Meet Bill Barnwell In a paragraph, how did you get started in the hobby? I got started in trains at the age of six with a Lionel 027 steam freight set and an oval of track under the Christmas tree. I still remember the smell of electric ozone in the air, laying on the rug at […]
Soo Line diesel locomotives came from four builders and sported two distinctive paint schemes. The Minneapolis, St. Paul & Sault Ste. Marie had long been known by its nickname, the Soo Line. The railroad adopted that name officially in 1961 when it merged the Wisconsin Central and Duluth, South Shore & Atlantic, both […]
Modeling plate girder bridges: The most commonly found type of railroad bridge in the country has to be the good old plate girder. You see them everywhere. They’re simple, inexpensive, and can handle spans up to about 100 feet. (The longer the span, the deeper the sideplates on the bridge.) As long as there are […]
Tips for body mounting couplers: “Oh, no,” I can hear you saying, “He’s off on couplers again.” Well, sorry, I am, and perhaps not for the last time. Almost all N scale rolling stock until recently has come with truck-mounted couplers. It’s true that cars so equipped can handle tighter curves, but it’s also true […]
Common name: Axilflower, Magic Carpet Yellow, Baby Jump Up Latin name: Mecardonia x ‘Magic Carpet Yellow’, M. x ‘Gold Dust’, and M. x ‘Gold Flake’ Plant type: Annual USDA Hardiness Zones: 9-11, or grown as an annual Cultural needs: Moist, well drained, neutral or slightly acidic soil; full sun Plant size: 4″ high x 6-12″ […]
I have a confession to make: I’m an ops noob. I’ve been a model railroader for more than 30 years and have worked for Model Railroader magazine for 15. I edited Jerry Dziedzic’s “On Operation” column for years and Andy Sperandeo’s “The Operators” before that. And I know my way around a throttle. But a […]
Unless you model a short line or branch line that owns only one locomotive, your layout probably needs some kind of model railroad signals. Signals are used to convey information to an engineer about the block of track ahead: whether it’s safe to enter, whether it’s occupied by another train, and how fast it can […]
Soo Line history involves numerous subsidiary railroads. Seemingly hidden away in the north-central U.S., the Soo Line and its affiliated Wisconsin Central Railway did not receive the attention lavished on bigger neighbors Chicago & North Western and Milwaukee Road. Soo did not host a streamliner, went freight-only in 1968, and was bought by Canadian Pacific, […]
Today, it’s easier than ever to railfan without leaving the comfort of your home. Kalmbach Media is one of several companies that offers DVDs on various prototype subjects. If you prefer seeing trains in real time, you can watch any number of railfan webcams, such as the one Trains magazine has at Rochelle, Ill. This […]
LANCASTER, Minn. — Approximately 27 cars of a Canadian Pacific Kansas City train, some carrying hazardous materials, derailed near the Canadian border Wednesday afternoon, closing a 7-mile stretch of U.S. Route 59 as a precautionary measure. CNN reports the cars involved included eight tank cars, with some carrying an unspecified flammable liquid. The Grand Forks, […]
STAMFORD, Conn. — One person was injured when a portion of a ceiling collapsed at the Stamford station served by Amtrak and Metro-North trains on Wednesday afternoon, the Stamford Advocate reports. Kafi Rouse, director of communications for the Connecticut Department of Transportation, told the newspaper a portion of the ceiling liner collapsed in a tunnel […]
First of two parts WASHINGTON — While the U.S. Transportation Security Administration reported a record 2.7 million passengers processed at the nation’s airports on Friday, May 26, a lack of capacity means intercity passenger rail travel was not a Memorial Day weekend travel option for many Americans served by Amtrak long-distance trains. The problem is […]
