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Track selection is among the first decisions you’ll have to make when you get started in model railroading, second only to scale. In HO (1:87.1), the two most commonly used track sizes are code 100 and code 83. “Code” refers to the height of the rail, measured in thousandths of an inch. For a lot […]
Atlas Trainman HO two-bay hopper Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Single car, $26.95; three-pack, $80.85 Era: 1930s to 1970s Manufacturer: Atlas Model Railroad Co., 378 Florence Ave., Hillside, NJ 07205; 908-687-0880; shop.atlasrr.com Atlas Trainman HO two-bay hopper features: Blackened metal wheels on plastic axles Body-mounted Accumate couplers Factory-applied brake wheel, chassis, and slope sheet covers Freestanding […]
News & Products for the week of May 5th 2025 Model railroad operators and builders can get the latest information about locomotives, freight cars, passenger cars, tools, track, and more by reading Model Railroader’s frequent product updates. The following are the products Model Railroader editors have news on for the week of May 5th, […]
A hobby industry campaign calls for targeted tariff relief to “protect American small businesses, STEM education, and community-based creative industries.” The Hobby Industry Coalition represents a wide spectrum of the American hobby and toy industry, including model railroading, among others. Per the Hobby Industry Coalition, the industry supports over 600,000 U.S. jobs and includes thousands […]
Walthers HO scale Electro-Motive Division NW2 Scale: HO (1:87.1) Price: Direct-current model with Next18 DCC plug, $154.98; with dual-mode ESU Sound & DCC, $209.98 Manufacturer: Wm. K. Walthers Inc., 5601 W. Florist Ave., Milwaukee, WI 53218; 414-527-0770; walthers.com Walthers HO scale Electro-Motive Division NW2 features: Dual tall conical exhaust stacks Factory-installed grab irons on hood […]
Back in 2010, I was part of a group of contributors to Scenery by the Seasons by Kalmbach Publishing Co. The 98-page book featured stories on modeling seasons on your layout. Among the topics covered were spring backdrops; lily pads, cattails, and pond scum; easy autumn trees; and ice and snow. Though the title is […]
The Titletown Train Show will be held May 3-4, 2025. The event will be at the KI Convention Center, 333 Main St., Green Bay, Wis. Show hours are Saturday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event features 35,000 square feet of operating display layouts, vendors, hourly door prizes, […]
Wm. K. Walthers, Inc. offers a vast range of products and services with something for everyone in the hobby, regardless of whether you’re a beginner or seasoned veteran. Product and Brand Manager Dana Kawala recently stopped by Firecrown Media’s Brookfield, Wis., office to discuss more with Trains.com Staff Writer Lucas Iverson, as well as to […]
Trains.com Insider Interview | Wm. K. Walthers, Inc., Brand Manager Dana Kawala chats with Trains.com staff writer Lucas Iverson. More than simply talking trains, Dana reveals several new items that the well-established manufacturer/distributor currently has available for purchase or has queued for production. Gather insights on product design and practical use, as Dana and Lucas […]
From tabletop, to shelf, to open grid, there are a lot of different methods you can use to build model railroad benchwork. For our HO scale East Troy Industrial Park project layout, we used a combination of two methods, cookie cutter and L-girder, to make solid, stable benchwork. While not exactly framing for a layout, […]
When we moved to our new office in Brookfield, Wis., one of my favorite aspects of this new space was the workshop area. Not only do we have plenty of space for modeling and layout building, but we have just enough space for the Winston-Salem Southbound layout to sit next to our workbenches. One day […]
Q: I need help identifying a specific Pennsylvania RR steam engine. The number on the cab was 1299. What class was this locomotive? I have a picture of me as a boy looking out the fireman’s window and want to model the engine in HO scale. — John Nagle A: Thanks for writing in and […]
