Adding scenery to your layout can take it from a basic track setup to a realistic and immersive world. It’s an exciting and creative part of model railroading that allows you to design and construct a unique landscape for your trains to travel through. However, it can be overwhelming to know where to start which […]
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Common name: Dahlberg daisy, golden fleece Latin name: Thymophylla tenuiloba var. tenuiloba, syn. Dyssodia tenuiloba Plant type: Annual USDA Hardiness Zones: n/a Plant size: 6-12″ high and wide Cultural needs: Sunny, well drained, neutral or slightly acidic poor soil Delicate little annuals with lacy foliage and small yellow daisies soften the toughest rocks. Dahlberg daisy […]
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One of the hottest topics of the moment is the conversation around artificial intelligence (AI.) If you’ve been paying attention to this conversation, you likely know that Artificial Intelligence programs have made enormous strides forward in just the past few years. These advances have caused disruption and innovation in equal measure in many fields. These […]
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Tricks with N scale track: You bought ’em, you can modify ’em Some four decades ago I was looking at a John Allen photo taken on his fabulous HO scale Gorre & Daphetid. The subject was rail activity at his city of Port, and I was especially struck by how compact his trackwork was. In […]
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Q: A fellow club member and I just started running the Walthers troop cars on the club layout. We are having problems with the troop sleeper cars derailing on the 36″ curves. Can you suggest a solution to this problem? – Alan Cox A: If those are the only cars having derailing problems on those […]
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Keep N scale track clean: Last summer I finished an extensive scenery project on my N scale layout, cleaned up, went carefully over the track with a Bright Boy rail-cleaning block, did a few more small layout chores, and at last was ready to run a train. For me there’s nothing in this hobby as […]
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Building a model railroad can be a fun and rewarding hobby. It can also be messy and time-consuming, especially when it comes to a wood-built surface for the layout. One has to ask, “Does my model railroad’s layout surface need to be wood-built, or are there other methods that don’t make such a mess?” Foam […]
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The Lionel-GE locomotive history arguably goes back more than a century. The first General Electric models made by the toy train manufacturer in electric and diesel profiles were separated by about 60 years. The internal-combustion model came almost a decade-and-a-half after GE started making that type of engine. Lionel GE locomotive history General Electric entered […]
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Built by Others is an article series showcasing layouts constructed by modelers using plans and projects from the pages of Model Railroader magazine. The Gold Hills Central was a layout built live by staff and MR contributors at Model Railroader’s 50th Anniversary Conference, held in Milwaukee in 1983. The original story and plan ran in […]
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On May 1st, 1971, the National Railroad Passenger Corporation, or Amtrak, was formed. On this 52nd anniversary, I thought we should take a look at small Amtrak trains from the start. If you want to learn about how to model modern short Amtrak consists, check out my previous article. Instead of focusing on two individual […]
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Adding water and smoke to an O scale garden railway While picking up my supply of filtered water, I was “amazed and mystified” by the counter display—a faucet floating in mid air, spouting a stream of water that never quite filled a bucket. When the owner showed me the clear plastic tube that had been […]
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Q: I have acquired a vintage Suydam “Purina Chows” feed mill kit. What would be contained in the silo part of the building (grain or feed) and how did those feed dealers receive grain? Dumping grain from a boxcar seems a bit messy, and covered hoppers were not in use until the mid-1950s. I model the […]
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