Mar/Apr 2010 - O Scale Trains Magazine Online

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Mar/Apr 2010 u Issue #49
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Celebrating
the art of
1:48 modeling
Issue #49
March/April 2010
Ted Byrne
Carey Hinch
Vol. 9 - No. 2
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Cover: It might be a lazy summer’s day in Still Pond, but Cerrone’s
Boat Yard is humming with activity. This scene and the
centerspread are from Stephen Fisher’s Deep Run Railroad which
is profiled starting on page 4 of this issue.
O Scale
Trains
Features
4 The Deep Run Railroad — Stephen Fisher
Visit a serious On30 railroad with a touch of whimsy.
21 Building A Center Cab Diesel - Part 2 — Capt. Tom Mix
In this installment Tom begins construction of the diesel’s unique trucks.
27 Make A Quick Tank — Joe Giannovario
A visit to a big-box home improvement stores results in a nice looking
storage tank that can literally be built in minutes.
30 Starting Over - Part 2 — Joe Giannovario
Evolution of the track plan.
33 Scratch And Bash A P&LE Double Sheathed Box Car — Tom Houle
He’s at it again! Tom starts with one thing and ends up with another.
58 Volume 7 Index
60 2010 O Scale National — Neil Chichizola
Neil Chichizola’s SP layout is open for the convention.
Departments
11 The Art of Prototype Modeling — Mike Cougill
12 Neville’s Workshop —
17 The Modern Image — Gene Clements
19 Traction Action — Martin Brechbiel
45 Modelers’ Showcase
46 Product News & Reviews
54 Reader Feedback
64 Buy-Sell-Trade Ads
64 Events Listing
65 Advertiser Index
66 Observations — Joe Giannovario
MAGAZINE
Centerspread: Deep Run Shay #5 has spotted the stone train
and will pick it up later for the long journey “up county” to the barge
at Betterton on Stephen Fisher’s Deep Run Railroad.
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 3

The Deep Run Railroad
Stephen Fisher, a.k.a. the Maryland Rail Baron
It’s a quiet but hot day at the Chestertown yards and maintenance shops.
The locos are simmering, and the crews are too.
The year isn’t important; let’s say it’s between 1900 and
1929. Life is slow with fishing, crabbing, and oysters plentiful.
The folks from Baltimore come over for the summer to
enjoy the cool breezes, swimming, great food, and even better,
the Southern hospitality.
The Deep Run Railroad is a sleepy kind of neighbor, it runs
when needed. There is some passenger service but mostly it
hauls freight. The equipment is starting to show it’s age, and
most of the locos have been bought from some other railroad.
There is talk about the new logging extension that is being
built. It goes to the edge of the Piedmont Plateau up near Rising
Sun. There are also rumors that the Pennsylvania Railroad
might be buying the DRRR and making it standard gauge but
those rumors had been heard before. The railroad has its roots
in Chestertown with a small railyard and engine facilities.
There’s also a machine shop, freight house, and a foundry,
and the old man.
Eyeballing a stranger poking around the yard, he saunters
over to see who it is.
“Well, howdy, you ain’t from around here are you?” asks
the old man.
“Naw. Just visitin’.” The young stranger replied.
“Like trains do ya? Me too. So let me tell you about this
here railroad. Better yet, jump on this here jitter bug and let’s
take a ride.”
The two men climbed aboard and took off towards Kennedyville.
All along the way the old man kept up a running
commentary about the sights.
“Now we just need to keep going a bit ‘cause that up there
is Kennedyville with its sawmill and fledgling community.
For the moment, it’s but a wide spot in the road. The Kennedy
4 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
brothers founded it back in the late 1800s. Just a mill and
store, but some day maybe they will become somethin’.” As
they moved along the line and approaching Still Pond, the
old man continued his narrative:
“Not only is Still Pond a shipping point by water and rail
but they also have a thriving boatyard there, run by this shipwright
named Garry Cerrone. The boatyard keeps a lot of the
men in town working and the town also has the distinction of
having invited women to vote a full four years ahead of the
women of the rest of the country. As I understand it, now that
the women are happy so are the men. Go figure that!”
Moving on towards the thriving community of Marydale
with its own station and freight house; the conversation got
especially colorful.
Yes sir‘ree, Bob, Marydale is home of the famous ‘Thongman’
whom it seems is a legend in these parts. Sometimes
one can spot him in his yellow and green thong outfit looking
at the pretty girls sunbathing or skinny-dipping in the creek.
He’s interesting, but not dangerous and he gives the locals a
laugh now and then.”
On the outskirts of town there’s a cattle yard where they
ship out their beef cattle.
“Talk about stink,” the old man said. Then he continued:
“The guy that owns it says, ‘It’s the smell of money.’”
The next stop is Deep Run, home of the Kenly Creek
Lumber Company, which is owned and operated by a Mr.
Van Horn III . The old man noted that the owner wasn’t seen
around much since his corporate office is over on the Western
shore. Pointing to a large trestle in the distance he said:
“Ya see that trestle way over there? That’s the logging extension
that takes off from the main line and heads up through

Drawn for O Scale Trains Magazine by Carey Hinch
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 5

Delaware and back into Maryland. Yea, the other end is up
near Rising Sun, Maryland. This new railroad, the Meadow
Mountain Lumber Railroad, hauls logs back to the Kenly
Creek Lumber Company. They also have a stone quarry
operation going on and have to bring the stone train down to
Betterton once a week to meet the barge and have their stone
hauled over to the other shore.”
Approaching another bridge the old tour guide mentions
how expensive the construction was. “Now here is where
things get interesting and expensive. The railroad has to
cross over the Corsica River, which is fairly large and a lot of
money was spent to build a large rock and earth fill to support
the roadbed. We were told the bottom was too soft to
support pilings for a trestle.”
Rolling on to High Point, he observed how pretty the
scenery is, and as the name implies, it’s the highest point in
the county at 35 feet above sea level. High Point is mostly
farming but there is a garage/repair shop run by some young
guy named Jeff Gelner, “Who I hear is one smart guy.” said
the old man. Continuing, he says: “I was told that he can fix
anything, including those new gas buggies that have started
to make an appearance in the county. Heck, you give me a
good horse anytime. They can out work one of them new
fangled things any day, and they don’t get stuck in the mud.
Those folks also have themselves a factory where they are
making machinery for different companies and it is mostly
shipped out on the railroad.”
The next stop is Rock Hall. “They’re a bunch of roughnecks,
but they’re good folks’ who would help you at a drop
of a hat. They ship out a lot of vegetables and fruit and they
get in all kinds of stuff. They also do a lot of fishing and crabbing
and that goes over to the other side as well. Those folks
have all kind of canneries and seafood houses along with
shipping companies. Like I said, they’re a bunch, yes sir. Why
did you know they shoot fireworks off on the 4 th of July? Great
show they put on, yes sir!”
“Well, I guess that’s about it. All we have to do is cross
over the Chester River on the big swing bridge and head back
into Chestertown. If y’all head over that a way the railroad
goes to Betterton, where there is a large amusement park and
hotels for the chicken neckers, oops I’m sorry. I meant to say
Baltimore folks. From Betterton the railroad goes through
the community of Worton, where the Wisenheimer Brewery
is located. This brewery produces some of the finest beers
and ales on the shore, and if you get there when old man
Wolschon is in a good mood, he will give you a taste or two.
There is rail barge and freighter service located at Betterton
and much of the libation products are shipped from there.
They also get lumber in for all of the beer crates and barrels.
You could say those are some of the mellowest folks you will
ever meet. Thanks for stopping in; things are sleepy here and
it’s nice to talk.” With that the tour was over and the young
stranger went on his way thinking to himself how he’d like to
get back this way someday soon.
About My Railroad
This version of the Deep Run RR is the culmination of
many versions and is probably the last one that I will build
due to my age and also because I am so happy with this version.
So what has gone into this railroad to make it worthwhile
for me? I have always believed in a few design rules:
1: It must be simple in its track plan. It is a single mainline
6 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
There is plenty of work going on at the Kennedyville sawmill and, from the
looks of the flatcar the local has just been through.
Some of the town ladies are walking to the General Store and it looks like
they have garnered a parade.
Cerrone’s Boat Yard seems to be busy. It looks like the crew is trying to
finish repairs on one of the many Bay boats.
with passing sidings and stub end sidings where businesses are.
2: The control system is DCC. I wanted it to be easy to run,
yet fun, with some challenge to it.
Because I like to model the Eastern Shore of Maryland,
which is somewhat flat, the railroad follows the same type of
grades. Therefore, the railroad is of 1x4 frame construction
with a plywood subbase with Homasote on top. It follows

the perimeter of the basement with a series of islands. Track
work and turnouts are mostly handlaid. The exceptions are
the areas of Rock Hall and High Point. These two areas are
Peco On30 flextrack and turnouts glued to 1” foam board
over plywood. The rest of the railroad is handlaid with code
100 rail and either BK turnout kits or Fast Tracks scratchbuilt
turnouts, all on Mt. Albert On30 ties. As for the throw mechanisms,
I have either used a double pole slide switch mounted
above the layout, with a safety thumbtack mounted on top to
emulate a high level switch stand or a modified BIC pen that
pushes against a microswitch mounted under the layout. You
can read an article written by my friend and fellow operator
Dave Renard in Railroad Model Craftsman, May 2007 issue,
page 67, on how he did this.
One of the greatest improvements to model railroading
was the invention of DCC. I use the Lenz/Atlas DCC system
that is interfaced with five power blocks to segment the railroad
electrically. This way when a short occurs the entire
railroad doesn’t go down. I like the Lenz; it is easy for a
new person to operate, and it has all of the features that are
required for the DRRR. In conjunction with the DCC we have
a computer generated switch list that was developed in part
by Geren Mortenson and another person who is not part of
our group. This was a major step in operating the railroad and
one that I objected to at first but was glad when I accepted it.
It has certainly added the fun back into operations.
I have about 30 years of experience modeling in On2½ as
we called it in the past, but now simply refer to it as On30.
During those early years we had the first On30 modules and
carried them all over the place preaching the virtues of On30:
“Large scale modeling for the cost of HO.” I still have the
scratchbuilt structures that graced those modules and many
of the scratchbuilt freight cars as well as a few kitbashed
locos. Today with the advent of Bachmann’s On30 line I don’t
kitbash locos very much but my best friend, Garry Cerrone,
has continued to do them for both of us and they do regular
duty on the Deep Run. I hope to have an article later in the
year on how I am lowering Bachmann frames to scratchbuild
freight cars.
Even though the majority of the work on the railroad is
mine, there have been others that have invested their time,
efforts, and talents to make the Deep Run what it is today. I
have told you about Garry and Dave. Geren does all of the
DCC work. Two friends in Michigan, Dan Wolschon and
Dave Kunz, did all of the masters and cast up the Wisenheimer
brewery as a gift for me. Whenever you start naming
folks you know someone is going be left out but I will try to
get it right and hope for the best.
Our operating group is large and diversified not only by
age and where we live, but also that many of us are retired.
There is one common thread - our love of trains and our
friendships. The way we operate our railroad starts with the
switching list that, once generated, is handed to the Yardmaster
at Chestertown, Steve Sherrill, and the Yardmaster at the
saw mill in Deep Run, Ed Stone. These two locations have
to have trains built and they need to notify the dispatcher,
GW Henderson, who calls the crews all by way of hand held
radios. A road or local crew must call into the dispatcher
to receive clearance to the next location. Some day we will
have operating ball signals that will be controlled from the
dispatcher’s panel. Because the lift out bridge is installed
The Village of Still Pond looks to be as busy as it ever gets.
The local is pulling into Marydale station and it looks like a couple of
strangers are getting ready to board.
A loaded reefer is sitting at the Marydale Cattle Company siding waiting
for pick up.
during operations, we have two or three roving brakemen to
assist in coupling, uncoupling, and throwing turnout points.
These tasks usually fall to Bob Vanzant, Jim Barcus, and Les
Davis. The rest of the crew: Dan Gillenwater, Doug O’Dell,
Dwight Varnes, Mark Friend, Jim Evans, Rick Baier, Roy Dietz,
and Shawn Heath is responsible for local and road trains.
Along with these folks, the following people are also
part of the team, but with some added responsibilities. Alan
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 7

Looks like the “old man” is taking the jitterbug out for a spin.
It looks like Ted is working on that old truck again, while the fellows “help”
by supervising him.
From the looks of all the cut lumber on the loading dock at the mill, Mr. Van
Horn III must have increased production.
Meadow Mountain Lumber Company Forney # 56 is hauling the freight into
Rock Hall after crossing the Chester River swing bridge.
The train must be close for everyone is getting ready to get on board to
head to the big town of Rock Hall.
The main industry in High Point is Heath Machinery. It’s what keeps the
town afloat, besides farming.
8 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

The local passenger train has stopped at Betterton to pick up a few folks. It
has always been a mystery why the station was known as Deep Run.
Anderson helps in building repairs, Dallas Mallerich is the
owner of Boulder Valley Models (John Willock and I are
building his On30 railroad). Martin Van Horn III is our historian,
and John Weigel is the guy that supplies us with all of
those green Bachmann boxes. Many of you will be familiar
with some of these names due to their involvement in the
hobby in some way or the other.
Finally, scenery and detail are a large part of what makes
the Deep Run Railroad plausible. The scenery starts with real
dirt and then layers of reused ground foam, floral oasis, and
plant material, followed by hand-made trees, commercial
trees, and our favorite stand-by: weeds and sedums.
The railroad has gone through several trials and tribula-
Looks like the local is pushing a cut of cars onto the barge.
tions recently. First, the train room had to be dismantled
due to flooding from abnormal rains just before the NMRA
convention and open house tour back in 2006. Then, it was
moved to the Eastern Shore of Maryland in the later part of
2006 and 95% of the railroad was rebuilt to fit the format of
the new room. I also took the opportunity to back date the
railroad, which proved to be a modeling challenge.
So there you have it. A story about this little backwater railroad
and the people that inhabit the land and how it has all
come together over 30 years. So until next time hoping that
your rails are parallel and your trains are on time, keep on
railroading.
u
Prototype photo courtesy of Hundman Publishing. Similar to PSC #17565-1
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Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 9

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10 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

The Art of Prototype
Modeling
Michael Cougill
Two Photographs
Consider the two photos presented here. One has a happy
outcome; the other less so, but still positive. The photo of
the Wabash boxcars (Photo 1) is the happier outcome of
the two. As I’ve mentioned before I was able to document
these four cars thoroughly in both pictures and written notes
with dimensions. The photo of the abandoned mill building
(Photo 2) is another situation though. It is only one of four
photos that I have of the building. To my
knowledge, no others exist showing the
place in better days. There’s still a positive
outcome here in that I was able to learn
something about the building’s history and
overall dimensions through research at the
Franklin County Historical Society and the
Brookville, Indiana, Public Library.
This brings me to the heart of the column
for this issue: If there is a car or building
you been meaning to document for a
future modeling project; Go and take the
photos today. Put the magazine down for a
while and, if feasible, go do it now!
Last year I went down to Brookville to
photograph the remains of the old Robert’s
Mill more thoroughly, only to discover that
it was finally gone forever. The only thing
left is the foundation. Needless to say, I was a bit disappointed
and irritated with myself that I hadn’t done it much sooner.
Hopefully, a lesson has been learned. The positive side to the
situation is that I do have some basic numbers and ideas to
go by for an upcoming model of the place, but I really enjoy
a project much more when I have plenty of info to draw from.
Having the basic building specs is good, but my knowledge
of the framing member sizes and their construction is
going to be pure speculation based one some poor quality
photographs. For this project, I wanted to do something faithful
and as close to the prototype as possible, and my lack of
knowledge leaves many questions unanswered. For example:
What was the missing addition like? How many doors or
windows, if any, did it have? I infer from my photos that it
was a single story with a gable roof but that’s all I can reasonably
assume. Was the building’s framing balloon framed or
platform? Research indicated there was a large holding tank
for liquid molasses that was used in the feed blending operations.
Where was that located, inside or outside?
For some modelers a handful of poor photos are better
than no photos at all, and for them, it would be plenty to
work from. For now, there are some choices to make. I could
shelve the whole project in the hope of finding more information,
or I could go ahead with what I have and just live
with it. I guess having an imperfect model is better than a big
empty space on the layout, so that’s the plan. I hope you’ve
put off reading this until after you’ve downloaded and organized
all those photos I told you to shoot earlier.
Best regards,
Mike
u
2
1
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 11

New Staging Area for
the BRHRR
Text and photos by Neville Rossiter
Drawings by Bruce Temperley
One of the problems with a large industrial layout like
the Bayridge Harbor Rail Road (BRHRR) is that it requires
a large number of freight cars to operate it realistically.
This in turn means that you need some kind of staging
area that can transfer cars on and off the layout efficiently.
Over the years my good friend Bruce Temperley and
myself have tried many ways of setting up a staging area
in a limited space. One example was illustrated in my
Workshop column in OST #21, July/August 2005. After
years of operation we decided that nothing was working
to our satisfaction. So after looking at endless articles
and different ideas, we decided to use a transverse table
system complete with storage area for up to 86 cars not
including the table. The area we had to work in was 115
inches long by 33 inches wide.
This is not a step-by-step how-to-build-it, but maybe
it will just inspire fellow operators that a successful staging
and storage area can be built in a small space with
limited skills. There are many variations to this. We are
just illustrating the system that works for us. We have had
it installed now for two years and found it to be perfect
for the BRHRR. It actually does work. I have included two
CAD drawings by Bruce Temperley along with a series of
photographs that I snapped while building. u
Figure 1: An isometric view of the complete staging unit.
Here is the basic frame for the traverser storage unit.
Figure 2: Plan and elevation of the complete staging unit.
12 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

The extension of the layout bridges over to the traverser storage unit. The
top level is the car traverser.
This is a view of the finished scene. The barge permits access to the
traverser table.
The storage drawers are fitted with guides to hold rolling stock. Track
could also be used here. The ends of the drawers have foam rubber
bumper strips to protect couplers.
The unit is complete and ready for operations. As you can see it holds
quite a bit of rolling stock.
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Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 13

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14 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

PRR CONGRESSIONAL LTD.
FEB 2010
PRODUCTION SAMPLE
Made in Korea, this all brass, PRR GG-1(Smooth Sided #4908-#4913) in 2 Rail O Scale will be
here in February. With cab interior detail and working pantographs (manual), this powerful GG-1 is
made to pull the GGD 12 Car Congressional Limited train described below. Less than 50 engines
and sets of cars will be produced in 2 Rail. Many sets have already been reserved, so don’t delay.
ALSO IN BRUNSWICK GREEN.
Old Rivets” in 4 Schemes available in Feb.
Original (Shown), 1935 5- Stripe, 1952 5-
Stripe, 1976 Bi-Centennial (Big Little
Railroad Shop). Only a
few remain.
So call or email
Today.
$999.95 MSRP
THIRD RAIL DIVISION OF SUNSET MODELS INC.
22 Beta Court · San Ramon, CA 94583 · 925-820-7701 · fax to 925-820-7709 · www.3rdrail.com
FULL LENGTH SCALE CONGRESSIONAL LIMITED CARS IN ALUMINUM
Get the RIGHT cars for the RIGHT Locomotive. Designed to match the 3rd Rail (GG-1 Smooth Sided), these GGD
Aluminum cars will be the first Aluminum cars to have scale length, scale window arrangements, scale interiors with
lots of “Little People” and LED lighting, frictionless needle point axles. These cars will be lighter than previous GGD
Aluminum Cars.
Available in three 4 car sets. Order all 3 sets for a total of 12 cars.
Estimated retail price is $150 / Car.
- Set 1 (observation, coffee shop, kitchen, diner)
- Set 2 (parlor, conference-parlor, 2 coaches)
- Set 3 (3 coaches, parlor)
Made to reservations, contact your dealer or either Sunset Models or GGD to order. Coming 2010.
RESERVE ENGINE AND CARS FROM EITHER 3RD RAIL OR GGD!
GOLDEN GATE DEPOT LLC
231 MARKET PLACE, SUITE 223, SAN RAMON, CA 94583
www.goldengatedepot.com
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 15

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16 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Model A Prototype Train
Its 11:59 a.m. as we report to work at the yard office in
Birmingham, called for a J-BIRRDR1-23A. The crew knows
from the J prefix this is some type of a High-Wide load that
can move only in special train service. Once we have the
wheel report and other necessary paperwork in hand, only
then do we know what we will be moving.
The special load is a large transformer built by General
Electric that measures 24 feet long, 17 feet tall and 13 feet
wide with a loaded weight of 430+ tons, on a depressed center
flatcar (Photo 1). Clearance and movement requirements
state the load must travel with an empty car on both sides.
The car transporting this load is a KRL 12-axle heavy-duty
1
2
3
articulated flatcar. The required idler cars are a NYC 52 foot
gondola and an 89 foot PTTX flat (Photo 2). While an idler
car is usually used to provide clearance for a load that overhangs
the end of a car, in this case the idler cars are used
to provide weight separation from the engine and load to
comply with bridge tonnage restrictions along with additional
braking and an unrestricted view of the load so the crew can
monitor the car during transit.
Since this train originated in Jacksonville, FL, the BNSF
received it as a run-through from CSX destined for Red Rock,
OK, via Kansas City. The inbound locomotive, a CSX 8-40C,
#7529 (Photo 3) was to continue on as the power for the
train. The only service in Birmingham was the exchange of
the end-of-train (E.O.T.) device and an Initial Terminal Brake
Test by the car department.
A telephone conversation with the dispatcher prior to
departure confirmed she was aware of the train’s restrictions.
Once on the road, operational requirements restricted the
train to a maximum mainline speed of 45 mph with a 10
mph maximum speed through the controlled sidings. At 300
feet long and weighing 520 tons, not counting the engine’s
weight, this train was a handful since it reacted immediately
to any change in the track profile which required an immediate
response from the throttle jockey to maintain proper
control. The trip was uneventful but long. At 10:15 p.m. we
stopped on the Shelby main at Memphis and “swapped off”
with the outbound crew who would take the train on north.
This column and photos describe how the prototype
moves a special shipment of this type. How you choose to
model this scenario is your option. For the modern era a diesel,
a depressed center heavy-duty flatcar plus two idler cars
and battery powered LED rear end device would complete
the train. Keep in mind your idler cars should have low sides
so they do not restrict your engine crew from viewing the
load as it is being moved. If you model a steam era version,
substitute a caboose for the E.O.T.
I do not recall a commercial 12 axle depressed center flatcar
being available at this time, but feel free to enlighten me
if you are aware of one. MTH does have an 8-axle articulated
depressed center flat available in 3-Rail that could be converted
to 2-Rail. You could leave it stock or possibly bash it
into a 12-axle version like the prototype KRL car.
The photos were all taken while we were in the siding
waiting to make a meet. In the photos you can see details
than I have not covered, so look them over closely. This train
can be modeled in any scale by a modeler of any skill level
with products off the shelf.
u
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 17

