January, 2008 Update: Trains-N-Towns<sup><small>TM</small></sup>


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Written by Paul D. Race for Big Indoor Trains^TM and Big Christmas Trains^TM

Click to see new and reissued Lionel trains to celebrate a century-old tradition.

Trains-N-Towns^TM, the Official Newsletter of BIGIndoorTrains.com and BIGChristmasTrains.com

This newsletter is for people who like O scale trains and Christmas trains, especially people who combine On30 or O gauge trains with collectible villages. It is produced in conjunction with the Big Indoor Trains^TM and Big Christmas Trains web sites.

If you did not get this Trains-N-Towns^TM newsletter through your own e-mail, and you would like to get the newsletters in the future, please join our Trains-N-Towns^TM Mailing List
On the other hand, if you don't want to receive our e-mail updates, please e-mail me with a "Please Unsubscribe" message (worded any way you wish), and we will graciously remove you from our list.
Also, if you would like to subscribe to our free newsletter for garden railroaders (people running big trains outside), please join the Family Garden Trains Mailing List. By the way, you can subscribe to either, both, or neither, and we will just be glad to be of service, no matter what you decide.

Topics discussed in this update include:

New Article: "Winter Trees from Floral Picks"
Project Suggestion: Add Background Buildings to Your Indoor Railroad
Project Suggestion: Project Suggestion: Try making a "building flat" for your indoor railroad.
Adding Track To Your Christmas Train

Note: We have several new articles in the works, but we had to stop somewhere and issue a newsletter. Stay tuned, or check our site often.

New Article: "Winter Trees from Floral Picks"

Add texture to any late fall or winter scene with "dead trees" made from recycled floral picks, from glitterhouse builder Howard Lamey.

Click the following link for details:

http://bigindoortrains.com/primer/glitterhouses/winter_trees_from_floral_pix/winter_trees_from_floral_pix.htm

Project Suggestion: Add Background Buildings to Your Indoor Railroad

Want to add a sense of depth and realism to your indoor railroad, but you don't have any space to speak of? Consider adding some background. If you want to add a business district, you can easily download some storefront photos from our Building Front Photos page. Click on the following link to see what we mean:

http://bigindoortrains.com/indoor_resources/0_s_scale_building_fronts/0_s_scale_building_fronts.htm

Project Suggestion: Try making a "building flat" for your indoor railroad.

While you're checking out the building photos, consider printing multiple copies of one or more and using layers to simulate a three-dimensional edifice. As an example, here's a simple project that uses a downloadable log cabin photo to make a 3/8"-deep building that really looks 3D from the front. Click the following link to see the instructions:

http://bigindoortrains.com/primer/buildings/cabin_flat/cabin_flat.htm

Adding Track To Your Christmas Train

Okay, you got a train for Christmas, or maybe part of a train, and you'd like to have some more track to go with it. This may especially be an issue if you started a Hawthorne Village train collection last month. To get a jump start on any Hawthorne Village or On30 railroad, or to make your railroad a little larger, you may easily add additional pieces of Bachmann EZ Track. They are available at any hobby shop or at the links below. To get a jump start on your railroad, or to make your railroad a little larger, you may easily add additional pieces of Bachmann EZ Track. The Bachmann EZ Track #44501 is an exact replacement for the curves that come with the train sets. #44411 matches the straight pieces.

Click the following link to order curved pieces.

http://healthpowerusa.com/acbhpusa/showdetl.cfm?DID=1&Product_ID=3216&st_id=115

Click the following link to order straight pieces. http://healthpowerusa.com/acbhpusa/showdetl.cfm?DID=1&Product_ID=3215&st_id=115

If you have a Lionel train and want more tracks, you can find matching pieces on our O Gauge Christmas page. Click the following link for more information:

http://bigchristmastrains.com/o_gauge_xmas/o_gauge_xmas.htm

Keep in Touch

We always try to answer reader questions quickly. Also many reader questions (and their answers) apply to other readers as well. That's why we keep adding entries to our "Letters to the Editor" pages. You may find some interesting and helpful reading there. Both include new questions and answers from January, 2008.

In the meantime, Happy Groundhogs' day, and Have a Great 2008!

Paul Race

BigIndoorTrains.com
BigChristmasTrains.com
FamilyGardenTrains.com

To view the Trains-N-Towns^TM newsletter for December, 2007, click on the following link:

http://bigindoortrains.com/trains_n_towns/07_12_newsletter_indoor.htm

To read more, or to look at recommended Garden Railroading and Display Railroad products, you may click on the index pages below.

Visit our BIG Train Store<sup><small>TM</small></sup> Buyer's Guide Pages

Rudolph's Christmas Town Express Electric Train Collection

Click to see On30 train collections designed by Kinkade, Agnew, Disney, and others.

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Note: Big Indoor Trains^TM, Big Train Store^TM Family Garden Trains^TM, Big Christmas Trains^TM, and Garden Train Store^TM are trademarks of Breakthrough Communications^TM (www.btcomm.com). All information, data, text, and illustrations on this web site are Copyright (c) 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 by Paul D. Race. Reuse or republication without prior written permission is specifically forbidden.
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