Track
You spent all that time adding detailed structures and beautiful scenery to your layout, so why not build a track to match? We’ll help you do that with these step-by-step lessons on designing, constructing and maintaining realistic model railroad tracks.
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8:35In this video modeler Josh Clark will demonstrate how to install model railroad trackwork. As discussed in another of Josh’s Model Railroad Academy videos, sturdy benchwork will be a good foundation for the track and roadbed. To install the roadbed Josh uses cork. For the HO scale track he will use code 83 and code…
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14:52National Model Railroad Association Master Model Railroader Gerry Leone shows how he wires a model railroad turnout in this video. Turnouts can be a frustration on a model railroad layout. Cars can derail from mechanical problems and engines can stall from electrical problems. In this video, Leone shows how to help solve these stalling issues.…
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10:47Tony Koester talks micro-slide switches in this video. Tony uses a single pull double throw slide switch for his railroads. The microswitch has three pulls or wires; the center pull where the power is going out, and the outer two pulls where the power is coming in. On a turnout on a layout, the frogger…
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4:32In this video, National Model Railroad Association’s Master Model Railroader Gerry Leone shows how he extends his track across a swinging door to accommodate a layout that crosses doorways. When building a model railroad layout, a modeler must consider the doorways in the space. Some modelers can design the track around doorways to not block…
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2:54Layout Designer Doug Gurin provides some considerations when planning a layout in this video, specifically designing curves. It is important to consider curve radii when setting up a model railroad layout. Prototype railroads use much broader curves than model railroads, but model railroad equipment is able to negotiate sharper curves. When selecting an appropriate curve…
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10:01Douglas Hodgdon from Model Railroad Academy and Track Talk Live is alongside Michael Swiridow, the curator of the Pine County History Museum Model Railroad Club in this video to talk reliable track work and preventing derailments. When Hodgdon lays track, he uses ribbon rail track gauges. The track gauges are laid across rail joints to…
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6:54Douglas Hodgdon of Model Railroad Academy and Track Talk Live and Michael Swiridow the Curator of Pine County History Museum Model Railroad Club discuss how to clean model railroad track in this video. First Hodgdon shows the different track cleaners that are available. He first demonstrates with a Bright Boy. This is an abrasive block…
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4:29If you purchase a brand new Tortoise Slow-Motion Switch Machine for your model railroad layout, you will notice there is some assembly required as well as an installation process. Although the process is fairly easy and the product comes with instructions and templates, some modelers learn best from visual instruction. In this video, modeler George…
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12:40Among all the decisions required to make when designing a model railroad, the style of track is very influential to the final outcome. There’s a few factors to consider when it comes time to choose between hand laid track versus flex track. Time and cost are two of the major influences on making that decision,…
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