18 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Well, when last here I was in part bemoaning the current
lack of kits for traction freight cars and taking a brief
look into the past at what had been available, and then
noting that there were a few options that remained available.
Most notable amongst these are a traction flatcar and
stock trailer from MidWest Train Hobby and the trolley cars
from LaBelle. That rather brief list leads me forward down
the pathway where we will go in this column; we’re just
going to have some fun and quickly toss together some relatively
generic scratchbuilt traction freight flats. And, since
the flatcar literally is the underlying basis for all other cars,
we’ll be able to move onwards from this point to tackle a
more complicated car after getting this warm-up exercise
under our belts.
I’m going to complicate this build right out of the box.
We can start with some 1/16” basswood sheet and cut
from that a blank of 8’ wide by 38’ long. Mark a centerline
down the length and 4’ in from each end. Set your compass
point there and scribe a half-circle with a 4’ radius.
Cut, carve, sand, or shape both ends to a half-circle. Now,
here’s where I complicate your existence – laminate some
0.040” sheet lead onto that 1/16” thick curved end blank.
Yes, I know you probably don’t have that in your shop or
have any way of finding some, but you can buy sheet lead
from scientific supply houses.
Generally, you can hide your favorite means of weighting
down a car from inside the car, but flatcars have limited
options for discretely adding weight. Use some 0.040”
brass, or just skip this entirely and just use some 3/32”
sheet basswood at the starting point. You can use epoxy
or your favorite adhesive for the lamination step; I like to
use Walther’s Goo. On top of the sheet lead (or your 3/32”
basswood blank), put down some 1/4” spaced 1/32” thick
scribed siding. At this point you should have something
that looks like what’s in Photo 1; top to bottom (a) an all
wood blank template (handy for future reference!), (b) an
exposed lead sheet laminated onto a 1/16” blank, and (c)
a 1/16” basswood, 0.040” lead, and 1/32” scribed siding
sandwich. Don’t eat it and wash your hands when handling
lead! Either route you take, we should all meet up
with something looking like c in Photo 1.
Now, mark a centerline down the length of the scribed
siding and 5’ in from each end draw a line across – that is
the outside edge of where your body bolsters will go on
the underbody. I use my own resin cast bolsters cut down
to 8’ wide. You can make your own from wood or styrene,
or buy and cut down some plastic ones from Precision
Scale, or buy wooden ones from Ye Old Huff’n’Puff, or
even contact me for some of mine. You’ll also need some
stripwood: 1/4”x1/16”, 3/8”x1/16”, 5/32”x1/16”, and some
O scale 2”x16” or 1/2” wide 0.020 styrene (Photo 2). That
last “or” pertains to the fact that I’m actually building 2
variations of a traction flatcar at the same time.
First thing we need to do is install the car bolsters – 5’
in from the ends. It helps to drill and tap them for 4/40
screws before gluing them down – trust me on that point.
The 1/4”x1/16” board goes wide section down centered
in between the bolsters. The 5/32”x1/16” will be fitted up
against that center board to form the hollow center sill.
The 3/8”x1/16” boards will go in between the bolsters
flush along the outside edges of the body. Now, I think we
should pause here before proceeding further, but looking
at Photo 3, I think you can see where we will be going
with the O Scale 2”x16” or 1/2” wide 0.020 styrene and
some scrap 5/32”x1/16”. Next column we’ll wrap these
cars up and then move on to something a more challenging
(FUN!).
u
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 19
1
2
3

Hate Sawmills with Nothin’ Inside ?
The O Scale Slatyfork Sawmill Interior kit includes all the machinery needed (carriages, rollers, band
saws, swing saws, and edgers shown below) for a double band saw mill and a transfer table that is not
available separately. In addition, a group of workers are in the kit, and there will be loads of details
for the sawfiler's floor including extra saw blades, tools, hoists, benches, and clutter.
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5' Band Saw
The saw includes a scale 8'
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#18302 O Scale $ 39.95
The Machinery below is Available as Individual Kits
Log Carriage & Track
A cable pulled the carriage from each end and went below the floor to
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the rail & spikes.
#18306 O Scale $ 59.95
Swing Saw
The swing saw has a footprint of a scale
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Edger
The edger and rollers have a footprint
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Rollers
The frames have a scale footprint of
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#18304 O Scale $ 29.95
All the above are also coming in HO and S Scales!
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Shipping - $5.00/order in the US
All Scale Catalog - $5.00
Celebrating 30 Years of Service since 1979

Building a Center Cab Diesel
Part Two: Building the trucks
Capt. Tom Mix, USMC Ret.
The first things to consider if building this engine are the
trucks. If it can’t move on its own, it doesn’t pay to spend the
time building a frame with a nice looking cab and hoods.
Photo 1 shows a completed truck.
Milling The Main Components
When machining several components of the same size
I like to solder pieces of rough-cut brass together of the
approximate length, height and thickness, and do all the
milling at once. This is faster for machining multiple parts. In
addition, they will finish to the exact same size.
Using 1/8” thick C360 brass cut 4 pieces (scale dimensions
now) 14’ long and 3’ high and solder them together. Those
dimensions are oversized and will be machined to the correct
size. When cool enough to handle, clamp this assembly in a
vise and mill a smooth flat surface on top. This will be your
base line for all measurements.
For these 7-foot wheelbase Commonwealth trucks, the
first mark will be the centerline. Use a machinist’s square to
scribe the line on top, and down the front and back of the
soldered assembly. The finished height of the sideframe is 2
feet and that is the next milling operation. After milling the
height, measure from left and right of the scribed centerline
3’ 6” to get the journal centers. The journal openings are 9”
wide by 18” high. In the prototype drawing there is a portion
on top of the journal slot that is three inches wider overall.
This is one of those minor “detail” situations that you may or
may not choose to do. The equalizers hide much of that extra
opening. I milled it in as I had a 1/16” mill on hand but it was
done after the individual sideframes were separated. Mill out
the journal slots and then mark out the overall truck outline
including the top extensions, which will be bent into a curve
to support the brake hangers. From the journal centerline,
these will be about 3 feet long.
Depending on the mills you have on hand, it is possible to
use a 1/4” mill to make the curves on each side of the journal
slots near the top. However, hand filing will have to be done
to finish. The top of each frame is depressed in the center. The
frame’s topside height between the journal slots is only 6”.
This is another one of those “detail” situations. That 6” may
look too small for strength but in reality, it’s not. When building
an accurate model, avoid oversizing the visible components
for strength. It will make the model appear clunky.
When the assembly’s machining and filing is finished, it’s
1
time to separate the individual frames. One of the accessories
I have with my resistance-soldering unit is a grounding
plate. This is simply the bottom of an old iron I took apart
and bolted upside down on my desk (See Photo 6). Place the
assembly on the plate, set the soldering unit on high heat and
use a thin knife blade to separate the individual sideframes.
All paint stores have black colored sandpaper of different grit.
I use a lot of 400 and 600 grit to polish and remove excess
solder. With a sheet of 400 grit flat on your desk, use your
fingers to hold each side frame and rub off the solder and any
mill markings.
Now comes a decision. I don’t know how thick these
frames were on the prototype. I have a 3/4 view top-down
photo showing one truck before installation and it appears
that the sideframes were a bit less than 6 inches thick. The
extended ends of each frame have to be bent into a curve
for the brake hangers. Hard brass may fracture if bent too
sharp. It can be heated for bending but I did not want to
soften the whole sideframe. I was reluctant to try bending the
1/8“ brass stock and have it fracture and ruin all that work;
so here is what I did. I made a holder with a 1/8” x 1” flat
bar stock about 6” long with a 1/4” X 1/2” brass bar screwed
and soldered on the bottom to form a “T”. When this plate is
clamped in a vise, the surface is lightly milled to ensure it is
completely flat. Then all four of the side frames are soldered
on and then milled to approximately 4½ to 5” thick (Photo 2).
I made a quick jig for bending (Photo 3). This piece of brass
had a milled square in the center that precisely fit the journal
2
3
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 21

slot. One edge of the block was rounded with a file (not too
sharp) that would be the gauge for the frame’s end curve.
Using a torch, I heated the extensions on each sideframe
almost to cherry red. The sideframe with the gauge block was
fastened into a vice with the extension pointing up. Use a
piece of paper or thin styrene against the surface of the frame
to keep from marring. When tightened use a small hammer to
tap bend the end, matching the curve on the block. Reverse
the frame in the block and repeat. No fractures and now the
side frames were 10’ 8” long at the curve point. Note also
that the holes for the safety chains have been drilled in the
sideframes.
Detailing
Now comes the detailing. These trucks will require equalizers
(one each on the inside and outside of each frame for a
total of 8), brake cylinders and levers, roller bearing journals,
safety chain rings, journal wear plates (total 16) and a strap
journal keeper (total 4). The bottom of the journal slots will
have to be drilled for 00-90 hex head screws. This was one
reason I didn’t want the whole sideframe heated to a cherry
red because heating also softens brass and makes it tough to
drill and tap. You can see in Photo 4 how the bottom of each
4
5
6
journal slot was scribed with calipers to center each hole on
all the slots. Clamp the frames in the vise and align a pointed
rod (this one happens to be one of my rivet punchers) over
the cross marks. When aligned, use light pressure on the drill/
mill lever and spin the chuck by hand to make a small indentation.
Small drills must have a guide to start or they will
wander. With this setting, use a #63 bit, drilling deep enough
to tap 00-90. Do this for each journal slot. Photo 5 shows
the assembly of the journal keepers and the jig for soldering
while Photo 6 shows how the soldering was done on my
grounding plate. Note that this type of solder joint is not very
strong but it will work just fine after attachment to the side
frames.
Now the wear plates on each side of the journal slots
should be made and soldered on. Mine are made from nickel
silver so that it appears as steel. The prototype drawing shows
these to have curves where they attach to the sideframes. I
filed the curves but couldn’t get them equal; so I made them
straight. This, too, is one of those details that you may not
want to bother with.
You have seen the small rectangular pieces (1/32” x 1/8”)
attached on the bottom of the sideframe’s centers (See Photo
5). This is part of the leaf spring assembly. These pieces are
22 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
also for mounting the bolsters, which will come later. Note
the pin extending down. This pin fits into a hole drilled down
through the frame center and not only helps to secure the
piece to the frame but that extension is for fitting into a hole
drilled in the leaf spring casting to keep the spring centered.
And this is where I made a mistake. I cut the pin too short.
When the engine is standing with the weight on the trucks that
pin works as it’s supposed to. But when I pick up the engine,
the wheels and gear boxes drop down enough to fall away
from the pin, making a couple of the pins miss the hole when
replacing the engine on the tracks. So I have to fiddle with the
trucks to get it into the hole. Make yours a tad longer.
The equalizers are carved out much the same as the side
frames. Use 8 pieces of 1/32” thick brass rough-cut into a
scale 2’ x 8’ and soldered together for milling like the sideframes.
Mill the clump so that it is 7’ 8” long and 20” high.
I used a scanner to make copies of the truck’s drawing and
then cut out two of the equalizer outlines and glued them on
both sides of the clump (Photo 7). An important part of this
assembly is to use a punch to carefully and lightly tap a dimple
on the center of the rods that hold the spring’s end brackets.
Drill a 0.040” hole starting from both sides of the clump.
Drill a little at a time until the holes meet near the center.
If you try to drill all the way through from only one side, I
guarantee that the hole will be off coming out the other side.
Then mill and file to the shape of the equalizers. It will help
to use a scribe to outline the glued on paper guides because
they will wear off. The spring casting, PSH-4360, will have to
be thinned by filing on one side to fit between the equalizers.
Make them the same thickness as your side frames. Photos

7
8
show that these equalizers had a strengthening thickness
at the cross pin area. I used pieces cut from 1/64” by 3/32”
strips to represent this.
Making The Journals
The “roller bearing” journals are next. These are machined
from 1/4”square C360 brass stock. This requires a four-jaw
chuck on your lathe. Only have a three-jaw? Try this. Find a
thick walled brass tube that a 1/4” square rod will fit into. Cut
a piece about one or two inches long, split the tube lengthwise,
and when the square rod is inserted into the split tube it
can be tightened in the three-jawed chuck. Make sure the split
is between jaws. With a length of rod clamped in the chuck,
machine the end surface smooth. Using a tailstock drill chuck,
countersink a starting hole and drill to whatever size your
particular axle ends are. Drill this hole as deep as you can
because when you cut off a section for the journal bearing,
and then face off for the next journal, the axle hole is already
there. Since the drill is still in the tailstock, you can bore deeper
again. Do this 8 times. While you are set up for this part,
make a couple more bearings just in case a mistake is made as
you progress along. My journals are each 1foot long (1/4”) but
yours may be different. For example, NWSL has a number of
wheelsets with different sizes, and shapes of axle ends.
Slots on two sides of each journal must be milled to fit
the thickness of the sideframe. It is important that these slots
be exactly the same depth so that the blocks are accurately
centered in the sideframe’s journal openings and slide up and
down without a lot of slop. Set up your mill vice with a piece
of brass that is even for each journal block to rest on when
the jaws are tightened. The inside top portion of the journal
block must have enough protruding surface for the equalizer
to ride on plus more outside to fit both the equalizer and the
roller bearing details. So your slots probably won’t be centered
on the sides of the journal block. The block is tightened
in the X-Y table vice, the mill (hopefully the same size as the
thickness of your sideframes) set for the first pass. (See Photo
8 for this setup.) Make the first pass, turn the block over to
the opposite side and remove the same amount of material.
Check how close the slots are now to the depth needed to fit.
Remember there are two passes of the mill, which keeps that
axle hole centered. When you are close to the fit you may be
only removing fuzz so to speak. When the journal block will
slide up and down in the sideframe easily without sloppiness,
your settings are correct for the rest of the journal blocks. Do
each one with that same setting.
Study Photo 9 to see my interpretation of what this diesel’s
roller bearing journals looked like. It is only a representation,
as the available photos and the drawing are not very clear.
9
Note the outside-machined round surface, which is about
2 scale inches thick. The equalizers must rest on the square
portion of the journal. The small center square piece is a 1/8”
C360 square bar machined with a round stub that will just fit
into that axle hole. Cut the round stub off leaving a short section
of square, machine the next stub, (you left the tool setting
in place?) and make 8 of these. Then chuck each piece by the
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 23

ound stub, set your lathe’s cross slide tool bit close enough
to machine that square portion to about 2 scale inches thick.
Keep that setting and do all eight. With the last one still in
the chuck, use a small center drill to just mark the center and
drill a #70 hole for a short piece of .028 wire. These are soldered
in place after you cut off part of that stub.
Note that the square center matches the journal square.
The length of the axle end must fit most of the way into the
journal so the stub can’t be too long. Next drill four holes for
nut/bolt castings at each corner of the small square. I have a
divider attachment for the lathe and used that. But if you are
careful you can make an indentation with a scribe at each
corner and use that as a starter point. I’m not sure but that
protruding section on the bottom of the center looks like it
might be a place to fill an oil cup. I milled mine from 1/8”
stock with a notch to fit, then soldered on the bottom. Then I
chucked each journal and machined up to the previously cut
circle to give the oil cup a round bottom. Hope you can see
that in the photo.
Bolster And Brake Gear
The side and top photos of the truck shows the layout of
the brake rigging and the shape of the bolster. The shape of
this bolster will depend on what kind of gearboxes and connecting
shafts you will be using. Mine are from P&D Hobby
but NWSL also has their own style of gearboxes and drives.
The bolster’s final shape, in addition to clearing the drive
components, must have the bottom of the engine frame setting
at 3’ 8” above the railhead when setting on the completed
trucks. My bolsters were milled from one piece of brass
and made heavier than necessary for weight. They also will
carry the wheel wiper mountings for left side pick-up.
The brake cylinders are made from 1/4” thick tubing
machined to a scale 8” wide and 11” long. Solid 1/4” C360
rod was machined to fit into the tubing with the ends longer
for machining the front portion of the cylinder carrying the
piston rod. The stub that will slide into the tubing is made a
tad longer for mounting in the lathe’s chuck. Note the parts of
the cylinders in Photo 10 prior to finishing. The end carrying
the piston rod will need to be drilled. Note in Photo 11 how
a cylinder end is chucked by the stub and machined to the
proper thickness using the same method as the 1/8” square
bearing center. When you have the correct thickness the same
setting can be used for all four ends. This same technique will
be used for the four piston rod ends too.
24 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
10
11
When the eight end pieces are done, chuck each one by
the very end of the stub and saw off the end with just enough
left to fit into the tube. Before soldering the ends in place,
drill a tiny hole in the center of the tube to let the flux’s
hot gas exit. The support extension under the brake cylinder
extends 6” out from the sideframe center. I extended it
even longer towards the truck center, which made it both a
strengthener and in the correct position for soldering the bolster
to the sideframes.
My P48 bolsters are 6’ 2” long, which is the distance
between the sideframes (Make them wider if using traditional
O Scale track). I made a stripwood jig to place the sideframe
journal slots exactly 7’ apart and square with each other. The
jig helps to ensure that the bottoms of the sideframes are level
with each other too. Mark out the centers of your sideframes
and the outside center ends of the bolsters. The top of the bolster
ends is exactly level with the top center of the sideframes.
The extension from the brake cylinder mounting can be used
to spring clamp the bolsters to the sideframes. When all is
square and even, solder them together. The brake cylinders
are then mounted squarely on the centerline of the sideframe.
Note the cylinders on both trucks are pointed towards the
locomotive’s center.
The “casting” that holds the brake lever has a cut out
where it comes over the rising portion of the sideframe just
before the journal. This “casting” is another method I use to
make several parts the same size. Photo 12 shows the four
parts being milled on a ”sacrificial” plate: a piece of rectangular
brass 1/8” X 1” a couple of inches long with a 1/4” X
1/2” rectangular bar screwed and soldered on the bottom for
mounting in a vise. It looks like a “T” from the end. A small
amount of the surface is milled flat where the parts to be
shaped are soldered. The milled surface also sets in a ridge,
which is exactly square with the mill chuck and X-Y table.
Therefore, your pieces soldered to the surface will be square
with the mill too. I call this plate “sacrificial” because I use
each one many times for milling parts and after a while it

12
13
becomes thin and unusable. The remnants of the plate are
milled off the holding piece that is used for clamping in the
vise and another rectangular piece of brass stock is screwed
and soldered on for the next project. The layout of the brake
rigging can be seen in Photo 13.
Part Three will finish the trucks with the gearboxes and
drive mounted and the beginning of the engine frame. u
(Editor’s note. The e-mail address for Protocraft in Part
One of the series should have been: norm@protocraft.com)
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Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 25

CHICAGO “O” SCALE MEET
March 12-14 th , 2010
NEW LOCATION!!!
Westin Lombard Yorktown Center
Show registration – write or email
70 Yorktown Center MARCH MEET – 2636 Hallquist Ave.
Lombard, Illinois 60148 Red Wing, MN 55066 (630) 745-7600
1-800-937-8461 Ask for the Chicago O Scale Rate WWW.MARCHMEET.NET
BUY, SELL, TRADE, CLINICS, LAYOUT TOURS & MORE!
Considered the best O Scale show of the year------Limited tables available--------Register early for your preprinted badge
26 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Make A Quick Tank
Joe Giannovario
I was walking through my local big-box home improvement
store not too long ago when I spied a bin full of ABS
pipe couplings. These pipe couplings are about 2.7” in
diameter and 2.9” long. I thought that a pair of these glued
together would make a quick and easy to build steel tank.
Here’s what I did.
The couplings don’t fit together as-is so I made four tabs
from 0.040” sheet styrene and glued them to the inside of
one of the couplings (Photo 1). Next I glued the second coupling
onto the first (Photo 2). I used Tenax because the couplings
are ABS plastic.
Now I had a tube which I glued to a square piece of
0.040” styrene (Photo 3).When the joint had set I trimmed the
edges of the square to the diameter of the tube.
Next I scribed panel lines along the tank sides with a
straight edge and the back of a razor knife. The couplings are
conveniently divided horizontally so I just made a series of
staggered vertical lines on each section. When this was done
I painted the tank silver (Photo 4).
Voila! A nice sized O Scale tank (approx. 10’ in diameter
and 23’ high) in about 20 minutes (mostly waiting for the
paint to dry). If I were to do this over I might add rivets using
Archer Wet Transfer resin rivets [www.archertransfers.com].
If you have not yet seen these, they are way cool resin rivets
on decal paper. For a more modern tank use the Archer weld
beads instead of scribing panel lines.
u
1
2 3
4
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 27

Buy⁄Sell⁄Trade
AOCC*
Gem PRR B6 0-6-0, C/P or N/P, OB ...................... $575.00
WSM PRR J1a, 2-10-4, C/P, OB ........................$1,550.00
WSM PRR M1, 4-8-2, C/P, Nice, OB .....................$1,150.00
USH NYC J3a De-Streamlined 4-6-4 w/Centipede tender,
C/P Ex, OB. ........................................$1,275.00
Williams “Crown” PRR 0-6-0 B6sb, F/P, OB ............... $525.00
USH PRR M1a, 4-8-2, C/P, OB .........................$1,175.00
MG NYC J3a, C/P, NOB From Tony Ambrose ............$1,395.00
USH NYC S1b, 4-8-4, C/P, OB ..........................$1,250.00
MG PRR J, 2-10-4, C/P, Icken Gears, NOB ...............$1,895.00
USH NYC H10, 2-8-2, Mint, N/P, NOB ...................$1,275.00
USH PRR L1, 2-8-2, N/P, LN, NOB ......................$1,175.00
Gem PRR A5 0-4-0, C/P, NOB ........................... $475.00
Atlas EMD GP9, F/P UP, OB ............................ $250.00
OM N&W C630 High Hood, FM Trucks, New, OB. ........$1,195.00
OM NKP GP35 N/P, LN, OB ............................ $950.00
Jim Hackworth
MODEL TRAINS
(and Subsidiary JH Consulting)
2631 Edgevale Road, Columbus OH 43221-1113
Phone: 614-4514517 Fax: 6144514557
Email: jhmtrains@msn.com • Web: www.jhmtrains.com
Consignments
AOCC*
USH B&O C16a, 0-4-0, C/P, OB.......................................................$675.00
PRB #4461P Dow 3-dome Tank, F/P, White OB, new....................$285.00
OM PRR PAPB Set, Late Run, F/P, New......................................$2,875.00
OM #0445 C39-8, C/P, OB..............................................................$1,195.00
OM NKP War Caboose, C/P, Wtd, OB............................................$295.00
CB J&L Tank car, C/P, OB...............................................................$295.00
Scale Mod Ind Roundhouse Kit.........................................................$159.00
PRB Sealand Gunderson D. Stack set, F/P, LN, OB....................$1,525.00
PRb APL Blue Thrall D. Stack set, F/P, LN, OB..........................$1,575.00
RY Models (Yoder) Brass C&O Woodside Caboose LN, OB........$375.00
USH PRR N5 Caboose, New w/Trucks, N/P, OB.............................$250.00
OM PS2-CD Covered Hopper, C/P ATSF, OB, LN........................$319.00
PRB SP Gunderson D.Stack Set, LN, OB......................................$1,495.00
Sunnyside PRR N5c Caboose, N/P, OB ...........................................$309.00
MG PRR N8 Caboose, N/P, NOB......................................................$250.00
Alco PRR N6a, C/P or N/P........................................................each $225.00
Layaway Available
28 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
*All Offers Cordially Considered
LSASE for Complete List
Shipping Cost Based On Location
Ohio Residents Add 6.75% Sales Tax
Estates⁄Liquidations
Collection Reductions

