|
|
Scratch & Bash
Build a coal load for your Hopper
See how David went about creating a coal load for his LGB East Broad Top, Hopper Car. Use his techniques to create a load for any of your Hoppers.
Oct 4, 2013 - 11:00:00 AM
The History of National Garden Railroad Convention Cars
Member Brent Stuvland has put together a pictorial history of The National Convention Cars. Can you help complete the list?
Jun 6, 2013 - 9:00:00 AM
$5 Projects - Turnout Control
This $5 project will show how I used a power door lock, designed for your car, for turnout control.
Jan 18, 2013 - 10:00:00 AM
How-to: Weathering Clinic - Part 2
Learn some step-by-step ideas on how to weather your loco and tender. See examples of light and heavy weathering.
Jan 4, 2013 - 11:00:00 AM
How-to: Weathering Clinic - Part 1
So how to make something new, look old? The best way to start is to study prototype photos past and present. You can find these pictures in books, videos and on the Internet.
Jan 4, 2013 - 10:00:00 AM
Building a Large Scale Locomotive Kit
This loco was a real challenge to assemble. It is not a kit for the amateur modeler or the fainthearted. The entire project probably took almost 100 man hours to complete.
Dec 14, 2012 - 11:00:00 AM
$5 Projects - Oxygen Bottles for Loads or your Shop
I wanted some oxygen type bottles for my Chemical Plant and Motorcycle Shop. This project is well below our $5 target.
Dec 7, 2012 - 11:00:00 AM
$5 Projects - Coal for my Tenders
I wanted to have a more realistic coal load for my tenders. With my $5.00 in hand, I went to PetSmart.
Nov 9, 2012 - 1:00:00 PM
Puzzled about what to build? Why not try constructing a switching puzzle?
If you don't have the room, time or money to build your Garden Railroad, read about building a Switching Puzzle. You can have fun building and running a train in a small area.
Aug 17, 2012 - 11:00:00 AM
Video - Chicken Train - Live Poultry Transit by Rail - Large Scale Garden Train Model and some History
Allan Warrior has created a Large Scale Garden Train model of a box car that was used in the late 1880's and later to transport live chickens to market.
Aug 10, 2012 - 9:00:00 AM
Build a Bug-Eye Eggliner
I am a big fan of Aristo Craft's Eggliners and a big fan of designing animations. What follows is a description of how the Bug-Eyed Eggliner came to life along with instructions that will help you to make your own.
Jul 27, 2012 - 11:00:00 AM
Dry Letter Transfers - A Beginners Attempt
I bought a Dry Letter Transfer kit at Michaels a year ago. After staring at the kit, I decided to open it up and give it a shot. See and read about my results.
Jul 20, 2012 - 11:00:00 AM
A Track Cleaning Car You Can Build Today
Do you need a track cleaning car for your railroad? Member Bill Ness explains how to build one today so you can have clean track by tomorrow.
Jul 13, 2012 - 11:00:00 AM
Installing a Gear Reduction Case in a Bachmann K-27 Increase Performance And Pulling Power
As delivered by Bachmann, starting in late December 2007, the locomotive has a gear ratio of 14.5 to 1. Within the last several months Rodney Edington has offered a gear reduction box that changes the gear ratio to 26 to 1. This new gear ratio really does make a major difference in the K-27 operating characteristics. The change in operation is dramatic. Come see how you can update yours.
Jul 13, 2011 - 8:00:00 AM
Building a Phil's Narrow Gauge Craftsman's Kit - Part 4
In our last segment I installed the roof walk and completed the underbody details. In this one I will be finishing off the details on the car and decaling and weathering it. here is a considerable amount of hardware to be put on this car. There are a total of 236 cast metal and brass parts to be installed. There are 36 grab irons and 150 brass nuts and bolts. This part of the project was the most time consuming, but also was a lot of fun to do.
Jun 8, 2011 - 8:00:00 AM
Building a Phil's Narrow Gauge Craftsman's Kit - Part 3
As I continued building Phil's Narrow Gauge Commissary Car kit, I was getting to the more enjoyable part of the construction. In the first segment of the article, I built the basic box of the car and in the second segment I constructed the windows, doors and roof of the car. In this segment I will be installing the roof walk and completing the underbody details. In this segment we begin to get into the more interesting and challenging modeling.
Jun 1, 2011 - 8:00:00 AM
Building a Phil's Narrow Gauge Craftsman's Kit - Part 2
In the first section of this article, we had completed the basic box of the car and in this section we will construct the windows, doors and the roof of the Phil's Narrow Gauge Commissary Car kit. I located the two bags of door parts and the bag of window parts and laid them out so that I could identify each of the parts. They included doors, windows, spacers, screens, door casings and trim. Let's get to work!
May 25, 2011 - 8:00:00 AM
Building a Phil's Narrow Gauge Craftsman's Kit - Part 1
Every year I try to come up with projects to do while we spend the winter in Florida. This year I actually finished three major projects. The first was the GP-9 that I gutted and built up the interior to include models of the diesel and traction motors. The second was to convert a 1/24-scale Aristo Craft cabooses to a 1/29 scale New York Central caboose. The final project was to construct one of the Phil's Narrow Gauge craftsman's kits. Come see how I built it.
May 18, 2011 - 8:00:00 AM
Build a easy, low cost Loco Carrier
Do you have a need for a locomotive carrier? When Bachmann introduced their Spectrum 4-4-0 American I discovered a need for a simple, easy to construct locomotive carrier.
