What non-auto model did you get today?

[Ace-Garageguy]

3 lots of NOS HOn3 "craftsman" kits and pretty decent builtups.

For those who may not know, HOn3 is HO scale, but the equipment represents 3-foot narrow gauge in the real world (USA standard gauge is 4 feet 8 1/2 inches, though standard HO track is not exactly to scale).

I was surprised to see how spendy HOn3 stuff is these days, so when the opportunity came up to acquire a good number of kits and RTRs at well under half market value, I jumped.

My layout plan calls for narrow gauge mining, drilling, and logging operations in the hills, feeding sawmills, crude oil tanks, and ore loaders that are served by standard-gauge railroads as well.

Narrow gauge equipment usually has a lot of "character", making it great fun to represent kinda funky backwoods short-lines operating on a shoestring, using full-scale "kitbashed" rolling stock.

Edited April 8 by Ace-Garageguy

[Old Buckaroo]

Nice grab on the HOn3 , that is actually the scale I model and the standard gauge is the odd ball line for my stuff.  I mixed in the dual gauge track for a certain mining town I modeled.

Edited April 8 by Old Buckaroo

[Ace-Garageguy]

36 minutes ago, Old Buckaroo said:

Nice grab on the HOn3 , that is actually the scale I model and the standard gauge is the odd ball line for my stuff.  I mixed in the dual gauge track for a certain mining town I modeled.

Cool.

I want to do some hand-laid dual gauge for the heavy engine and car shops down in the "flatlands".  

[Old Buckaroo]

Bill this book has a chapter on hand laying rail which I think is the best Ive seen in 50 years of Model RR magazines and books.  If you don't have one - get one, or if you cant find a bargain let me know as I'm sure i have a duplicate or two.

 

 

[Earl Marischal]

@Ace-GarageguyThere’s also this one. It may say 4mm but the general principles are the same.

steve

 

Edited April 9 by Earl Marischal

[Ace-Garageguy]

19 hours ago, Old Buckaroo said:

Bill this book has a chapter on hand laying rail which I think is the best Ive seen in 50 years of Model RR magazines and books.  If you don't have one - get one, or if you cant find a bargain let me know as I'm sure i have a duplicate or two.

Thanks. Found a "like new" copy, it's on the way.  

[Ace-Garageguy]

9 hours ago, Earl Marischal said:

@Ace-GarageguyThere’s also this one. It may say 4mm but the general principles are the same.

Thank you sir. Found a NOS copy in the States, it's on the way.

[Old Buckaroo]

1 hour ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Thank you sir. Found a NOS copy in the States, it's on the way.

You are very welcome

If you can honestly say you don't like that book, Ill send you a Vintage HO kit!  😎

Edited April 9 by Old Buckaroo

[FoMoCo66]

3 hours ago, Old Buckaroo said:

You are very welcome

If you can honestly say you don't like that book, Ill send you a Vintage HO kit!  😎

I don't like it. 😐

[Ace-Garageguy]

The Model Railroading Handbook, Vol. 1, by Robert Schleicher. Recommended above by Old Buckaroo. 

Thanks Sean.   

Yup, probably the best single-source model railroading book I've seen to date, advanced-entry-level, if that makes sense, and besides plenty of how-to, it's packed with inspirational photos of exemplary craftsmanship on existing layouts.  

                                          

Though it would take at least 20 volumes this size to cover everything there is to know about model railroading in just one scale, it touches all the basic and intermediate concepts, making it a great place to start getting seriously involved.  

Edited April 16 by Ace-Garageguy
CLARITY and ACCURACY

[Ace-Garageguy]

Got the book recommended by Earl Marischal above. An excellent advanced resource. Thanks Steve.  

[Old Buckaroo]

Bill - I'm really happy you like the book and a really impressive review you left for it.

That Colorado Midland RR plan is dangerous to me every time I look at it.

