Truck’s Toy Trains: Episode 7 Colber Accessories

Metal toy train bridges.

In this episode, Colber railroad accessories are the focus of John Truckenbrod analysis. He’ll explore how these American-made products shared similarities with Lionel offerings of the same period. Plus, Taylor joins John to examine a 1920 Lionel Corporation artifact with an intriguing backstory! […]

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HO scale Cajon Pass

HOscaleCajonPass

Name: Cajon Pass Layout owner: Pat Smith Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 33′-2″ x 40′-7″ Prototype: Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe; Union Pacific; and Southern Pacific Locale: Southern California Era: Early 1950s to early 1960s strong>Style: walkaround Mainline run: 475 feet Minimum Radius: 30″ Minimum turnout: no. 5 Maximum grade: 3 percent Benchwork: open grid Height: […]

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HO scale New York New Haven Hartford RR

HOscaleNewYorkNewHavenHartford

Name: New York, New Haven & Hartford RR Layout owner: Richard Abramson Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 12′-6″ x 19′-6″ Prototype: New Haven electrified zone Locale: southwestern Connecticut Era: 1950s to 1960s Style: around-the-walls Mainline run: 65 feet Minimum radius: 36″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: 2 percent Benchwork: open grid Height: 49″ Roadbed: Homasote […]

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Four compact track plans

QuanaAcmePacific

Present and former members of the Model Railroader staff designed these four model railroads. Each can fit a 150-square-foot space. That space could be a 10 x 15-foot spare room, an 8-foot-wide stall in an 18-foot-long garage, a 5-foot-wide space along a 30-foot basement wall, or anything in between. What resulted was a variety of […]

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HO scale Hudson, Delaware & Lehigh RR

HOscaleHudsonDelawareLehighRR

Name: Hudson, Delaware & Lehigh Layout owner: Gary Schaff Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 13′-6″ x 35′-0″ Prototype: Central RR of New Jersey and Pennsylvania RR Locale: Jersey City, N.J., to Mauch Chunk, Pa. Era: early 1950s Style: walk-in Mainline run: CNJ, 170 feet; PRR, 108 feet Minimum radius: 27″ Minimum turnout: no. 5 Maximum grade: […]

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HO scale Pennsylvania Elmira Branch

HOscalePRRElmiraBranch1

Name: PRR Elmira Branch Layout owner: Anthony Daniele Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 22 x 45 feet Prototype: Pennsylvania RR, Erie RR, New York Central, and Lehigh Valley Locale: upstate New York Era: 1956 Style: walkaround Mainline run: 249 feet (to Canandaigua); 281 feet (to Sodus Yard) Minimum radius: 36″, 30″ (hidden) Minimum turnout: no. 6 […]

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HO scale Denver & Rio Grande Western

HOscaleDenverRioGrandeWestern

Click on the image to download a PDF copy of this track plan. Name: Denver & Rio Grande Western Layout owner: David Powell Scale: HO scale (1:87.1) Size: 13′-0″ x 18′-6″ Prototype: Denver & Rio Grande Western Locale: Colorado Era: late 1950s to early 1960s Style: walk-in Mainline run: 65 feet Minimum radius: 273⁄8″ Minimum […]

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HO scale Minneapolis & St. Louis Story City Branch

HOscaleMStLStoryCityBranch

Click on the image to download a PDF copy of this track plan. Name: Minneapolis & St. Louis Story City branch Layout owner: Clark Propst Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 13 x 20 feet Prototype: Minneapolis & St. Louis Locale: central Iowa Era: Autumn 1949 to 1951 Style: linear walk-in Mainline run: 70 feet Minimum radius: […]

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O scale Pennsylvania & New York Central

OscalePennsylvaniaNewYorkCentral

Click on the image to download a PDF copy of this track plan. Name: Pennsylvania & New York Central Layout owner: Lee Gasparik Scale: O (1:48) Size: 43 x 70 feet Prototype: Pennsylvania RR and New York Central Locale: Northeastern U.S. Period: 1950s Style: linear walkaround Mainline run: 734 feet Minimum radius: 76″ (main), 60″ (yard) Minimum […]

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