T-TRAK Project Part 7: Gravel, ground foam, and static grass

Small model train set up with gray and black track, green grass and trees, dark gray roads, miniature vehicles, and two buildings of different sizes.

Modelers David Popp, Brian Schmidt, and Bryson Sleppy continue the scenery process on their T-TRAK modules by adding gravel, ground foam, and static grass in an attempt to make them look more like the prairies of Colorado. T-TRAK is a modular N scale railroading system that uses foot-wide boxes plugged together to build tabletop layouts. […]

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25 railroad places to visit out West

Cajon Pass, California

Railroad places to visit 1. GOAT LICK TRESTLE: Fast-paced action of BNSF’s northern transcon and the beauty of Glacier National Park, plus live GN goats. 2. CAJON PASS: Busy mainline mountain crossing for both BNSF and Union Pacific leaving LA. 3. TEHACHAPI: Mind-boggling over-and-under loop in Southern California sees more than 40 trains a day. […]

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News & Products for the week of April 1st 2024

A model tank car in a black paint scheme

News & Products for the week of April 1st 2024   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 April 1st […]

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STB denies CPKC request to give CN’s acquisition of Iowa Northern a more thorough review

Canadian National and lease locomotive with Iowa Northern locomotives on bridge

WASHINGTON – Federal regulators have rejected Canadian Pacific Kansas City’s contention that Canadian National’s proposed acquisition of 218-mile short line Iowa Northern should be subject to a more thorough review as a “significant” transaction. In a decision issued on Friday, the Surface Transportation Board denied CPKC’s petition that had asked the board to reconsider its […]

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Travel: Last chance to ride Amfleet

side view of silver train with sun shining off it

Amtrak’s Amfleet As Amtrak’s Amfleet approaches a half-century of service, the fleet’s planned replacement is on order. Knowing this has stirred a well of nostalgia for the old cars. I grew up with Amfleet: these cars were introduced when I was in elementary school. Although at the time the technological significance of the new cars […]

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Gensets: A disappearing act

black genset in scrapyard

A primary selling point At the time, gensets seemed like a good idea. Efficient, small, and imminently capable, they would be able to do everything an industrial switcher or small road unit could, but while using less fuel and producing fewer emissions. In environmentally conscious areas, and those with legitimately bad air quality, anything that […]

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CPKC derailment closes Louisiana highway

CPKC logo

TAYLOR, La. — A major Louisiana highway remains closed following the derailment of a CPKC train on Friday, KSLA-TV reports. Approximately 29 cars of a train derailed near the unincorporated community of Taylor about 7:30 a.m. Friday, closing U.S. Route 80 between Oscar Kilpatrick Road and Martin Pond Road in the community of Ada, according […]

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STB’s new passenger committee scope still to be defined: Analysis

Inside of passenger car with "quiet car" signs

WASHINGTON — The “Quiet Car” has become a staple on most U.S. corridor trains and many commuter operations. The innovation was first suggested in 1999 by an Amtrak volunteer organization later dissolved by CEO Richard Anderson after the former head of Delta Airlines was hired by Amtrak’s board of directors in 2017. Amtrak’s Customer Advisory […]

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Five prestigious Burlington Zephyrs

Streamlined Burlington Zephyr 9900 train at station between freight cars

The Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad, commonly known as the Burlington Route, had many Zephyrs. But out of all the streamlined trainsets and services famously named after the Greek God of the West Wind, which of the five where considered the most prestigious?   Pioneer Zephyr   Rolled out on April 7, 1934, by the […]

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