Sumpter
Valley
Depot
135 NW Greeley Avenue,
Bend OR 97701
● Specializing in O Scale 2-rail
model trains since 1985
● We buy or consign brass model
collections
● Model reservations gladly
accepted
● Prompt, courteous service
Check our website for latest
O Scale Listings
www.sumptervalley.com
trainman@callatg.com
Tel: 541/382-3413
Fax:541/389-7237
Hours:
Mon. thru Fri 8:30 AM - 5PM
and sometimes on Saturdays
VALLEY
MODEL TRAINS
PO BOX 1251, Wappingers Falls, N.Y. 12590
Credit Card Orders Welcome
Order/Info(845)297-3866 Fax(845)298-7746
American Model Builders O Scale Laser Kits
Dimensions: 9-3/4 x 4-3/4 x 4-1/2"
Dock Adds 2" to Length
484
484 Elevated Warehouse Kit O.......................79.95 67.98
489
6 x 4-1/4 x 6"
489 Loft Barn Kit O.............................................42.98 36.55
479 Long-Bell Lumber skid shacks 2/ O42.98 36.55
Crow River Products Resin and Metal Kits.....
308
Footprint with
loading dock
3" X 10"
Use in the yard,
on a dock or
industry.
308 Fixed Boom Crane O.....................65.00 58.50
Includes utility tank
shown on right - For use
with Derricks, Clam-
Shell Derricks or as
Logging Donkeys
479 - 2 per pack
323
4 x 3 x 2-3/4"
O111
323 3-Drum Steam Hoisting Engine O .....80.00 73.60
O111 Utility Tank O....1 ¼”L X 2 ½”H ........net 8.00
Main Street Heritage Resin Kits.....
505
5 x 9-1/2" w/ boardwalk
5-1/2 x 8" w/ sidwalks
505 The Weekly Record O ...................66.95 61.60
503 Bill's Place O..................................62.95 57.90
Evergreen Hill Design O Laser Cut kits
Footprint: 9" deep (including both decks) 11" wide
(including stairs) 8" high (including fire barrels)
2007 Dollar Bros Motor Express Kit O
503
2007 Dollar Bros Motor Express Kit O 169.95 144.50
lots of detail 2005
Includes
parts
pool table,
cues, balls, 2011
stove, radio
2005 30's Gas Station O (4 x 6.25”) ......59.95 50.99
2011 Pool Hall with table O (5.25 x 6”)..69.95 59.50
Add $8.00 S&H in 48 States • Others pay actual
postage cost • N.Y. residents add 8.25% sales tax.
(prices are subject to change w/o notice)
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The Public Delivery Track
Custom Run Items
Atlas..SP 2 bay hopper car, large lettering...$65
SP and SINCLAIR 8K tank cars..$63 ea
MILW and RI "MDT" steel reefers..$55 ea
52' mill gondolas..WP, SN, Erie, DLW, SP, Rdg..$45 ea
SP double sheathed box cars & flat cars...reserve
Golden Gate...Sleepers..Erie, DLW, SF, MILW..$119
Coaches..PRSL, RG, Erie, DLW, MILW..$109-$119
Head end cars..Erie, DLW, MILW, NYC...$119
Weaver...50' flat w/trailer..UP, Erie, SP, SF..reserve
RPO & Baggage..Erie, CNJ, SF, PRSL..$75-$90
Locomotives
Atlas..U-23, GP-15, RSD's, Dash-8, RS-3..$159-$299
RS-1's, GP 7/9, F-3's..$399-$449. SW's..$199-$359
GP-35's, SD-35's, SD-40's, D8-40b's..$329-$449
Alco Century's..PRR, EL, CN, ACL, L&N, BRC..$349-$449
3rd rail, Sunset..Greenbrier..$999. O-1..$899
SP Mogul..$749-$849. AM-2 $1499. MT-4..$1095
Wvr/Wms brass..PRR K4, A5, B6, others..call
Weaver..SD-40, C628/630, E-8, Sharks..$199-$399
MTH..Premier and Railking Scale diesels..$199-$429
K-line..GP-38..CNJ. RS3..Rdg, NYC, WM, SP, PE
E's..NYC, SP, CN; F's..PRR, NYC, Amtk....$249-$429
Passenger & Head End
Golden Gate..70' Bag, RPO. 80' Combine..$119
Sleepers..Pullman, PRR, NW, SP, NYC..$ 109
Coaches..LIRR, PRR, C&O, CP, Reading..$100-$109
Aluminum streamliners..NYC, SP, SF, PRR..call
Atlas..Industrial Rail..SF, GN, PRR, PRSL..$49
New 60' coach, Comb, Bag., RPO..8 roads....$65
Horizon cars..Amtk, NJT, Septa, Condot, MNR..$85-$95
CALIF ZEPHYR 80' domes and sleepers..$129
MTH sets..Amtk, UP, NYC, CZ, others..$249-$329
Weaver..60' baggage or RPO..PRSL, Erie, CNJ
SF, PRR, NYC, NH, UP, CN, N&W, B&M..$60-$90
Box Cars
Pecos River..B&O, Erie, NYC, SF, SP, T&P..$35-$45
Atlas..40' Woodside..40+ roads!!!...$55-$65
40' Steel..Rebuilts, or AAR..20+ roads..$49-$55
40' & 50' Trainman, 1970's (refurbished)..$30-$40
X-29's..$50-$62. HyCubes..60'..$69. 40'..$35
50'..Siide or plug door..$55-$60 60' auto parts..$55
Weaver..40' PS-1, 50' modern, Steelside, Outside braced
40+ roads..Old ones our speciality..$25-$40
Refrigerator Cars
Weaver/Crown..30+ roadnames in stock..$25-$40
57' Mechanical..15+ roads..no sound..$35, sound..$50
Atlas..53' xprs..$65. 40' steel..$49-$59
36' & 40' woodside..oldies, newies, custom..$55-$125
40' plug door..Trainman, 1970's refurbished..$30-$35
K-line..Woodside..same detail as Atlas..$45-$60
Covered Hoppers
Weaver PS-2 & AC-2..old & new..30+ roads..$25-$40
Centerflow or Grain..old and new..25 roads..$25-$40
Atlas..3 bay PS-2..$35. ACF 2 bay..$55-$65
New Trinity 5161..$66-$70 Cylindrical 40'..$45-$55
Airslides and PS4427's....20+ roads......$45-$55
Hopper Cars
Atlas..3 bay..WM, SOU, BN, NH, Rdg, RG..$35
Ore cars..CN, UP, DMIR..$25. H21a 4 bay..$50-$58
2 bay. usra or Panel side..10+ roads...$50-$60
Weaver..2, 3, 4-bay..30+ different roads....$25-$40
Tank Cars
Weaver...40' & 50', new & old, 20+ roads...$27-$35
Atlas..33K..Propane, Delta, CNTX, Union Tex..$52
17K..Trusweet, ADM, GATX, SHPX, Stauffer, more..$65
8K..Navy Gas, Woburn, Staley, Taylor, more..$55-$59
11K..SHPX, UTLX, Dow, 20+ roads..$55-$59
Flat Cars, Stock Cars
Atlas..Double stacks..$129-$289. Pulp flats..$49
Front runner..$45. 89' flats..$60-$65. Trailers..$29-$35
Trainman 50' flat w/pipe load and stock cars..$30-$35
Wvr..40' & 50' flat cars, Stock cars..20+ roads..$25-$40
Gondolas
Atlas..52'..15+ roads..$30-$35. 40' composite..$55
Wvr..LV, RI, SF, UP, NW, Rdg, B&M, MEC, PRR..$29
Atlas Track..2 rail, 3 rail, 3 rail steel
Industrial Rail .. Locos . cars . trolleys . sets . track
Dealers..request our wholesale list
www.PublicDeliveryTrack.com
e-mail us: pdtrains@earthlink.net
Drexel Hill, PA • Paso Robles, CA
610-259-4945 • 805-226-0320
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 29

Starting Over
Part 2 — A plan evolves
Joe Giannovario
Let’s review the ”Givens” from last issue:
1. The new layout will be based on a prototype: the Abingdon
Branch of the N&W.
2. The minimum radius will be 44”.
3. No track will be closer to the walls than 6” from the centerline.
This will help make sure there is room for scenery and
my hand if I need to get to a derailed car.
4. No benchwork will be deeper than 30” unless there is
access to it from 3 sides (no more step stools).
5. The benchwork will be between 36” and 48” high, give
or take a couple inches.
6. The maximum train length will be 96”.
7. Room space is 14’ wide by 22’ long with access at the
right end of the room.
8. My workbench has to fit under the new layout.
Now the ”Druthers”
9. The layout will be double-deck with a 4% grade.
10. I will model two time periods: 1948 and 1968.
11. Use Atlas O track and switches.
The benchwork design is shown below.
From Alvarado the track continues to climb until it reaches
Damascus on the lower wall. Damascus is a major stop on the
branch with many industries to serve. I’ll start the grade at the
left end of Damascus although in reality, the grade decreased
from Abingdon to Damascus but if I’m going to get two levels
in here the grade has to start early at Abingdon. To facilitate
operations the track will split near the end of the Alvarado
module and one line will go to Damascus while the other
continues to climb toward White Top, the summit.
Okay, based on the concepts outlined above, here is the
first crack at a track plan for the space.
3"
4"
5"
2"
6"
1"
44.8r
Beaver
48r
28" wide
lower deck
0"
43r
7"
45.2r
Alvarado
34" aisle
47r
0"
Std Oil Depot
Abingdon
Ash
Smthprt Xtrct
Tobacco Whse.
43" min Rad.
48" or larger where possible.
3.7% grade
Max train length = 8 feet
Bristol
Frt Sta.
Frt Sta.
Stock Pens
Damascus
Coal
8" 9" 10" 11" 12"
Sand
42" aisle
Water
23" aisle
13"
Pass Sta
0"
14"
Water Tank
Inbound
Whlse Produce
Abingdon Branch — Lower level Bristol to Damascus
15"
Outbound
50r
45r
16"
49.5r
17"
20"
White Top
20"
48r
20"
Alvarado
Ash
Bristol
Coal
Sand
19"
Creek
Jnct
Water
18"
Beaver
Inbound
Outbound
17"
Smthprt Xtrct
DH Hrdwd Flr
50r
Frt Sta.
Damascus
0"
16"
11"
12" 13" 14"
15"
I bought Empire Express, which will run on a Mac, to help
design the track plan. It’s not much more than a simple drawing
program tweaked for drawing curves easily. For real design
power you need to use 3rd PlanIt or CADRail both of which
are Windows based only.
So, now I start doodling track plans. Obviously, this is going
to be a point-to-point layout. My plan started at Bristol, Virginia,
(actually Bristol is bisected by Virginia and Tennessee)
where the N&W had engine facilities for the locomotives that
ran over the Abingdon branch. That central island will become
Bristol with a roundhouse and other service facilities.
Leaving Bristol to the right, the track curves around counter-clockwise
to the upper portion of the benchwork that
represents Abingdon itself. The track from Bristol to Abingdon
would be level, i.e., no grade. Continuing around the room
counter-clockwise to Damascus, there are a multitude of
trestles on the branch many of which still exist on the bike
trail. I wanted a trestle feature on the lefthand wall, which I’ll
call Alvarado.
30 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
Abingdon Branch — Upper level Damascus to White Top
The track is all Atlas O flextrack. The turnouts are all #5.
In order to make the plan work I had to cheat and make one
curve (lower left corner) a 43” radius.
I shared the design with several friends and other modelers
to solicit feedback. Brian Scace and I played with making it a
Nodal design (See the Track Planning chapter in the Second
Edition Guide to Modern O Scale for a discussion of Nodal
designs). I also discussed how to construct the double deck
with several people including how to light the lower deck.
I contacted Clark Thorp who had helped me design the
original layout and gave him my track plan to redraw in
3rdPlanIt. It was Clark who informed me that I had not drawn
the room correctly based on the space plan I had given him 5
years ago. Oops! Back to the drawing board.
Clark did a great job fitting the plan above into the correct
space and tweaking the design so it would fit my ”givens”.
Compare this lower level plan (top next page) from Clark’s

3rdPlanIt to the lower level plan I drew in Empire Express. See
that bump out in the lower wall? That’s a problem maker. I
also realized that carrying the track over top of Bristol would
be a real issue both mechanically (how do I support it?) and
scenically (how do I disguise it?). Plus, the track and services
at Bristol look really crowded. I was falling into the same trap
as before of trying to cram too much track into the available
space.
It was time to rethink the plan and simplify, simplify, simplify!
I dropped the idea of a two level design. I decided to
start the layout at Abingdon rather than Bristol. I also decided
that the scenery would be the dominant feature and the track
would wander through it. So it was back to the drawing program
and ...
Abingdon Branch — Redrawn lower level using 3rd PlanIt
the Abingdon branch without at least one trestle!
With this plan in hand I started considering how to build
the benchwork. I thought of building the benchwork again
myself. I also investigated two manufacturers of modular
benchwork: Mianne [www.miannebenchwork.com] and Sievers
[www.sieversbenchwork.com]. Both of those would have
worked out well but I would have had to customize them further
to accommodate my under-the-layout workbench and the
10 inch drop for the Creek Junction trestle.
Maybe there was another option? I met Tom Thorpe maybe
5 or 6 years ago at a local train meet where he was displaying
his custom curved benchwork. [tomthorpecurvedbenchwork.
com] If you’ve never seen his benchwork let me tell you it’s
more like fine furniture than benchwork. Even better, Tom
lives not too far from me so I called him to discuss the project.
He made a proposal and I accepted.
As it turned out, having Tom come to the house to build
the benchwork was a huge benefit in more ways than just
getting exactly what I wanted/needed. Tom is an idea guy. He
generated innumerable questions and ideas while we worked
together and several of his suggestions were incorporated into
the final plan shown below.
132"r
Flooring Whse.
67/52'r
Std Oil Depot
Frt Sta.
Frt Sta.
Water Tank
Stock Pens
Tobacco Whse.
Pass Sta
Abingdon
79/52"r
Damascus
45"r
Smthprt Xtrct
52"r
48"r
Flooring Whse.
Frt Sta.
Stock Pens
Smthprt Xtrct
Creek
Junction
48"r
Damascus
48"r
45"r
Furn. Whse.
Whitetop
Whitetop
Depot
74"r
Creek
Junction
48"r
45"r
Std Oil Depot
Water Tank
Frt Sta.
Whitetop
Whitetop
Depot
Tobacco Whse.
Pass Sta
Abingdon
Abingdon Branch — Seventh revision
Seven iterations later I had the design shown above. There
are several significant features to this plan. The progression
around the layout is now Abingdon to Damascus to Creek
Junction to Whitetop (Yes, I know. It is spelled both ways,
White Top and Whitetop. It is now officially Whitetop). I
found a way to trick the drawing program into giving me a
curved switch... well, two curved switches of 45” and 48”
radii. I also planned a turntable at Whitetop on a drop leaf to
provide clearance to walk into and out of the layout.
The other feature that is important is one that you cannot
see in this flat plan. That trestle at Creek Junction runs over a
10 inch drop in the benchwork to provide the scenery necessary
to support the trestle. I just could not envision building
45"r
48"r
20 x 65
Abingdon Branch — Revision eight
There are several major revisions here, all based on suggestions
Tom made. The first was to skew the tracks running
through Damascus and Whitetop so they were not parallel to
the benchwork. Another was the use of wye turnouts, which
I had not considered. One more was the incorporation of
a large radius curve through Creek Junction. The last (and
most helpful) was to widen the benchwork at the right end of
Whitetop to fit the turntable within the benchwork rather than
have it hang off the end on the drop leaf. This really opens up
the entry to the layout. I added two more curved turnouts on
each end of Damascus.
So, that’s the final-final plan. It does require four custom
built curved switches which I had made by Old Pullman. Wait
until you see the size of those 48”/44” curved switches! In
future articles I will discuss why the track arrangement is what
it is and why those buildings are there.
u
Next time... the build begins.
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 31

Custom Building, Repair & Painting Services Available Buy-Sell-Trade, Consignments-Appraisals, eBay Sales
Website: www.alleghenyscale.com • Email: oscale@alleghenyscale.com
470 Schooley’s Mountain Road, Suite 8-117, Hackettstown, New Jersey 07840 • Voice - (908) 684-2070 • Fax - (908) 684-8911
Steam
SS/3rd AT&SF "1950" Class 2-8-0 FP L/N, 2-Rail, Oil Tender, Lights, Road No. 1950 ......$695
PRB AT&SF Hudson 4-6-4 CP EX, Original 1930 Version, Pro Paint, Lights, No. 3450 ..$825
Weaver AT&SF Hudson "Blue Goose" FP New, 2-Rail, Road No. 3460 ............................ $1,095
Max Gray AT&SF Pacific 4-6-2 CP EX, Pro Paint, Pittman Can Motor, Road No. 3437 ..$825
OVL C&O F-19 4-6-2 CP EX, Pro Paint, Road No. 494, "George Washington"............... $1,595
C&LS C&O H6 2-6-6-2 FP New, 12 VB Tender, Road No. 1477 ............................................ $3,795
Kohs C&O H8 Allegheny 2-6-6-6 FP New, Weathered, Road No. 1628 ..........................$5,895
USH C&O K4 2-8-4 Kanawha UP L/N, Can Motor, KTM Japan, Great Runner ...............$1,195
WSM C&O T1 2-10-4 UP L/N, Can Motor, KTM Japan .............................................................$1,795
PSC CB&Q S4a 4-6-4 FP Mint, PSC 17161-1, Road No. 4002, Upgraded ......................... $2,595
PSC D&RGW L-76 2-6-6-2 FP Mint, PSC 17171-1, Black Boiler, Road No. 3351 .............. $2,495
Key D&RGW L-105 4-6-6-4 FP New, Postwar Mod. Ver., Black Boiler, No. 3700 .......... $3,695
PSC D&RGW L-131 2-8-8-2 FP L/N, PSC No. 16857-1, Black Boiler, No. 3600 .................$3,895
PSC D&RGW L-131 2-8-8-2 FP L/N, PSC No. 16857-2, Green Boiler, No. 3607 ............... $3,795
PSC D&RGW M-68 4-8-4 FP New, PSC No. 17247-4, Green Boiler, Road No. 1804 ....$2,895
Max Gray Erie K5 4-6-2 UP New, Unassembled, Spoked Drivers - 1 of 10 Built..........$2,695
Custom Brass Little River 2-4-4-2 UP L/N, Can Motor, Test Run ........................................$1,795
USH L&N M1 "Big Emma" 2-8-4 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Road No. 1970 ....................................$1,195
OVL NYC J1e Hudson 4-6-4 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Cockerham Drive, Road No. 5336 ....$2,295
Kohs. NYC J3a Hudson 4-6-4 FP New, Scullin Disk Drivers, Road No. 5425 ................. $3,795
WSM NYC J3a Hudson 4-6-4 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Original Version, Road No. 5405 .... $1,095
WSM NYC J3a Hudson 4-6-4 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Original Version, Road No. 5414 ..... $1,095
WSM NYC J3a Hudson 4-6-4 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Fully Streamlined, Road No. 5447 .$2,295
WSM NYC J3a Hudson 4-6-4 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Mod Streamlng, PT-4, No. 5451 ......$2,295
USH NYC J3a Destreamlined Hudson 4-6-4 CP EX, PT-4 Tender, Road No. 5447 ...... $1,095
Key NYC K3q 4-6-2 FP New, Single Window Cab, Road No. 4675 ....................................$2,250
PSC NYC S1b Crown Niagara 4-8-4 CP New, Pro Paint, Road No. 6021, Exquisite .....$4,095
Sunset N&W Class J 4-8-4 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Coal, Lights, Road No. 600......................$1,195
PSC N&W Class S1a 0-8-0 UP L/N, PSC No. 15699, Road Nos. 200-244 .......................... $1,595
OVL NP Z8 2-6-6-4 CP EX, Coal Version, Weathered, Road No. 5130 .............................$2,295
Gem/Heike PRR A5s 0-4-0 CP L/N, Compl. Rebuild, 1 of a Kind, Road. No. 94 ...........$2,895
SS 3rd-Heike PRR E6s 4-4-2 CP L/N, Compl. Rebuild, 1 of a Kind, No. 1092 ................. $2,695
Sunset-Heike PRR H9s 2-8-0 CP L/N, Compl. Rebuild, 1 of a Kind, No. 1145 ............... $2,595
Key PRR H10 2-8-0 FP L/N, Pro Details, Weathering, Road No. 8014 ............................... $2,495
OVL PRR HH1 2-8-8-2 CP New, OMI No. 139, 1 of 10 Produced ......................................... $2,595
USH PRR I1sa 2-10-0 UP New, Late Run, New Correct Steel Driver Tires ....................... $1,295
Key PRR J1a 2-10-4 FP L/N,210F84 Tender w/Antenna, Road No. 6498 ......................... $2,795
WSM PRR J1a 2-10-4 UP New, 210F84 Tender w/Custom Antenna, ............................... $1,695
Kohs. PRR K4 4-6-2 Prewar Version FP New, 130P75 Tender, Road No. 3863 ...............$4,195
PSC/Heike PRR K4s 4-6-2 Postwar Ver. CP L/N, Compl. Rebuild, 1 of a Kind ............... $2,795
WSM PRR M1 4-8-2 UP New, Last Run, Full Backhead .......................................................... $1,495
Max Gray PRR M1a 4-8-2 UP Mint, Late Run, 210P75 Tender .................................................$995
OVL PRR M1b 4-8-2 FP Mint, 210p75 Tender w/Antenna, No. 6753 .................................$2,295
Max Gray PRR N1s 2-10-2 CP New, McCafferty Paint and Weathering ........................... $1,695
WSM PRR Q2 4-4-6-4 UP New, KTM Japan ................................................................................ $1,995
SS/3rd PRR S1 Duplex 6-4-4-6 FP L/N, Deskirted, Lightly Weathered, No. 6100 ........$1,195
OVL P&LE A2 2-8-4 FP New, W/Decals, OMI 0159 ................................................................... $1,995
OVL RDG T1 4-8-4 UP Mint, W/Decals, OMI 0150 ................................................................... $1,595
Weaver/Heike RDG G2sa 4-6-2 CP L/N, Compl. Rebuild, Exceptional, No. 112 .......... $2,495
PSC SP AC-9 2-8-8-4 FP New, Coal Version, Road No. 3800 ................................................$3,295
PSC SP F-4 2-10-2 FP L/N, PSC No. 16915-1, Postwar, Road No. 3679 ...............................$1,795
PSC #17347-1 SP GS-4 4-8-4 Postwar Version FP New,, Black, Road No. 4436 ............$2,695
PSC # 15839-1 SP MT-4 Crown 4-8-2 FP New, Gray Boiler, No Skyline, Ser. 4 of 9...... $2,495
SS/3rd SP MT-4 4-8-2 FP New, 2-Rail, Daylight Scheme, Skyline, Road No. 4352 ...... $1,495
PSC SRR PS-4 4-6-2 FP New, PSC No. 16467-1, Green/Black, Road No. 1401 ............... $1,695
USH SRR USRA 0-8-0 CP L/N, Pro Paint, Green & Gold, Road No. 6531 .............................$795
Sunset SRR USRA Lt 2-8-2 CP EX, Pro Paint, Black Boiler, Can Motor, Road #6296 ........$995
OVL SP&S Z-8 4-6-6-4 UP New, OMI No. 0167, Oil Version, Road Nos. 910-911 .......... $2,695
Sunset UP Early Challenger 4-6-6-4 CP EX, Cockerham Drive, Pro Paint, #3939 .......$2,395
Sunset UP "9000" Class 4-12-2 UP New, Postwar Version ....................................................$1,195
USH UP C Class 2-8-0 CP EX, Can Motor, Oil Tender, Road No. 329 .....................................$795
PFM UP C-57 Class 2-8-0 FP L/N, Lights, Road No. 739, Samhongsa .............................. $1,595
Key UP FEF-2 Oil Version FP L/N, TT Gray, Silver Stripes, Road No. 825, Rare .............. $2,495
USH UP FEF-3 4-8-4 CP EX, Pro Paint, 2 Tone Gray, Oil Version, Can Motor .....................$995
SS/3rd UP MK Class 2-8-2 FP Mint, Never Unwrapped, Short Vanderbilt, No. 2260.....$795
USH UP TTT Class 2-10-2 CP EX, J. White Drive, Lt. Weathering, Road No. 5078 ........ $1,895
USH UP TTT Class 2-10-2 - Custom Rebuild CP EX, BL FWH, Sweeney Stack,
Larger Tender, Road #5305.....................................................................................................$2,195
C&LS WM M-2 4-6-6-4 FP L/N, Hinged Smokebox Front, Road No. 1208 .....................$3,195
WSM WM 3 Truck Heavy Shay UP L/N, Late Run, Can Motor, Full Backhead ..............$2,095
Diesel
OVL ALCO FA-1/FB-1 Units UP New, OMI Nos. 0356/0356/0358, Per Unit .........................$595
Car Works B&M ALCO S-1 Switcher CP EX, w/DCC and Sound, Road No. 1161 ..............$650
PSC B&M EMD SW-1 Phase 1 CP EX, Low Stack, Black w/Red Nose Stripes, No. 1112 ..$625
OVL EMD E8 A/B Units UP L/N, OMI Nos. 0304/0305, Per Unit .............................................$595
OVL EMD F3 A/B Units UP New, OMI Nos. 0292/0293, Per Unit ............................................$625
Oriental EMD GP-9 Phase III UP New, Samhongsa Korea ........................................................$825
OVL # 0393-0397 PRR ALCO FA-2/FB-2 - A-B Units CP New, w/Antennas, Twr Drive $1,595
OVL PRR ALCO DL600B High Hood UP New, w/Ant., OMI No. 0201A, 2 Available ........$695
OVL PRR BLW RF-16 Shark A-B-A Units UP Mint, OMI Nos. 0425, 0426, 0425 .............. $2,995
SS/3rd #M402/M405 PRSL RDC-1 - Two Units FP New, 2-Rail, Pwr & Dummy Units .....$795
Atlas O P&LE GP7 Units FP L/N, 2 Rail DCC/Sound, Powered and Dummy Units ..........$575
Atlas O SRR F3 Phase 1 A/B/A Units FP L/N, 2 Rail DCC/Sound, Freight Scheme ..........$895
OVL UP ALCO PA-1 UP New, OMI No. 0322, 2 Available ...........................................................$750
Hallmark UP FT A-B Units CP EX, Yellow/Gray, Lights, Crew, Road Nos. 516/516B ........$795
OVL UP Standard Turbine, Mint, OMI No. 0354, Round Tender ........................................$2,695
Atlas O Gold WM F3 Phase 1 A/B Units CP L/N, Fireball Scheme, Nos. 51A/B ...............$695
Kohs PRR GG1, Brunswick 5 Stripe, New, Clarendon, Fixed Coupler, Rd #4840, Rare $4,995
Kohs. PRR GG1 Tuscan 5 Stripe, New, Clarendon, Drop Coupler, Road No. 4911 .......$5,195
Rolling Stock
PSC GN HWT Empire Builder 9 Car Set FP New, PSC No. 16981 .........................................$7,595
PSC Harriman 72' 72-D-3 Diner UP New, PSC No. 15477 .........................................................$425
Custom Brass PRR B60 Baggage Car CP EX, CNJB No. 702-O.................................................$295
SS/3rd PRR BM54, P54 Commuter Cars, FP New, 2 Rail, Bag, Comb, Coaches, each ....$250
SS/3rd PRR B60, P70, Baggage, Coaches FP New, 2 Rail, Price Each ...................................$275
P. Co. PRR X-42 Mail Storage Car CP New, Pro Paint, Shadow Keystone, Rd #2541 .......$350
PSC REA Steel 50' Expr Reefer CP L/N, Late Version, PSC No. 15519, Lg. REA Herald ...$295
OVL GPEX 47' Pfaudler Steel Milk Car UP New, OMI No. 0700 ...............................................$295
Div. Point N&W CF & CH Class Cabooses FP New, Several Versions Available ................$395
W&R NP 24' Wood Caboose FP L/N, 2nd Run, Version 3, Interior, Road No. 1644.........$435
OVL Palace Poultry Car UP L/N, OMI No. 0055, W/Trucks .......................................................$575
Kohs PRR N5c Cabin Car New, Version 2, "Buy War Bonds", No. 477009, 1 of 10 ..........$675
RY Models PRR GLca Fishbelly Twin Hopper UP New, AB Brakes ........................................$275
OVL UP CA-1 Wood Caboose UP New, OMI No. 0797 ...............................................................$225
Kohs. VGN Class C10-1 Caboose FP New, Road No. 309 ..........................................................$595
C&LS WM "NE" Steel Caboose FP L/N, Round Heralds, 2 Versions Available ..................$435
Int’l, Harriman 65,000 Gal. Water Tank UP New, Model No. IH-03, W/Spout...................$395
Various Craftsman Structure Kits UP T. Yorke, Stoney Creek, Others ..................................Call
Various Freight Cars, Brass, RTR, Kits Pac Ltd, PSC, USH, Intermountain, Atlas, etc. .....Call
32 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Scratch and Bash a P&LE Double-Sheathed Box Car
Tom Houle
For years, I’ve wanted to add at least one, if not several, double-sheathed
boxcars to my early Fifties era CNW/Soo branchline.
They would look great mixed into my steel box car fleet. One day
while sorting through my unbuilt kits, I ran across an All Nation
#3500 undecorated 40’ reefer kit. It struck me it would be relatively
easy to convert this kit into a double-sheathed boxcar. In its
simplest terms, it involves skinning the basic wooden AN car with
Evergreen car siding and adding a pair of sliding doors.
So, why convert a pristine and now defunct kit into a doublesheathed
boxcar? Well, I already have a nice reefer block on the
layout; in fact, too many for my 40’ icehouse to efficiently handle.
Additionally, I suspect there are plenty of these All Nation reefers
available at eBay, O Scale shows, and under peoples’ benches.
Walthers reefer kits can also be used. The overall dimensions and
construction are nearly identical to the AN kits. Lacking a kit, you
could easily scratchbuild the basic structure from either wood or
styrene and then proceed as I did with my kit. To this end, I have
provided drawings for the basic carbody components.
I realize that Atlas has brought out a nifty series of doublesheathed
cars. However, these cars have corrugated steel ends.
I went ahead with my kitbash because: (1) I prefer not to open
boxes and place cars on the layout; (2) I wanted wooden ends
because they simplified the kitbash; (3) I happened to find the
perfect prototype in my reference library; and (4) TMR distributing
has the correct dry transfer lettering and NYC heralds (formerly
CDS) for this car. Odd Ball Decals sells a Minneapolis and St.
Louis set of decals for a double-sheathed boxcar, and I might have
used them, but I was unable to determine if the M&StL car had
the requisite wood ends.
I found the prototype Pittsburgh & Lake Erie car on pp. 266
– 267 in Train Shed Cyclopedia No. 35 Freight Cars (Part 1)
published by Newton K. Gregg. This car was built by the Pressed
Steel Car Company. Comprehensive drawings and a photo are
provided on the two pages. Curiously, a diligent follow-up search
on the Internet and e-mails to the P&LE Historical Society and
P&LE Yahoo Group didn’t turn up any additional photos or other
information on this car. It appears to have dropped off the face of
the earth, which led me to wonder if I am the proud creator and
owner of the only extant model of this car in any scale anywhere.
I noted the P&LE car is two scale feet shorter than the 40’ AN
car. I decided to overlook that discrepancy and stay with the AN
dimensions. I made up for this by replacing the non-scale slab
underframe with a built up and correctly recessed underframe per
the Train Shed Cyclopedia drawings. Let’s begin construction there.
Underframe Assembly
The AN car consists of a 1/4” thick basswood floor, ends and
two lengths of milled roof (Photo 1). The floor in my kit had developed
a curl or warp that could not be straightened so I replaced it.
I skinned one side of the floor with Evergreen Scale Models
0.020” x 0.100” V-groove styrene. I used slow-setting CA glue to
attach it to the basswood. The V-grooving simulates the underbody’s
exposed flooring (Photo 2). As shown in the underframe
drawing, I laid out the lengthwise stringers, crossmembers, and
bolster locations on the styrene. Since the car is slightly longer
than the P&LE prototype, I used the white metal AN bolsters and
located their centers per the kit’s dimension. This is shown on the
underframe drawing.
Since the floor is going to be recessed, the AN bolsters will
need to be trimmed lengthwise to match the width of the floor. The
recessed floor necessitated increasing the height of the bolsters
continued on page 36
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 33
1

