Cale

I was fortunate enough to see these in person at Brickwork this past weekend. Besides the minor things Coaster mentioned that he is already on top of, I was seriously impressed with the quality. The color looked good, the clutch seemed great, and they mated up with LEGO track perfectly. Also there was almost zero warpage of the rails, which is a problem with ME track, and even a problem with stock LEGO track. The BT rails should lay nice and flat when assembled into a layout. If the turnouts are as good as the curve samples I looked at, they will be worth every penny and then some. Cale

Fixed Cale

PennLUG did some very extensive testing of the turnouts at Philly Brick Fest last month. We ran every configuration of steam locomotive we had through it, including a 4-4-0, 4-4-2, 4-6-2, 4-6-4, 0-6-0, 0-10-0, 2-10-0, 2-10-4, 2-6-6-4, 4-6-6-4, 2-8-8-2, 4-8-8-4, and 2-8-8-8-2. We also ran a few diesels and some pretty long passenger cars. We only had one major derailment, mostly due to running through switch at a stupidly too fast speed. Never once did the straight guards cause any issues. Though some added safety is always welcome. I personally would rather not have any hollow studs. Not every one will ballast these, and those that do will have differing styles. I agree with Coaster that making these turnouts blend with existing LEGO track is going to make for a better looking product. Seeing the exposed hollow studs would just be a distraction. I think we'll be able to ballast these pretty well without hollow studs. Here is what we came up with, and these prototypes don't have all the studs that Coaster has added to the design recently. I think they look pretty nice. IMG_4084 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr IMG_4083 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr IMG_4082 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr Cale

Time to dig up this thread again. Philly Brick Fest 2017. PennLUG train layout. The train was led by my Norfolk & Western A class and Y6b, articulated steam locomotives double heading. Nate Brill’s awesome Erie Triplexadded a third locomotive as a pusher on the rear of the train. The rest of the train was made up of 23 freight cars and one caboose, later we increased it to 25 cars and 3 caboose, practically emptying our rail yard of all rolling stock. All three locomotives are Power Functions based. My two N&W engines in the lead are running 2 XL motors each with an I.R. receiver and PF rechargeable battery box per each locomotive. Nate’s Triplex on the tail uses 3 L motors and the I.R. receiver and rechargeable battery. There was no other power for the train, just the locomotives. Truthfully the train was a little over powered, just one of the front pair of locomotives could have probably pulled the train without the help of the other two. Coordinating starting of the train proved to be quite a challenge. Each locomotive had to be started simultaneously or the train would pull itself apart, even with using neodymium magnets between the couplers to increase coupler hold. But the challenge was worth it as we watched one of the coolest trains we’ve ever assembled make lap after flawless lap on the PennLUG layout. Cale

We ran some of the prototype R104 turnouts on PennLUG's train layout at Philly Brick Fest recently. We were very impressed with the quality. The turnouts performed flawlessly all weekend as we ran multiple different trains through them, some at considerable speed, without issue. Scott Hoffmeyer has done an excellent job with refining the design. We're very much looking forward to the Kickstarter. IMG_4287 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr You can see some more of our trains running through the turnouts here. Cale

Well I'm all for a nice set of XL Boxpok. You know I have a WM Challenger to fix at some point. Thanks so much for your work with these. It's stuff like this that pushed the LEGO train hobby to new heights. Cale

That's sexy! Cale

Thanks Holger. The 7777 idea book is a wonderful topic, It still influences many of us train builders today. More than one Nate Brill and myself have drawn inspiration from it of PennLUG projects. So I'm sure we will be doing a article on it at some point and I'll feel your Brickset one in mind. When we started Brick Model Railroader, I wanted to keep it simple at first and just concentrate on providing good articles on LEGO trains for the community. So instructions were not a focus we wanted to pursue yet. But I se there is a demand out there and as we want to continue to grow BMR, instructions are something we will be looking at. Cale

As we have time and the opportunity we would certainly be open to revisiting some of the articles from RAILBRICKS. The LEGO hobby advances continually, and there is plenty of new information that could be added/updated to some of the original RB pieces. Things like the Reverse Engineering Challenge are dependent on a volunteer willing to take on that task. Ben Coifman handled that role for RAILBRICKS, I have not talked to him yet, but If he is willing we would certainly welcome him to reprise that role for BMR. Thank you for the suggestions, we will look into them as we are always interested in adding to and improving what we do. Cale

Thanks for catching that. The link is fixed now. Cale

BMR Boxcar 003 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr BMR has a successful first week! Today, January 6th 2017, marks our first official week at Brick Model Railroader. And we have to say that the response so far has been awesome! We can’t thank you readers enough. It is for you and the LEGO® train community that we wanted to start BMR. You have all been wonderfully supportive of us as we get this project off the ground. In our first week of BMR being online we’ve had 5,500 views to our site, 64 registered users, 15 published articles, and 275 likes to our Facebook page. And this is only just the start. We look forward to growing and serving the LEGO train hobby for a long time to come. But in the meantime, to celebrate our first week we have something special for you, our readers. RAILBRICKS Issue 12 front cover RAILBRICKS Magaizine now available for download through Brick Model Railroader RAILBRICKS was a LEGO® train fan magazine produced from 2008 to 2014. 15 issues were produced in total. Several of the staff here at BMR were contributors to RAILBRICKS. While we were all sad to see the magazine fade away, we are proud of the issues produced, and the legacy that the magazine left behind. Without RAILBRICKS, BMR may not even be here today. The RAILBRICKS issues themselves still hold up amazingly well and contain a treasure trove of information for the LEGO train hobbyist. So we are very pleased that we can now offer the entire run of RAILBRICKS magazine, through Brick Model Railroader, free for download. Download RAILBRICKS Magazine So thank you for reading Brick Model Railroader. We hope you like what we’re doing and will keep coming back. We will continue to be a LEGO train news and hobby resource, and we will continue to keep growing and serving the hobby for many years to come. Visit Brick Model Railroader Cale Leiphart

