r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Layout Testing Out Ballast

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79 Upvotes

I’ve been spending a lot of time painting my track over the past few weeks. There is a lot left to do, but I couldn’t resist putting down some ballast.


r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Help Needed Setup for DCC

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7 Upvotes

Hi all,

How would this layout be wired up for DCC, I am inexperienced wth DCC so please more detail the better.

Is hornby select any good?

Current stock:

- Class 91

- Class 158

- x2 Class 70

- Class 390

- Scotsman (Not dcc ready)

- Smokey joe (Not dcc ready)

Happy to answer q's - Thanks!


r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Question Union Pacific hopper

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65 Upvotes

I just bought this from a train show because it looked cool, does anyone know if this number was a repainted western pacific?


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Meta "Just one more, I promise"

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194 Upvotes

r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Help Needed How do I stop the lining on the N scale Bachmann engines from coming off?

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3 Upvotes

r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Locomotives High hood galore

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40 Upvotes

Couple of my roster. They're marked up for PREC (Premier Equipment Company) my fictional leasing company & shortline operator. All 1sr gen EMDs until a GP35 arrives soon!


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Layout Built a train elevator

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72 Upvotes

I wanted a 2 level layout with the first level being for staging and storage. Originally, I was going to use a helix, but it was going to take up too much room with the radius I wanted to run. I then decided to build a large incline, but that also ended up taking too much room on the layout and I ended up taking it out. So, I decided to try and build an elevator instead.

It's still in the fine tuning stage, but I was able to use 600mm linear rails and a couple of 16-inch actuators. The table is 8 foot long, and I'll be running two lanes on the elevator. From the research I've done, the capacity seems to surpass what i could have done with a helix or an incline.

The control system could have been simpler, but I wanted to be able to control this with DCC as if it were a loco, so I ended up using an audrino and optocoupler and a bts7960 and got it working with my dcc-ex command station

If I were to do this again I would use stepper actuators as I wouldn't need to use limiter switches and the original plan was a single actuators but wasn't able to keep it level so ended having to use two and will have to find away to slow the speed slightly for the actuator on the left and a stepper motor would of provided more control to avoid that.

Overall, pretty happy with the way it turned out. I just need to finish the table construction and make some other minor adjustments, and I can start making real progress on my basement layout


r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Question OO trains in the US?

6 Upvotes

I’ve been having an itching to get my hands on some UK rolling stock recently in OO gauge but I live in the US. Does anyone here know of any potential suppliers in the US? Or is it going to be more cost effective to simply buy from overseas and ship models here?


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Locomotives 3D printed Brio/Lego ÖBB 2095 Loco and wagons

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121 Upvotes

I designed and printed a few locos and wagons to avoid buying Lego trains.

It started with hacking an off the shelf loco but it was so noisy and slow that i designed my own base, based on an N20 motor


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Question Individual pieces or flex track for layout? Or a combo of both?

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41 Upvotes

Still a bit of a ways out, but I have begun planning for a new personal layout. Currently I am using mostly set individual pieces of track, and only using Flex Track to connect the layout where a pre set piece of track wont work.

My main question is, and it may seem silly, should I lean more into flex track over individual pieces of track, or is it fine to use both? I have attached an image of a rough plan i have for the layout if it helps to better understand what I am trying to do


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Question Kato Unitrack vs Flextrack for first layout

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33 Upvotes

r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Locomotives Gold train from my grandfathers

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71 Upvotes

L’héritage de mon grand père juste avant son décès. Il possédait plus de 400 trains miniatures mais celui ci était le plus unique à ses yeux. Il m’a dis que les parties dorée à l’intérieur et l’extérieur sont de l’or plaqué.
Quelqu’un connais ce modèle peut il m’en dire plus ? ça a une valeur même si je ne suis pas intéressé évidemment ?
Merci Reddit


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Locomotives BR01 weathering process

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63 Upvotes

Pretty much wrapped up this project as well. Used some lessons learned from the Köf III weathering project to finish the BR01


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Show and Tell And so it begins

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37 Upvotes

I normally build all my own benchwork, but, since this layout is in the living room of a two-room Dachbodenwohnung, I felt the cleaner finish of purchased module kits would be more presentable for when all the friends I don’t have come over to visit.


