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I've spent more hours than I care to admit lying on my back under a layout, cursing at a turnout that worked perfectly on the bench but decided to short out the moment I ballasted it. If you've been there, you know the special kind of frustration that comes with N scale trackwork. The tolerances are …

I made every mistake you can make with N scale curves. My first layout used 9¾-inch radius track because that's what came in the box. My brand-new six-axle diesels derailed constantly. My 85-foot passenger cars looked ridiculous, lurching around corners like drunk elephants on roller skates. It took …

I'll never forget the first time I saw an N scale layout crammed into a space smaller than my kitchen table. A friend had built a twice-around mainline with a passing siding, a small yard, and enough industries to keep him busy for hours. All of it fit on a 2x3 foot board propped up in his apartment …

I got hooked on model trains the way a lot of millennials did. My grandfather had a Christmas layout in his basement, and I couldn't stop thinking about those little engines circling through tunnels and past miniature buildings. Fast forward two decades, and I'm running HO scale BNSF freight operati …

Derek Olson got hooked on model trains the way a lot of millennials did-through a grandparent's Christmas layout that he couldn't stop thinking about. Now 33 and working as an electrician in the Twin Cities, he brings a practical problem-solving mindset to the hobby, especially when it comes to DCC …