Mar 30, 2011 - 9:00:00 AM
5 Minute Project: Track Stops
While rearranging the 4'x8' table I use to store some of my rolling stock on, I realized I needed new end of track stops or I would have to buy some new end of track bumpers.
Mar 16, 2011 - 9:00:00 AM
Depth of Modeling in Large Scale
Model making in the railroad hobby has greatly changed from the very, very early days in O, S and HO scales when there were virtually no simple model kits or finished models that are available today. Then, a car kit might consist of a pair of trucks and couplers, or just castings for them, a set of plans, and a bundle of raw materials with a few castings and perhaps a single sheet of crude plans.
Mar 9, 2011 - 10:00:00 AM
This Cradle Will Not Fall or Fail
As I thought about the engine cradle I had up in Maryland, I remembered that it was made from a very firm, but pliable foam. So I went to my trusty Mac and opened Firefox and Googled "foam". When I did that I found was the solution to my problems.
Feb 23, 2011 - 10:00:00 AM
Hand Lettering your Freight Cars
As most of us who model, I have need for lettering. And since dry transfers are getting hard to find around here, or are a special order item. And since they never seem to be in the color I want. Come see how I solved this problem.
Feb 23, 2011 - 9:00:00 AM
The Largest Tank Car Ever Built
This is the story of how I build a #1 scale model of GATX 96500, the largest tank car ever built.
Feb 16, 2011 - 9:00:01 AM
Light Duty Maintenance Stand
This write-up describes a little project I had in mind for several years, but somehow the right piece of lumber was never on hand. Finally, prompted by the invitation to submit hints for the 2011 LSOL calendar, I decided to go ahead.
Feb 9, 2011 - 10:00:07 AM
(VIDEO) New Product: USA Trains Body Mounted Couplers (HiDef)
USA Trains Ultimate Series rolling stock have a ready to use area for adding a body mount coupler. USA Trains has made it simple with some upgrades that will let you body mount your USA knuckle couplers with just a simple modification. Come see how easy it really is and how good it really looks.
Jan 12, 2011 - 10:00:00 AM
Snow Plowing: Talk to the CPO
I would like to share with you everything I have learned about plowing snow on a Large-scale outdoor layout over the past 12 years.
Dec 29, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
GP-9: If it Does Not Run Well, Make it Look Great Standing Still - Part2
In the last part of this article I explain how I found the materials I needed to prepare the loco shell and construct the EMD 567 prime mover. I will also show how we painted, lettered and weathered the final model. I returned to the access doors to apply hinges and latches made from .040 styrene strips.
Dec 22, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
Maintenance People on and Around Your Loco
After I finished the GP-9 and set it up on the track, it still needed something to make it look more prototypical. Since it had all of the access doors opened, I wanted to put some maintenance people on and around the loco so that it would appear that it was being serviced.
Dec 22, 2010 - 9:59:00 AM
Aristo-Craft Switch Tower: Building an Inside
I also promised to finish the interior of the tower based upon a picture I had found in one of my reference books, New York Central Facilities in Color, by Geoffrey H. Doughty. Come see how it turned out.
Dec 22, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
GP-9: If it Does Not Run Well, Make it Look Great Standing Still - Part1
A couple of months ago I was reading one of the several model railroading and railroad magazines that I receive each month and came across an article that really got my attention. I didn't want to duplicate the prime mover failure, but I liked the idea of having the locomotive with most of the access panels open for servicing, allowing a view of the prime mover.
Dec 15, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
A 1/29 NYC Roundhouse - Part III
Part III - Some of the final steps need to complete the Roundhouse -- Exterior Shed
Dec 8, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
A 1/29 NYC Roundhouse - Part II
Part II - Interior Detail and the Back Walls for the Roundhouse. Adding Lights, Doors and putting on the roof. The walls were up and the lights were on, it was time to cover the place to keep the rain off of the engines and workmen.
Dec 1, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
A 1/29 NYC Roundhouse - Part I
After finishing the turntable for my G-gauge New York Central Big Four railroad, I now needed a place for my steam engines to be readied for their next run.
Nov 24, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
Metal Bending For Rib Roofs Made Easy Part 2
Last week we I explained how I made my rail Bender for Rib roofing. I had a few request to follow up on some specific details on how I bent and installed the rib roof.
Nov 17, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
Metal Bending For Rib Roofs Made Easy
Metal bending for rib roofs can be challenging because each piece should be the same size. Trying to create this by hand can be all put impossible. I figured what I needed was to come up with a jig that would bend the edges of the rib as close as possible.
Nov 10, 2010 - 10:00:26 AM
Log Cars: From Plastic to Real. It is Easier Than You Think.
The Bachamnn skeleton log car is a nicely detailed car as it comes, but the molded on detail doesn't stand out too well since the car is molded all in one color. But I can fix that, but so can you.
Oct 27, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
How hard is it to install Kadee Couplers?
What's keeping you from Kadee Couplers? See how easy it is. I thought the easiest way to answer many of your questions was to show you how-to actually replace your current couplers.
Oct 27, 2010 - 9:00:01 AM
Paint them Kadee Couplers
Then one night on the chat line I got a compliment on how I weathered my couplers. So I thought that maybe that would make a good article.
Oct 13, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
Making your Rolling Stock More Real. ACI - Automatic Car Identification
Most of my childhood I grew up in a house that had railroad tracks running behind it. For many years it was the Penn Central that ran on those tracks, some Norfolk and Western trains would occasionally pass over those tracks and in later years it was Conrail. I was always interested in trains and used to stop whatever I was doing to watch the trains go by. I noticed that the cars back then had these colorful signs bolted to the sides of them. It was only years later that I found out these were ACI plates, a sort of color bar code used to identify the cars.