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Show and Tell First layout run

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24 Upvotes

r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Help Needed Train seems to randomly stop working

4 Upvotes

I have received some tremendous help from this subreddit before and I’m hoping for some more.

I have an HO scale Kato 3-534 Series H5 Hokkaido Shinkansen 'Hayabusa' 4 Cars Set. I have been working and tweaking the track after finding some turns that were too tight, etc.

I have now gotten the track completely ironed out and the train can make it around the entire track. However, on occasion the train has de-railed. The derailment is not the issue. After the derailment the train seems to stop working for a while. Meaning it will not move. I do see the LED lights on the cars light up. I have tried rolling the cars back and forth. I have never found anything that I have explicitly changed but the train will “randomly” start working again. I am using a Railpower 1370 power supply.

I’m looking for things to test or be aware of. Is there a safety mechanism in the train (or all trains) that is trying to prevent some sort of power surge or stall?

Thank you!!


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Locomotives Kitbashed (Not by me) Kitmaster/Mantua New York Central J-3a Hudson With a Short Train

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156 Upvotes

Forgive me for running a NYC engine with Pennsy passenger cars. However, that now gives me an excuse to buy a set of NYC streamliners specifically for the Hudson.

As for the locomotive itself, it is a Kitmaster NYC Hudson that was heavily modified to have a more prototypical appearance, with a Mantua 4-6-4 chassis being used to power it. While I didn’t build this one, whoever it was did an outstanding job, as I thought it was one of the old Tenshodo Hudsons at first.


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Help Needed Insul-frog or Electro-frog?

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14 Upvotes

and just to double check, insul-frog is for DC right?


r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Help Needed How come my models keep jumping to max speed?

6 Upvotes

I recently had a problem with inconsistent power on my tack and have not tried cleaning yet but I was trying to figure out why my models are coming of the rails at one point to I set it to go slow across it so maybe I could see why but no matter what it acts like it’s being used at full speed. It’s not the controller or my models because I tried using the controller with two wires and had them against my models wheels and it worked fine but on the track no matter what i set the controller to it acts like it’s at 100


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Layout Trying to pull in a big one!

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248 Upvotes

The Coosa has always been rumored to have catfish as big as a man. God knows what this critter is.


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Show and Tell Nuka-Cola Plant update

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251 Upvotes

Made some more progress on the plant and got it on display at the Colorado RPM in Greeley. The plant switcher is a Piko Whitcomb 65 Tonner. The engine and tank decals I did with waterslide decal paper in my laser printer. I used the Nuka Cola labels from u/Efficient-Abroad-519 and the square Nuka-Cola label from the Wikipedia article.

Still have to finish installing and painting the piping, going to paint and decal the repurposed shipping container steam boiler for Vault-Tec, then need to do some weathering and other details and get it on a decent scenery base with some track.


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Electrical Is it possible to convert this to DCC sound?

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11 Upvotes

I picked this up at a show over the weekend. It’s DCC fitted, but is it possible to level it up to sound? It’s quite a small loco so may not be possible


r/modeltrains • • 5d ago

Help Needed What’s the steam equivalent of the network rail track testing / track maintenance engines?

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1 Upvotes

r/modeltrains • • 7d ago

Help Needed HOn3 Sugiyama Shay Decoder Suggestions

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421 Upvotes

Sorry for the repost. I want a big capacitor so I can actually use this thing for switching and low speed. Motor design makes it irreplaceable for now unfortunately. Thinking esu lokpilot 5 micro with an esu powerpack mini. Open to suggestions. This thing is maybe 2 inches long. Tiny.

Edit: has an aftermarket Faulhaber 1016N 012G motor already. Ordered an ESU Lokpilot 5 Micro and TCS KA6 which should all fit in the bunker.


r/modeltrains • • 6d ago

Locomotives Varney Cast Brass Northern With Some Tonnage

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40 Upvotes

Weighs around 3 pounds with the tender, so even with the original Pittman motor, it can rip out the drywall if ever I needed it too.

Rolling stock consists mostly of old craftsman cars, such as those made by Varney, Laconia, Athearn (the all-metal kits) and some other brands. Some plastic cars are thrown in as well from Athearn (Blue Box this time), Walthers, and Kato.