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Q: I’m interested in modeling a Maine short line in HO scale. What can you tell me about the Belfast & Moosehead Lake RR in the steam era? – Joel Norman A: The Belfast & Moosehead Lake looks like a great subject for someone interested in modeling a Maine short line, especially if you’re intrigued […]
When you’re building a layout, there are four kinds of track for model railroads you can choose from. Those four are sectional track, sectional track with attached roadbed, flextrack, and hand-laid track. Each has its advantages and drawbacks. Luckily, you can mix and match the different types on the same layout to take advantage of […]
An N scale layout on a door is to that scale what a 4 x 8-foot table is to HO: a popular and convenient platform on which to build a compact layout. And for good reason. A hollow-core door is a lightweight, rigid surface, easy to handle and build on, and not too expensive. It’s […]
Sugar beet production and sugar refining was an important rail industry throughout the 20th century. Every fall, farmers brought their crops to nearby sugar beet dumps, where beets were loaded into railcars and rushed to sugar company factories. In the early 1900s, sugar companies built tall wooden Carroll beet dumps to speed loading. At the […]
3-D print a rail cart porta-potty: A requirement of a modern railroad, besides moving freight and passengers, is addressing the needs of the employees while on the job. This includes, of course, all of the workers, from the office personnel devising service plans to the maintenance-of-way crews doing track upkeep. As modelers, we only become […]
To mark the 50th anniversary of Ntrak, I thought I’d take a look at the Ntrak modular standard and sketch up a sample track plan for a couple modules. Ntrak started at an N scalers’ gathering in Signal Hill, Calif., in 1973, where the modelers were discussing ways to get more people into their favorite […]
Thanks to these model railroad fascia fixtures, your layout’s fascia can do more than give the edge of your layout a finished look. That stretch of tempered hardboard, medium density fiberboard, plywood, or linoleum can also serve a practical purpose. Consider adding some of these model railroad fascia fixtures to make life easier for your […]
Here’s how you can make a billboard, poster, or wall sign from an AI-generated image for your model railroad layout. Artificial intelligence generators have been in the news lately as writers, artists, and other creative types debate the possibility of computers taking over their jobs. Although AI-generated art is not good enough yet to replace […]
Track ballasting made easy: Model railroading is fun, right? Well, most of the time it is, but there are some aspects of this hobby that make us shudder. And judging by the questions we receive, one thing many of us don’t enjoy is ballasting. However, adding ballast (the rocks between the ties and along the […]
How to cut and fit sectional and flextrack: Cutting rail is a common activity that becomes important as soon as anyone begins building a model railroad. Small layouts built with sectional track generally fit together pretty well, but when flextrack is used, it’s often necessary to trim the rail ends to fit. Most flextrack is […]
Roadbeds made easy with foam: Plywood has been the primary material for model railroad bench tops for many years. In many situations, though, I’ve found that extruded-foam insulation board is a viable alternative for bench tops built on either flat surfaces or open grids. With proper support, the rigid foam can easily hold anything a […]
If you run steam locomotives on your model railroad, you need a steam engine terminal. Even if you don’t have room to model one, your model locomotives must get serviced somewhere off layout. But there are a lot of good reasons to model a steam engine terminal. First of all, and most important to some, […]