Oct 6, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
Body Mount Kadee Couplers
Last year, I picked up a couple of Bachmann cars: a box car and a tank car at a train show. I planned to detail and paint the cars and convert them to Kadee couplers. I found the conversion was not nearly as difficult as I anticipated and took less than 1/2 hour each.
Oct 6, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
Building A Low Deck Trestle Bridge
As usual I would be daydreaming about building some of these projects and having my own railroad eventually. I say daydreaming because my carpentry skills tend to be on the "rough-in" side and anything like finish carpentry is NOT my forte.
Sep 22, 2010 - 9:00:01 AM
DOUBLE ARTICLE: Scratch Built Sagged Box Cars
Instead of removing the existing switch and lifting that track, I will leave most of it in place creating an abandoned siding. Well, instead of just having abandoned track I decided that I would put a pair of abandoned boxcars on the track for some added interest. And this decision has lead to my next major scratchbuilding project.
Sep 8, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
A Scale Lumber Chart and the Reasons Why
I found that building rolling stock or structures from plans requires a source of scale lumber. I have my own equipment to produce a limited quantity of scale lumber so I looked for a quick and easy chart that would give me scale dimensions. Those products that I came in contact with had some limitations. The solution to this was to develop a computer program that would give me what I wanted.
Sep 1, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
Build a Diesel Engine House Kit
Last year I built a powerhouse and a yard office from one of the Colorado Model Structures building kits and found that the materials were nicely done and easy to work with. The power plant was one of the showpieces on the railroad so I decided that it would be fun to build a diesel engine house.
Jul 7, 2010 - 10:00:04 AM
Durango & Rio Grande Western Gunnison Wedge Snowplow Kit - Part 2
Last week I explained how I had completed a good part of the model of the Rio Grande Models UK Gunnison snowplow. This week I will explain how I finished building it and then painted, decaled and weathered the final model.
Jun 15, 2010 - 9:00:00 AM
Durango & Rio Grande Western Gunnison Wedge Snowplow Kit - Part 1
I immediately recognized it as a project for my next winter in Florida and purchased it from Jonathan. I put it on a shelf and then took it with me when we traveled to Florida for the winter. When I arrived in Florida, I began building the model.
Jun 14, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
Add Detail to Aristo Evans 53' Plug Door Boxcar
When Aristo came out with their 53' Evans cars I hesitated on buying them at first because I didn't like the fake plug doors. That changed the first time I saw a 53' Railbox car with the painted black doors, so I thought I'd try one. I felt the difference in the painted doors helped to add more to the car and not make it look so plain.
May 26, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
What do you do with an old Santa Fe U-25B?
What do you do with an old Santa Fe U-25B? Do you scrap it, do you try to resurrect it or do you simply just let it fade away? This the story of how the Wooster, Worthington & Delaware Railroad came to own its very first engine, the "Hybrid", made from a Santa Fe U-25B, for its roster.
May 12, 2010 - 10:00:05 AM
Sand Tower: From "Oh" to "Gee" in only two years
Have you ever had a project that you wanted to start, but you just never seem to get around to it? And once you start, you never seem to finish it? For me, one of those projects was building a diesel servicing facility for my New York Central indoor railroad. I had long ago, built most of the steam servicing facilities and after I finally completed the ash pit, I realized that it was time to turn my attention to my diesel fleet's needs.
Apr 28, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
Building the ACME Manufacturing Company
After adding a spur for a new industry, I had to create the industry structure. I decided a non-descript manufacturing company could support a wide variety of cars being dropped off and picked up. I decided a simple box-style building would be suitable and that I would use scrap acrylic to build it.
Apr 14, 2010 - 10:00:00 AM
Building Cribbing: A How-to Guide from the PN&SP Railroad
Recently Rick Brown updated some cribbing on his railroad. Over the course of several months he posted his adventures in our LSOL.com Workshops. It was so detailed and informative Peter edited the posts and compiled the photos into one article for you to enjoy.
Nov 4, 2009 - 10:04:00 AM
IDA (Ruby) Transformation into a Porter Type
The purchase of an IDA was a decision made after scratch building two live steam "Project" Engines and deciding to move into conventional G-Scale Live steam.
Oct 28, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Telltales - Any device that serves as a warning.
For several years as a model railroader, I have always noted with interest a feature found on many model railroads in the smaller scales, but I don't believe that I have ever seen one of them on a Large Scale railroad. That feature is a piece of equipment called a "telltale".
Oct 21, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Pendulum Animation: Making a Circus Performer
My latest project involves repurposing a home made magnetic pendulum to animate a gymnast who swings back & forth on a horizontal bar.
Oct 7, 2009 - 10:00:01 AM
How to Build Windows for Your Buildings
As a builder I have a need for windows for my buildings. Now I could buy commercially made windows from various suppliers to use in my buildings, but there are 2 problems with that. One, after looking at several suppliers I still can't come up with the sizes I want and two, they cost money not only for the windows but for the shipping to get them to my workshop.
Sep 23, 2009 - 10:04:00 AM
Kid Size Garden Train Projects: Making Rolling Stock More Real
I figured I could come up with some simple projects that you could help your children or grandchildren do. I wanted to keep them simple so that younger kids could do them, but at the same time give you some ideas that you could use to improve your railroad.
