Building your Model Railroad

Another great issue of Tracks, the newsletter for model railroaders of all ages and all scales.

A monthly model railroad newsletter that's full of tips, photos and videos to keep model railroaders inspired.

This is an article by Goeff Green published on this site in 2015 that I thought was worth mentioning again. This would be a great way to develop mountains, cliffs, tunnels and other structures quickly and with less mess than using plaster. You could use it as a rocky cliff, or it could provide a base to which you could add ground cover, bushes and other vegetation. If you are in the terrain or structure-building phase of developing your layout, take a look. Also, read the many comments that follow the article..

Scratchbuilding Tips for creating your own model railroad buildings

Gallery of prototypical and/or model train photos and model railroad layout photos

First there was DC-Analog. Then there was DCC. And now there's LCC which is likely the future of layout command control.

You Spoke, We Listened! The ads were interfering with content. (We didn't like them either.) It actually took a while to figure out how to stop them, but persistence paid off. So now you can actually read the pages without ads all over the place! Thanks for visiting!

Model Railroad News: Lots of information, updates, tips, techniques, layout videos, photos and supply links for serious model railroaders.

Model Railroad Themed Craftsman Structure Kits: Ipswich Hobbies is a small company that focuses on delivering laser cut craftsman building kits that are based upon prototype structures. Kits are also available pre-built.

This page, Model Railroading Product Reviews, serves as a conduit for visitors to explore the pros and cons of tools and other products commonly used by model railroaders and other hobbyists.

I received an email recently from the Outreach Manager of The Saw Guy website who thought the many product reviews on his site might be helpful to our visitors. I agreed. In fact I liked it so much that I thought it would be helpful to others to create a new section on the BYMRR site specifically for model railroading product reviews, which you will see in the near future. In the meantime, check out the many reviews on The Saw Guy site starting with the page on milling machines...

Placing buildings properly on your layout seems fairly simple, but if you think about it, where and how you put your structures on your layout have a lot to do with the esthetics and the realism of your model railroad. First, you may want to consider building a foundation for your structure. Most kits don’t contain this element of a building. You can make a foundation easily by using strips of styrene covered with paper or cardstock printed with a brick pattern using software like ”Brickyard” by Evans Software. If your building is on a hill, use the foundation to allow the structure to be level while the foundation follows the slant of the hill on the bottom. Second, make sure your groundcover comes right up to the edge of the structure and that your surrounding scenery (bushes and trees) are placed around your structures in a realistic way. Don’t leave big gaps between the bottom edge of the structure and the layout surface. Don’t always have your buildings lining up with the tracks. It’s much more interesting to have them set up unparallel to the tracks with roads leading to or alongside the buildings. Add interior lights to your buildings before you fasten them to the surface. Or leave the roof unglued so you can get at the interior to install or change lights. Hold your buildings in place without gluing them down by inserting wooden dowels into the layout surface precisely where the inside corners of the building would meet the surface. Then you can lift it up and put it back down in exactly the same place. Make sure you have a suggestion of adequate parking for your buildings or industries. Create walkways, driveways, fences around houses. Look at reference photos to help in creating the look you want. Don’t forget the details like people, dogs, trash cans, mailboxes, traffic lights, litter on the street, etc. [Reprinted and edited with permission from Building Your Model Railroad Newsletter, May 2011]

Step-by-step creation of a small N Scale model train layout - A great way to get started, or if you just want to take a break from the big layout.

Wavy Water One of the better products available for making water that we don’t talk about much is the matte and gloss medium called Mod Podge. This is great to use if you are modeling water that is wind-blown or moving. It is a fairly thick liquid that will hold it’s shape as you apply it with a brush, so it’s easy to make waves that stay where you want them. It goes on white and dries clear. After it dries, you should then apply a high-gloss acrylic wax like Pledge Future Shine to protect the surface, which is otherwise prone to get scratched. Thinned matte medium is also great to use as glue for laying roadbed, track or even ground cover and can serve as a fixing agent when sprayed over scenery to help hold everything in place. (It can also be used as a glue and sealer for picture puzzle surfaces prior to framing and hanging.) (“The Scenery Clinic: Pt XV: Modeling Water and Evergreens”, by Paul Scoles, Railroad Model Craftsman, April, 2011, p74) For more info on creating water effects, rapids and waterfalls, visit the BYMRR pages on Waterfalls and Water Scenes.