34 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 35

2
3
by 0.140”. I laminated 0.040” x 0.375” and 0.100” x 0.375”
styrene strips and glued them to the bolsters with CA glue. Then,
I glued the bolsters to the underframe with Testors liquid plastic
cement (Photos 3-4).
As shown in the underframe drawing, the four 0.080” square
stringers and 0.040” x 0.080” sidesills are attached next. Note
they run from end to end. Next, I added 0.020” x 0.100” styrene
strips to the tops of the stringers and sidesills at each crossmember’s
location to simulate the flanges (Photos 5-6). The 0.060” x
0.250” centersill alignment strip goes in next. You can see this
detail in Fig. 2. Make sure the strip is aligned down the centerline
of the underframe. The two centersills are cut from 0.040”
sheet per the drawing. I added Keil-Line #4866 0.050” wide rivet
stripping to the lower edges of the sills. I added 0.020” x 0.100”
flanges to both sills before I attached the sills to the car.
As shown in Fig. 2, the centersills butt up to the alignment
strip. This ensures the sills are securely attached and run straight
and true. They should fit snugly between the bolsters (Photo 7).
7
4
5
6
Cut ten crossmembers from 0.040” sheet, glue them to the
underframe and attach 0.020” x 0.100” flanges (Photo 8). Alternately,
and it might be easier, the flanges could be glued to the
crossmembers before attaching them to the underframe.
I built up the coupler mounting pads by filling in the spaces
between the two innermost stringers with 0.080” thick sheet.
Then, I glued 0.100” x ½” wide strips over these. The ½” wide
strips extend from the bolsters to the ends of the underframe. The
addition of four 0.020” x 0.100” angle braces to the corners of
the underframe completes the assembly (Photo 9). (Note: due to
recessing the underframe into the car body, I had to add a 1/8” x
1/4” basswood strip to the bottoms of the car ends. This is shown
in the end drawing.)
Carbody Assembly
I began assembly of the carbody by carefully marking the floor
location on the inside faces of the car ends. This line is 0.475”
up from the bottom (see Fig. 1). Next, I glued one end to the
assembled underframe. I used slow-setting CA glue and epoxy
to build my car. When you glue the underframe to the car end,
make sure the top of the floor of the underframe is exactly aligned
8
36 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

9 10
with the 0.475” line on the interior face of the car end. Using a
small square, make sure the end is square to the floor. Repeat the
process for the other end. I ran another bead of thin CA into the
joints after the slow-setting glue had kicked.
If you’re using CA to attach the parts, consider using a kicker
or accelerator. Kicker comes in pump bottles and spray cans and
accelerates the curing of the CA. There’s a myth that using kicker
makes the joints brittle. It just ain’t true. What it does is make
assembly a heckuva lot faster. White or yellow glue or epoxy
works just as well for those who don’t like CA glue.
Before adding the two car sides, you might want to add
weight - lead sheet, washers, etc. - to the interior floor. Without
any weights, my finished car came in between 10 and 11 oz, and
I’m happy with that. Do check the fit of your car sides before you
attach them to the ends and floor. Mine were 3/32” too long. I
had to trim them before I glued them to the ends and floor (Photo
10). Roof sections are next.
The AN roof halves are designed to drop in between the sides
and ends. The milled edges overhang the ends and sides. As
shown in Photo 11, I glued the roof sections in place with white
glue and held them tightly with masking tape while the glue set.
I used a lot of tape because white glue can cause the basswood
to warp as it absorbs the glue. When the joints were cured, I
trimmed away the roof overhangs so that they were flush with the
faces of the sides and ends (Photo 12).
I gave the entire basswood car body a good block sanding and
then attached Evergreen #2067 0.020” x 3-1/4” car siding, first to
the car ends and then to the car sides (Photo 13). I used five-minute
epoxy to attach the siding and I don’t recommend it. It takes
time to spread it thin enough and meanwhile the epoxy starts to
cure. Next time, I’ll use 30-minute epoxy. I cut the ends and sides
a little wide and long, and then trimmed them after the epoxy had
set. I held them in place with masking tape while the epoxy cured.
Next, I laid out the grab irons, end braces, brake platform and
staff, door, and door guide locations (see Fig. 3). I added 0.060” x
0.125” upper door guides and built up the doors from a laminate
of 0.020” car siding and plain 0.020” sheet and trim strips (See
Fig. 3 for dimensions and details).
As shown in Photo 14, I skinned the basswood roof with
0.020” plain styrene. Before I attached the styrene, I laid out the
roof’s centerline and rib locations. Then I scribed and folded the
styrene so the roof skin went on in one piece. This process kept
those pesky rib lines squared up.
With the roof skin in place, I attached the doors, the 0.040”
square door stops and the 0.020” x 0.060” upper fascia trim; along
with the 0.015” x 0.060” corner braces, and 0.010” x 0.030”
door rub strips and the lower door guides. I used Chooch #215
door parts for the upper hangers and latches. The corner steps are
0.032” brass wire. I bent the upper ends of the steps and inserted
them into holes drilled into the car sides. They are held in place
11
12
13
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 37

with CA (see Fig. 3 for placement and dimensions of these details).
The 1/2” roof walk supports are next (Photo 15). I made mine
from 0.060” square styrene. I cut lengths 18-1/2” scale inches
long, then in the center of each support I made a cut half way
through. Now, the supports can be bent to match the contour of
the roof. Using Testors liquid plastic cement, I glued each support
in place as shown in Fig. 4. When the cement had cured, I used a
10” flat file to gently file the supports until they were dead flat the
length of the car. There is a cross-sectional view of this process in
Fig. 4. It’s really much easier to do than describe.
The roof ribs were added next using 0.020” x 0.030” strips. I
cut the ribs an inch or so long to facilitate holding them in place
while applying Testors liquid cement with a small brush. They are
trimmed after the cement cures.
As shown in Fig 4, the running boards are 0.020” x 0.156”
styrene strip. First, attach the two outer boards to the supports and
then center the middle board. I left my boards long and when the
glue had cured. I set the car upside down and cut the ends to the
correct 5/32” overhang at each end.
The end platforms consist of two 0.040” square support strips
spaced 9/16” apart with 0.020” x 0.125” strips cut 9/16” long. I
added right angle grabs to both end platforms made from 0.020”
brass wire.
As shown in Photo 17 and on the cross-sectional end view
detail drawing in Fig 3, I added a .015” x .250” x 1/2” styrene
shim to the bottom of the car end to bring it flush with the coupler
pad. I used the white metal end sills that came with the AN
reefer kit as they are very close to the P&LE end sills.
Unfortunately, these end sills were designed for use with solid
couplers long before Kadee® couplers were a reality. I had to
carefully cut a 1/2” wide coupler box opening with a Zona saw
and files to allow the couple boxes to come through the lower
half of the sills. If you’re rolling your own car, I have included a
drawing that illustrates how to make the sills from 0.250” styrene
channel and Precision Scale #4043 poling pockets. This might
actually be easier to do than cutting and filing openings into the
AN center sills.
Note the end sills extend below the bottoms of the car ends.
The car end drawing indicates where to align the tops of the center
sills to the car ends. I attached the white metal sills to the car
ends with slow-setting CA glue.
The wire grabs are next. I drilled all of the holes in the ends
and sides with a pin vise and a #74 drill bit (Photo 18). The holes
are centered 3/8” apart for Tichy/CMA #2001 drop grabs. Note
there are no ladders - only grabs. On the doors, I used Intermountain
plastic grabs or you could also make your own from 0.020”
brass wire or use Tichy/CMA straight grabs.
I elected to use an Intermountain brake platform and supports
in lieu of the AN parts. I drilled 0.030” holes into the car end to
align with the posts on the IM platform and supports. The brake
platform’s location is shown in Fig. 3. The brake staff is 0.032”
brass wire that extends 1/4” above the roof with the AN brake
wheel mounted to it. I through-drilled the white metal end sill to
accept the brake staff. The staff is retained just below the roof with
a U-shaped 0.015” brass wire. The wire ends are glued into holes
in the car end.
With the exception of trucks and couplers, which will be
installed after painting and lettering, this completes the car assembly.
I gave my car a light coat of Ace Hardware sandable auto
primer (Photo 19). I’ve used this primer for a while now. It’s reasonably
priced and really snuggles down nicely into the cracks.
I sprayed the car with Scalecoat #10136 spray can Box Car
Red. This paint cures to a nice sheen, which is perfect for either
decals or dry transfers. My car is lettered with a mix of dry trans-
38 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
fers (lettering only) and decals (heralds). I purchased CDS Pittsburgh
& Lake Erie #762 dry transfers from TMR Distributing in
Canada. You can reach their website at: [http://www.tmrdistributing.com].
I used Champ decals for the NYC heralds.
I would have used the CDS heralds, but I ran into trouble
transferring the black and then the white dry transfer heralds onto
the car. The black backgrounds and white lettering for these heralds
are printed on separate dry transfers. I found it impossible
to register the white outline and lettering of the herald with the
black film already rubbed onto the car. The problem is the dry
transfer backing paper is translucent and I simply could not make
out the black outline well enough through the backing paper to
accurately register the white overlay and hold it in place while I
rubbed the white onto the black. Fortunately, Champ Decals has
14
15
16

17
19
20
18
- 126 0.020 x 0.125
- 164 0.80 x 0.080
- 101 0.010 x 0.030
- 112 0.015 x 0.040
- 113 0.015 x 0.060
- 144 0.040 x 0.080
- 125 0.020 x 0.100
- 159 0.060 x 0.250
- 127 0.020 x 0.156
- 153 0.060 x 0.060
the correct NYC lines heralds for this car: Champ set #OH-156.
As Shakespeare quothe, “All’s well that ends well.”
My Pittsburgh & Lake Erie car is now in service moving goods
from its Lake Erie terminus to my upper Midwest customers along
Lake Michigan’s shore (Photo 20).
u
Prototype Reference
Train Shed Cyclopedia No. 35 Freight Cars (Part 1) PP. 266-
267 Newton K. Gregg
Bill of Materials
Evergreen Scale Models Styrene
- 2067 0.020” x 3-1/4” car siding
- 2100 0.020 x .100 V-groove siding
- 9040 0.040” sheet
- 9030 0.020” sheet
- 0.015 x 0.250 strip
- 123 0.020 x 0.060
Northeastern Scale Lumber
- 4046 1/8” x 1/4” basswood strip
Keil-Line
- 4866 .050” wide rivet strip
Tichy/CMA
- 2001 drop grab irons
Chooch Ultra Scale
- 215 Camel door hardware
Kadee
- 804 couplers
Athearn
- 90801 Bettendorf trucks
K & S
- 1596 0.020” brass wire
- 1602 0.032” brass wire
Paint & Decals
- Ace Hardware Sandable Auto Primer (spray can)
- Scalecoat 10136 Box Car Red (spray can)
- Testors 1260 Dull Cote (spray can)
- TMR Distributing CDS 762 P&LE box car dry transfers
[www.tmrdistributing.com]
- Champ Decals OH-156 B&W NYC Lines herald set
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 39

40 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
Figure 1 — Not to Scale

Figure 2 — Not to Scale
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 41

42 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
Figure 3 — Not to Scale

Figure 4 — Not to Scale
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 43

SMR TRAINS
Virginia & Truckee
In stock now!
Photo by Get Real Productions
Your source for:
Motive power, rolling stock
and structure plans
(since 1975)
Quik-Signs sign sets
Scale industry directory
Paper Creek Models
Send $2.00 for catalog
Underground Railway Press
P.O. Box 814OS
Brevard, NC 28712-0814
44 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
Tell our advertisers
that you saw their
ad in O Scale Trains
Magazine. We’d
appreciate it!
Model Building Services
Models built by Stu Gralnik
264 Marret Rd • Lexington MA 02421
Ph: 781-860-0554
stu@modelbuildingservices.com
Coal Mine by
K&P Brick
and Building
Assembled buildings from any manufacturer’s kit.
Kitbashed, painted and detailed...“Just Like Real!”
www.modelbuildingservices.com

Mix Pix
Capt. Tom Mix sent these photos
and some words about one of his
current projects.
We thought you’d enjoy seeing
more of his work.
CB&Q R4 2-6-2
I have come further along with the
2-6-2. More small details are yet to
be done but the next project on this
loco is the brakes. They should be
close to the drivers as prototypical
and removable for maintenance and
painting. I have to watch for electrical
shorts though when getting those
brake shoes close to the drivers on the
left side.
You can see more of Tom’s work at
the Proto48 website:
http://www.proto48.org/
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 45

NEWS: New convention car announced for 2010 O Scale
National.
The
previously
announced
Chateau Martin
wine car will
not be available
as the 2010
convention car. There will now be three cars available at the
convention. One is a special run for the convention. The other
two were special run cars for previous O Scale West meets.
The new special run car is the Atlas O Trainman 53 foot 6
inch gondola. The Atlas O Trainman car is an upgraded version
of the former Altas/Roco gondola. That car was based upon
the PRR G31 series gondolas. AC&F built clones of the cars for
other roads including the SP who bought 50 and then 300. The
first lot of 50 cars were delivered in black paint; the remaining
300 were delivered in SP red/brown freight car color. The convention
will have 80 of the black cars in two road numbers and
44 of the red cars in two road numbers; all cars will be 2-rail.
These cars will be priced at $50 each. The Atlas O artwork for
the car is shown above. The illustration depicts a 3-rail car; the
convention car will be an RTR 2-rail car. RTR 3-rail cars will be
available from Petersen Supply.
NEWS: Resin kit for Southern Radio Receiver Cars; MSRP: $99.99
plus postage
Dave Friedlander, davidjfriedlander@gmail.com or 919-218-5888
In 1966, Berwick Forge and Foundry built 50 radio receiver
cars (RRC) for the Southern Railway. Until their retirement by
Norfolk Southern (NS) in 1996, they were MU’d to midtrain
locomotive consists on long freights. A unit in the lead consist
would use Locotrol to synchronize speed, and other signals, to
the midtrain locomotives via the RRC. Before they were scrapped
in 2003, Jim King, of Smoky Mountain Model Works, handmeasured
one of these cars and Dave Friedlander is now offering
a cast urethane kit to build an RRC.
Designed with CAD for precision, the kit includes a 2-piece
urethane casting (body and underframe), all necessary detail
NEWS: Custom painted Atlas O tank car and 2-bay hopper;
MSRP: See text
The Public Delivery Track, PO Box 2637, Paso Robles, CA 93447
pdtrains@earthlink.net • www.PublicDeliveryTrack.com
Sinclair 8000 gallon tank car: Sinclair in the 1950s had the
largest tank car fleet in the US with 7000 cars. This version was
the most common lettering
scheme. The tank car fleet was
sold to GATX in the 1960s.
This car is super detailed, with
separately applied handrails,
diecast sprung trucks, full
brake gear and very sharp,
accurate lettering.
Southern Pacific 8000 gallon fuel service tank car: Headquartered
in 1950s oil rich
California, SP had a fleet of
tank cars to get diesel fuel to
engine facilities. It was very
common to see a few SP tank
NEWS: On30 2010 Annual; MSRP: $14.95 US/Canada plus S&H
Carstens Publishing, 108 Phil Hardin Rd, Newton, NJ 07860
888-526-5365 • www.on30annual.com
Carstens Publications, Inc., is
pleased to announce the release of the
On30 Annual 2010. This new annual
marks the fifth anniversary of this innovative
publication, and is geared specifically
for the On30 narrow gauge
modeler. Written by veteran On30
modelers, this new publication contains
a wealth of modeling information and
inspiration. The On30 Annual 2010
retails for $14.95 US & Canada and 19.95 Foreign (Plus S/H,
please see website or call for details) and is available at hobby
shops, or can be ordered online at [carstensbookstore.com] or
by calling toll free (US & Canada) 1-888-526-5365.
The On30 Annual 2010 takes you on a tour of several
beautiful layouts and includes a track plan designed specifically
for an On30 client by MMR Bill Miller, the White Pine
Mining and Lumber Co. Railway. This issue features a number
of scratchbuilding and construction projects including: how to
build a Barnhart log loader; a new and innovative technique
for building stone structures; how to build an operating gallows
turntable, and more.
parts, a steel
weight, decals,
Weaver diecast
trucks, Kadee
couplers, and
step-by-step
instructions with
color photos. Kits are $99.99 plus postage and completely finished
models are $175 plus postage. Models finished in NS livery
are $12 extra. Kits are available in both 2-Rail and 3-Rail.
Dave can be contacted by email at davidjfriedlander@gmail.
com, by phone at 919-218-5888 or through his website [http://
www4.ncsu.edu/~djfriedl/SRRKit.html]. Photos at the website
show all the available paint schemes and truck/coupler options.
cars at any diesel facility or layover yard, where engines were
refueled. These cars are super detailed, with separately applied
handrails, diecast sprung trucks, full brake gear and very sharp,
accurate lettering.
Tank cars prices: $62.95 for 3-rail; $67.95 for 2-rail. Four
road numbers available.
Southern Pacific 2 bay hopper car: SP has always had a
large aggregate business, and a large fleet of 2-bay hopper
cars. There are still hopper cars lettered SOUTHERN PACIFIC
in rock train service today.
This car is the 1955 hopper
car scheme with the large lettering
and SP logo. The model
has opening hopper bottoms,
separately applied handrails,
diecast sprung trucks, full brake
gear and very sharp, accurate lettering. Price: $65.95 for 3-rail,
$70.95 for 2-rail. Available in 2 road numbers
46 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Review: MTH # 20-2822-2 GE ES44AC Diesel; MSRP: $449.95
M.T.H. Electric Trains, 7020 Columbia Gateway Drive,
Columbia MD 21046
410-381-2580 • www.railking.com
Reviewed by Gene Clements
The Prototype
Produced by General Electric as its answer to the Environmental
Protection Agency’s exhaust emission standards
that took effect on January 1, 2005, this locomotive series
is commonly referred to as the “GEVO” or Evolution Series.
The first production models went to the Union Pacific, Burlington
Northern Santa Fe and Norfolk Southern which opted
for the DC transmission units.
While similar in carbody design to the AC4400, the radiator
section has the most visible changes. The radiator wing
is much larger and longer extending several feet further into
the carbody where it overhangs the walkways at the rear of
the long hood. The roof of the radiator is divided into two
parts, the rear two thirds is the radiator section while the
front third houses the new heat exchanger fans. Also new
for this series is the power plant, a 12 cylinder diesel engine
rated at 4400-hp that is more fuel efficient and reduces
emissions by 40% from the previous 16 cylinder engine. The
wide North American style cab has multiple window and
cab arrangements available for each railroad’s version. Our
BNSF units came with similar cab arrangements but different
control stand configurations as the orders arrived. The
BNSF units are replacing older SD40-2 EMD locomotives,
which are being retired and the new units are receiving road
numbers from that series as they become available.
The Model
As I stated in the MTH 8-40C review (OST #43,
Mar./Apr. 2009) this is not the MTH 2-Rail locomotive
from the 1990s. Although this locomotive has a
plastic body shell and metal frame used before, the
quality and detail is much improved. Twin vertical
can motors power the model, while the cast metal
fuel tank houses the speaker for the sound system.
Scale plans found in the November 2004 issue
of Model Railroader were used to check measurements.
The unit is a scale 73’ 6” over the face of the
Kadee® #806 couplers, and is a scale 10’ wide and
stands 15’ 6” from the rail top to the roof of the cab.
It comes factory equipped with Proto-Sound 2.0,
a variable intensity smoke unit, operating headlights,
flashing ditch lights, scale wheels and permanently
attached front and rear pilots. The unit is also
available in 3-Rail and un-powered versions. Other
road names include CSX and Canadian National in
the ES44DC version. The ES44AC is also available in
NS, KCS, CP, UP and GE Demonstrator in 3-Rail and
un-powered version as well as the 2/3-Rail unit with
scale wheelsets.
Fidelity & Compatibility
This review unit is painted and lettered in the
latest BNSF “Swoosh” scheme. Since the BNSF
removed the locomotive numbering system from
its special instructions, all I can say is the number
appears to be that of a unit placed in service within the last
couple of years. The paintwork is sharp and crisp down to
the warning placards on the long hood.
Grabirons, stanchions and safety railings all appear to be
installed per prototype photos. Additional details included
coupler lift levers, m.u. hoses and crew. The pilots are cast
to accept Kadee #806 couplers & boxes, which are attached
by two machine screws per box that are supplied with the
engine. After installation, the couplers checked out at the
correct height and required no adjustment. An included
snowplow also attaches to the front pilot in the same manner.
The trip pin on the front coupler has to be modified
slightly since it strikes the top of the plow and forces the
front pilot slightly upwards.
A word or two about sound under the Fidelity heading,
while the ES44 is equipped with a new 12 cylinder power
plant, its still a GE with that distinct “Burble Sound”. Most
noticeable is a more profound electrical whine especially at
#7 or #8 throttle than in previous models.
Performance
I tested the unit on a conventional DC system using a
Starr Tech “Hogger” 10 amp. power supply and throttle.
Applying power, the sound system activates and you go
through startup at 4 volts. At 5 to 6 volts the headlights illuminate
to a constant brightness and at 7 volts plus the unit
will start to move. At standard operating speed on my layout
the unit drew 12 volts while I was at 50% throttle, and at
80% plus throttle this unit will really move and trip the overspeed
control at 72 smph plus.
Once the sound system goes through startup, the prime
mover revs up with the increase of power, likewise it
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 47