[Ace-Garageguy]

4 semi-sight-unseen lots of HO scale model RR stuff, listed as "locomotive motors and frames, some work, some parts".

Kinda rolled the dice on these and came up 7s and 11s.

The locomotives are all at least 95% complete (only missing things like couplers and brake wheels), run, and a couple are nicely super-detailed and/or weathered.

The cars are pretty much NOS/NIB.

The "parts" are all complete kits, every single one.

Probably the best single score I've made to date on vintage HO stuff.

[Earl Marischal]

That’s a fine old mix Bill! @Ace-Garageguy

steve

[Earl Marischal]

This arrived while I was on holiday. It was a preorder from last year after they were announced as going into production. It’s UK OO scale, 4mm to the foot.

This version is a PW (MoW) support van. It’s a later conversion of a vehicle that started life as dedicated to fish traffic but  then transferred to parcels use* when the fish traffic stopped. 

Incidentally, Rapido make superb US/Canadian models in HO too.

steve

* I hope they cleaned it well first!

 

 

[Ace-Garageguy]

Had to physically go to one bank yesterday, and with a couple ibuprofen it wasn't too bad.

Since I was within 100 yards of the "antique mall" where I'd been getting the fantastic HO scale train deals, I figgered I might as well take a look.

The stall that used to be my train go-to no longer has anything worth anything in HO, and has shifted entirely to mostly toy tinplate O gauge and a little S gauge stuff.

However...the stall that sometimes has pretty good deals on plastic models had a 1/32 Revell Spitfire Mk. I in the "Lone Eagles" boxing, a little crushed but still sealed, cheap. Years ago I'd buggered the wing assembly on one with an experimental bare-metal finish that crazed it badly (which I ended up salvaging by building it as the light blue test prototype from 1936).

Anyway, I'd wanted another one to do as a production aircraft, and this one was so cheap, I let it follow me home.

EDIT: Years back, I found a 1/32 Matchbox Spitfire Mk. 22/24, so now I have what I wanted, models of the first Spitfire prototype, the first production version, and the last production version, all in 1/32 scale.

Edited May 6 by Ace-Garageguy

[Little Timmy]

Dear Mr. Ace-garageguy ,

It appeares you may have a storage problem. You have made so many train purchases that I fear you are dangerously close to capacity in your workspace/shop .

Have no fear, I can help. ( sort of, not really...)

Feel free to place all unwanted train kits in a box, and mail them to me. I have plenty of room and will store them for you.

 

 

[Old Buckaroo]

13 hours ago, Little Timmy said:

Dear Mr. Ace-garageguy ,

It appeares you may have a storage problem. You have made so many train purchases that I fear you are dangerously close to capacity in your workspace/shop .

Have no fear, I can help. ( sort of, not really...)

Feel free to place all unwanted train kits in a box, and mail them to me. I have plenty of room and will store them for you.

 

 

Careful for what you wish for,  When I get to cleaning out storage this summer - I still have your address 😄

 

[mk11]

Couldn't resist this one found on the weekend...

if Dad was still here, I'd paint it up for him like the CPR F unit that pulled the 50s Canadian Budd passenger cars.

As it is, it'll probably just end up going to a friends kid.

[Ace-Garageguy]

1 hour ago, mk11 said:

Couldn't resist this one found on the weekend...

Too cool. Is it a lunchbox?

[FoMoCo66]

18 hours ago, Ace-Garageguy said:

Too cool. Is it a lunchbox?

I think that's a hotweels car carrier because that's the train from the 1st cars movie. Here's a picture.

[mk11]

On 5/8/2025 at 8:10 PM, Ace-Garageguy said:

Too cool. Is it a lunchbox?

When you press a button on the back end the sides open up, hinged at the front. Two tiers of parking spots for the little cars.

Dad could have filled it many times over with his collection of matchbox, corgi etc 

[atomicholiday]

Found this one today.  Never even knew this kit existed!