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My apologies!!! I am sooo used to going straight to the fine print when I see an ad. -Ed

"DCC & Sound Upgradeable" Units denoted as DCC & Sound Upgradeable are units that are not sound equipped and function only in DC. Modelers may choose to purchase an optional Sound & DCC upgrade kit, specifically tailored to the prototype which will add DCC and sound functionality. Upgrade kit...

Athearn has recently discontinued their SW1500 switcher. Last I heard, these locos were retailing for $39.95. Athearn has an excellent reputation for reliability and detail. Of course the Athearn is not DCC ready. The BLI is selling for nearly $200 and is also not DCC ready. Since the...

NIevo, Jetrock hit it on the nail. Most manufacturers will put any road name on a model. I happened to have bought a Pennsy 2-10-0 with Southern Pacific lettering back when I was a teen. What is your goal? Are you modeling a specific road and trying to find locos the road has used, or do you...

Tetters, I like your 'can do' attitude. Tell me about the double slip. It appears to be a kit that has the rails soldered to a copper clad tie? Do you spike it down on wooden ties and then unsolder the copper strips, or do you leave the copper strips and cut a swath in the copper to keep the...

Coach, Welcome to the best part of the hobby! Congratulations on attempting your first kit. Just a word about adhesives, because every situation is different. I prefer Testors plastic cement for most plastic parts because its easy to apply - I use a toothpick to put a spot in the right...

Dan T, Let me suggest that you study photos of the locomotives you want to detail in order to get the right type of weathering for the wheels and trucks. In the photo below, I became very familiar with the eventual weathering of the trucks and wheels of a car that had been on the road a few...

Hey Don and Fred, Thanks for jumping in with your insight. I am worried about losing our North American manufacturing base. I am worried of the current recession and perhaps an even greater recession having to do with much more labor being outsourced by companies who can no longer afford...

I don't want us to get side-tracked off the main issue. First off, I am convinced that China produces high quality work at a very low price. I strongly feel that people throughout the globe should be given the opportunity to improve their lives. My point, however, is that five years ago we...

Robert, There are several possibilities to look for. Is the derailment at the switch points, or the frog, or beyond to the connecting section. Only way to find out is to run the locos slowly, over and over, until you can see what is happening. Not until you can actually see the wheel hop over...

Congratulations on your Walther's kits. I've built a few and I've spent many evenings building and detailing these fine kits. As a suggestion, I normally leave all of the cast plastic parts on the tree until you need them. You will notice that all of the windows, doors and trim are cast onto...

Hey diesel, You bring up an interesting point: the economy. Everybody is talking about our current recession and our presidential candidates are trying to present their take on the matter. None, however, are addressing the long-term effect of losing our manufacturing base in this country...

Chad, I don't see why you couldn't epoxy the coupler adapter to the trucks. What I do notice is that the 36" wheel replacements are larger than the original wheels and that will raise the coupler height. However, since you already have the 8-car set, and all cars will be similarly modified...

My personal collection of 1950s ATSF diesels began with the Geeps which are Lindsay brass castings mounted on Athearn chassis, then painted and decaled. The FTs are repainted early Bachman shells on Athearn chassis and the B unit is a Cary casting. The blue/yellow freighters are all repainted...

Trainiac77, Here is the most complete ATSF steam roster I could find. A 2-6-6-2 group was in there (the bottom of the page) but I can't find any photos of them. -Ed Santa Fe All-Time Steam Roster

Hey, UP1002, for the price of having two locos custom painted you could probably buy a nice airbrush and compressor. It takes a little patience, but it is easy to learn and you will enjoy the hobby so much more knowing that you can create custom paint jobs, apply decals, and perhaps provide a...

I have photos of some of the early warbonnet FTs hauling freight in an A-B-A configuration. However, during the early 1960s while attending a college near the Santa Fe mainline outside Los Angeles, I noticed that only the Blue/Yellow F-7s were hauling freight in A-B-B-A configurations and the...

Way to go, TopTrain! At our age we don't have years to sit and wait. We've got to get it done right now. I'm with you on remaining 'Old Tech.' I've noticed that 'Hi Tech' becomes 'Old Tech' very quickly, so I avoid shelling out good money to update my collection when it is apt to change...

Really nice workmanship! I also do a bit of scratchbuilding. What sort of material did you use for the sides and roof? The weathering makes all the difference in the world. Please show us a photo when the signs are up and the press is installed. -Ed

So Bowser discontinued the Big Boy. That doesn't mean that the monstrous project must come to a tragic conclusion. All it means is that the project must be scaled down a bit to use three Challenger 4-6-6-4s which are still in production! I want to see step-by-step photos! -Ed