throttles down as power is decreased until you stop and
the sound system returns to idle. Once stopped with the
throttle off, the battery backup keeps the sound system in
idle for about 15-20 seconds until the system cycles through
shutdown and turns off. The sound system is not playable or
adjustable in conventional DC mode, with the exception of
the volume control located underneath the radiator housing.
Since MTH’s DCS system is proprietary you will need to use
it to control and enjoy the full effects of the sound.
Weighing in excess of 6-1/2 pounds with twin motors
and 6 powered axles the ES44AC has some real pulling
power. In testing on level track the engine reached 22 ozs.
of drawbar pull prior to wheel slip. It easily handled a 24
car weighted train around the layout that normally requires
two Geeps.
I ran the ES44AC with an MTH SD70ACE and other conventional
DC diesels without onboard electronics. Mu’d
with the 70ACE, the two ran together as a team but the electronics
seemed to compete with each other. Operating with
non-electronic units these engines tended to push or pull the
ES44AC simply because of the electronics power requirements.
Operating it as a single unit or with a dummy yielded
Review: The Station Scene; MSRP: $225, plus postage
Stoney Creek Designs, 4100 Hunters Run Blvd., Reading,
PA 19606 • www.stoneycreekdesigns.com
Reviewed by Joe Giannovario
Background
Roger Malinowski has written numerous articles for
the Narrow Gauge And Short Line Gazette, has built a few
notable layouts and has done design work for other manufacturers.
In 1994 he decided to manufacture his own product
line, designing and building quality O Scale structure
kits under the name of Stoney Creek Designs. Roger’s kits are
always released first at the National Narrow Gauge Convention.
His kit for 2009 was called the Station Scene and consisted
of three structures: a depot, a passenger car converted
to a work shed, and an outhouse/coal bin. Roger models in
On30 so his kits tend to be smaller than one might expect for
O Scale and that’s a good thing.
The Kits
The Station Scene is actually three kits in one box and
each can be built separately. The station has a footprint of
11-3/4” x 5”, the work shed is 7-1/2” x 3”, and the outhouse/
coal bin is 5” x 2-1/2”. These are all quite reasonable sizes
and will fit nearly any O Scale layout.
Highly detailed instructions are provided for each kit as
well as a CD with PDFs of the instructions and hi-res photos
of each construction step for the three structures. The kits
consist of precision laser-cut wood parts plus castings. Everything
you need is included except glue and paint, for which
Roger makes some very specific recommendations.
Building The Kits
These kits almost fall together themselves. There are a few
little tricky parts like laminating the inner and outer walls
with contact cement but there’s nothing here that will cause
you any problems with assembly. Typical modelers’ tools like
good results. After performing the m.u. tests and a “Brain
Cramp”, it occurred to me that DC locomotives have always
needed to be tweaked and fine tuned and sometimes have
their pickup system modified to perform well together. In all
fairness, optimal performance would be achieved with an
MTH DCS system which was not available to me for testing.
Conclusions
MTH has been listening to the requests from O Scale
diesel modelers. For those of you like me, who own MTH
2-Rail diesels, you will be impressed by their attention to
detail and efforts to improve their products. While not the
quality level of a brass model, the detail and correctness of
these plastic models is much improved. As was rumored,
I am curious about MTH’s plans to have DCC compatible
locomotives out in 2010. I am still looking forward to those
products because my current plan is a DCC conversion of
the ES44AC and SD70ACE in the very near future. This DCC
conversion is a separate story within itself. Once completed,
I’ll pass on my experiences and results.
a razor knife, some files
and sandpaper are really
all that are required.
One of the things
I liked most was the
painting and weathering
suggestions. Often,
this is left up to the
modeler with little or
no guidance. This does
slow down construction
somewhat but the
end result is worth the
effort. Of course, you
are free to choose your
own color scheme but
I’d still follow Roger’s
weathering suggestions.
I’ve not finished the
station yet and I’m considering
a modification
that would make
the station walls one
continuous piece. I’ll
let you know later how
that works out.
As each kit is separate I’m using them in separate areas of
the new OST layout rather than together as Roger designed
them. That’s another nice thing about this design.
Conclusion
Roger’s kits are limited production and sell out quickly
although the Station Scene is still available in late November
as I write this. Contact Roger through his website to see if the
kit is still available now. His 2010 kit is called the Scrap Yard.
You can see it and place a reservation at his website.
48 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Review: N&W Y6b; MSRP: $1799, plus shipping
Sunset Models, 22 Beta Ct, San Ramon CA 94583
800-373-7245 • www.3rdrail.com
Reviewed by Joe Giannovario
Background
The N&W Y6b is one of those legendary steam engines
that everyone recognizes. It’s been made in N, HO and O
Scale several times.
During World War I the U.S. Government took over
the railroads via the United States Railway Administration
(USRA). The USRA set up a design committee to develop a
set of ”standard” locomotives to use during the war. The delegate
from the N&W Railway brought a full set of blueprints
for the Class Y2, 2-8-8-2 which was used for the basis of the
USRA 2-8-8-2, and the N&W took delivery of 45 USRA 2-8-
8-2s.
Not content to sit on its laurels the N&W continued to
develop the 2-8-8-2 design through Y4, Y5 and Y6 designs.
The Y6 was further refined and designated as Y6a and
Y6b. The Y6b is considered the ultimate N&W drag freight
engine. A fully modernized Y6b was capable of developing
166,000 lbs. of tractive force. Compare that to a UP Big
Boy’s 135,375 lbs. of tractive effort. Y6s regularly pulled
coal drags at speeds up to 50 mph. They were the ”pocket
battleships” of steam. See the list of references for more
detailed information about the N&W Y class locomotives.
The Model
Sunset has produced an exceptionally fine model of the
Y6b in both 2-Rail and 3-Rail versions. The model is constructed
of brass with rolled, machined and lost wax detail
parts. Of particular note is the valve gear, which is more
finely detailed than normally found on locomotives at this
price point. I also noted that the mechanical lubricators
were properly connected to the valve gear, something which
is often incorrect or left out entirely. Another nice touch are
running boards with drain holes rather than the diamond
plate we’ve been used to for so many years. Last but not
least is another nice new touch for Sunset, plastic brake
hangers and shoes with attached sanding lines. What a great
idea!
The model I tested is painted, lettered and lighted and
has several sliding hatches, opening doors and something
new for Sunset, cab ”wing” windows, a nice detail. The
locomotive has a single large can motor powering Sunset’s
”quiet drive” belt and pulley system down to the gearboxes.
I had a problem with the front gearbox. When it was
assembled the front screw was driven in so tightly it cracked
the gearbox cover allowing the worm to come away from
the worm gear. It sounded like a coffee grinder. An email to
Sunset brought a replacement cover in the post and I was
back in business in no time.
Fidelity
I measured the Sunset model against plans in the Model
Railroader Locomotive Cyclopedia, Vol. 1 (in HO Scale) and
in Norfolk & Western Steam (The last 25 years) by Rosenberg
and Archer (in S Scale). With a few minor exceptions, it
is accurate to within 2-3 scale inches in every major dimension.
I did notice an extra scale foot in the distance from the
first driver to the lead truck and a several extra inches in the
distance from the last driver to the trailing truck, yet they
managed to keep the overall length of the locomotive correct.
The locomotive width and height are also correct. The
tender wheelbase seems a bit off by several inches but the
tender itself is dead on the money.
The finish is a semi-gloss black which looks nice. The
smokebox front is graphited which is okay but the smokebox
access area behind the stack is also graphited and that
looks really odd. I can’t say it’s wrong, just odd.
I examined as many photos of Y6bs as I could find in
my library and online to validate the various details. I was
initially convinced the front porch railings were done incorrectly.
However, I was able to confirm that all the major
details are correct.
Sunset, like many other manufacturers, illuminates the
class lamps, in this case with green lights. In reality, the
class lamps would not be lit in most normal operations, so
there should be a way to turn them off.
Compatibility
I checked the drivers with a digital caliper and found
the tires measure 0.175” thick. This is reflective of the old
NMRA standard. The new standard is based on a 0.145”
tire. However, all drivers and wheelsets passed the NMRA
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 49

check gauge test. I ran the model through a 48” curve and a
No. 5 crossover with no problems.
The front pilot has a dummy coupler, which will mate
with a Kadee. The tender comes equipped with a Kadee
coupler set to the correct height.
Performance
All testing was performed with an MRC ControlMaster
20 outfitted with both Volt and Amp meters. I also measured
drawbar pull.
Best slow speed performance was achieved at 1.8 V and
800 mA. The locomotive ran smoothly at 4 scale miles per
hour. As this a drag freight engine and not a switcher, this is
excellent performance. I noted that the engine would start to
move at 1.5V but I could not sustain a smooth speed.
Maximum power draw was 2 Amps at 4 V with the drivers
slipping. That is only 8 Watts of power. The pull meter
showed a tractive effort of 24 ounces. I used my N&W G1
2-8-0 as the baseline as it is the lightest and least powerful
engine I own. Its tractive effort at slip is 10 ounces.
At all speeds the locomotive ran smoothly and almost
silently. If there had been sound onboard, you wouldn’t
have heard the drive train at all.
The locomotive weighs about 7 pounds. I added several
tungsten weights (close to 8 ounces) on top of the boiler
while performing the slip test and did not see any appreciable
increase in tractive force so I would conclude the
locomotive is weighted correctly as-is.
Conclusions
Aside from the gearbox cover I did have one other issue
with this engine to which I was alerted by another modeler.
After I had installed the new gearbox cover, which necessitated
turning the locomotive upside down, I noticed that a
combination lever on the front engine had come loose from
its valve rod (see the close-up photo). The combination lever
has a hole in it and the valve rod clevis has a pair of pins
(trunnions) that fit into the hole from either side. The clevis
must be squeezed closed to capture the combination lever. I
managed to refit the parts with a bit of fussing and a pair of
tweezers.
I checked
the other
three
joints and
they were
all tight. If
I had run
the engine
with the
loose
combination
lever,
it could
have
caused
the running
gear
to bind up so check your fittings before you run the engine.
There are a few minor disappointments. Those lighted
class lamps are really annoying. For a steam locomotive
so historically important it is a shame not to include some
detailed information about its development.
Regardless, this is probably the finest steam locomotive
Sunset has yet produced. The fine detail on the running gear
is outstanding. I used to say that the N&W K3 4-8-2 that
Sunset produced almost 10 years ago was my best running
locomotive. That has now been replaced by this Sunset Y6b.
It’s running performance is superb. It will make a fine candidate
for a DCC with sound installation.
References
Classic Power #3A: USRA 2-8-8-2 Series, by Tom
Dressler & Ed King, published by NJ International (no date).
Norfolk & Western Steam (The last 25 years), by Rosenberg
& Archer, published by Quadrant Press 1973.
Review: NYC 36’ Wooden Box Car kit; MSRP: $125
Mullet River Model Works, 118 Hudson Ct, Plymouth WI
53073
920-892-8159 • www.mulletrivermodelworks.com
Reviewed by Joe Giannovario
50 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
Background
In 1901 the American Railroad Association adopted
dimensions for a “standard” boxcar. The car’s inside dimensions
were to be 8’ 6” wide and 8’ tall. They were never able
to agree on the length. The eastern railroads wanted to stay
with 36’ cars because all the doors in freight houses were
on 36’ centers. The width and the height were established to
clear the New York Central, Pennsylvania, and Baltimore &
Ohio clearances. The idea was to have a free roaming car and
to eventually lead to a common car design. Also at this time
steel was being used more in car construction.
The New York Central version of this car had a steel frame
with a wood body. These cars evolved from an all-wood car
developed in 1902 to meet the “standard boxcar” dimensions.
In 1910 the steel underframe was designed and the
wood body was applied over it. In 1912 the steel Murphy
ends were added to the cars built between 1912 and 1917.
All the New York Central’s affiliated lines had these cars. In
the 1920s this design evolved into an all steel car, while the
wood-sided cars lasted into the early 1950s.
The Model
This kit is a model of a New York Central lines 36’, 80,000
lbs. capacity boxcar. The model features a laser-cut wood
body with interior scribing on the walls and floor. The roof
is made with wood carlines and purlins like the prototype.
A wooden subroof with scribing is covered by a plastic
roof to look like the Murphy steel roof. The underframe is a
full-length 0.010” brass etching that has the rivet locations
marked for easy embossing and which can be shortened for
your choice of couplers with pockets. Trucks and couplers
are not included, however, this kit is available with decals for
NYC&HR (#403207), B&A (#403208), Big Four (#403209),
P&LE (#403210) and LS&MS (#403211).
Building The Kit
Mullet River kits are not for the faint of heart. This kit will

challenge your modeling skills but the result will be worth it.
The instructions tell you to build the boxcar body first. This is
the easy part. I chose to build the underframe first. This is the
challenging part.
The underframe is made up of flat brass etchings. Many of
the parts have divots etched into one side to indicate where
you need to make rivet impressions. The instructions say
“take your rivet tool” and impress the rivets. What they really
want you to do is use a rivet press and die to make the rivet
impressions. If you don’t have a rivet press you can do what
I did and make a rivet tool from a “sharps” sewing needle in
a pin vise. Make sure you blunt the tip of the needle or else
it will pierce the thin brass. I hand pressed the rivets over a
piece of soft wood. These won’t look as good as if you used a
press and die but they will be covered in paint and mostly out
of sight once completed. It took me close to 3 hours to press
all the rivets. If you do the rivets by hand, do not clip all the
parts off the etching tree as they’ll be easier to handle. If you
do use a press and die, you will have to cut the parts loose to
get them into the press. Making the rivets isn’t difficult; it’s just
tedious.
The next part is the real challenge—folding up the brass
parts. All the fold lines are etched into each part and you just
need to remember that the lines all go to the inside of the
fold.
I did the trickiest piece first, the side sills. These flat
pieces need to be folded into a ”z” shape. I used a Panavise
with brand new nylon jaws, a straightedge and my fingers.
I clamped the sill in the vise on one end and made the fold
with my fingers. I then slid the piece further long, reclamped
and folded again, continuing until I had the entire 9” length
folded. Once I had the whole thing folded on one side I
pressed it flat against the vise jaws with a straight edge.
Now, flip the sill over and fold in the other direction.
It’s going to look grotesque until you get the whole length
folded and then it just sort of straightens itself out. Keep
checking the straightness with your straightedge.
You could buy a commercial bending jig but unless
you plan to build a lot of these it’s probably not worth it. You
could also make a bending jig from two pieces of flat bar
stock that you clamp together.
Once all the pieces are folded, it’s time to solder the
frame together. A wooden fixture is provided to facilitate
assembly. Unfortunately, there are no photos with the instructions
to guide the assembly and all of the parts are called out
with their correct prototypical names. So, if you don’t know
what a bolster diaphragm is, you’re in trouble. I’ve spoken
with Glenn Guerra of Mullet River about this and he will be
posting construction photos at the Mullet River website. He
will also be posting a clinic about working with brass etchings.
Because the parts are so delicate, you will want to use a
resistance-soldering unit for assembly. Glenn recommends
that you tin the part with a regular iron first and then use the
resistance unit to tack solder it in place. If you don’t have a
resistance unit you can kludge one up from a Weller gun by
cutting off the end of the copper tip so you have two prongs.
As a last resort, you could CA all the parts together.
Conclusion
I have to be honest here. The photos shown here were
supplied by Mullet River because there was just no way I
could get the car built in time for publication. To do this kit
justice, it cannot be rushed. This is going to take maybe 20
hours to build since I’ve never done a soldered frame before.
Overall, the kit is a masterpiece that will rival any brass
import you’ve ever seen. It’s greatest failing is the instructions.
Fortunately, Glenn Guerra is a great guy to talk to and he
will happily answer any questions you might have about the
assembly. Give him a call or email him.
If you are looking for a challenge that will expand your
modeling skills, take a look at a Mullet River boxcar kit.
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 51

Review: Protocraft’s AAR Type E Scale operating couplers
#PC-1076; MSRP: $62.50/ five pairs
Protocraft 18498 Half Moon Street, Unit 203
Sonoma, CA 95476-4835
707-935-7011 • www.protocraft.com
Reviewed by Mike Cougill
Back in the Jan/Feb 2009 issue of OST I wrote in my column
that I wished someone would produce a scale operating
coupler that married the faithful prototype appearance of a
San Juan coupler to the bulletproof operation found in Kadee
couplers. Norm Buckhart of Protocraft has answered the call
with his newly redesigned Type E operating scale couplers.
Type E coupler designs were a modification of the existing
Type D couplers and came into use during the 1930s.
Dimensionally, the two were virtually identical except for the
coupler shaft. The Type E coupler shank’s dimensions were
increased from 5” x 7” to 6-1/4” x 8”.
Protocraft’s new couplers were made from master patterns
made by the late Bill Clouser. From a posting on the P48
Yahoo Group, Norm provided the following information:
“The design used by Bill Clouser follows the plans almost
exactly for the ARA Type E coupler as depicted on page 889
of the 1931 Car Builder’s Cyclopedia. The coupler body measures
12” from the knuckle pin to the rear of the lift pin casting
and is 12.5” tall. The knuckle measures 11” tall (Sharon’s
measures 9” tall).” Norm also noted that Bill Clouser made
some additional changes to the design as a concession to the
realities of model railroading, such as slightly narrowing the
coupler’s shank in order to accommodate existing model’s car
bodies and coupler boxes commonly used at the time.
These brass coupler kits feature a self-centering coupler
shank and spring action that replicates the draft motion of the
1
prototype; a brass coupler box
with mounting screws, along
with brass train line air cocks,
two lengths of flexible tubing
for the airhoses and brass glad
hand castings (Photo 1).
The face of the knuckle
castings will need to cleaned
up with a small file to remove
the flash left over from cutting
the casting sprue off. Be
certain to exam the coupler
knuckle castings as the ones
I received were deformed.
I didn’t pay much attention to this until I tried to couple
them together and couldn’t because the deformed castings
wouldn’t close and lock properly. A conversation with Norm
via e-mail diagnosed the problem and he sent two replacement
knuckles, which solved the problem. Norm apparently
had a defective casting mold that he has now stopped using
for production runs of the couplers. Anyone who has the
deformed knuckle castings can get a replacement part by
contacting Protocraft. The supplied instructions are very clear
and cover the assembly process in detail. The modeler is cautioned
not to remove too much material or to file the indentations
on the lift pins as doing so may affect the coupler’s
operation.
To assemble the knuckles to the coupler body, you insert
the escutchion pins through the holes. I had to drill out the
holes in the coupler body and the knuckles with a #63 drill
bit in a pin vise. The brass is soft and easily drilled by hand
pressure using a drop of hair clipper oil as a lubricant. You are
instructed to nip off the excess pin length and peen the cut
end over in order to secure it from falling out. I found this was
simple to do with a small ball peen hammer by placing the
coupler assembly on the anvil portion of my bench vise. A
few light taps was all it took to peen the soft brass. Take care
not to restrict the motion of the knuckle by getting things too
tight.
Assembling the completed coupler to its box and attaching
it to the carbody is as easy working with the familiar Kadee
brand. The Protocraft boxes have the same mounting hole
pattern, so there are no surprises here. You may have to do a
bit of light touch up to the inside of the box and the coupler
shank surfaces for smooth centering operation.
The instructions also give guidance for forming working lift
bars (cut levers) for both bottom and top operating designs.
Additionally, the Protocraft couplers are designed for magnetic
uncoupling by inserting a small piece of steel in the lift
pin’s slots. Norm recommends using a small section of paper
clip for this, and Protocraft has a magnetic uncoupling wand
to lift the pins once they are fitted with the steel inserts.
I put the samples through some very unscientific testing
and found the operation was very reliable, for both coupling
and uncoupling. Uncoupling a car only requires one knuckle
to be opened. I mounted a pair on each end of two fifty-foot
freight cars (see Photos 2 and 3) and I didn’t have any issues
with coupler swing or binding on my tight 36” radius curve.
(See the additional photos from my online review posted
under Mike’s Projects on the OST blog.) I also noted that
these couplers would mate with Kadee’s even though the
literature from Protocraft
says they won’t.
The instructions
also note that they
will mate with the
San Juan delrin coupler
and some PSC
non-working brass
couplers. However,
I would suggest that
a modeler standardize
on one brand or
another for more satisfying
operations.
My layout was
designed for switching
from the start
and manual uncoupling
was part of that
2
3
plan from Day 1. At sixty dollars plus for five pairs, they might
be a bit pricey for those with many cars to convert, but if you
are just starting out in O Scale or have a small roster of equipment,
these couplers are hard to beat. Protocraft has won me
over as a convert.
52 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

