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Okay, without getting too technical about the way the earth's blue sky has various shades of blue----which color blue did you choose for a background on your model railroad? Which brand & store? hamr

Found an old 1988 Model Railroad Craftsman magazine that talks about a tool that produces nail holes perfectly for scratch building structures. It was a clever little device marketed by Wayne Hume of Vintage Reproductions and looked like a cross between a leather working tool and miniature...

I read what threads I could find on this subject, but most of it deals with technical data such as amps, volts, etc. Call me "Simple Simon" or whatever but please just tell me how ya'll are lighting and powering your structures. I noticed on the back of my Tech MRC 280 Train Controller that...

What do you call the very front of the steam locomotive? You know the part with the headlight? Is it the boiler backhead? And is there a thread somewhere that covers and defines model railroading nomenclature? Like what is a: 1.Truck 2.Driver 3. etc.,etc.,etc., ???????

Santa Claus gave me a Broadway Limited for Christmas, a 4-6-4 New York Central. It keeps derailing. I tired to run it on two different sets of track: one was a simple oval of Bachmann EZ track that my wife and I have running through her Christmas village in our living room and the second was on...

I'm an building a HO bridge from scratch and I am at the point to consider the nuts and bolts. I used black 1" panel nails on the last bridge that I built from scratch. I reduced their length as needed. I was just wondering what all you master modelers use for nuts and bolts and rivets. I guess...

A coworker told me to try some of the clear liquid adhesive that comes in a small bottle at the local hobby shop. He said you just put it on plastic, put the pieces together and its glued. I found different brand names and purchased Ambroid ProWeld but it didn't work for me. The cap uses a small...

I am attempting to scratchbuild the Big Warrior River Bridge found in Kalmbach's Model Railroad Bridges & Trestles book; page 105. I successfully photocopied the Z scale plans to HO but failed in my attempt to build the lacing on the girders/plates. I built three out of wood but they looked...

:confused: How does one know which Peco code 100 switch to order? I have no idea if I will need a small, medium or large radius. Streamlined or curved? Short or long crossing? And does the switch come with everything that you need or do you have to buy attachments separate? :confused: Sorry, but...

I purchased the book, How to Build Model Railroad Benchwork by Lynn Westcott and on page 9 he didn't answer my question. He said, " ---spacing between tracks in critical. If you don't have data to guide you here, try your longest cars and locomotives by placing them upon your plan to be sure...

I have an HO box car that derails on a particular flextrack curve that I just laid down. It runs just fine if I turn the whole train consist around and run it in the opposite direction. Why is that? I can't seem to notice anything suspicous about the track.

This may seem like a dumb question but would you consider laying flextrack a two man job? My only experience with track recently is Bachmann EZ track which is of course sectional track and just snaps together. On the other hand, when I attempt to curve a 36 inch long piece of flextrack track it...

Sunday, I purchased a used Mantua 0-4-0 at the Cincinnati Train Show. When I got a chance to try it out at home it ran sporadically and then stopped. I took it apart and tested the engine and was delighted to see it run just fine---full rpm. I cleaned, lubricated and checked a wire that runs...

What's the difference between a K4 4-6-2 (pre-war with Slat Pilot) and (post-war with modern pilot)? I have looked at pictures of the steam locomotives side by side and for the life of me can not see a difference. Am I blind? It's like one of those puzzles that you see in the comic strip where...

I am reading the book "Model Railroading with John Allen"and want to learn how he built the stone and timber viaduct on the first G & D. I have found a book on how to build the timber bridge but nothing on the stone viaduct which has four graceful arches. It's frustrating because I have searched...

I read that John Allen had standard gauge engines on his Gorre & Daphetid railroad and I am not sure what that is. Is that HO? Larger or smaller? Is standard gauge still around? What is standard these days? I know this is a dumb question but it is bugging the heck out of me. Even the guys at the...

What's a streamlined shroud & disk driver look like? I am reading about K5s and the book mentions the addition of streamlined shourds and disk drivers and I have no idea what they are talking about. :confused:

I have an old steam locomotive with a headlight that brightens with the speed of the engine. How does one install constant-brightness headlights like John Allen had-----and----a glowing red bulb in the firebox??? :confused:

I want to build some John Allen viaducts and can't figure out how he made the liner underneath the viaduct. Some are stone and some are brick. They look very real in the pictures. I have mastered the art of carving tunnel portals and viaducts in plaster of paris but---for the life of me---cannot...

How do you build plaster of paris piers and viaducts from scratch? I guess you have to make a mold and use a release agent but I wanted to check with you experts first. I read where one guy carved the orginial in wood first and then made a rubber latex mold to duplicate several but there must be...