Aug 19, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
Super Bash: Making a 2-8-8-2 Cab Forward Part 2
My next step was to figure out how to build the pipes for the steam exhaust that go to the high pressure cylinders. I needed to acquire some 1/4 inch copper pipe and 90 degree fittings. The pipe was not a problem, the fittings, well that is the problem. My thought was to make the fittings with 1/4 inch tubing. The problem was getting the curve in the 90 degrees.
Aug 12, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Got Scratchbuilding? How to Keep Your Materials in Order.
Recently, I made a major step forward with organization by putting all of my strip wood in a single container so that I at least would know where to start looking when I was starting a project. Since I had two recyclable containers, I decided to use one of them to store my wood. After a couple of weeks looking at that solution, I decided that I needed something better. Besides many weeks only one recyclable container just isn't enough.
Aug 5, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Super Bash: Making a 2-8-8-2 Cab Forward Part I
In the past several years I have converted over to 1/20.3 modeling. I enjoy the logging phase of modeling in 1/20. I have just about every scale in large scale trains and before converting to 1/20 my last purchase was the Aristo Craft 2-8-8-2 Mallet. I ran it but not as often as I did my 1/20 scale trains. It was becoming a shelf Queen and while on LSOL one evening I saw some photo's that Ron Senek who had converted the Aristo Mallet into a cab forward #4181.
Jul 29, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Converting New Bright Trucks for Your Railroad
Well, here is the next of a workbench project that won't take long, involves only two tools (saw and drill), and gives you the excuse to, as you told me a bit back, purchase those "New Bright" freight cars that are popping up in yard sales and flea markets.
Jul 22, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
Getting Inside Your AMS Caboose
This past March I attended the East Coast Show, in York PA. I purchased an AMS Caboose. So my thought was that I was going to run a caboose with my K-27 that has RCS system and I thought it was going to be an easy task.
May 6, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Build an Oil Platform for your Railroad
I sprayed the two large and two small cans with white paint and added Texaco signs and some piping and ladders to make them look more authentic. The fence clearly added to the authenticity of the tank farm, but something still was needed. I realized there needed to be a way to load or unload the tank cars at the tank farm.
Mar 25, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Let's fill those hopper's... so to speak.
No. I'm not speaking of the "library" hopper! I'm talking hopper cars, gondolas, ore cars, tenders and the like. Many of these cars arrive empty and appear to be begging to be filled with revenue generating cargo.
Mar 18, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Making of the LSOL.com container cars for the World's Longest Train
Suleski Transportation was intrigued by the attempt for the world's longest train that was being put on by Rick the Railroad Guy on the Dynamite, Rio Verde & Eastern Railroad in Scottsdale, AZ. Always willing to help out, Suleski Transportation sent down two five car intermodal sets to add to the length of the train. We then got contacted by Jon DeKeles of the B.I.G.D. Railroad in Post Falls, ID. It seems Jon was sending down a bunch of well car sets and wanted to have 50 containers lettered for his business, LSOL.com.
Mar 11, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
AMS 1:20.3 Freight Cars Truck and Coupler Tune up
Usually when rolling stock or locomotives do not track well, i.e. they derail, the problem in the majority of cases can be traced to one of three causes. Or a combination of the major causes. Those three causes are; wheels sets out of gauge, lack of car or locomotive side-bearing, and track cross-level.
Mar 4, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Converting an AMS Jackson & Sharpe Coach to a Combine
I decided I could not wait any longer for a Combine, so I decided to convert one of my coaches. I used the internet to search for various combine layouts, including the drawing of the delayed AMS combine (Now due later this year?) and the kit from UK Engineering that consists of laser cut wood replacement sides.
Mar 4, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
Making a Coaling Stations for a Steam-Operated Railroad.
Once a common sight on almost any steam-operated railroad, coaling stations or coaling docks were a necessary part of locomotive servicing. The basic idea is that the coal is delivered directly to the underside of the dock, most commonly by a track on the side where a hopper would dump the load of coal.
Feb 18, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
VIDEO: Bachmann Rolling Stock Kits
Come watch this HighDef wide-screen video and learn what the Bachmann Rolling Stock Kits are all about. At a time when we want to make every penny count you just might find out these easy to build kits could be the ticket to custom rolling stock on your railroad.
Feb 11, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
Aristo Dash-9 & Kadee Couplers
One thing I love about Large Scale Trains is that there are at least two ways to do something.
Jan 28, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
Painting your Large Scale Engines
Painting large-scale engines and rolling stock isn't as hard as you'd think. I paint of lot of equipment for Suleski Transportation. I think engines are the most fun. Just like real railroads the engine is what shows off your image to the public.
Jan 21, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
WOW! Magnetically Steered Automotive System for your Garden Railroad. (Article & Video)
After enjoying running trains for several years on my Grand Teton garden railroad, I decided to add more action to the layout. In 2001, I began to discuss with an engineer friend the possibilities of putting operating automobiles on the layout. Over many cups of coffee and some discussion, we laid out the parameters.
Jan 14, 2009 - 10:00:00 AM
Improving Aristo Freight Car Trucks
One of my early experiments involved making the Bettendorf trucks under the Aristo line of freight cars look more realistic and I thought some of you might enjoy learning about what I did.
Jan 14, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
Kitbash a Piko Building
A few years ago Piko introduced a series of small houses called their "Gingerbread" series. These small inexpensive house kits easily lend themselves to kit bashing.
