They completed the locomotive, station platform, and signal in the previous video. Now it’s time for Bryson and Rene to build the two passenger cars. They finish the remaining books and bags in the set and finish it at the end of the video. Keep an eye out for Part 3: Running the train here […]
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Regulators set schedule for hearing coal producer’s common carrier complaint against BNSF
WASHINGTON — Federal regulators have set a procedural schedule for handling Navajo Transitional Energy Co.’s common carrier complaint against BNSF Railway. The Surface Transportation Board last month issued a preliminary injunction that ordered BNSF to handle a minimum of 4.2 million tons of coal from NTEC’s Spring Creek mine in Montana to export at the […]
Illinois chooses Metra to operate Chicago-Rockford service
ROCKFORD, Ill. — With an 1880s bridge over the Rock River supporting a Metra train as a backdrop, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and other officials announced Thursday that Chicago commuter operator Metra had been selected to partner with Union Pacific to provide two daily rail roundtrips between Rockford and Chicago by 2027. The estimated $275 […]
Modeling transition era railcar brakes
Q: I am researching transition era railcar brakes. Were there books written on the subject, and are they still available for purchase? – Ron Buddemeier A: The most complete and detailed reference for transition era railcar brakes is the one used by the railroads themselves – the Car Builder’s Cyclopedia of American Practice. This weighty […]
A handy N scale uncoupler — good for olives, too
A handy N scale uncoupler: If you’re a model railroader, everywhere you go your antennae are out, scanning your environs for anything that might be useful to build with. And that leads me to swizzle sticks. I was having lunch with a tableful of in-laws at Maggiano’s Little Italy, a popular chain with a restaurant […]
First run of the Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado
With the release of the Lionel Pennsylvania RR L1 Mikado, it seems that we’ve returned to pre-pandemic manufacturing timelines with the manufacturer. This Legacy engine, cataloged in Lionel’s 2022 Volume II edition, has been delivered in less than a year. This is another product made with tooling acquired from MTH Trains a few years ago. […]
Water plants for the garden railway
Water plants for the garden railway Ah, summer! It’s hot enough for iced tea and watermelon. You’re sitting by your little pond, enjoying the rhythmic chimes of rushing water from your railway’s beautiful falls. Through the haze your eyes rest on a serene lake; you’re imagining that anticipated fishing trip. Mountains reflected in cool, clear […]
CPKC route reopens at Wisconsin derailment site
REESEVILLE, Wis. — CPKC tracks have reopened through the site of Tuesday’s derailment in Reeseville, with Amtrak’s Empire Builder returning to its normal route as of Wednesday evening. Plans had been for the westbound Builder to hold in Milwaukee until the derailment site on CPKC’s Watertown Subdivision reopened. But the train, which arrived in Milwaukee […]
NEC service restored for Amtrak, NJ Transit after overhead power issues (updated)
NEW YORK — Amtrak service was restored between New York and Philadelphia by 10 a.m. EDT after overhead power issues at the Metropark station in Woodbridge, N.J., according to the Amtrak website. The problem was initially reported about 8 a.m. ET. At least some trains were cancelled as a result of the issue, according to […]
Phoebe Snow – passenger train advertising icon
Phoebe Snow as a person was an invention by advertising men a half century before the streamliner. A new management led by William Haynes Truesdale had taken charge of Lackawanna in 1899 and was turning the system from a 19th-century pike into a 20th-century railroad. The makeover included the passenger service. DL&W’s passenger engines used […]
How do I add DCC passenger car interior lighting?
Q: I have some HO scale passenger cars that I would like to install LED lights into. I’m new to model railroading. I understand that I need decoders in each car, but after that, I’m lost. – Alex Laserson A: If you want to install passenger car interior lighting, you don’t absolutely have to use […]
Analysis: Railroads need to polish their tarnished image. Here’s how
When my wife and I had another couple over for dinner back in April, the cork was barely out of the wine bottle when our friends popped the question: What on earth is going on with railroads? In the wake of the Feb. 3 Norfolk Southern derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, and intense media coverage […]
