HO scale Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific River Subdivision

HOscaleChicagoMilwaukeeStPaulandPacificRiverSubdivision

Name: Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific River Subdivision Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 30 x 60 feet Locale: Eastern Minnesota along the Mississippi River Period: Early fall 1950 Style: walkaround Mainline run: 195 feet (per westbound and eastbound tracks) Minimum radius: 36″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 2 percent (in helix) Benchwork: L girder, […]

Read More…

HO scale River City

HOscaleRiverCity

Name: River City Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 13 x 23 feet Prototype: Minneapolis & St. Louis Ry. Locale: Mason City, Iowa Period: first week of May 1954 Style: walkaround Mainline run: 90 feet Minimum radius: 18″ Minimum turnout: no. 5 Maximum grade: none Benchwork: open frame Height: 42″ Roadbed: Homasote on plywood Track: Peco code […]

Read More…

HOn3 East Broad Top RR

HOn3EastBroadTop

Name: East Broad Top RR Scale: HOn3 (1:87, 3-foot-gauge track) Size: 15′-8″ x 19′-8″ Prototype: East Broad Top RR Locale: south-central Pennsylvania Period: 1926 Style: walk-in Mainline run: 110 feet Minimum radius: 18″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 4 percent Benchwork: L-girder Height: 48″ to 52″ Roadbed: Homasote on plywood Track: Micro Engineering code […]

Read More…

Andy Sperandeo has passed away

Andy Sperandeo in cab of locomotive

For more than 30 years Andy Sperandeo was an integral part of Model Railroader magazine. October 3, 2015 – With a heavy heart, I’m sad to report that Andy Sperandeo, who has been a part of our lives at Model Railroader magazine for more than 30 years, has died. Andy was 70 years old. As […]

Read More…

Build the Black River Junction – part 4

MRRB0407_01

People, cars, buildings, and trees are part of everyday life. We’ll add all of these important details to our HO scale project railroad. Model trains are a lot of fun, and having a layout to run them on is even better. However, trains and track in isolation don’t look very realistic. While the scenery we […]

Read More…

HO scale New England, Berkshire & Western RR

HOscalenewenglandberkshirewestern

Name: New England, Berkshire & Western RR Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 33 x 124 feet Prototype: freelanced, inspired by Delaware & Hudson and Rutland Locale: upstate New York and western Vermont Era: 1950 Style: linear walkaround Benchwork: L-girder Height: 51″ to 59″ Roadbed: 1⁄2″ Homasote with molded wood putty shoulders on 3⁄4″ plywood Track: handlaid […]

Read More…

Bonus desktop wallpaper from Great Model Railroads 2016

GMR2016

Don’t miss the 10 inspiring layouts featured in Great Model Railroads 2016. This special issue of Model Railroader magazine features a wide variety of model train layouts in N, HO, S, and O scales. As a special online bonus, you can download computer desktop wallpaper from each of the featured layouts. Want to see more […]

Read More…

HO Wig Wag Crossing

HO Wig Wag Crossing

I completed the HO Wig-Wag crossing using an actual 3mm magnetic actuator on the pole made from a modified coreless motor inside a brass shim-stock enclosure. The 3-phases windings are driven by an Arduino. The wig-wag crossing was made from a kit from Showcase Miniatures and tools from the Small Shop. Yes, this was wired […]

Read More…

HO Wig Wag Crossing

HO Wig Wag Crossing

I completed the HO Wig-Wag crossing using an actual 3mm magnetic actuator on the pole made from a modified coreless motor inside a brass shim-stock enclosure. The 3-phases windings are driven by an Arduino. The wig-wag crossing was made from a kit from Showcase Miniatures and tools from the Small Shop. Yes, this was wired […]

Read More…