Broadway Limited Import’s HO scale Santa Fe 4-8-4 steam locomotive is big and handsome. Model railroaders who’ve been waiting for an HO model of a big western 4-8-4 steam locomotive, with all the latest electronics and sound effects, have gotten their wish. This model of Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe no. 3751 from Broadway Limited […]
Type of Train: Steam Locomotive
Trix, HO scale, NYC USRA 2-8-2
The Trix HO NYC light Mikado is excellent. Let’s just begin with the controversial part, okay? The new Trix 2-8-2 Mikado is the best-looking mass-produced HO scale steam locomotive I’ve ever seen. Plus, it runs like a precision instrument. Is it perfect? Not quite, but it’s awfully good. The New York Central was best known […]
Bachmann, HO scale, USRA 2-6-6-2
Bachmann’s HO USRA 2-6-6-2 is a compact powerhouse. This chunky USRA 2-6-6-2 is a powerful model that’s capable of operating on 18″-radius curves. It’s the first HO articulated locomotive in the Bachmann Spectrum line. The model represents a prototype locomotive developed by the United States Railroad Administration (USRA) during the First World War. The USRA […]
Broadway Limited Imports, HO scale, PRR Duplex 4-4-4-4
Broadway Limited Imports’ class T1 duplex-drive 4-4-4-4 steam passenger locomotive. The T1’s single motor drives both driver sets while the dual-mode (DC or DCC) electronic controls and sound system are concealed in the tender. Air tanks, PRR train-phone antennas, the top end of the water scoop, and a pair of water hatches are included on […]
Broadway Limited Imports On2 1/2 C-16 Consolidation 2-8-0 steam locomotive is available with DCC
Broadway Limited Imports On2 1/2 C-16 Consolidation 2-8-0 Broadway Limited On21/2 C-16 is a classic Excellent On2 1/2 models of the Denver & Rio Grande Western’s class C-16 2-8-0 Consolidation are now available from Broadway Limited Imports. The models come with electronics to operate on DC or Digital Command Control (DCC) layouts without any modifications, […]
Life-Like Proto 2000 HO scale Pere Marqette Berkshire 2-8-4 steam locomotive has fine detail
Life-Like Proto 2000 HO scale Pere Marqette Berkshire 2-8-4 The motor is concealed in the boiler so the firebox can be filled with weight to help balance the locomotive. Twin air pumps are mounted on the pilot deck behind a pair of shields. DCC plug Click the chart for a larger version. HO 2-8-4 has […]
The Berkshire: Fast-Freight Legend
In 1920, when American railroads emerged from 26 months of government control, the prevailing philosophy of freight-train operation was to hang as many cars as possible behind a locomotive and send it out to drag its way along the line. Three locomotive types were ideal for drag freight: 2-10-2, 2-6-6-2, and 2-8-8-2. The 2-10-2 and […]
Online video extra: P&LE’s Unwanted Berkshires
Herron Rail Video archive In his The Unwanted Berkshires in the Spring 2004 issue of Classic Trains magazine, Jack Polaritz looks at the genesis and careers of Pittsburgh & Lake Erie 9401-9407, the last 2-8-4 design in America. After P&LE dieselized, the engines were stored, then reactivated in 1955 when another New York Central subsidiary, […]
Online video extra: P&LE’s Unwanted Berkshires
Herron Rail Video archive In his The Unwanted Berkshires in the Spring 2004 issue of Classic Trains magazine, Jack Polaritz looks at the genesis and careers of Pittsburgh & Lake Erie 9401-9407, the last 2-8-4 design in America. After P&LE dieselized, the engines were stored, then reactivated in 1955 when another New York Central subsidiary, […]
Rivarossi upgrades its HO scale Union Pacific 4-8-4 Northern steam locomotive
Rivarossi HO Union Pacific 4-8-4 Northern steam locomotive Click on chart for a larger image Improved HO 4-8-4 has looks and power This HO 4-8-4 from Rivarossi is a welcome upgrade to an accurate and attractive model originally introduced in 1980. The new engine features RP-25 wheels, improved electrical pickup, flywheel drive, increased weight for […]
Lionel returns to HO scale with this 4-6-6-4 Challenger steam locomotive
Lionel HO 4-6-6-4 Challenger Click on the chart for a larger image Challenger marks Lionel’s return to HO “Challenger” is one of the more dramatic names given to any steam locomotive wheel arrangement, and the new HO scale 4-6-6-4 from Lionel lives up to that moniker. It’s a well-executed model of a well-known group of […]
Con-Cor offers a DCC-equipped Galloping Goose in HO and HOn3
HOn3 Goose gallops along Click on the chart for a larger image First a bit of history. Let’s roll back the calendar to the early 1930s. The Rio Grande Southern was about to go under unless management could cut costs drastically. Necessity, or in this case desperation, can indeed be the mother of invention. The […]