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Trains-N-TownsTM, the Official Newsletter of BIGIndoorTrains.com, BIGChristmasTrains.com, and HalloweenTrains.com
This newsletter is for people who like O scale, O gauge, S scale, and Christmas trains, including people who combine On30 or O gauge trains with collectible villages. It is produced in conjunction with the Big Indoor TrainsTM, Big Christmas TrainsTM, and HalloweenTrains.comTM web sites.
- If you did not get this Trains-N-TownsTM newsletter through your own e-mail, and you would like to get the newsletters in the future, please join our Trains-N-TownsTM 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.
- 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.
- Finally, if you would like to subscribe to our free newsletter about Christmas traditions, please join our Christmas TimesTM Mailing List.
In this Issue
This year I got even more slammed with e-mails and signups than usual, so I hope that if you tried to sign up for something and haven't heard back you're being patient with me. As far as I can tell, people who've been putting off projects or purchases because of the uncertain economy are either sensing recovery or just plain tired of waiting. Either way, a lot of railroads are getting started or expanded this year, and that's a good thing for everybody in the hobby.
If your personal economy isn't getting much better, we're here for you, too, with free downloadable building projects that will only cost you some printer ink and a bit of acid-free bond paper or card stock. If you're bored this winter, or get to Memorial Day without any improvements to your railroad or village, don't blame us.
Topics discussed in this update include:
For three years, Howard Lamey and Paul Race have been designing building projects based on the tinplate candybox storefronts made in the early-to-mid 1900s by West Brothers. Now we're giving folks who like having a holiday-themed railroad or village, but don't like taking it down, a reason to leave everything set up a few more months. Still in the tinplate style, we have buildings inspired by Groundhog Day, Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's day and others.
Best of all, if you'd like to build these, but you're "all thumbs," the graphics are designed to fit over  160-count Kleenex boxes, so there's not much to cut out.
To jump to the article and start downloading free, professional-quality graphics, click the following link.
If your taste runs to  greater realism, check this out. Our friend Dave Miecznikowski at Clever Models likes to make printable buildings that make pretty nice models when you print them on card stock and assemble them properly. Most of them are HO, but several of the popular projects have been scaled to O as well. Dave also has "collections" that include a whole neighborhood or industrial districts' worth of buildings in a single $39 download. If you are want your railroad to be attractive as well as cost-effective, or if you're tasked with building a professional diorama for pennies, or if you have a family member who just plain needs to be kept busy, check them out.
To see Dave's home page, click the following link:
Also, with Dave's permission, I'm adding a link to a number of free projects he's made available to get people hooked on what he has to offer. The O scale entries include a rural church, a sand house, a switch tower, and a really big chimney.
Click on the following link to see Dave's free downloads.
When you get there, drop Dave a line and tell him I sent you.
In case you think making your buildings out of paper or cardboard is somehow "cheating," lets keep in mind that many toy train companies over the years have done the same thing. Our friend Ed "Ice" Berg has found a previously unknown Marx cardboard village. This link will take you to the page showing the station. It includes high-resolution scans of the structure.
Click on the following link to learn more:
If you like sharing or just looking at photos of vintage trains, check out the "Trains, Trains, Trains" section of our BigIndoorTrains.com forums. One of our members has been sharing photos of his personal collection. Another has been posting ads or links to old magazine ads for vintage trains. I like seeing the trains I've owned, and the ones I didn't own but wished I did.
By  the way, we've received an insane number of signups for our forums over the last several months, so if you signed up and you haven't heard back again, it's just because we're still digging out. That's a good thing overall, of course, because it speaks to the health of the hobbies we support. But we do apologize for the inconvenience.
When you DO get signed up, whenever you log in, you'll be able to tell when new pictures have been posted.
Click to visit to the Trains, Trains, Trains page of our BigIndoorTrains.com forum..
To sign up for the forum please click the following link: (We'll get back to you eventually).
So winter got here faster than it should have and spring has been dragging its feet. But I have a cure of sorts. Even though it's not a new article, we have a lot of new readers since the last time I published the link here.
I confess, I didn't get all of the autumn joy cut down this past autumn, so there are still seed heads bravely weathering the cold. Seed heads that look a lot like little treetops if you use your imagination. Here's an article that provides some inexpensive ideas for using scrounged weeds and leftover paint to provide a bright spring setting for your village or railroad.
Click the following link to jump to the article:
Keep in Touch
Each month, we get more interest in this newsletter, in the site, and in the trains and towns we discuss. We welcome your questions as indicators of what we should be working on next (also, we always try to answer reader questions quickly). In addition, if you have any photos, tips, or articles you'd like to share with your fellow hobbyists, please let us know. All of the hobbies we report on grow best when we all learn together.
In the meantime, please accept our very best wishes for a great autumn and holiday season!
Paul Race
BigIndoorTrains.com(tm)
BigChristmasTrains.com(tm)
HalloweenTrains.com(tm)
FamilyGardenTrains.com(tm)
To view the Trains-N-TownsTM newsletter for December, 2014, click on the following link:
http://bigindoortrains.com/trains_n_towns/14_12_newsletter_indoor.htm
To read more, or to look at recommended Indoor or Garden Railroading products, you may click on the index pages below.
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Free Spring-Themed Building Projects
Cardboard Marx Station Find
Vintage O and S Train Photos Galore
Add Spring Color to Your Holiday Village or Indoor Railroad