Review: Wood Bent Trestle Kit #TJK-4DSO; MSRP: $89.65
Black Bear Construction Co., PO Box 26911, Austin, TX 78755
512-467-8400 • www.blackbearcc.com
Reviewed by Joe Giannovario
1
If you study the Abingdon Branch of the N&W one of the
first things you will notice is the unusual number of trestles
and bridges. There are 108 over the 70-mile run, which has
got to be some sort of record. The majority of these are timber
trestles, so I knew I had to build at least one trestle for
the new OST layout (see Starting Over - Part 2 in this issue).
The thought of scratchbuilding a timber trestle was intimidating
until I found the website for the Black Bear Construction
Company. They offer trestle-building kits in a variety of
configurations that contain everything you need to construct
the trestle. What makes their kits special are two things: the
construction jig that comes with the kit, and the Mt. Albert
stripwood in 24” lengths.
Black Bear offers 4, 5, 6, and 8 leg bent designs in O
Scale for both narrow and standard gauge. I chose a 4-leg
standard gauge design based on a photo I found of an
N&W trestle under construction. Photo 1 shows the kit
as received. I also ordered the optional Nut-Bolt-Washer
(NBW) casting kit ($10.00) shown.
You start a trestle bent by cutting the bent’s legs to the
correct angle using the bottom edge of the jig (Photo 2). You
then flip the legs over and glue them to the top cap of the
bent. The length of the cap is measured at the top of the jig
so it is just a matter of measure and chop. I used a gel-based
CA to glue all the wood together so I would not have to wait
for the glue to dry. Once you determine how tall your bent
needs to be you trim the leg length, again using the jig to
hold the legs at the correct angle.
When that is done, you use the jig to measure the horizontal
cross braces and CA those in place on one side, flip
the bent over and do the other side. The last bit of assembly
is to add the diagonal braces on both sides. It takes more
time to sort out the different pieces of stripwood needed
than to do the assembly.
Photo 3 shows a completed bent before staining and
before adding the NBW castings. It took me about 20 minutes
to make the first bent. The rest took about 10 minutes
each. Drilling the bents for the NBW castings and inserting
the castings took the most time of all the steps but the end
result is worth it. I will provide a more detailed description
of how I installed the trestle in a future installment of Starting
Over.
The kit provides enough material to build 7 bents (about
a 30” long trestle) and you can buy more wood from Black
Bear if you need to make a longer trestle. The instructions
were pretty straightforward and the jig makes building a
trestle a snap. I am extremely pleased with the results.
Black Bear also makes wooden arch, truss and deck
bridge kits with assembly jigs. You can also buy just materials
packs or assembly jigs alone for any of their kits. Check
out their website for all the details.
3
2
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 53

Standards Times Three: 1
There has been a lot of talk about wheel profile and
track gauge in the magazine the lately and I have read
these articles with interest. They have made me think
about just what kind of modeler I am and about my real
desires as a modeler.
So here is the question: What is a P48 modeler and
am I one? I think I can say yes! What do I mean? To
me the track gauge and the wheels is the major issue. I
just can’t do the 5’ gauge thing nor can I do typical O
scale wheels and I have a very hard time with non-scale
couplers. So from that stand point I’m definitely a P48
modeler.
Where I feel I deviate from the typical P48 modeler
is in the fact that I do not have to build a model after
a specific prototype but can build a freelance model
as long as it follow prototype practices. My logging
caboose in Mar/Apr 2009 issue and my flatcar in the
Sept/Oct 2009 issue are examples those type of models.
Many have the idea that in order to be a P48 modeler
one is limited to only prototype specific models. I
don’t believe that to be true. Don’t get me wrong I do
build models of specific prototypes and these are built
as true to the prototype as possible and I enjoy those
challenges. But I find the freedom of building a freelance
model just as challenging. Actually in some ways
more, as that kind of modeling requires designing as
well as building.
Bottom Line: I feel that using correct wheels and
track gauge is the most important aspect of finescale
and specifically P48 modeling whether it’s a prototype
specific model or a freelance one. Thank for some interesting
articles that gave me some food for thought.
Bill Davis
Mike replies: Bill touches on a point that needs to be
clarified further. Does P48 modeling only involve building
models of specific prototypes? The answer is: No.
Many have this impression of P48 and nothing could be
further from the truth. And while some might want to
extend the definition to all aspects of modeling, something
I have been guilty of myself, P48 only defines the
track and wheel standards.
...And A 2...
Appreciate your thoughts regarding standards. I am
a member of a national-international standards board-
IEEE/ANSI, and have been for over 20 years. (There are
some great modelers there also.)
One must remember that a standard is a dynamic
thing, not static. Things and products change, so standards
must adapt. We use a 5-year sunset rule: reaffirm
it or lose it. Any standard over five years old should be
reviewed. Good for the NMRA also. They should follow
the same guidelines.
I have adapted products that follow Gary’s proposed
54 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
standards years ago. I started with .115 wheel sets. They
looked great but ran very poorly due to existing track
standards. I then migrated to .145 wheel sets, the best
compromise I could find. Looks pretty good, runs fine.
Thanks to the good folks at NWSL for making all
the products available. Thank you for the push. Best to
Gary.
Jesse Patton, Spicewood, TX
...And A 3
In the current issue of O Scale Trains Magazine you
ponder about the history behind the selection of 1:48
rather then 1:45 for American O Scale. Let me suggest
an answer. Back in the early days of the hobby, there
were no scale rulers available and the closest was the
triangular rule used by draftsmen. The 1/4” to the foot
scale was close so modelers used it.
As for P48 flextrack. If Ed Duddy’s dies would work
with code 125 rail, I for one would purchase a couple
of hundred feet of it. While handlaid track is easier to
replicate specific configurations of track, handlaying
hidden track or a staging yard appears to me to be an
experience similar to a visit to the dentist. Thanks for a
very good magazine.
Lawton Maner, Williamsburg, VA
Prototype Prefab Switches
Author Gene Clements, in his article concerning prefabricated
turnouts and track panels is correct in thinking
that the prototype got the idea for prefabricated
turnouts from model railroading. Although it wasn’t the
prototype railroads that used the idea but the design
came out of The Bethlehem Steel Company’s Frog and
Switch Division.
My father-in law, R. M. Frey, was Chief Engineer for
that Division. He was in my basement one day and I
was working with an Atlas prefab turnout (probably
about 1972 as I didn’t move to O Scale until1974). He
picked up that turnout, kept rolling it over and looking
at it and finally put it down. He didn’t say much
but I could tell from his expression that the wheels
were turning. Several months later he invited me into
their shop floor and there lay a turnout in three pieces,
each separated by about a foot. Also sitting there was
a specially modified gondola car into which they were
preparing to load the turnout. I believe this was the first
prefabricated turnout shipped to a customer. Sorry to
say I don’t know which railroad was the customer? (I’d
like to think it was the PRR!)
“Dad” Frey received the patent for both the turnout
and the modified gondola both of which were assigned
to Bethlehem Steel and for which he was paid One
Dollar each.
Dad Frey was an unsung hero to those of us who
love track work. He was an AREA Member and much
of the design for the rebuilding of Penn Station, Union
Station in DC and the various yards, station, and track

work for BART was accomplished under his supervision.
Thanks Gene for a great article.
George Eschbach, East Berlin, PA
Gene replies: Thank you very much for your comments
concerning your father-in-law Mr. R.M. Frey and
his work at Bethlehem Steel. I know in times past I have
seen the track gangs build complete turnouts in place
close to their installation site from what appeared to be
kits and ribbon rail. I often thought a company such as
Bethlehem Steel provided these kits.
Change in the railroad industry is certain. Turnouts
being shop built by the railroad or a private company,
shipped to the installation site, assembled and then
installed with a minimum down time for the track itself
reflect this. Again thanks for you comment; I hope you
continue to enjoy O Scale Trains Magazine as much as
we do in presenting the articles to the reader.
Hard Coal
I truly appreciate seeing Captain Tom Mix’s magnificent
brass work in the magazine. For a long time I have
admired his high level of craftsmanship whenever I see
it in print. I’m looking forward to learning more about
working with brass from his series.
Also, I appreciate Mr. Ed Burnett’s comments on my
B&O coal dump trestle article. Perhaps I should have
indicated in the article that I am a “Northeasterner”
born and raised, where hard coal was the norm for
home and small business use. Agreed, other areas of
the USA likely did not have the same access to this fuel
and used what was locally available. I apologize for
showing such bias in how coal was marketed, being
only familiar with what I experienced living on Staten
Island many decades ago.
One thing about which Mr. Bennett (or anyone else)
may help me know more. I grew up during the 1940s
and 50s in a family-owned bakery that used a large,
coal fired, brick arch oven. I can’t think of how soft
coal could be used in one like it, since the draft of our
oven’s fire passed directly over the items being baked
from the firebed in one corner, to the chimney diametrically
opposite. Smoke and gas were minimal with
anthracite. Even at that, we had to wait a while after
putting coal on the fire. Using an ashpit blower through
the firebed helped the fire clear faster to provide clean,
even, direct heat for baking the bread, rolls, cakes, pies
and pastries.
Was a baker’s oven that used soft coal designed differently?
Perhaps it had a firebed underneath the oven
floor instead of beside it? Ever curious and with thanks
in advance,
Ed Bommer, OK
Mix Is Tops
I’m a subscriber out here on the west coast and, by
golly, yesterday your fine publication arrived. Thank
you so much. I must have read it through two or more
times and, as with each issue, I keep finding myself
wanting to contact you so I can extend my warmest
thanks for all you and Mike are doing for our hobby. I
love everything in each issue, all of it and as a “trying
to be” P48er... well of course all the P48 stuff keeps me
hooked in.
But then with this issue to have the new series with
the “master” Tom Mix. This is the greatest for me. I am
trying really hard to build the simplest of models, to
improve my basic skills. I guess I aspire to heights quite
beyond my current skills and then I buy a brass model
and it is feat sometimes just to figure out how to unpack
and repack the damn thing. It was done by someone
with skills unknown to me and is somehow harder than
any scratchbuilt project. Strangely, I love all this challenge
and, odder yet, I seem to like this thing I do with
all these almost un-seeable tiny little parts that go flying
out of the tweezer’s grip just at the wrong moment,
sending me crawling all around on the floor (some
times for hours) mumbling and grump-ling. Then to see
what Tom does (and others) I am reinvigorated to keep
on modeling. I guess if I never get the knack of the repack
thing I suppose I might have to leave those models
out where I can keep my eye on them, where they draw
me back to my workbench for lot more very satisfying
modeling hours.
Maybe my skills will grow, and maybe not, but nothing
will deter my love for this hobby. It wouldn’t be the
great hobby that it is without the part you are doing to
keep us all so informed. My most solid thank you and
appreciation,
Alan Vivanco, Wenatchee, WA
Novelty vs. B&B?
Much thanx for another excellent issue of O Scale
Trains Magazine. I particularly liked the articles about
the G&D engine house and the N&M freight house
(OST#48). Its good to see how simple materials used to
build a typical railroad structure combine to produce a
realistic effect.
Concerning the notes about building the freight
house, the text mentions using commercial board and
batten siding for the structure. Should that not be novelty
siding rather than board and batten? Either way,
the structure would be a dynamite addition to any railroad
scene.
Thank you for publishing the scale drawings of the
N&M freight house. The drawings, along with the
photos of the prototype, make it possible for modelers
to print their own cardstock ”kit” similar to the G&D
enginehouse offering, opening up an inexpensive way
to add structures to their layout.
Casey Sterbenz, Crofton, MD
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 55

56 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

TWIN WHISTLE SIGN & KIT CO.
31 Turnberry Dr., Arden, NC 28704 (828) 684-6785
12.5”l x 4.5”w x 4”h
Buy Directly from our e-store!
WWW. TWINWHISTLE.COM
ASSEMBLED
BUILDINGS ARE
AVAILABLE!
Kit: $69.95
Laser-Cut Body
2 Billboards
2 Gas Pumps
1 1934 Guitar
1 Rocking Chair
Many Castings
Assorted Graphics
e-mail:
twinwhistle@hotmail.com
2010 O SCALE NATIONAL CONVENTION
Why Attend? Up to 300 trading tables of 2-rail O scale items, about 40 home and club layouts open, banquet, California
State Railroad Museum tour, contests, clinics, convention cars, O scale layouts on site, videos. Fly to a major
western city and drive a DYI Grand Tour between there and the convention, visiting model and real railroads, museums,
national parks, and other attractions. Complete information is on the web site (see below). Convention sponsored
and managed by O Scale West.
Where:
Santa Clara, California (San Francisco area)
When: June 30 - July 3, 2010
Location: Hyatt Regency Santa Clara
Room rate: $109 plus tax for 1 - 4 occupancy, Regency rooms $145 + tax
Registration: $35, $40 after April 30, registration includes spouse and children under 18
Table Rentals: 30" x 72" tables are $45, $50 after April 30, electrical hook-ups are free
Banquet: Friday July 2, $50 per plate including gratuity and tax, sign up by June 20
Tour:
Wednesday June 30, California State Railroad Museum in Sacramento, $60 per person includes round
trip train ride between Santa Clara and Sacramento, museum admission, sign up by June 1
Overall Schedule:
June 27-July 4:
June 30:
July 1-3:
July 4-on
Web Site:
E-mail:
Telephone:
layout visits
register, set up, layout visits, videos, clinics, museum tour
register, sales/exhibits, contests, layouts, clinics
layout visits
www.2010oscalenational.com
info@2010oscalenational.com
650-329-0424 please call between 9AM and 8PM Pacific time
The registration form can be downloaded from the web site. To receive a paper form, send an LSSAE with 1 oz. of
postage to: Registration Form, 2010 O Scale National, 876 Boyce Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301-3003.
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 57

Index for O Scale Trains Magazine: Volume 7
Jan 2008 to Dec 2008
Sorted by Author
Author Title Issue # Page
Becker, Dirk Tillamook Spruce Company: an On30 Logging RR OST #37 10
Bommer, Edward F Fine Tuning the Golden gate Depot B&O Pullman OST #38 21
Brechbiel, Martin Building Clugston’s Store - Pt I OST #36 11
Brechbiel, Martin Trolley Snowplow for the CG&W OST #41 9
Brechbiel & Reutling Building a Simple Wooden Trestle OST #37 18
Brothers, Gerald Sweeper/Track Cleaner OST #38 52
Brown, Ben Building a Portable End-of-Train Device OST #41 17
Brown, Ben Chemung Northern Story OST #36 4
Byrne, Ted Miniature LED Lights by Richmond Controls OST #39 53
Byrne, Ted Powering Up (col): Block Detection in O Scale OST #40 15
Byrne, Ted Powering Up (col): Short Story about Short Circuits OST #36 47
Clements, Gene Alco C630 Diesel by Atlas O LLC Gold Series OST #38 61
Clements, Gene Crossing Signals: Model CS-2 by Custom Signals OST #40 56
Clements, Gene K-Line Bombardier Commuter Car 2-Rail Conversion OST #41 39
Clements, Gene MILW Rib Sided Caboose by Weaver OST #39 50
Clements, Gene Modern Image (col): Feeding the Red Birds OST #40 31
Clements, Gene Modern Image (col): Power by the Hour OST #37 39
Clements, Gene Modern Image (col): Railroad Flatcars OST #38 27
Clements, Gene Modern Image (col): Red-Yellow-Green What does it mean? OST #41 25
Clements, Gene Modern Image (col): Researching the Prototype OST #39 27
Clements, Gene Modern Image (col): Specialty Trains OST #36 34
Clements, Gene Modern Loads for the Weaver Flatcar OST #38 29
Clements, Gene Railroad Never Sleeps (The) OST #40 55
Clements, Gene Sound decoder & Programmer by QSI Quantum OST #36 52
Clements & Mix Universal Sound Decoders for O Scale OST #40 53
Cougill, Michael ACF 50’ Boxcars by Atlas O LLC Trainman Series OST #38 57
Cougill, Michael Review: Advanced Terrain Modeling OST #41 51
Cougill, Michael Review: Airslide 40’ Covered Hopper OST #38 58
Cougill, Michael Art of Finescale (col): Getting Started in P48 OST #37 15
Cougill, Michael Art of Finescale (col): Keeping Track OST #36 18
Cougill, Michael Art of Finescale (col): Measuring Up OST #41 15
Cougill, Michael Art of Finescale (col): Modeling Roads OST #38 9
Cougill, Michael Art of Finescale (col): Odd Couple & Scratchbuilding OST #40 13
Cougill, Michael Art of Finescale (col): Trees OST #39 7
Cougill, Michael DCC Wireless Dynamis Systrem by Bachmann OST #40 61
Cougill, Michael Review: Interior kits for Atlas/Intermountain Boxcars OST #36 53
Cougill, Michael Pieces of the Puzzle-Conclusion (Pt 3) OST #39 37
Cougill, Michael Pieces of the Puzzle-Pt 1 OST #37 42
Cougill, Michael Pieces of the Puzzle-Pt 2 OST #38 42
Cougill, Michael Simple Styrene Cutter OST #37 60
Cougill, Michael Weathering Stains by Dr. Ben OST #40 57
Deimling, Gene Scratchbuilding with Prototype Drawings OST #41 45
Divizio, Rich Weathering an O Scale (Covered) Hopper OST #40 4
Elms, Greg Review: Trainman Bay Window Caboose OST #39 51
Giannovario, Joe Review: CPR Empress H-1b 4-6-4 by Weaver Models OST #37 58
Giannovario, Joe Convert the MTH Woodside Passenger Car to 2-Rail OST #39 9
Giannovario, Joe Review: EMD F2 & F3 Diesels by Atlas O OST #41 54
Giannovario, Joe Review: EMD MP15DC Diesel Locomotive by Atlas O OST #40 60
Giannovario, Joe Images of the Past-Art & Artistry of Dan & Armando Vargas OST #37 4
Giannovario, Joe Much Ado About Corners - Pt 1: The Factory OST #41 4
Giannovario, Joe Review: N&W/VGN Wood & Steel Cabooses by Kohs OST #36 54
Giannovario, Joe Observations (col): 3-Rail Scale vs 2-Rail scale vs Toys OST #36 70
Giannovario, Joe Observations (col): In Defense of Manufacturers OST #37 70
Giannovario, Joe Observations (col): More on kit building OST #39 62
Giannovario, Joe Observations (col): Return of the Kit? OST #38 70
Giannovario, Joe Observations (col): Standards, Standards? OST #40 70
Giannovario, Joe Observations (col): I Get It (3 Rail Scale) OST #41 66
Giannovario, Joe Review: Practical Guide to Digital Command Control OST #41 55
Giannovario, Joe Review: PRR K4s #3768 Streamlined by MTH OST #37 59
Giannovario, Joe Review: Russian Decapod 2-10-0 by MTH OST #41 56
58 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
Giannovario, Joe Review: SP AM-2 4-6-6-2 by Sunset 3rd Rail OST #38 59
Giannovario, Joe Review: Typhoon Track Cleaning Car by Aztec Mfg Co OST #41 52
Giannovario, Joe Review: USRA 40’ Single-Sheathed Boxcar OST #40 58
Giannovario, Joe Review: White WC22 Dump truck 1:50 OST #36 51
Giannovario, Joe Review: Wood-sided Passenger Set OST #39 52
Giannovario, Joe Review: Treeline Background #R017 by SceniKing OST #40 59
Gribler, Ron Two Quick Projects-1: Steel Key Stock for Car Weights OST #39 22
Gribler, Ron Two Quick Projects-2: Wabash Gondola OST #39 22
Grosser, Ray MTH DCS to DCC Conversion OST #40 17
Grosser, Ray Soo Line Door-and-a-half Boxcar OST #36 22
Grosser, Ray Spiff UP Your P&D Tower Drive OST #37 17
Grosser, Ray Spring Loaded Power Pickup OST #39 13
Grosser, Ray & Renee Applying a Stucco Finish OST #41 22
Grosser, Ray & Renee Scratchbuilding Grandma’s and Grandpa’s House OST #38 10
Hill, Jim Anniversary Billboard Reefer 4-Pack by Atlas O LLC OST #38 60
Hirailer, Hobo D Confessions of a HiRailer (col): Coming to Terms with O Scale OST #37 29
Hirailer, Hobo D Confessions of a HiRailer (col): End of the Line OST #39 25
Hirailer, Hobo D Confessions of a HiRailer (col): In Living Color OST #38 25
Hirailer, Hobo D Confessions of a HiRailer (col): Sticky Business OST #36 25
Houle, Tom Building an Adirondack Car & Foundry Box Cab OST #37 49
Jogwich, Bernd Everywhere West! A Modular Layout from Germany OST #38 4
Keck, Harv Review: DCC-equipped On30 4-4-0 by Bachmann OST #39 49
Kendall, William Introduction to Soldering OST #40 49
Kline, Larry Postwar AAR Boxcars OST #36 31
Lavezzi, Bob In Search of the Second Phoebe Snow OST #37 62
Leverknight, Bob Budget Piece of Brass OST #41 27
Levitsky, Myron Sweeper Suggestions OST #41 30
Madonna Jr, Richard Panel-Side 55-ton Hopper by Atlas O LLC OST #40 55
Mathews, J W More on SP Caboose Review OST #37 32
Miller, Rod Custom builder Jerry White OST #36 42
Mix, Tom Working/Shifting Valve Gear OST #39 17
Morrill, Charlie Boxcar-to-Caboose Conversion OST #40 41
Nance, Jim About Those Woodside Cars OST #41 30
Parker, Roger C Favorite New RR Books of the Past Few Years OST #37 23
Parker, Roger C Review: Railroads of Pennsylvania by Solomon OST #41 53
Parker, Roger C Traction Action (col): Info for Boston Traction Modelers OST #38 19
Parker, Roger C Traction Action (col): Learning from the Loop OST #39 20
Parker, Roger C Traction Action (col): P&N #5600; Aroostook Valley OST #36 20
Parker, Roger C Traction Action (col): Visit with Bill Brandt OST #40 26
Parker, Roger C Traction Action (col): What to do with your excess models OST #41 20
Peterson, Eric G More on Standards OST #41 32
Pitogo, Mike DCS Commander control unit by MTH Electric Trains OST #40 62
Purin, Charles C Toivo’s Garage: Kitbashing Clever Models Quonset Hut OST #38 17
Reutling, Ed Build a GATX Whale Belly Covered Hopper OST #39 41
Roberts, John Home Layouts & Clinics at East Wind ‘08 OST #37 64
Roberts, John Layouts planned at East Wind ‘08 OST #38 64
Roberts, John Schedule of Events at East Wind ‘08 OST #39 45
Romano, Andy Custom Backgrounds for Train Layouts OST #38 46
Romano, Andy Running O Scale Trains with On-Board Power OST #37 25
Rossiter, Neville Bay Ridge Harbor RR Cab Control System OST #36 27
Rossiter, Neville Steel Rails OST #39 4
Rossiter, Neville Workshop (col): Brick Pillars OST #38 33
Rossiter, Neville Workshop (col): Flour Unloading Facility OST #40 45
Rossiter, Neville Workshop (col): Paint Caddy OST #39 29
Scace, Brian Easements for the Learning Curve (col): Scace’s Laws OST #36 9
Scace, Brian Review: EMD SD-40 by Atlas O LLC OST #36 55
Scace, Brian Lionel PS-4 TOFC Flat Cvsn by Norm’s O Scale OST #36 53
Scace, Brian Tricks N Tips (col): Replacement Diesel Drive Components OST #38 15
Staff 2008 (O Scale Nat’l) Convention Highlights OST #40 38
Staff 2008 Chicago March Meet Contest Results OST #38 62
Staff 2009 O Scale Convention OST #41 59
Staff O Scale West 2008 Contest Photos OST #39 54

