Having trouble viewing this video? Please visit our Video FAQ page Model Railroader editor Neil Besougloff shows how to model a parking lot. […]
How to model a parking lot

Action may be required on your Trains.com account in order to continue accessing content. Click here to learn more.
Having trouble viewing this video? Please visit our Video FAQ page Model Railroader editor Neil Besougloff shows how to model a parking lot. […]
The goal of this six-part layout construction series is to provide new hobbyists with a 4 x 8-foot permanent O gauge layout using contemporary tracklaying, wiring, and scenery-making techniques. Since a toy train set can be a wonderful entry point for new hobbyists, the origins of this logging-themed layout stem from a current Lionel starter […]
Name: Naugatuck Valley RR 3.0 Layout designer: David Popp Scale: N (1:160) Size: 16 x 17 feet Prototype: New York, New Haven & Hartford RR Locale: Naugatuck River Valley in Connecticut Era: fall 1948 Style: walkaround Mainline run: Waterbury/south 53 feet, Waterbury/north 13 feet Minimum radius: 15″ Minimum turnout: no. 5 Click on the link […]
Name: Bona Vista RR Layout designer: Gerry Leone Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 14′-6″ x 30′-0″ Prototype: freelance Locale: northern Wisconsin and Minnesota Era: 1953 Style: walkaround Mainline run: 200 feet Minimum radius: 30″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 (mainline), no. 5 (spurs) Maximum grade: 1 percent Originally appeared in the Great Model Railroads 2008. Click on […]
Name: Denver Union Terminal Layout designer: Frank Czubryt Scale: O (1:48) Size: 24 x 32 feet Prototype: freelance Locale: Denver to Palmer Lake, Colo. Period: 1980s to present Style: walk-in Mainline run: 96 feet Minimum radius: 48” Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 1 percent Originally appeared in the Great Model Railroads 2008. Click on […]
Name: East Rail Layout designer: Lance Mindheim Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 9′-3″ x 9′-9″ x 16″ Prototype: CSX Locale: Miami, Fla. Era: 2006 Style: shelf Mainline run: 19 feet Minimum radius: 24″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Originally appeared in the Great Model Railroads 2008. Click on the link to download a PDF of this track […]
Name: Logansport & Indiana Northern Layout designer: Tom Johnson Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 24 x 26 feet Prototype: freelance short line Locale: northern Indiana Era: present day Style: around-the-walls shelf Mainline run: 85 feet Minimum radius: 26″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Originally appeared in the Great Model Railroads 2008. Click on the link to download […]
Name: Naugatuck Valley RR 2.0Layout designer: David PoppScale: N (1:160)Size: 16 x 17 feetPrototype: New York, New Haven & Hartford RRLocale: Naugatuck River Valley in ConnecticutEra: fall 1948Style: walkaroundMainline run: Waterbury/south 53 feet, Waterbury/north 13 feetMinimum radius: 15″Minimum turnout: no. 5 Originally appeared in the Great Model Railroads 2008. Click on the link to download […]
Name: Panhandle & Santa Fe Ry. Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 12′-7″ x 33′-0″ Prototype: Third District of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe’s Plains Division Locale: Texas Panhandle, Amarillo to Clovis, N.M. Era: September 1955 Style: linear walkaround Mainline run: 102 feet Minimum radius: 29″ Minimum turnout: no. 6, no. 4 in Amarillo Switching District […]
Name: Southern Ry. Layout designer: Bob Lawson Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 24 x 30 feet Prototype: Southern Ry. Locale: central and eastern Kentucky Era: 1945 through the early 1950s Style: walk-in with one duckunder Mainline run: 425 feet Minimum radius: 30″ Minimum turnout: no. 8 with some no. 6 Maximum grade: 1.5 percent Originally appeared […]
Name: The Chili Line Layout designer: Steve Amitrano Scale: Sn3 (1:64, 3-foot gauge) Size: 9′-6″ x 11′-6″ Prototype: Denver & Rio Grande Western Locale: Chama and Santa Fe, N.M. Era: mid-1930s to 1950s Style: doughnut Mainline run: 43 feet Minimum radius: 34″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Originally appeared in the Great Model Railroads 2008. Click […]
Our preferred method of transferring a track plan to a flat tabletop uses a computer to download and print out the full-scale template of the Readers’ Choice Railroad so we can easily tell how track, accessories, and some scenery elements work on our 4 x 8-foot perimeter. Download the template here. […]