Best practices

Mechanical signal boxes contain many levers that control among other things signals, points, crossing gates and facing-point-locks. Even the smallest of signal boxes can contain numerous levers, but the largest box in the UK at Shrewsbury's Severn...

Loading gauge is the maximum dimensions that a railway locomotive, coach or waggon (including its load) can be to travel safely along a track.There are many obstacles along the side of or above a railway line that could affect its loading...

In a world where modelling is becoming an increasingly popular past time, we are used to scale being a definitive equation that allows us to work out how big a model should be in comparison to its real-life prototype. Wargaming doesn't quite work...

Installing a driver or fireman into your locomotive can really bring it to life and add realism. After all, in real life, if you saw a steam locomotive hurtling down the tracks without a crew on board, then something has gone very wrong!Fitting...

Nowadays, freight trains are fairly uniform in their consists, industries seem to send everything in one trainload to a processing plant or further distribution centre. Inevitably that means most freight trains we see today will be wagon after...

From a modeller's perspective, there is no practical difference between bullhead and flat-bottom rail. The existence of two variants merely facilitates modellers who wish to represent a particular era in railway history. But why did the real...

Railway mileposts (or distance markers) are signs placed at specified intervals along railway lines to give reference to locations along the route. The reference is always relative to a defined point (often a large station or junction). The usage...

It is not advisable to use 3-in-1 oil to lubricate your models, especially not the fine parts inside their mechanisms. This is because different oils are good at different things - some clean, some protect and others lubricate.3-in-1 oils are...

'Stopping Markers' are the signs that can be seen on a station platform and some sidings to advise the driver where to bring his or her train to a halt.They are useful for longer trains so the driver knows that the whole train is within the...

Bridge identification signs have been used for many years but didn't become commonplace until around 1999. Their function is to provide a reference number for bridges where a road passes underneath a railway (underbridge). The signs ensure that...

AWS stands for Automatic Warning system. It's a device fitted to British trains since the 1950s to warn drivers that they're approaching a signal. Originally AWS alerted drivers only to distance signals set to caution but was later developed to...

If you are wondering what model you should choose as a gift for someone, it would suggest two things, firstly, you are a really nice person and secondly, you are not absolutely sure what the lucky recipient would like.Sub-interests within a...