Jan 7, 2009 - 9:00:00 AM
Simple Ways to Making Buildings "Real"
Have you ever had a building that you purchased for your railroad and once placing it on the railroad deciding it didn't really look right?
Dec 31, 2008 - 10:00:00 AM
Learn How to Build Noel's Garage
We all decided that I needed a garage in the town of Anderson. Mike and Leon gave me that as a homework assignment to be finished before they returned for the second session of working on my railroad. So I began to look for pictures of a garage in the timeframe of 1954 to use as a model for my garage.
Nov 19, 2008 - 10:00:00 PM
Wagon Wheel (Axle) Lighthouse
In this "How to" I am going to use an unusual part that you will more than likely not have in your parts drawer, as the large scale structure that we will assemble will be made from .....an early 20th century wagon axle.
Oct 29, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM
G-Scale Drag Strip Controller
Why on earth would anyone want a drag strip controller for a model railroad? What is this, a trick question? The answer is simple, what could be more fun than a little friendly competition racing locomotives on a G-Scale drag strip??? Come see why...
Oct 8, 2008 - 10:16:00 AM
LGB Model Railroad club of Chicago 1st Drag Race with VIDEO!
See video and photos from their 1st Club Drag Race. Maybe this might be great for your next club meeting?
Oct 8, 2008 - 10:15:00 AM
How to win at the LSOL.com Drag Strip!
A fair drag race between track powered engines requires that both tracks be powered by the same model power supply. This assures that the engines compete on an equal playing field. In order to make things a bit more interesting (some might describe it as "cheating")
Oct 8, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM
Simple self-propelled Track Cleaner
When our railways were young, cleaning track was a duty that was handled with interest and enthusiasm.
Sep 24, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM
Precision Board in the Garden Railroad
Come read about how an obsession with starting a Garden Railroad became a discovery of a unique building product, that grew to a exciting business for the Garden Railroad industry. Ross and Sue have been members of LSOL.com since 2003. Come and read about the products they offer and how it just might change how you build your Garden Railroad.
Sep 3, 2008 - 10:00:00 AM
There is more to Lego than just Lego Trains
Whenever I get to travel along on my dad's business trips he always makes time to visit the local Lego store in town -- if there is one. Come learn about the PICK-a-BRICK wall and how you can use what you find there on your railroad.
Aug 27, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM
Scratching Buildings With Foamboard And Plastic Sheeting
I have been scratch building structures for my Greenbriar Cheat & Elk garden railroad since 1993. I wanted to have buildings that were not available, so I began building them myself. I also found this alternative to be more economical in most cases.
Aug 27, 2008 - 6:00:00 AM
Basic Weathering With Powders
Weathering with powders is a means to make anything you wish look like it has been exposed to the elements. I will try to explain the basics to you with some pictures that I took along the way to make a piece of equipment look like it has been around for a while.
Aug 6, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM
Add Weight to your Tank Cars
Adding weight to your rolling stock can help them run better and stay on the track when the wind gets high. But a little weight can also help in temporary situations when you want to keep two trains apart.
Jul 23, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM
Bachmann Passenger Car Coupler Modification
Jackson & Sharp coaches marketed by Bachmann offer good value along with acceptable prototypical detail for operators of narrow gauge equipment.
Jul 16, 2008 - 6:00:00 AM
Making Train Trays
Carrying engines and rolling stock to be used on a layout set up for a special occasion such as a flower show, train show or when visiting a friend's garden layout, usually presents itself as a challenge.
Jul 9, 2008 - 6:00:00 AM
Add Kadees to your USA streamline coaches
Because each garden railway trains manufacturer has a unique coupler design and these designs are not always compatible with one another.
Jul 2, 2008 - 6:00:00 AM
Wheel Mod: AMS Jackson & Sharpe passenger coaches
I recently purchased a couple of the new AMS Jackson & Sharpe passenger coaches in plastic. Overall I'm very pleased, but one thing you will notice right away is the amount of drag on the wheels. Time for a fix.
May 28, 2008 - 10:00:00 AM
Learn How to Make a Pickle Car
No, I have yet to see this type of car except for a set of side and end plans, so I'm putting this down as a "How to do it", scratch built/freelance project. Apparently in the early years of the twentieth century, before transport by truck became a more convenient method of transport, this type of car was a means to get a specific product from a processing plant to a packaging facility.
Jan 23, 2008 - 10:00:00 AM
Update your Aristo-Craft SD-45
One summer the wires on the connecter between the locomotive and tender broke because of the constant flexing and times when the train derailed.
Jan 9, 2008 - 9:00:00 AM
An Easy to Build Water Column
The basis for this article is that while water tanks were a common sight along railroad lines, in the locomotive servicing area the use of water columns, (or water standpipes) were the norm because from a central water tank, a series of water columns could be installed to service multiple tracks over a wide area.
Nov 7, 2007 - 10:00:00 AM
Building with Polymer Clay - Part 6
Commercial "push molds" are available to make flowers, faces, hands, cabochons, and many other objects.
Oct 31, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Building with Polymer Clay - Part 5
What is stone clay and how can I use it? Learning about translucent clays too. Stone clay is one of the newest innovations in polymer clay. These clays
produce a variegated, multicolored texture, instead of the continuous tone of standard clay. You can use these clays to produce many new effects, but they require special handling for the best results.
Oct 24, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Disassembling the Bachmann Ten Wheeler
I recently had to replace the motor in one of my Bachmann Ten Wheelers. I decided to do this myself rather than send it to Bachmann for repair since I had heavily modified the engine and had considerable experience "inside" the engine. Bachmann sent me a new motor for the usual repair fee.