Should be taken care of now. Cale We have some new articles up on Brick Model Railroader. Check them out. http://brickmodelrailroader.com And we have more that we are working on. Cale

Thank you. We are working on adding contributors from outside the US. We want to cover LEGO trains from all around the world. Cale I would be open to hosting the RB issues on Brick Model Railroader. But the decision ultimately is up to Jeramy Spurgeon who own the RailBricks name and properties. We will look into it though. Cale

We wanted to start simple at first, and get things off the ground before we consider hosting instructions or other additions. Our main focus was providing valuable articles and getting momentum going. But hosting instructions is something we are open to considering for the future. We know there is a demand out there for it. But rather than rush into it, if we do branch into hosting instructions, we want to make sure we're ready, and that we could do it right. Many people have asked about the boxcar, and we're thrilled that so many fans like it and want one of their own. We have talked about making Boxcar available in some way in the future. We would certainly love to see it running on club layouts and on fan's home layouts. It would make a great ambassador for us. We could even have regular updates on BMR boxcar sightings. We're still discussing the when and how. However we're just getting this site started and doing that has been our main focus. But we do have plans for the car, so just be patient. And thank you. Cale Your tack geometry article would be a great addition to the site. Cale

Thank you. We hope we can serve the LEGO train hobby well in BailBricks' absence. Cale

Yeah, sorry about the confusion with sign in. It's a word press quirk. We'll have to update our FAQ to include how to. Thanks Matt. The more great articles we can add the better. Cale Hosting LDD files and or instructions is something we are open to in the future. But for now we wanted to keep it simple and get the ball rolling. We would like to make the Boxcar available in some way though. We would certainly love to see it running on club layouts and on fan's home layouts. Maybe even have regular updates on BMR boxcar sightings. But of course we've been busy just getting things going, so that will still need to wait a bit. But we'll be working on it. And thank you. Cale Thank you. We're glad you like it so far. Cale

I would like to invite the members of Eurobricks to check out our new web site.brickmodelrailroader.comBrick Model Railroader is a project I've been working on with a few friends. What is it exactly?Brick Model Railroader is a LEGO® Train Hobby, online news and information resource. We want to provide train fans with articles on LEGO Train news, building techniques, layout planning and operating practices, LEGO train events, building inspiration, and highlight the best LEGO Train creations from around the globe, and the builders behind them.We're just getting started, but I hope you'll like what we have so far and want to keep coming back. And we welcome any suggestions on what we can improve, or add to better serve the LEGO Train Hobby. Cale Leiphart BMR Driver 07.1ai by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr BMR Boxcar 001 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr

These are all very excellent models. Great work. Cale

A very impressive layout with lots of detail. You guys pulled of a great layout. Cale

Here are my own photos from the show. https://flic.kr/s/aHskyyvKmY The roundhouse at night. IMG_6378a by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr The wash rack with my N&W A class getting a good cleaning. IMG_6368a by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr The plan. Brickworld 2016 Penn Tex Layout Final Draft by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr Tony's American Freedom Train locomotive on the PennLUG turntable. IMG_6577 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr My B&O Mikado making it's last run on the layout before heading off to it's new home. IMG_6272 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr It was an exhausting show but also super awesome! Tony, Steve and Ed from TBRR are great friends and we at PennLUG are honored to have collaborated with them again this year for Brickworld. Both Texas and PennLUG work hard to step up our game each year and this years layout was the best. I'm proud to say this was one of the best LEGO train layouts I've ever been a part of. Trains! Cale

If you can get it to the point where you can launch a Kickstarter, I will be happy to shake down every one I meet for money to support it. Cale

For those who build using the standard LEGO wheel set style yes. For those of us that don't? Maybe not so much. Bettendorf Josh Sanders Version by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr Arch Bar Truck by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr B&O Em1 19 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr IMG_2261 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr IMG_7299 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr WM Challenger 18 by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr I think you can start to see the scale of the issue. At least for those of us who build at the upper end of detail. Cale

I too was glad to meet up with and talk to you at Brickworld Coaster. Your prototype switch shows a lot of promise. I think all of us at the PennLUG Texas Brick layout were impressed with the engineering so far and are very anxious to see these progress. If these can be made, we have definite need for them. So what more can we do to help this project along? Cale

Nice little model of the "Toaster". It sad to see them go. On of my favorite memories of them is getting blasted with snow by an AEM-7 speeding past our photo line while on a Strasburg RR charter. IMG_1430a by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr IMG_1431a by Cale Leiphart, on Flickr Cale

Each hopper weighs 399 grams. Cale