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It helps to think of a layout in terms of square feet. A 4x8 layout is 32 square feet. A 5x9 layout is 45 square feet. I have the beginnings of an "around the room" layout, the room is 25x11 square feet, and right now it's a shelf layout that, once I finish this next module, will be around 30...

Nice! I am a big fan of George Huckaby's work.

Neat! I have been to the Trolleyville site many times but never checked out the online Trolleyville Times. Definitely an inspiration to a trolley nut!

There are pros and cons. One argument in favor of not wiring common rail is that you can also run steam or diesel equipment on the same track. I know some traction fans have installed SPDT switches (one pole to the trolley pole, the other to the other set of wheels) in their equipment, allowing...

Wow, that's fairly heavy! 1x4 or 1x3 is generally all that is needed for a train table. The simples way would be to use four legs, each made from a 2x4. Put one leg in each corner, using one or two screws drilled from the leg to the outer framework of the table (3" drywall screws should...

Rail traffic is booming on all counts, and this is a pretty good time to get a job working on the railroad. Freight traffic is at an all-time high, commuter passenger service is popping up in metropolitan areas, and the streetcar is having a renaissance in cities of all sizes. Amtrak has...

The problem with the "standard basic" 4x8 layout is that it dates to a time when the "standard basic" model railroad car was either a 40 foot boxcar or a 60 foot "shorty" passenger car, diesel locomotives tended to be shortish B-B locos or relatively small steam, and model companies were more...

Models of modern equipment, especially things like 80' cars and container stacks, are not designed to run on relatively sharp curves. 22" used to be "moderate" curves when most model railroads pulled models of 40' boxcars and 60' "shorty" passenger equipment, but modern equipment is bigger and...

Yes, you do have to insulate the wye--gaps just beyond the switches from the mainline would work.

I have used the Woodland Scenics foam. It is more flexible than cork, sound characteristics are about the same after you ballast. Putting down cork or foam is not hard at all--once you've figured out where you want the track to go, you draw in the lines, lay down some glue (Aleene's Tacky Glue...

The standards of the hobby are "Track Planning for Realistic Operation" and "The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does", both by John Armstrong. As far as online articles, you might try some of the online articles at the trains.com forum, or the Yahoo! Layout Design SIG (there are many model...

Russ Bellinis: Actually, I live in Sacramento. Due to the fact that we are one of the oldest cities in California, downtown Sacramento has a lot of older houses with basements. My house in particular is what is known as a "high-water bungalow," the ground floor is about seven feet off the...

Here are some shots of my SN belt line in its new home, plus a few shots with planned track layout crudely tacked on. I still need to get some CAD software that can handle PECO switches properly (which means Atlas' freeware is out) before I can draw up some more official plans: most of my...

Well, there is a caveat: there were only four (or was it three?) Docksides, and they belonged to one company, but there were many, many 0-4-0 tank locomotives that looked vaguely like a Dockside.

Makes me glad I got a 1-gig SD card for my digital camera!

Ah, there's the rub: I'm modeling a western U.S. electric, which was characterized by heavy juice jacks doing most of the freight work, rather than combines or box motors. I guess I'll just have to learn to get good with the Rix pick, or put down more uncoupling magnets!

The next time someone tells you they are going on a sea cruise, ask them why they don't fly instead! Quite frankly, very few people *need* to take trains instead of planes for long distance travel. The point, in my mind, of train travel is enjoying the trip, the scenery, and the train itself. I...

There's kind of a difference between 250 watt halogen floodlights and the little 20 watt halogen bulbs I have. They generate some heat but not a ton, and they're good for spotlighting (literally) scenic areas. My latest idea is to go back and add another row of rope lights to the back of the...

Here's a question: How hard is it to manually uncouple cars under wire? I was fiddling around with a Rix pick doing some switching last night and said "geez, if I had overhead I'd be slashing myself to ribbons right now!"

Normally when one doesn't use the terminal joiners, or the Atlas terminal strip which has screw connectors to connect power to the track, wires are soldered directly to the rail--ideally once every few feet, in order to ensure good electrical connection. It takes a little practice to avoid...