Oct 17, 2007 - 10:00:00 AM
Building with Polymer Clay - Part 4
A working surface needs to be smooth, large enough to work on, and made of something that won't react with or be damaged by the plasticizers in the clay.
Oct 17, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Building with Polymer Clay - Part 3
Using some common kitchen appliances can help save you time getting your clay ready. See how a food processor and a simple pasta maker can help your efforts.
Oct 10, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Building with Polymer Clay - Part 2
There are a lot of options when it come to working with polymer clays. Here are some more answers to common questions people have.
Oct 3, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Building with Polymer Clay - Part 1
Polymer clay is, as the name implies, a pliable, blendable polymer compound for artists and crafters. Read this mulit-part article and learn all about this great product and how you can use it on your railroad.
Sep 26, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Conversion of a LGB 2-6-0 Mogul into a Uintah 0-6-2T
A little over a year ago, one of our club members passed away and his wife sold his railroad to many of our members. I purchased the Uintah Mallet #51 and a water car. After looking at pictures of several model engines that might lead to a good conversion rather than building one from scratch, I settled on the LGB Mogul #23191 Come see how I convert it to a Uintah 0-6-2T
Sep 19, 2007 - 10:00:00 AM
Make a Large Scale Billboard - Part 3
The final step in adding this bit of nostalgia to your railroad is to put some kind of advertisement on your billboard you have made. You have two options. Make them yourself, or find images of old billboards to use.
Sep 19, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Make a Large Scale Billboard - Part 2
Billboards of all shapes and sizes have blighted the American countryside for decades. Now you can build your own to blight your garden railway in ways never before imagined.
Sep 12, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Make a Large Scale Billboard - Part 1
Billboards of all shapes and sizes have blighted the American countryside for decades. Now you can build your own to blight your garden railway in ways never before imagined.
Sep 5, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Scratch Built A Cattle Car
After a few months of thought on how to approach this, I have compiled a step by step assembly of a generic cattle/stock car using basic scrap wood and "household" Goop with no brads, nails or screws used in constuction.
Aug 22, 2007 - 10:00:00 AM
IKEA Train Storage System
The unit I have designed is modular, economical, easy to build, sturdy, fits all G gauge rolling stock, works well and is constructed from readily-available materials - provided you have an Ikea store handy.
Aug 15, 2007 - 10:00:00 AM
Train Toter: Get your trains on the move.
I put together a quick & dirty "Train Toter" that provides a place to store much of the rolling stock and a convenient means of moving it around. The latest version of the toter can transport eight cars at one time. An easily adjusted nylon cord on the sides and ends secures the cars within the toter.
Aug 15, 2007 - 9:00:00 AM
Installing a New Drive in an Old Pacific
When my new Pacific arrived I threw it on the test bench and was not disappointed with its performance. I started to look at my old Pacific (about 9 years old) with lots of hours and worn bearings and tires, and the wheels started turning.
Aug 1, 2007 - 10:00:00 AM
Useful Adhesives in Large Scale
There are many adhesives on the market, but there is no one glue for every situation. Keeping a variety of fresh glues on hand will be helpful. Come learn what to use when and how to best use it!
Jul 11, 2007 - 5:00:00 AM
Large Scale Couplers Today
Coupling your trains in large scale model railroading can be an interesting misadventure. Those that are new to the world of large scale may not realize there is more than one type of coupler out there while seasoned modelers can?t believe the mess on our hands.
Jul 4, 2007 - 5:00:00 AM
LGB Forney Coal Bunker Modification
After receiving my fourth LGB Forney on the property, I decided that something had to be done with the coal bunker. The original bunker is unrealistically too small to provide an adequate coal supply to the locomotive, unless maybe the engine is assigned as a yard goat.
Mar 14, 2007 - 10:00:00 AM
Make a Valentine's Day Car
I always like to do something special for Valentine's Day. Being married to Jo Anne for over 25 years has given me the challenge of coming up with something new each year.
Feb 14, 2007 - 6:00:00 AM
Making Your Christmas Cars Better
Each year I see rolling stock for sale that has had extra decorations added on them. Sometimes the prices are $10 and $20 higher than the regular cost of the car. I wonder what it takes to make these cars even more cheerful? Guess what? It only takes about $3.00. Let me show you what I mean.
Dec 13, 2006 - 9:00:00 AM
Archbar? Bettendorf? Keep on Trucking!
In this hobby we discuss trucks, the wheel sets that are under our train cars. But I have found that there is some uncertainly about the different types of trucks in use on people's railroads. Come learn just what might be under your rolling stock and maybe why it is there, and knowing why just might be a good thing.
Nov 15, 2006 - 10:00:00 AM
Striving for Realism - Realistic Little Details
Realistic little details, such as street signs, company names, inscriptions on tombstones, and lettering on locomotives and rolling stock, can personalize your garden railroad and add some whimsical fun as well. There are some fairly simple ways to accomplish what you envision and it does not have to be an expensive process.
Nov 1, 2006 - 9:00:00 AM
Adding a Working Bachmann Coupler to the Front of a Ten-Wheeler
But the front coupler has always been and still is strictly for ornamental purposes. Since I have knuckle couplers on most of the rolling stock, I really wanted to be able to couple up to the front end for switching and double-heading.
