Peter's Model Railroading | My Library | Model Railroader 1985-10
Articles Listing

The Ironhead Timber Co.

The 10' by 16' layout features a lot of detail and very nice scenery. Not all of it was finished at the time of the article. The theme is logging railroading in the Pacific Northwest in the early 1900s.

The C/MRI: A Computer/Model Railroad Interface Part 8

This installment covers the hardware of the cab control. It includes digital and analog cab-assignment panels.

Build a 1915 Pennzoil Tank Car

This article describes how to build a three-domed "old-timer" tank car. The tank is only just under 28 feet long, so it requires quite a bit of kitbashing to build this model. Article includes detail diagrams and one model photo; no prototype photos.

Erie RR Gantry Crane

Small cranes like these could be found at medium to large freight stations on team tracks. They were used to unload materials from flat or gondola cars onto other flat or gondola cars or onto local freight trucks. The prototype model described here was found at the Erie RR track at the Calumet Iron Works. Scale drawings and overhead truck design diagrams are included.

Water and How to Model It

Different waterways are discussed and the author describes how to model them. Model photos are taken from the New England, Bershire & Western railroad.

Thoughts on Modular Traction Design

The author is proposing three standards for interchangeable modular layouts using traction, as inspired by the NTrak standard. The standards are "rural/farm", "big city", and "heavy electric" modeling. Various track plans and model photos of the author's modules are included.

Steam in Your Backyard?

Combining gardening and garden railroading, but with a twist - using small scale live steam. Gauge 1 refers more to the track width rather than a particular scale. Photos of the author's backyard layout are included.

New Machinery for a Damaged Brass Pacific

The author describes how he replaced the frame and mechanism of a badly-behaving brass locomotive with Bowser parts.

The Riddle of Mel Thornburgh's Workshop

The author talks about his visit with Mel, a popular author in the 1940s and 1950s issues of Model Railroader. Envisioning Mel to have a tremendous workshop, only to discover that all the work was done by hand and on an old dining room table.

Athearn's SD40-2: A Kitbasher's Gold Mine

The article covers how to convert the Athearn SD40-2 model into a SD38-2, a GP40X, a SD45-2, and a GP50. Includes model photos and cutting diagrams for each of those models.

SD60

The author describes how he detailed and painted the EMD SD60 demonstrator.