Sorted by Title
Title Author Issue # Page
2008 (O Scale Nat’l) Convention Highlights Staff OST #40 38
2008 Chicago March Meet Contest Results Staff OST #38 62
2009 O Scale Convention Staff OST #41 59
About Those Woodside Cars Nance, Jim OST #41 30
ACF 50’ Boxcars by Atlas O Cougill, Michael OST #38 57
Advanced Terrain Modeling Cougill, Michael OST #41 51
Airslide 40’ Covered Hopper by Atlas O Cougill, Michael OST #38 58
Alco C630 Diesel by Atlas O LLC Gold Series Clements, Gene OST #38 61
Anniversary Billboard Reefer 4-Pack Hill, Jim OST #38 60
Applying a Stucco Finish Grosser, Ray & Renee OST #41 22
Art of Finescale (col): Getting Started in P48 Cougill, Michael OST #37 15
Art of Finescale (col): Keeping Track Cougill, Michael OST #36 18
Art of Finescale (col): Measuring Up Cougill, Michael OST #41 15
Art of Finescale (col): Modeling Roads Cougill, Michael OST #38 9
Art of Finescale (col): Odd Couple & Scratchbuilding Cougill, Michael OST #40 13
Art of Finescale (col): Trees Cougill, Michael OST #39 7
Bay Ridge Harbor RR Cab Control System Rossiter, Neville OST #36 27
Bay Window Caboose; 2R Trainman Series Elms, Greg OST #39 51
Boxcar-to-Caboose Conversion Morrill, Charlie OST #40 41
Budget Piece of Brass Leverknight, Bob OST #41 27
Build a GATX Whale Belly Covered Hopper Reutling, Ed OST #39 41
Building a Portable End-of-Train Device Brown, Ben OST #41 17
Building a Simple Wooden Trestle Brechbiel & Reutling OST #37 18
Building an Adirondack Car & Foundry Box Cab Houle, Tom OST #37 49
Building Clugston’s Store - Pt I Brechbiel, Martin OST #36 11
CPR Empress H-1b 4-6-4 by Weaver Models Giannovario, Joe OST #37 58
Chemung Northern Story Brown, Ben OST #36 4
Coming to Terms with O Scale Hirailer, Hobo D OST #37 29
Confessions of a HiRailer (col): End of the Line Hirailer, Hobo D OST #39 25
Confessions of a HiRailer (col): In Living Color Hirailer, Hobo D OST #38 25
Confessions of a HiRailer (col): Sticky Business Hirailer, Hobo D OST #36 25
Convert the MTH Woodside Passenger Car to 2-Rail Giannovario, Joe OST #39 9
Crossing Signals: Model CS-2 by Custom Signals Clements, Gene OST #40 56
Custom Backgrounds for Train Layouts Romano, Andy OST #38 46
Custom builder Jerry White Miller, Rod OST #36 42
DCC Wireless Dynamis Systrem by Bachmann Cougill, Michael OST #40 61
DCC-equipped On30 4-4-0 by Bachmann Keck, Harv OST #39 49
DCS Commander by MTH Electric Trains Pitogo, Mike OST #40 62
Easements for the Learning Crv (col): Scace’s Laws Scace, Brian OST #36 9
EMD F2 & F3 Diesels by Atlas O LLC Giannovario, Joe OST #41 54
EMD MP15DC Diesel Locomotive by Atlas O LLC Giannovario, Joe OST #40 60
EMD SD-40 by Atlas O LLC Scace, Brian OST #36 55
Everywhere West! A Modular Layout from Germany Jogwich, Bernd OST #38 4
Favorite New RR Books of the Past Few Years Parker, Roger C OST #37 24
Fine Tuning the Golden gate Depot B&O Pullman Bommer, Edward F OST #38 21
Home Layouts & Clinics at East Wind ‘08 Roberts, John OST #37 64
Images of the Past-Art & Artistry of Dan & Armando Vargas
Giannovario, Joe OST #37 4
In Search of the Second Phoebe Snow Lavezzi, Bob OST #37 62
Interior kits for Atlas/Intermountain Boxcars Cougill, Michael OST #36 53
Introduction to Soldering Kendall, William OST #40 49
K-Line Bombardier Commuter Car 2-Rail Conversion Clements, Gene OST #41 39
Layouts planned at East Wind ‘08 Roberts, John OST #38 64
Lionel PS-4 TOFC Flat Cvsn by Norm’s O Scale Scace, Brian OST #36 53
MILW Rib Sided Caboose by Weaver Clements, Gene OST #39 50
Miniature LED Lights by Richmond Controls Byrne, Ted OST #39 53
Modern Image (col): Feeding the Red Birds Clements, Gene OST #40 31
Modern Image (col): Power by the Hour Clements, Gene OST #37 39
Modern Image (col): Railroad Flatcars Clements, Gene OST #38 27
Modern Image (col): Red-Yellow-Green Clements, Gene OST #41 25
Modern Image (col): Researching the Prototype Clements, Gene OST #39 27
Modern Image (col): Specialty Trains Clements, Gene OST #36 34
Modern Loads for the Weaver Flatcar Clements, Gene OST #38 29
More on SP Caboose Review Mathews, J W OST #37 32
More on Standards Peterson, Eric G OST #41 32
MTH DCS to DCC Conversion Grosser, Ray OST #40 17
Much Ado About Corners - Pt 1: The Factory Giannovario, Joe OST #41 4
N&W/VGN Wood & Steel Cabooses by Kohs Giannovario, Joe OST #36 54
O Scale West 2008 Contest Photos Staff OST #39 54
Observations (col): 3-Rail vs 2-Rail vs Toys Giannovario, Joe OST #36 70
Observations (col): In Defense of Manufacturers Giannovario, Joe OST #37 70
Observations (col): Return of the Kit? Giannovario, Joe OST #38 70
Observations (col): More on kit building Giannovario, Joe OST #39 62
Observations (col): Standards, Standards? Giannovario, Joe OST #40 70
Observations (col): I Get It (3 Rail Scale) Giannovario, Joe OST #41 66
Panel-Side 55-ton Hopper by Atlas O LLC Madonna Jr, Richard OST #40 55
Pieces of the Puzzle-Conclusion (Pt 3) Cougill, Michael OST #39 37
Pieces of the Puzzle-Pt 1 Cougill, Michael OST #37 42
Pieces of the Puzzle-Pt 2 Cougill, Michael OST #38 42
Postwar AAR Boxcars Kline, Larry OST #36 31
Powering Up (col): Block Detection in O Scale Byrne, Ted OST #40 15
Powering Up (col): Short Story about Short Circuits Byrne, Ted OST #36 47
Practical Guide to Digital Command Control Giannovario, Joe OST #41 55
PRR K4s #3768 Streamlined 4-6-2 Giannovario, Joe OST #37 59
Railroad Never Sleeps (The) Clements, Gene OST #40 55
Railroads of Pennsylvania by Solomon Parker, Roger C OST #41 53
Running O Scale Trains with On-Board Power Romano, Andy OST #37 25
Russian Decapod 2-10-0 by MTH Electric Trains Giannovario, Joe OST #41 56
Schedule of Events at East Wind ‘08 Roberts, John OST #39 45
Scratchbuilding Grandma’s and Grandpa’s House Grosser, Ray & Renee OST #38 10
Scratchbuilding with Prototype Drawings Deimling, Gene OST #41 45
Simple Styrene Cutter Cougill, Michael OST #37 60
Soo Line Door-and-a-half Boxcar Grosser, Ray OST #36 22
Sound decoder & Programmer by QSI Quantum Clements, Gene OST #36 52
SP AM-2 4-6-6-2 by Sunset 3rd Rail Giannovario, Joe OST #38 59
Spiff UP Your P&D Tower Drive Grosser, Ray OST #37 17
Spring Loaded Power Pickup Grosser, Ray OST #39 13
Steel Rails Rossiter, Neville OST #39 4
Sweeper Suggestions Levitsky, Myron OST #41 30
Sweeper/Track Cleaner Brothers, Gerald OST #38 52
Tillamook Spruce Company: an On30 Logging RR Becker, Dirk OST #37 10
Toivo’s Garage: Kitbashing Clever’s Quonset Hut Purin, Charles C OST #38 17
Traction Action (col): Info Boston Traction Modelers Parker, Roger C OST #38 19
Traction Action (col): Learning from the Loop Parker, Roger C OST #39 20
Traction Action (col): P&N #5600; Aroostook Valley Parker, Roger C OST #36 20
Traction Action (col): Visit with Bill Brandt Parker, Roger C OST #40 26
Traction Action (col): What to do with your xs models Parker, Roger C OST #41 20
Treeline Background #R017 by SceniKing Giannovario OST #40 59
Tricks N Tips (col): Replacement Diesel Drive Scace, Brian OST #38 15
Trolley Snowplow for the CG&W Brechbiel, Martin OST #41 9
Two Quick Projects-1: Steel Key Stock Car Weights Gribler, Ron OST #39 22
Two Quick Projects-2: Wabash Gondola Gribler, Ron OST #39 22
Typhoon Track Cleaning Car by Aztec Mfg Co Giannovario, Joe OST #41 52
Universal Sound Decoders for O Scale Clements & Mix OST #40 53
USRA 40’ Single-Sheathed Boxcar by MTH Giannovario, Joe OST #40 58
Weathering an O Scale (Covered) Hopper Divizio, Rich OST #40 4
Weathering Stains by Dr. Ben Cougill, Michael OST #40 57
White WC22 Dump truck 1:50 scale by SpecCast Giannovario, Joe OST #36 51
Wood-sided Passenger Set by MTH Giannovario, Joe OST #39 52
Working/Shifting Valve Gear Mix, Tom OST #39 17
Workshop (col): Brick Pillars Rossiter, Neville OST #38 33
Workshop (col): Flour Unloading Facility Rossiter, Neville OST #40 45
Workshop (col): Paint Caddy Rossiter, Neville OST #39 29
Visit www.oscalemag.com and click on the “Free Downloads”
link to find our All-Time Article Index and our All-Time Review
Index.
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 59

Neil Chichizola’s Layout
60 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10
2010 O Scale
National
Convention
Why Attend? Up to 300 trading tables, clinics, tour of the California State Railroad Museum, videos, convention car, contests, six O modular layouts
on site, about 40 home and club layouts open for visiting ,fly into/out of a major western city and drive a Grand Tour between there to and/or from the
convention By and visit J. Neil dozens model Chichizola
and real railroads, national parks, and other attractions. Convention sponsored and managed by O Scale West.
Where:
Railroads,
Santa Clara,
and
California
the
(San
Southern
Francisco Bay
Pacific
Area)
in particular,
captured me in the mid-1940s when steam
layout.
When: June 30 - July 3, 2010
Location: Hyatt Regency Santa Clara. Room rate: $109 plus tax for 1 - 4 occupancy
Registration: ran all $35, day, $40 every after May day, 31, registration up and includes down spouse the and San children Francisco
under 18
Table Rental:
Peninsula
30" x 72" tables
and
are$45,
the
$50
entire
after May
S.P.
31. Electrical
system.
hook-ups
There
are free
Banquet: Fri. July 2, $50 per plate including gratuity and tax, sign up by June 20
was something about the mass and scale of railroads
that www.2010oscalenational.com
I couldn’t resist or get enough of!
Tour: Wed. June 30, California State Railroad Museum, Sacto., $60 per person, incl train to/from Sacto. and admission, sign up by June 1
Web Site:
E-mail: After info@2010oscalenational.com
being involved in HO Scale for years, I
Telephone: 650-329-0424, please call between 9AM and 8PM Pacific time
was bitten by the O Scale bug in Bob DuPont’s
Peninsula Hobbies around 1991. The rest is history
now.
After collecting O Scale equipment and
buildings for a number of years, I decided it was
time to build a layout. I knew I would not have
a huge amount of room to do a railroad, but I
found just enough space to run trains and do
some switching at industries. After constructing
the room, I got the benchwork up and started
laying track according to my plan. I decided to
use Old Pullman flextrack and their handlaid
switches with manuel throws. This kept things
simple and gave me more time to construct
buildings and rolling stock.
Once the railroad was up and running well,
it was time for scenery. I had known Dan and
Armando Vargas of Images of The Past for a number
of years. They told me to contact them when
I was ready for scenery and they would take it
from there. What a trip it was transforming an
around-the-room railroad into a series of scenes.
Now trains appear to be coming from somewhere
and continuing on to somewhere else.
The Vargas Brothers did their magic and transformed
my railroad into another world. I am still
discovering details around the layout two years
later. We now have lights in buildings and streets,
automobiles and trucks placed around, and
people all over going about life. The trains are the
stars, but the details are the supporting cast.
I like to keep things simple, so I am using an
Aristocraft radio control system to run two separate
trains and a third cab to operate the yard
tracks. The one thing we lack is sound because
of the cost of installing it in all the locomotives.
Motive power consists of both steam and
diesel locomotives, all S.P. of course. Some
are brass imports, some built from brass kits
and upgraded, and some are old chestnuts like
Lobaugh and Scale Craft that were upgraded.
Many of the locomotives are weathered.
Rolling stock is a mix of brass, wood and
metal, and plastic. Some are imports, but most
are scratchbuilt, kitbashed or kit built. Passenger
trains consist of one heavy weight train, plus a
Daylight Train courtesy of Lou Cross and Curley
Bellaver, and a Lark Train courtesy of Lou
A free newsletter with registration information will be available on the website for download after February 1, 2010. To receive a hardcopy, send an
LSSAE with 2oz. of postage to: 2010 O Scale National, 876 Boyce Avenue, Palo Alto, CA 94301-3003.
Cross, B.C. Models and Curley Bellaver. These passenger trains have been a
fascinating and time consuming project, but add the finishing touch to the
I still continue to build and upgrade equipment. There is always some
little thing to add to the layout and maintenance, though not frequent, also
has to be done. I do have metal wheelsets on everything, which tends to
keep the track quite clean. O Scale trains are heavy and do tend to move
things around a bit. It is especially nice to be able to enter the room, duck
under the railroad truss bridge, flip on the power and just run trains whenever
you feel like it.
Neil’s layout is one of over 30 local layouts that will be open for visiting
during the 2010 O Scale National Convention. To make it possible for first
time visitors to see many of them, they will be open from Sunday June 27
through Sunday July 4.
For more information about the layouts and the convention please visit
the convention website at [www.2010oscalenational.com].
u
T-31 2354 makes a local run from the south end of the yard.
Alco RSD-5 enters the main line at Vargas Junction headed for the yard.

Jus Trains
Info (302) 453-0465
Orders (888) 453-9742
*Mon-Fri 9-6 *
Fax Orders (302) 368-6447
215 Newark Shopping Center
Newark, DE 19711
Most Orders over $200 Free Ship
Store open 7 days a week
MC VISA DISCOVER
Sunset/Third Rail
No Deposit on Reservations
CNW H-1 4-8-4 1245
NYC. PLE H-10 2-8-2 1245
Santa Fe 2900 Class 4-8-4 1345
Virginian 2-10-10-2, EOB 1899
UP FEF 3 Versions 1199
In-Stock 2 or 3 Rail
NYC J3a Super Hudson 1245
SP 4-6-0 M-6, M-9 Mogul DEAL!
CP 4-4-4 Jubilee TMCC 999
2-10-4 “Colorado” 2 Heaters Call
DMIR, B&LE, CB&Q DEAL!
1938 Dreyfuss Hudson EOB 1175
SP AM-2 Cab Forward, EOB 1675
PRR O-1 2-Unit Electric, TMCC 899
Golden Gate Depot
IN-STOCK
NYC 21” 6-pk 575 2-Pk 259
P70 20” Coach 4-Pk 399
LIRR, PRSL, PRR 12#
Heavyweight 20” 4-Pk 399
PRR 20” Head-End Set 359
Pullman 12-1 Sleeper 109
PRR & Pullman
Coaling Tower $195
Reserve
21” SP Daylt Alum 5-Pk 575
SP Articulated Diner Set 575
20” Diner/Observation 2-Pk 249
Weaver Models 2009
REA or B&O Express Troop
2 or 3 R $70 3/$200 3#
MR 4-6-4 J6a Baltic, 2# 999
Troop Sleeper 6# 85
Troop Kitchen 4# 85
Troop Hospital 4# 85
Any 6 for 489 Delivered
MOW Troop Cars 50 2/$95
Monon, N&W, CB&Q, C&O,
GTW,Erie,WM,L&N,Lack
Wartime Gondola $25 or 4/$90 4#
N&W, MEC, Sou, LN, B&M
New Haven I-5 TMCC/EOB 999
80’ Alum 5-Car $549
PRR, NYC, NP, GN, L&N,
AK. CNJ, CN, GTW, N&W
UP Gray, SLSW, KCS, LV 4-Pk 299
K-Line Circus ’09
18” Heavyweight Car 89
#70 CT, Advert x2, Obs x 2
21688 18” Heavywt Coach 2Pk 177
Gold Unit Replica Tractor Set 38
Combo Flat w/Boxcar & wagon 45
Wood Gondola w/Cicus Equipment 48
22250 Dining Dept Billboard Reefer 65
Combo Flat/Stock Car w/Wagon 38
Scale Dining Woodside Reefer 59
K-Line 2009 Product
Broadway Lmt 18” 4-Pk 425
Broadway Lmt 18” 2-Pk 222
Southern FM Trainmaster 359
Southern 18” Alum 4-Pk 425
Southern 18” Alum 2-Pk 222
Scale Smoking Caboose 59
MR, Southern
21” Alum 2-Pk 259 Coach 132
Milw Rd, Grt Northern
18” Aluminum Business Car 119
NYC, SF Black Mesa
Scale
21667 Red River Co. Boxcab 78
21639 Pan Am Railways Boxcar 37
21640 UP Modern Steel Reefer 35
21643 PRR Die Cast Gondola 48
PRR 16 Wheel Flat w/Transform 62
21645 SP 43’ Alum Mod Hopper 59
22414 Linde Box w/Alum Tank 47
22447 Wabash DC 2-Bay Hopper 42
Rutland Milk Car w/Platform 111
Mtn View Creamery Milk Depot 87
Gargraves
O Gauge
37” Flex Tin $5.55 Cs 50 259
37” Flex Stainless Phantom Case 305
42, 72, 100” Tin Switch Man 34 Rem 53
Above w/DZ-2500 TMCC $59
RC Uncplr #107 $23 Op. #108 $28
Gantry Crane Track $20 Stainless $22
90 Degree Crossing $19 DVD 9
Now with Wood Ties
Circle 032/ $39 042/ $45 054/ $59
063/ $62 072/ $67 080/ $85
089/ $90 096/ $92 106/$99
Call on DZ Products
Transformers
Lionel ZW 425 180W Brick 75
MTH Z-4000 385 Z-1000 Brick 59
DCS System 255 Legacy #990 299
TMCC Cab-1 68 Command Base 68
TMCC Command Set 125
TPC 400 165 TPC 300 124
Williams Trains
Golden Memories
F-3 AA $239 ABA $335
Wab,IC,B&O,MR,Sou,NH,RG,CP
WP, SF Red/Sil, SF Blk/Red, TS, NYC
15” Aluminum 4-Pk 229 2-Pk 119
GG-1 Girls Freight Set 335
Steam Girls Freight Set 379
GG-1 Girl’s Passenger Set 335
18” Alum Animal Car 102 2-Pk 199 1520W F-3 Texas Special Set 285
1464W UP 50 th Anniversary Set 320
2-car add-on $80 Full Set $395
PRR GG-1 Congressional Set 410
18” Aluminum Coach or Shop Car 119
2-car add-on $115 Full Set $515
15” Aluminum Advertising Car 85
N&W 4-8-4 J Class Steam 259
GG-1 179 PRR x 4
NW-2 C&O, SF, Seabd 155
FA-1 AA 225 B 80 ABA 299
B&O, LV, L&N, NYC, PRR, RI,
SF,WM,LNE,GN
PA-1 AA 225 B 80 ABA 299
SF, PRR, RG, UP, D&H, NYC, CP
F-7 AA 205 B 70 ABA 269
Am, ACL, B&O, Burl, C&O, GN,
Lack, NH, PRR, UP
Shark AA 219 B 75 ABA 289
B&O, D&H, PRR x 2, NYC, Demo
E-7 AA 245 B 105 ABA 345
ACL, B&O, Burl, C&O, NYC, UP,
Prr Tuscan, Sou, MR, Tex Spec
Dash 9 Power 149 BNSF, CSX,
NS, SF, UP, CNW, Amtrak, Con, SP
GP38 139 Dmy 80 BNSF, Chessie,
NH, NS, SF, GT, AK, GM&O, DTI, PC
BL-2 Powered 139 BAR, B&M,
C&O,C&EI,GMDemo,FEC,Monon,
RI Red/Black, WM-Fire, MP
FM Trainmaster 155 CP, JC,
MR, NYC,Rdg,SP,Wabash,N&W
NW-2 155 B&O, Con, LV, NYC,
PRR,UP,MR,GN,Monon,JC
U33C Power 149 CSX, D&H, MR
SF, SP, UP, NH, PRR, Reading, WP
SD90 Power 149 BNSF, CSX,
Demo, NS, BN, Con, Amtrak, SF
UP,MP,CNW,MKT,RG,SP,WP
Genesis Power & Dmy 219
Die Cast Scale Hudson 369
NYC, B&O, GN, SF, JC, CP
GG-1 Scale Electric 255
PRR x 5, PC, CR
EF-4 Rectifier 165 NH, CR,
N&W, VGN x 2, PRR Blk
72’ (18”) Streamline 4-Pk 195
72’ Madison 4-Pk 239 2-Pk 120
60’Amfleet3-Pk 155 Amtrak x 2
2009 Lionel Product
Vision Line
PRR 0-8-8-0 CC2s Steam 1399
SF 2-10-10-2 Steam 1799
Buy both PRR & SF get $300
GE ES44AC Evol Hybrid 699
Die-Cast Shell
UP 3GS21B Genset Switch 539
Die-Cast, 3 smoke units
Buy both diesels get $50
Op. Wind Turbine 3-Pk 185
Ethanol Tank 3-Pk, Sound 216
Ethanol Tank 3-Pk 152
PRR Op. Stock Car Sound 120
Can National Coal Train 639
Stourbridge Lion Set 385
Anthracite Coal 2-Car 95
Wabash FM, Legacy 415
N&W GP7, Legacy 419
NH EF-4 Rectifier TMCC 315
SF SD-40, TMCC 323
Rotary Dump w/Conveyor 499
50,000 Gallon Water Tank 113
Sunoco Industrial Tank 52
Standard O
UP Bathtub Gondola 3-Pk 139
Husky 2-Pk Maersk, UP 159
CA-4 Heritage Caboose 70
DRG, SP, CNW
Northeast Cab N&W, Wab 67
SF Wedge Plow Flatcar 67
SF Idler Flatcar w/Load 56
ATSF Water Tank Tank 52
SF Tool Car 60
WP Heritage 60’ Box 63
Freight $60 SF Tool , N&W 3-Bay
DRGW DS Box, DT&I Reefer,
DRGW 40’ Flat, B&M Coke Flat
Katy or MP Heritage Hopper 60
Wabash PS-4 Piggyback Flat 73
In-Stock
Mikado WP, UP, SF, MR 699
TMCC, Railsounds, Odys
2-8-0 Rdg, NYC, B&O, WM 389
TMCC, Railsounds, Fat Boy, Cruise
UP FEF w/Legacy Grey only 989
NYC F-12e 4-6-0 Ten Wheeler 575