Oct 18, 2006 - 7:00:00 AM
How to Modify your Engine. Make it What you Want
I know there are a lot of you, like me, who want a locomotive that is not available in the road name and equipment design of your favorite road. You do, however, have a locomotive that would come close with some minor structural changes, painting and decaling. What do you do? Just modify it.
Oct 11, 2006 - 10:00:00 AM
Updating Trucks on USA Covered Hoppers
I recently purchased the new USA center flow covered hopper freight cars at the South East Large Scale Train Show in Perry, GA. When I started changing out the truck, I discovered that there was a difference in the depth of the bolster frame between the USA and A/C trucks. What to do?
Oct 11, 2006 - 9:00:00 AM
Enhance a Hap E. Camper
Thanks to Joe Fotschky, Team LSOL members were made aware of a very nice little camper trailer available through Chevron retailers.
Sep 6, 2006 - 10:00:00 AM
Building a Lobster Boat - Part 2
This article is a mixture of stuff that was done prior to Part 2 actually showing up and stuff that was fixed or completed after it showed up. I will explain the whys and hows as I go along so that you can see what I was thinking and how my thought process went.
Aug 30, 2006 - 10:00:00 AM
Building a Lobster Boat - Part 1
When I saw the 1:20.3-scale lobster boat (waterline model), part1: basic boat by Ted Stinson (Plan set #77-A) I was totally excited.
Aug 23, 2006 - 10:00:00 AM
Building a 30" Turntable
I wanted a turntable at the North end of my Mystic Mountain railroad to turn trains for point-to-point running and for visual interest. After measuring all my engines I decided I needed a 30" turntable.
Aug 16, 2006 - 5:16:00 AM
Do the Bird Feeder Bash
Jo Anne DeKeles' LSOL article of February 8, 2006 brought to light a group of inexpensive bird feeders that may add additional variety to a layout's buildings.
Apr 19, 2006 - 9:18:00 AM
Building a Ice Platform for your Reefers
Having so many reefers on my railroad, I needed to think about using them realistically and operating them prototypically. Therefore, I would need an icing platform for loading the ice into the cars.
Mar 29, 2006 - 9:17:00 AM
LGB Genesis Kadee Upgrade
Since Kadee couplers are so popular with many large scale operators I thought it might be interesting to install a pair on the LGB Genesis. The Genesis, with its pivoting pilot/snow plow, adds another dimension to a Kadee installation.
Mar 22, 2006 - 8:44:00 AM
LGB Genesis Smoke Unit Upgrade
As delivered the LGB Genesis diesel locomotive is not equipped with a smoke unit. The Genny could use some smoke to add additional visual interest.
Mar 21, 2006 - 9:07:00 AM
They are Bird Feeders, not Bird Houses
These are cool buildings that can be made to work on your railroad. Not bird houses, they are bird feeders.
Feb 8, 2006 - 4:24:00 AM
Building a Rotary Snow Plow
had seen a USA rotary plow several years ago and thought it was a neat car, but when I found out it was not really meant to blow snow, I kind of lost interest in it.
Jan 24, 2006 - 6:34:00 AM
Building A New Incline in Pittsburgh
I have always been fascinated by Pittsburghs two remaining inclines, the Duquesne Incline and the Monongahela Incline.
Jan 11, 2006 - 7:05:00 AM
Make your own car S A L E
One of the things I like about Large Scale Garden Railroads is the detail that is added to the better layouts.
Jan 11, 2006 - 6:42:00 AM
The "Frick & Frack" Vertical Train Storage Rack
It all started when I ran out of space, but didn't stop buying rolling stock and engines! What was I thinking!
Nov 30, 2005 - 6:57:00 AM
Build a Large Scale Engine Carrier
Build an Aristo Craft Mallet Carrying Case with Hillman Bridge clamps
Nov 9, 2005 - 7:04:00 AM
Build your own Bachmann Mallet - Part 2
I have always had a fascination with articulated locomotives but, due to lack of space, I can't run large radius curves.
Oct 26, 2005 - 10:18:00 AM
Build your own Bachmann Mallet - Part 1
I have always had a fascination with articulated locomotives but, due to lack of space, I can't run large radius curves.
Oct 19, 2005 - 8:25:00 AM
An Unexamined Railroad Is Not Worth Running
My apologies to Socrates for paraphrasing his quotation for the title, but I must admit that I am one who loves to measure, count and analyze things.
Aug 17, 2005 - 7:01:00 AM
Installing Aristo-Craft's lowered floor assembly in the 40 foot freight cars
I decided to install the Aristo-Craft, ART-29706, floor assembly with its shallow bolsters starting with my Reefer cars, particularly the PFE cars
Aug 17, 2005 - 4:47:00 AM
Custom Painting an Aristo Dash-9
Recently I asked him to make a custom "Spirit of America" LSOL Dash-9 for us to use on our railroad and to take to shows.
Jun 8, 2005 - 7:24:00 AM
Hand crafted Passenger Cars - The Full Story
In a previous article I built the passenger locomotive for my version of The Pittsburgh and Castle Shannon Rail Road. Now I needed passenger cars, and again I couldn't find what I needed commercially available.
Jun 1, 2005 - 11:41:00 AM
Simple Train Carrier
Just what we need. Another carrier for our trains, right? This one is a little different from some I have seen as this can be made simply without too many tools or skills.
May 25, 2005 - 12:37:00 AM
How to: Bachmann Mogul Cab Upgrade
An easy modification to bring the little engine more in line with 1:20.3 proportions is to install a larger cab. There are several suppliers of well designed, easy to assemble, laser cut wood kits.
