Weathering and Old Coal Hopper
Coal hoppers endure some heavy use and exposure to the elements. The loading process and constant scraping of coal on the slope sheets and sides during unloading quickly wears these cars down and...
View ArticleModeling a 2-Bay Short-Taper Offset Hopper in HO Scale
HO-scale modelers are blessed with a lot of coal hopper models and kits to work with. One fairly common car that’s still tough to model is a 2-bay short-taper offset hopper. This car is distinct...
View ArticleEasy Mountain Scenery for Appalachian Layouts
At some point, nearly all Appalachian railroad modelers need to deal with creating flowing hills and valleys for their layouts. I use a method I adapted from Howard Zane’s “Paper Shell” scenery he...
View ArticleHow To Make Fresh Coal Loads for Model Hoppers
When most people think of “coal loads,” they probably picture the slightly mounded loads of coal perhaps barely visible above the sides of a hopper or gondola on a passing coal train, but this is far...
View ArticleSoundTraxx Econami v. Tsunami2 Sound
If you’re just dipping your toes into the world of sound, you’ve probably realized there are SO many opinions on which are the best, and you likely have lots of questions. One of the appealing options...
View ArticleUpgrading an Atlas Trainman Coal Hopper
These days, you can find some really nice, super-detailed, ready-to-run HO scale coal hoppers from the likes of Tangent, Kadee, ExactRail, and others. While these models are beautiful, creating an...
View ArticleClik here to view.
LN Davidson Spur, KY track plan HO
Size: 12′ x 12′ Scale: HO Minimum Radius: 28″ Minimum Aisle Width: 21″ (mostly >36″) Designed by Dan Bourque The Louisville & Nashville had more coal branches than you could shake a stick at,...
View ArticleNC&StL Pikeville Branch, TN track plan HO
Size: 12′ x 12′ Scale: HO Minimum Radius: 24″ Minimum Aisle Width: 30″ Designed by Dan Bourque This track plan was a personal challenge to see whether a double-deck plan for a long branch line could...
View ArticleWeathering Old Coal Hoppers
It should come as no surprise that someone who runs a site called “Appalachian Railroad Modeling” loves modeling coal hoppers! While unit trains dominate the rails today, a few decades ago it was...
View ArticleModeling a Southern Extended-Height Twin Hopper in HO Scale
One of the things I love most about modeling coal-hauling railroads is the variety of hoppers employed by all the railroads. Each line seemed to have their own unique preference for sizes and mixes of...
View Article
