Host Gerry Leone may be dangerously close to finishing off the town of Westcott, but he’s still found plenty more to do with scenery, structures, lighting, and those little details that help turn a space into a definitive place on his HO scale model railroad. But at the end of this episode, Gerry’s efforts come […]
Modeling Topic: Structures
Spaces to Places IV | A flash of finishing flourishes, part 7
Host Gerry Leone may be dangerously close to finishing off the town of Westcott, but he’s still found plenty more to do with scenery, structures, lighting, and those little details that help turn a space into a definitive place on his HO scale model railroad. But at the end of this episode, Gerry’s efforts come […]
Planting structures
Learn how to seamlessly integrate model buildings into your train layout. Discover techniques for adding realistic dirt, gravel, and ground cover to establish a firm foundation, free of visible gaps, for nearly any structure. Also be sure to follow the exclusive In The Workshop series for tips, tricks, tools, and clever insights, as demonstrated by various members of Trains.com […]
Planting structures
Learn how to seamlessly integrate model buildings into your train layout. Discover techniques for adding realistic dirt, gravel, and ground cover to establish a firm foundation, free of visible gaps, for nearly any structure. Also be sure to follow the exclusive In The Workshop series for tips, tricks, tools, and clever insights, as demonstrated by various members of Trains.com […]
Build a sugar beet dump
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 […]
Western Maryland GPs on high
Three red-and-white EMD road-switchers — two GP35s and a GP40 — lead an eastbound freight across the great steel viaduct that spans a valley and the Baltimore & Ohio main line at Meyersdale, Pa., in July 1973. Today the bridge carries only a recreational trail. Victor Hand photo […]
How to make ‘good enough’ better
How to make ‘good enough’ better: The N scale shipping house shown here isn’t finished, but I want to make a point about the roof, namely the diamond-pattern shingles. They were made from laser-cut paper by GC Laser and laid one row at a time. That was a modeling decision I ordinarily wouldn’t make because […]
Spaces to Places IV | Light up this whole town, part 6
Westcott is now officially more of a place than it is a space! It’s time for host Gerry Leone to shine a light on and around this town on his HO scale model railroad. Follow along to learn how he added interior illumination to the structures, period-correct streetlights, and fine details that give select scenes […]
Spaces to Places IV | Light up this whole town, part 6
Westcott is now officially more of a place than it is a space! It’s time for host Gerry Leone to shine a light on and around this town on his HO scale model railroad. Follow along to learn how he added interior illumination to the structures, period-correct streetlights, and fine details that give select scenes […]
Pioneer electrification
Baltimore & Ohio’s Howard Street Tunnel below downtown Baltimore was the site of the first “steam-railroad” electrification in America. This view at Mount Royal station is from shortly after the start of service in 1895. Classic Trains coll. […]
NYC’s Avon Yard
Located outside Indianapolis, Avon Yard was one of several modern freight classification yards New York Central opened in the 1950s. NYC photo […]
Burlington’s Galesburg station at night
This 1940s night view of Galesburg shows the lineup of carts for hauling mail and express. Galesburg was on the CB&Q’s Chicago-to-Denver line, with additional lines heading north to the Twin Cities, southwest to Kansas City and St. Louis, and south toward Centralia, Ill. Henry J. McCord photo […]