Apr 6, 2005 - 5:06:00 AM
Whistle/Bell Device: For LGB steam type engines
The device that LGB sells or furnishes with LGB steam type engines is a "snap between the rails" device that is neither easy to install and even more difficult to remove.
Feb 3, 2005 - 6:59:00 AM
USA Gunderson Intermodal Car Modifications
I delight in running my USA Gunderson Intermodal consists on my Heartland Garden Railway. It is, however, a lot less delight when windy conditions prevail.
Feb 2, 2005 - 9:00:00 AM
Cabooses: The train crew's home away from home.
I don't know about you, but I love cabooses. I don't love them as much as I love Hudsons, Pacifics, PA's or observation cars, but I do love them.
Jan 5, 2005 - 4:53:00 AM
Building with Coroplast Part 1
Coroplast is a plastic material that has been on the market for sometime.I have been around this material for some years and I have ignored it because I am not one that likes traveling new avenues. Not anymore!
Oct 6, 2004 - 4:39:00 AM
Building on a Budget - Potted Plants
The latest addition to my budget minded accessories are my "potted plants".
Aug 25, 2004 - 11:43:00 AM
USA Trains PA - fixing the derail problem
When I finally put them back on the indoor track to pull my passenger cars, I found that they tended to derail pretty regularly. I quickly grew frustrated and decided to seek help for this problem.
Jul 21, 2004 - 10:13:00 AM
Modifying the Aristo-Craft Switch Tower
The Aristo-Craft new switch tower is nice. But I wanted the tower to look more like a standard gauge tower found on a major railroad in the 50's to be completely happy with it.
Jun 16, 2004 - 8:15:00 AM
The Tool that will Change the Way you Build.
The Plast-Kut knife can do some amazing cuts on Coroplast. So what is Coroplast?
May 17, 2004 - 10:54:00 AM
Build a one of a kind MOW Crane
I like to create projects that give me things other railroads don't have. I like Maintenance of Way construction equipment that I can play with.
Apr 21, 2004 - 7:13:00 AM
Adding People to an LGB Trolley
One thing we saw that could use some improvemeant was adding more people to our Trolley.
Mar 31, 2004 - 6:47:00 AM
More Cheap Accessories: Better Boxes!
A recent article by Jo Anne DeKeles about inexpensive boxes prompted me to write about another way of making boxes for your garden railroad layout.
Mar 17, 2004 - 5:21:00 AM
More Cheap Accessories
In the last couple centuries almost everything that was shipped, from apples to oil, was packed in a barrel.They were easy to roll down the gangplanks of ships and roll up the ramps of box cars.
Feb 25, 2004 - 8:38:00 AM
Making a Interurban - Part 2
This article describes converting another Interurban Street Car and one of Hartland's line cars and adding them to my growing fleet of Indiana Rail Road interurbans.
Feb 25, 2004 - 8:28:00 AM
Making Stairs Stringers For your Structures
I received a couple E-Mails from some of the guys here in LSOL about making stairs. So I thought this would help some of you guys and gals make your projects a bit easier.
Feb 18, 2004 - 8:44:00 AM
Making Accessories on the Cheap
What I can start to do is help you save money by showing you how to create some ofthese accessories for yourself.
Feb 4, 2004 - 7:41:00 AM
Making a Interurban - Part 1
For many years I have been fascinated with the concept of the interurban. It was a very big item in my home state of Indiana in the early part of the 20th century. Learn how to modified a Interurban Street Car and one of the Rail Motor Cars to replicate Indiana Railroad interurbans found in the mid-1930s.
Dec 17, 2003 - 9:26:00 AM
Kitbashing a Hartland Forney
This is what presented me with the challenge; no one commercially produces a model of these prototypes. This meant that I was going to have to create my own model. I chose a Hartland Princess 2-4-4 Forney as the basis for my first conversion, due the small drivers, correct style stack and light, and cost.
Nov 26, 2003 - 9:08:00 AM
Kit Bashing The Model T Die Cast Trucks
This is the part of the hobby I enjoy. Finding something I like and turning it into something I really love.
Nov 5, 2003 - 9:14:00 AM
How to use "Power Towers" as sprinklers
The solution that came to me was drip watering. It works for nurseries so I can make it work for me. Simple enough, right? Wrong.
Oct 29, 2003 - 7:35:00 AM
Kit Bashing a Wells Fargo Stagecoach
Before I start explaining the kit-bashing project I would like to give you a brief history of where the Wells Fargo coaches came into existence.
Aug 13, 2003 - 8:27:00 AM
Painting Bachmann Log Carts for Added Realism
Bachmann's log cars are credible inexpensive models, which come complete with logs and metal wheels. Their only drawback is their plastic looking logs and unrealistic coloring.
May 14, 2003 - 3:31:00 AM
More Stomper action on your railroad
Stompers are small, inexpensive, lighted, two speed AA battery powered 4-wheel drive toy cars that have a wheelbase perfect for 45 mm track.
Sep 17, 2002 - 1:32:00 PM
Bah Humbug on Christmas Colors
Aristo-Craft Christmas buildings are painted red. A very bright red. Unless you paint them. Learn now.
Jul 2, 2002 - 2:32:00 PM
Award Wining Model - What does it take?
I had entered a scratchbuilt logging crummy in the 2001 contest (my first ever contest entry), and learned from the results.
Mar 28, 2002 - 10:39:00 PM
|
|
|
IMPORTANT LINKS
Get Your Official Diploma
Watch New Videos
New Products Online
|
|
