently operated by short line Minnesota […]

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Class I railroad employment down in 2017 NEWSWIRE

A Norfolk Southern conductor rides a tank car during a switching move at the CSX Transportation-NS interchange in Point Pleasant, W.Va., in September 2013. Chase Gunnoe WASHINGTON — There are 4,000 fewer Class I railroad employees than there were at this time last year, according to new data published this week by the Surface Transportation […]

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Quick Look: Fox Valley Models N scale 7-post boxcar

Fox Valley Models N scale 7-post boxcar Price: $19.95 Manufacturer Fox Valley Models P.O. Box 1970 Des Plaines, IL 60017 www.foxvalleymodels.com Era: 1964 to present Road names: Wisconsin Central, Burlington Northern, BNSF Ry. (post-2005 scheme), Great Northern (Glacier Green), Montana Rail Link, Soo Line (three paint schemes). Three road numbers per scheme. Comments: Fox Valley […]

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Montana Rail Link creation

On Sept. 26, 2013, Montana Rail Link’s eastbound Gas Local passes a westbound BNSF coal train in Plains, Mont., bound for Roberts Bank, British Columbia. Tom Danneman Q What was the reason BNSF sold off trackage to Montana Rail Link? As an observer, it appears most trains on the railroad are of BNSF origin. – […]

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New model trains for the week of May 11, 2017

HO scale locomotives Electro-Motive Division GP39-2 diesel locomotive. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe; Burlington Northern (two road numbers); BNSF Ry. (Burlington Northern patchout in two numbers); Delaware & Hudson (blue and yellow and blue with yellow nose in two numbers each); Missouri-Kansas-Texas; and Union Pacific. Four numbers per scheme unless noted. Direct-current model, $179.98; with […]

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The Salt Lake Route, Part 1: The inspiration for a small layout

The rugged mountain desert scenery of the Meadow Valley Wash provides a picturesque backdrop for trains on the N scale Union Pacific Salt Lake Route. The 4 x 9-foot model railroad, built by retired managing editor Dick Christianson, features Kato Unitrack with superelevated curves. Model Railroader associate editor Cody Grivno and graphic designer Drew Halverson […]

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Growing up along the Burlington

An E unit leads a train through Berwyn, Ill., on a lazy day in August 1963. Such scenes were part of daily life along the Burlington’s triple-track main west of Chicago. Larry Kostka It didn’t matter how often you rode the trains, or even if you did at all. Growing up in the postwar era […]

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Locomotives

Locomotives are the power behind the rail industry, and capturing the perfect photo of a locomotive is no small feat. That’s why Trains magazine is offering this 40-page special download all about locomotives. This free PDF includes an in-depth guide to rail-fanning in Los Angeles, where there’s no shortage of activity from the likes of Union Pacific, […]

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