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Wow! I never quite managed to measure the ruling grade on my layout and finally decided to measure it, using a 24-inch long carpenter's level, laying on the track, and measuring the rise with a steel tape, which came out to 1-1/8" rise = 1.125". Running the numbers on a model railroad grade...

In the September 2023 issue of Model Railroader, Mr. Chris Moore has a great article about his "old school" Cascade & Twin Mountains freelance layout. In it, he states that he "just like to run trains" and doesn't have any signals on his pike. (He also runs DC only.) His era is in the early...

I have a Con-Cor streamlined passenger car with Kaydee compatible couplers, but the drawbars pull loose from the truck frames. I have some Kaydee 508 conversion bolsters, but they don't seem to be the right fit. Would the 505's work? The Kaydee website is somewhat vague on the subject. The...

TrainWorld is offering some interesting Z-type trailers by Athearn. The earlier prototypes made by Freuhof which had three closely-spaced exterior ribs over the landing gear, were actually designed by Strick Trailer, which Freuhof acquired, temporarily. Strick Trailer was later bought back from...

It's nice to be committed to your hobby. OTOH too much could be cause for being committed! I need another Mantua steam locomotive kitbashing project like I need a fox in my backyard (which happens occasionally)! Several weeks ago, I happened to have a spare five minutes to look on ebay for...

Several years ago I bought a pair of GP30's (HO). Although a few years late for my era (1940's - 1960 the -30's came out in 1962), but they are painted in C.B.& Q. Chinese Red, so I bought them. They have been sitting in the Galesburg yard since then, as I have been busy. I just undertook...

Just wondering what coarseness and color ballast you are using on HO scale track. What brand, and are you blending different shades?

I have an older aluminum baggage car that has doors made from cheap very thin plastic that are warped, and I'd like to replace them without having to fabricate them and cut out a bunch of narrow vertical windows. Looked on Walthers website without any results. Tried e-bay, and while there are...

I can't find where this topic came up before, but here is some food for thought for the modern era: It will be sort of prototypical to run KSC and CP rail power together once the Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern merger is finalized! Seems like KSC agreed to the merger with CP, even...

At one time the C.B.&Q. use 129 lb and 136 lb rail on some of its trackage, versus 112 lb. most other manline places. Any idea what the heavier weights would correspond to in HO code? Conversely, what "weights" do Code 70, 83 and 100 correspond to?

I see that Broadway Limited is coming out with an HO scale UP 4-12-2, sometime around the end of the year. There are no details, but I am wondering what kind of curves this beast would take, even with all the center drivers blind. o_O (I doubt it would work on my 22" ruling curves, but I am...

I think I have an addiction problem. I have a "thing" for kitbashing and assembling Mantua HO steam locomotives, especially from leftover parts! Although there will be periods of time when I do other things not related to model railroading, eventually I get the urge...again! Where I can, I...

Does anyone know where I might find the bottom coverplate for a Mantua 2-8-2 Mikado? I have checked ebay and the only thing is a chassis and brass coverplate for a Bowser Mike. They want $24.95, which is a bit more than I want to spend, and the chassis apparently isn't set up for the brass...

:eek: I have used Walthers' GOO rubber cement for YEARS. I have used it for everything from model railroading to cementing the seams on leather products I make. But I am down to about my last tube...or less. But my LHS, Caboose, in Lakewood, Colorado, has shut its doors. So I went to the...

I recently acquired a Rivarosi Heisler HO locomotive. It runs fine on DC, and after I switched out the X2f couplers for Kaydees. But the headlight is burned out. My question is how do I remove the boiler so I can get at the bulb in the headlight and install a new bulb? The rear light is...

Several years ago I bought a Spectrum 3-truck Climax from Bachmann with DCC/Sound. It ran okay for a while, then quit. I sent it back and they repaired it, and it worked okay...for another while, then died again. The sound works fine, and I think I can hear the motor, but it won't move and I...

Does anybody know of a grade crossing bell setup that can be actuated by IR detectors (preferably interrupted by the passing train)? Azatrax used to have a module, but no longer makes it, and it required an electro-mechanical bell rather than an electronically-generated sound. I've got three...

Back in the late 60's and 70's the U.S. Navy transported rocket motors for the Polaris and Poseidon submarine-launched ballistic missiles on trains using a TruckAndRailVan, called a TARVAN. Does anyone have an idea what these rail vans looked like? I am NOT talking about the rail cars used to...

Some outfit is coming out with semi-trailers in HO scale that have the Strick logo in the oval on them (NOT StrickLease). They are various decorations, but have the Strick logo in the oval at the corners. They aren't out yet. Sometime in 2021. I can't find the dealers that will have them.

I have been having frustrations with installing working crossing gates on my HO layout. I first installed some older Model Power gates, actuated by Tortise stall motors under the layout. These were actuated by Azatrax electronics, including infrared cross-track sensors. Worked fine until the...