MTH 2009 Vol II
2 or 3 Rail Steam
MTH 2009 Vol II
Diesels Power 359 Dmy 169
MTH
UP M10000 Diesel Passenger 649
M1000 Coach $85 2#
2008 DAP
Atlas 2-Rail
NYC 4-4-0 Empire State 639
Pass Set $222
Orient Express 2-3-1 Pac. 999
Black, Green, Brown re-run
NYC Mohawk 2 or 3 Rail 999
L-3a, 3b, 3c L-4a, 4b
L-4a Mohawk Freight Set 1079
DMIR 2-8-8-4 Yellowstone 1299
Yellowstone Freight Set 1399
4-6-0 Camelback Steam 819
JC, NYO&W, Reading
Princess Coronation Steam 1079
London, Midland, & Scot, British
LMS 4-Car 365 Bag/Pass 95
GP38-2 B&M, BN, CP, D&H
Alco PA ABA 639 ABBA 755
Southern, DRG, UP B 139
FT ABA 639 ABBA 755
Erie, NYOW, Seaboard, MoPac
F40PH 3-R Power 389 Dmy 169
Alaska, Amtrak, CAR, VIA
Premier Passenger Cars 5-Pk 335
2-Pk 137 Full Vista 77 RPO 77
GP-7 359 Dmy 169 BAR, Erie
R-11 Subway 4-Car 449 2-Pk 175
N&W J Passenger Set 1079
2-Car 137 RPO 77 Vista 77
N&W J Express Mail Set 1079
NH East Wind EP-3 Pass Set 819
Zephyr 4-Unit Sets 2 types 649
FEC SD70M-2 Twin-Stack 649
UP SD70ACe Twin Stack Set 649
Maersk GP-60M Twin-stack 649
Amtrak Superliners 335/172
Sharknose AB $488 A 145
NYC, PRR, B&O
KCS 5pk 335 2pk 137 Vista 75
Santa Fe 2-10-0 Decapod 899
Railking
Scale Diesels Pwr 259 Dmy 129
FM
VGN, Chessie, JC, SP
2111 Reading GP-35, DC 3# 250
2113 Savannah & Atlanta 250
2114 WM GP-35, DC 250
2115 NKP GP-35, DC 250
GP-35 also in PRR, CNW, GA
RS-11 LV, Conrail, NH, SP
VO1000 Autotrain, PRR, NKP, CNW
MP15DC Am, NS, G&W, BNSF
F-3 ABA 425 B&O, MR, Wab, WP
2235 MR Hiawatha Power B 250
2-10-0 Russian Decapod 899
Erie, Pitt Shaw& N, W. Md
4-6-4 Royal Hudson 899
BC, Southern, CP-Royal Tour
GP-9 359 Dmy 169 C&O, UP
NJ Transit ALP46 399 Dmy 189
0-6-0 USRA Steam 519
Erie, VGN 2-8-8-8-2 Triplex 1299
N&W 4-8-4J-Class 999 2 #’s
Diesels 2 or 3 Rail
NJ Transit ALP44 389 Dmy 169
PRR Modified P5a $489
PRR FF-1 $599
B&O GE I/R Box Cab 399
SW-1 259 JC, RI, C&O, GN
Brill Trolley w/PS2.0 199
NYT, Pitt, Phila Sub Trans, MTA
SW-1 Switcher 259 CNW, MR,
Scale Diesels Pwr 259 Dmy 129
GP-7 GN, L&N
7890 Ann Arbor RS-1, DC 299
Other RS-1: NH, RI, C&O
7805 Jersey Central SD-35 275
3GS21B Genset 389 Scale 399
CSX, BNSF, NS, Army, UP, NRE
Diesels 389 Dmy 169 Scale 399
ES44DC KCS, CSX, CN, NS
SD70Mac AK, BNSF, CSX
AEM-7 Electric 389 Dmy 169
Amtrak x 3, MARC, Septa
Amfleet 4-Passenger 277 2-Pk 142
Septa, MARC, Amtrak x 2
EP-3 Electric 739 NH x 3
4-6-4 Royal Hudson 899
BC, Southern, CP-Royal Tour
60’ Flat w/Trash Containers 57
East Carbon x2, Gen. Am., Joe Trans
European
GP-9 Buff & Pitt, CN
RS-3 Erie, LV, NH, SP&S
FP45 Maersk,MRL,SF,MR
7822 CSX SD-35, DC 275
7823 Penn Central SD-35, DC 275
Dash 8, DC Und, UP, BC, SP 299
Dummy for above 195
Dash-8W CN, CSX, SF, UP
Dash 8
Conrail, CSX x 2, UP
U30C Chessie, MR, PRR, SP
GP-35 PRR, NYC, GN, AK, GMO
C&O M-1 Stm Turbine Pass Set 899
SD45 MR,GNx2,SF,UP
SD70ACe
SD70M-2
BHP Billiton, KCS, UP
NS, CN
ES44AC 399 385 169
Demo, CP, UP
Specialty Set
Am. Freedom PA Passenger 599
GE Evolution Hybrid Set 449/479
GN 2-8-8-2 R-2 Freight Set 1399
NYC J1e Hudson Passenger 999
CNW E-4 Streamlined Pass 999
SP Cab Forward Freight Set 1389
Erie Triplex Freight Set 1389
PRR P5a Beer Train Set 819
AA16 NOHAB 3-R 399 2-R 449
GN, Denmark, GM Demo, Norway,
Belgium, Luxembourg, Hungary
TRAXX F140 AC2 399 2R 449
Demo, SBB Cargo, Veolia, Europe
64’ 19 th Century Coach 76
LIRR, B&O 3-Pk 225
2009 Dealer Appreciation
Limited Quantities
UP DDA40X Diesel Loco 649
UP Pass 5pk 335 2pk 137 Vista 40
BMT 2500 Subway 3-Car 399/269
R40 Subway 4-Car 445 2-Car 175 Engineering Version Orient 999
VO1000 Power
259 NP, UP,
Burl, Patapsco & Black Rivers
2008 Vol II RailKing
Scale Size Diesel 255 Dmy 129
C628 D&H, LV, N&W, SF
RailKing – Scale Size
0-8-0 Steam Switcher 359
IC, Sou, NYC, NKP, NP, PLE
GP-9 USCG, FEC, PRR, SP 255
MP-15AC CP, CSX, MR, UP 255
RS-11 DW&P, NYC, NP, PRR 255
R142A MTA Sub 5-pk 369 2-pk 125
ScaleTrax -INSTOCK
10” 3.00 O31 or O54 Curve 3.00
O72 3.75 O80 4.45 1 ¾” 4-Pk 7.75
30” Rigid or Flex 8.65 ITAD $23
90, 45 or 22.5 Xing 16 Op. Track 16
Remote Switch O31, O54 or O72 $38
Switch #4 $44 #6 $51 Bumper 13
7840 BNSF Patch Job -8, DC 299
7841 BNSF Patch Job Dmy 195
7848 GE Demo Dash 8, DC 299
GP60M SF, DC 299
All Atlas Rolling
Stock $25-$40
20-3279-2N&W Class A 2-6-6-4 1150
K-Line 2-R Shay $499
Lackawanna, PLC
www.justrains.com

Just Trains TM Free Shipping over $200 on all Korber Orders (888) 453-9742 Made in USA www.justrains.com
302 One Stall Diesel Shed w/Shop 69
901 Action Machinery 6 x 8 25
917 Gen Lt & Power Sub Station 32
959 Midland Supply 8x6 35
304 3-Stall Roundhouse, 30”D 189
304A Xtra Stall or 304B Extender 45
902 Jaybar Company 6 x 8 27
921 JLC Manufacturing 65
960 John’s Cutlery 6x8 25
305 Sandhouse, 16 x 6 45
966 Lehigh Engineering 6 x 8 25
903 Skyline Steel 6 x 8 25
950 American Flag Co. 14x9 69
306 2-Stall Diesel Shed 25 x 11 69
306A Extender 12.5 x 11 27
905 Blackshear Refrig. Transport 59
967 Shoe Co. 7 skylts 20 x 9 x 11 69
307 3-Stall Trolley Barn 23 x 11 95
953 Joe’s Pickle Factory 14 x 9 69
968 Freight Terminal 8 x 15 49
308 Quincy Mining Co. 47
908 Shanahan Freight 20 x 8 x 9H 75
954 Buck Island Canning 8 x 12 59
969 Gen Lt & Pwr Office 6x13x12 65
310 Mitchell Textile Co. 39
911 Perfect Tool Co. 8 x 16 55
955 RJK Tool&Die 9x14 55
P56 Cut Stone P81 Random Stone 10
3115 Grain Silo, 7 x 34 x 22 H 135
912 Roller Bearing Co. 9 x 28 89
P83 Concrete 10 P57 Double 13
957 Lewis & Sons Machine Shop 25
915 Quaker Foods 9 x 12 49
D929 Roof Top Water Tank D30 12
315 Grain Silo, 7 x 19 x 22 H 85
956 James Company 13 x 8 x 9H 55
320 3-Stall Roundhouse 26” Deep 159
916 General Light & Power 48”L 175
958 Mill Works 11 x 7 w/Tower 49
New Modular System Kit 74.95
Unlimited configurations 24 walls
Just Trains (888) 453-9742

Buy–Sell–Trade Events
Buy-Sell-Trade ads are $5 for 30 words plus your address information. Additional words are $0.25 each. Subscribers are permitted one
free ad per subscription cycle . All B-S-T ads are prepaid. You may send ads by postal service with a check or money order. Ads sent by
email or called in must use a credit card. See our contact info on page 2.
THE O SCALE KINGS are looking for new
members. The present members are good
but we need more good members. Send
LSASE for “O Scale Trains Shows” flyer
and “Projects List” flyer to Bob Retallack,
Dept. OST, 2224 Adner Ct, Columbus, OH
43220.
WANTED: Small N&W custom-built or
scratchbuilt steam. Especially looking for
N&W 4-8-0 by Bill Lenoir. Also 2-8-0, 4-6-0.
Also looking for N&W brass parts, e.g., pilot,
cylinders, domes, tenders, etc. Contact Joe
Giannovario, jag@oscalemag.com or call
610-363-7117.
WANTED: Ambroid special run 50’ Milw.
boxcars, Hallmark comp gons, Sunset WWII
emergency boxcars, PRB WWII comp gons,
Lobaugh 50’ reefers, WWII era boxcars what
have you? Mail only. Jim Seacrest, PO Box
6397, Lincoln, NE 68506-0397
FOR SALE: Brass and die-cast parts for All
Nation/Babbitt steam locomotives, frames,
drivers, rods, valve gear, boilers, cabs,
tenders, and details. Also restoration and
repairs available. Some complete kits available
on a limited basis. Some older kits and
built up kits also available on a limited basis.
Write and include $1 for a catalog. Babbitt
Railway Supply Co., 715 Barger St, Mayfield
To ensure your event listing makes it into the proper issue, please note the following deadlines for publication:
Jan/ Feb issue: November 1 of the prior year. March/April issue: Jan. 1. May/June issue: March 1. July/August issue: May 1.
Sept. /Oct. issue: July 1. Nov. /Dec. issue: Sept. 1
March 2010
6: Merchantville NJ
Cherry Valley Model RR Club is hosting their
semi-annual swap meet and open house
from 9 AM to noon. 2 rail O scale items
from local dealers and modelers are available
for sale. The club layout will be open
at noon with an operating session. The meet
will be held at Grace Church, 7 E. Maple
Ave, Merchantville, NJ 08109. Table cost:
$20 for first table (incl. 1 admission), $15
ea. add’l. table. Admission: $5 (spouse and
children free). For information contact John
Dunn Sr. 1-609-432-2871 or email Contact
jdunn8888@hotmail.com
12-14: Lombard IL
Midwest March Meet 2010. New location!
Westin Lombard Yorktown Center, 70
Yorktown Center, Lombard IL 60148. Call
800-937-8461 and ask for the Chicago O
Scale room rate. Show registration write to
March Meet, 2636 Hallquist Ave, Red Wing
MN 55066 or call 630-745-7600. By email
contact meetinfo@aol.com.
KY 42066. Call 270-247-0303 between 8
am and 8 pm CST, or email [boyceyates@
bellsouth.net].
FOR SALE: New Sunset 2-Rail engines:
2-Rail UP Big Boy, $1500; 2-Rail UP
Challenger $1500, 2-rail UP 4-12-2 $1500,
2-Rail B&O EM1 2-8-8-4, $1500. Email:
woodsbymarius@msn.com, or call 505-
898-6956.
WANTED: Steam/Diesel era, DM&IR, Soo
Line, DSS&A. Frt., pass., MoW, cabooses,
NO ORE CARS. Joe Fischer pass. & head
end cars. What have you? Mail contact
only. Jim Seacrest, PO Box 6397, Lincoln,
NE 68506-0397
WANTED: LTD AMT Steam/Diesel era GN,
NP, C&NW, CM&O engines, passenger
cars, freight cars, MoW, cabooses, What
have you? Mail only please. Jim Seacrest,
PO Box 6397, Lincoln NE 68506.
FOR SALE: FtD.D.M.& S. decal sets. Will
do 2 locos and several cars. $18.50 per
set. Call Mike at 515-353-4292 or email
bluffcreektrains@wccta.net.
FOR SALE: Berlyn 20-ton gantry crane,
$700; GN 4-8-2 FP, $750; CB RS-1 CP GN,
$500; Sunset NYC S1b FP, $850; PSC PRR
K4a FP, $900; PSC NYC 4-6-0 FP, $900;
June 2010
30th to July 3rd: Santa Clara CA
The 2010 O Scale National is being held
in lieu of the 2010 O Scale West. The hotel
room rate is $109/night plus 10% room tax,
for up to 4 people in the room. Registration
is $35, $40 After April 30, 2010. Vendor
tables (72”) are $45, $50 after April 30,
2010. A banquet will be held at 7:30 PM
Friday outside the hotel. For more details,
contact the O Scale National Convention,
c/o 876 Boyce Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94301-
3003 or call Rod Miller at 650-329-0424
between 9:00 AM Pacific Time and 9:00 PM
Pacific Time. Email: rod@rodmiller.com.
July 2010
10: Merchantville NJ
Cherry Valley Model RR Club Open House
Cherry Valley Open House during the Merchantville
Antique Car Show, 1 PM to 7 PM.
At Grace Episcopal Church, 7 E Maple Ave.
No admission but donations accepted. Contact
jdunn8888@hotmail.com
Weaver VO-1000, $200; PSC PRR 0-6-0
FP, $975; Sunset NYC J-1e 4-6-4 FP, $875.
Phone 423-772-4401, or write. Norm
Reaume, 129 Hamby Rd, Roan Mt, TN
37687
FOR SALE: Kohs GG1, Dark Green, 5
stripe, Gold Leaf, Clarendon, Fixed coupler
#4821, TRO, beautiful condition, $2950;
Westside Santa Fe Mikado, mechanically
rebuilt by Gary Schrader, $1100. Bill
Pierson, 133 Wheatland Rd, Lewisberry, PA
17339-9408
FOR SALE: Thinning fleet, 50’ Weaver
freight cars, slightly weathered with Kadees
and trucks, $19.95 each. Lake County
Illinois pick-up. Call Bill 847-816-7707.
FOR SALE: Sunset UP 4-4-2, new, $599.
Call 650-759-9054 or mail to James J
Herdrich, 3220 Upper Lock Ave, Belmont,
CA 94002-1317
FOR SALE: 3 Atlas N&W High Hood GP-
35s, #207, #207 & #213. Mint, never run.
$275 each plus shipping and insurance.
Email to ekelly18@verizon.net or call Ed
Kelly at 302-234-2089.
11-18: Milwaukee WI
NMRA National Convention & 75th Anniv.
The National Model Railroad Association
(NMRA) will be celebrating its 75th birthday
in 2010. As part of the festivities the National
Convention will be held in Milwaukee
Wisconsin, the birthplace of the NMRA.
We are planning a, rip roaring Midwestern,
good time for all, both model railroader and
general interest attendee alike. Dates for the
convention are Sunday July 11th to Sunday
July 18th. On Sunday the 11th, we are going
to kick off the week with a Beer and Brat
Fest (a Milwaukee favorite) at Zeidler Union
Square Park, just a stone’s throw away from
the convention site and hotel. Contact Ken
Jaglinski, Vice-Chair. Contact mjaglinski@
wi.rr.com
August 2010
7: Strasburg PA
Strasburg Train Show Two-rail swap meet at
the Strasburg Fire Co., 203 W. Franklin St., 9
AM to 1 PM. Admission $5 (Wives/Children/
Active Military w/ID, FREE).Tables: $25 first
one, $20 each additional table. Great food,
modular layout, clinics. Call John Dunn,
609-432-2871. Contact jdunn8888@hotmail.
com
64 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

2010 O Scale National 57
AAA Turntables 16
Allegheny Scale Models 32
Atlas O
IFC
Bachmann 18
Baldwin Forge & Machine 10
BTS 20
Bullfrog Snot 10
Chicago O Scale Meet 26
Custom Signals 14
East Gary Car Co. 10
Get Real Productions 65
Gorilla Glue 25
Guide to Modern O Scale 16
Hackworth Model Trains 28
Just Trains 61, 62, 63
JV Models 10
Keil-Line 10
Key Model Imports 14
LaBelle Woodworking Co. 29
Micro-Mark 25
Millhouse River Studios 57
Model Building Services 44
Model Rail Scenes 10
MTH Electric Trains IBC
Mullett River 27
NCE Corp 28
O Scale Realty 57
O Scale Trains 14
P&D Hobby Shop 14
Public Delivery Track 29
Rails Unlimited 10
RGSRR Hobbies 13
Scenic Express 10
SceniKing 57
SMARTT 56
SMR Trains 44
Stevenson Preservation Lines 10
Sumpter Valley Depot 29
Sunset⁄3rd Rail 15, BC
Twin Whistle Sign & Kit 57
Underground Railway Press 44
UpBids.net 44
Valley Model Trains 29
Wasatch Model Co. 26
Advertisers Index
Howard Zane 10
Pieces of the Puzzle 16
Weaver 56
Irish Tracklayer 25
Precision Scale Co. 9
Woodland Scenics 26
JD’s Trains 25
Protocraft 16
Mar/Apr ’10 - O Scale Trains • 65

Joe Giannovario
Nine And Still Counting!
Welcome to the official start of our ninth year publishing O
Scale Trains Magazine! I am very pleased to have come this far
and also very pleased at the way the magazine has developed.
OST is the last bastion of O Scale model building and I’m very
proud of that. Most of the hobby these days is so heavily oriented
toward operations that model building gets neglected.
I hope that those of you who read OST but have not yet tried
your hand at building something will give it a shot in 2010.
There is nothing more rewarding that the feeling one gets from
saying “I built that.”
If you are one of our readers who is building models, I ask
you to consider sharing those models with us, either by sending
photos, or (better yet) by sending a construction article.
We always need articles as the magazine is powered by you
not a paid staff of writers, photographers and illustrators. Any
subject is fair game. Drop me a line; send me an email. The
worst that can happen is I’ll say “no thanks” if I don’t feel the
other readers will be interested.
It Takes All Kinds
Over the holidays I worked on the OST layout laying track
and switches. As I noted in “Starting Over - Part 2” I had
two curved switches custom made by Old Pullman and they
require the frog to be powered. I‘ll go into the specific details
why in a future article but I started looking at optical occupancy
sensors and switch motors for the layout. These items
have to work with DC, DCC and MTH’s DCS for them to be
useful to me.
I used twin coil switch machines (Hammond & Morgan)
on the old layout. The H&M machines are, in my opinion, the
finest twin coils ever made. Unfortunately, they are no longer
made and while they worked just fine I wanted to get away
from the bang-bang switch action and use something more
sophisticated.
Everyone will immediately think of the Circuitron Tortoise
stall-motor switch machine. So did I. However, looking at
some online posts about the Tortoise raised some questions
about their ability to handle and switch O Scale current loads
for powering frogs. I was also not impressed with their size,
nor the way they mount under the switch. Finally, you cannot
buy them from Circuitron online. In fact, Circuitron doesn’t
even have its catalog online other than as a PDF download.
(Isn’t this the 21st Century?)
I wish I could tell you how I found Duncan McRee’s Tam
Valley Depot website [www.tamvalleydepot.com]. I think it
was via the Fast Tracks website [www.handlaidtrack.com].
Duncan is an HO Scale modeler (Espee), uses DCC and also
has an interest in RC flying and battlebots! Tam Valley makes
and sells a number of items, all DCC related, and one of those
items is called a Singlet Servo Decoder. Basically, the singlet
is a microprocessor on a circuit board that allows you to use
an RC servo motor as a switch machine. The Singlet can be
powered by DC or AC current and can also be programmed
to accept a DCC accessory address. It operates with just two
push buttons and two LEDs. The design is brilliant!
I bought one to play with and you will be reading a full
review in the next issue but let me say here it’s slicker than a
Slip ’n Slide. Even better is the cost. I bought the Singlet kit,
which requires you to do a bit of soldering, for $10.50 (if you
buy 10 or more the price drops to $8.75 each). I also purchased
a miniature servo from Tam Valley for $4.50. That’s a
total cost (excluding shipping) of $15 and it’s tiny. You’ll have
to wait for next issue to learn more but you can visit the Tam
Valley website to explore Duncan’s other products.
Having found a new switch motor, I was still in search of
an optical sensor. With some persistance I found Tim Hatch’s
TCH Technology website [www.tchtechnology.com]. Tim is an
N Scale modeler who uses DCC and started building circuits
in 1995 to sell to other modelers. TCH Technology makes and
sells IR optical sensors, turnout controls, power conditioners,
and a number of other DCC items. As it turned out TCH’s
Sensa-Trak II optical detector was exactly what I needed. The
best part is the sensor is $9.95. Another well-known online
firm sells a comparable IR dtector for over $20 each.
The final piece of my needed solution is the Atlas O Nonderail
Circuit we reviewed in issue #43. If you poke around
the Atlas O website you will find a link to several pages of diagrams
[www.Atlas O.com/manuals.htm] using this circuit. On
these pages Atlas calls the board a Universal Switch Controller
and, indeed, that is its real purpose. I queried Atlas electronics
guru Steve Horvath (again over the holiday break) with some
technical questions and he graciously provided the answers.
Both Duncan and Tim also provided some technical support.
Duncan even took out time while traveling to look over
the Atlas USC schematic for me and provide an opinion on
how to connect the Singlet to it to do what I wanted.
The final solution for my curved switch frog powering
experiment involves a Tam Valley Singlet Servo Decoder, a
pair of TCH Technology’s Sensa-Trak II IR sensors and an Atlas
O Universal Switch Controller. I made a breadboard to test it
out and it works. Now I need to get it all installed on the layout
and see if it still works in real operations.
The combined efforts of an O Scaler, an HO Scaler and
an N Scaler produced the desired outcome. That outcome in
this case will be described in an article that I will write called
“Turnout Control Schemes”, likely for the July issue. In it, I will
explore different ways to throw turnouts using some neat, yet
relatively inexpensive, electronics that anyone can use and no
EE degree required!
I would like to thank Steve, Tim and Duncan for their help
in figuring out the solution I needed. It’s great that we all share
the love of a hobby that is so diverse.
Keep Highballin’
u
66 • O Scale Trains - Mar/Apr ’10

O Scale Trains mth 04-2010.qxp 1/14/2010 4:33 PM Page 1
The Princess Coronation
British Railways
Princess Coronation Duchess of Atholl Steam Engine
20-3371-1 Hi-Rail Wheels $1199.95
20-3371-2 Scale Wheels $1199.95
Second In A Series Of European Locomotives
In the years before World War II, Londoners had at
least two ways to get to Scotland in style. From
Kings Cross, one could speed up the East Coast
main to Edinburgh on the LNER's Flying Scotsman,
behind one of Nigel Gresley's handsome Pacifics -
perhaps a streamlined A4 or maybe an older, applegreen
A3. Or one could depart instead from Euston
station on the LMS and fly northward to Glasgow on
the Coronation Scot or the Royal Scot behind the
most powerful steam locomotives in the land, William
Stanier's Princess Coronation Class 4-6-2's.
Stanier's crowning achievement was the four-cylinder
Princess Coronation Duchess Class Pacifics, built
from 1937-1948. In contrast with American designers,
who generally shunned engines with more than
two cylinders as being too hard to maintain,
Europeans often used three or four cylinders to produce
a more balanced engine that was easier on the
track. In Stanier's design, the Walschaert's valve gear
on the outside cylinders also drove the valves on the
inside cylinders, located within the frame, through a
set of rocker arms.
Relive the glory days of LMS express passenger service
with our superbly detailed Princess Coronation
Class Pacific, complete with sounds recorded from the
prototype Duchess of Sutherland, synchronized puffing
smoke with synchronized chuffs per driver revolution,
and station sounds for the Royal Scot.
SEE IT IN
ACTION
ON THE WEB
Features Include:
• 1/43.5 Scale Die-Cast Steamer
• Equipped With Proto-Sound 2.0 Digital Sound
• Variable Intensity Synchronized
Puffing Smoke
• Locomotive Speed Control In Scale MPH
Increments
• Featuring European & U.S. Couplers
• Operates On O-54 Curves
• Choose From FIVE Different Versions
• Available in 2 or 3-Rail Versions
www.mthtrains.com/europe
©2010 M.T.H.Electric Trains 7020 Columbia Gateway Drive, Columbia, MD 21046

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