Modelers enjoy visiting and running on model railroads that are realistic in appearance and operated in a realistic manner. This only happens when the model echoes the mission of a real railroad — cars move to transport freight and passengers....

Operations can be somewhat intimidating. No matter how much you know about trying to emulate prototype practice on a layout, it will still make you nervous the first time you operate on a layout that is not yours. But this experience can be both fun and educational. Recently I went to...

Tips and techniques to hand lay model train track....

Experience has shown that an awful lot of modeling and operating can occur in a fairly constricted space. By the same token, an awful lot of modeling can be accomplished in a very short period of time and with little or no expenditure of money....

I attended the National Convention and Train Show in Long Beach, California and it was a fantastic experience. If you ever get the chance to go to a NMRA national convention, do go. It is an experience you will long remember. I attended many clinics and saw many sights. It was great t...

One item in railroading that is not often in the magazines is a discussion of signals and how they work on the prototype. What is often said by the modeler is “I operate in the dark,” or with CTC, or ABS, without much discussion of what these are and what they do. Perhaps it is best t...

One thing that has been constant since the early days of railroading is that a dispatcher controls the flow of traffic between interlockings. An interlocking is simply an intersection or union of two or more tracks. An interlocking is more than a section of railroad with multiple trac...

Detailed information on constructing HO scale modules....

As I was driving down the road the other day, I was thinking about what I would write in this space. I was having a hard time thinking of a topic that I could write about. At that moment I realized this was a “problem,” and my mind wandered to the thought of some of the operational pr...

Model railroad signals typically provide protection against running into an occupied block or running through an improperly aligned turnout. Most model railroads can be signaled using three types of signals: a one-headed block signal, a two-headed interlocking signal, and a one-headed...

Step-by-step assembly instructions for a block detector with built-in delay and logic for 2-color signal indication....

An overview of model railroad detection types and a method of detection using an optoisolator....