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All about the community of model railroading and rail enthusiasm

COWCATCHER MAGAZINE

2006 Round Up

From 2004-06, the Cowcatcher Round Up was published independently by Ballpark Impressions, LLC, as the official publication of the Cowcatcher Division/NMRA.

All Issues Priced at $5.95 unless otherwise noted. Includes shipping in the U.S. Call for international shipping rates.

‘TIS THE SEASON – Jan/Feb 2006: Season traffic brings railroads to life. PLUS, modeling North Texas coal trains in N scale are easy using a number of modern-day coal cars that include UFIX Coalveyers, UFIX Coalporters, FPPX Thrall Hi-Side Gondolas and FPPX Coalporters; removing decals is easy with a gel-like product; roots of The Hustler traces to the Houston & Texas Central railroad; and the arrival of streamliners upgrades the collection at the Age of Steam railroad museum in Dallas. SOLD OUT!

 
 
NEW WAR PAINT – March/April 2006: Plans are announced for the first “24 Hours at Saginaw”, an all-day and night railfanning experience in a railroad-centric community in North Texas. PLUS, model railroad landscapes take shape using papier mache that is produced by a company in Marshall, TX; and staff writer Steve Willis examines why the Santa Fe was the way for passenger travel in the golden era of railroading.





 
BETTER DAYS GONE BY? – May/June 2006: The venerable SD40-2 once was the hoss of the American railroad, but today it’s seeing a much more limited role and settling into a secondary work life. PLUS, a look back at the Sam Houston Zephyr, which was the first diesel-powered streamlined passenger train in Texas; Blair Line’s American roadside café is a replica of a classic piece of Americana; and a preview of the LSR’s annual convention in San Antonio, TX.
 





 
WGH ON TOUR SET FOR FW – July/August 2006: The World’s Greatest Hobby on Tour announces it will do a Texas two-step by hosting a second show in the Lone Star State. PLUS, the first edition of “24 Hours at Saginaw” goes off without a hitch; D&RGW locomotive joins Union Pacific’s Heritage Series fleet; we take a look back at the Missouri Pacific Railroad’s Texas Trianglem which provided overnight service to Fort Worth, San Antonio and Houston; and the “Tracks to the Alamo” draws the largest crowd in the past five years for an Lone Star Region annual convention.
 





 
Cowcatcher Sept-Oct 06 Cover

 

TRAIN SEASON IS HERE! – Sept/Oct 2006: The Age of Steam Museum at Fair Park in Dallas has a vision to change its image and direction. PLUS, Division 3 of the Lone Star Region gives back to Garland, TX, library that hosts its meetings; a new Union Pacific intermodal facility in San Antonio is announced; and we take a snapshot of a portable rig that allows for transloading of oil in the Houston area.





 

Cowcatcher Sept-Oct 06 Cover
 
 

GREAT NORTHERN MORE THAN MEETS THE EYE – Nov/Dec 2006: An ex-Great Northern employee’s HO-scale layout is a tribute to a long railroading career and life in Wolf Point, MT. PLUS, the Danby Ludlow & Springfield gets ready to make a third move, this one a long way from Texas; the days for the Texas State Railroad may be numbered as funding is getting scarce; and Union Pacific and Lionel settle their trademark dispute.
 





 

Current Issue: Sept/Oct 2025

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Sprucing Up

It’s easy to not see the forest for the trees on a model railroad, so the Colorado Model Railroad Museum won’t mind if visitors focus closely on the towering firs and glowing aspens on the Oregon, California & Eastern Railroad. A panoramic scan is most appropriate now that many of the 28,000 trees are getting a makeover. One of the country’s top model railroad museums, CMRM is refreshing scenery along its Pacific Northwest-based signature HO-scale layout with laborious help from staff and volunteers. For the past year, trees, ground cover and other scenery have been cleaned or replaced on the 15-year-old masterpiece inspired by museum founder David Trussell.

Railroad Structures

Freight stations and engine service facilities are the most common assets for railroads, and Gene Mangum's HO-scale Mystic Branch is no exception. In the first of a two-part series, Mangum details the many railroad-owned structures on the layout.

Seamless Railroad

Two years after Canadian Pacific and Kansas City Southern became North America’s first continuous north-south railroad, Union Pacific Railroad Co. and Norfolk Southern Railway Co. are working to stitch a seamless east-west transcontinental railroad. Leaders from UP and NS say a seamless railroad devoid of interchanges creates valuable synergies for shippers and the Union Pacific Transcontinental Railroad.

Plus

Pat Hiatte takes a ride from Chicago to Milwaukee on the Chicago, North Shore and Milwaukee Railway's Electroliner. Plus, Kadee Quality Products follows its successful run of the Nickel Plate Road AAR 50-ton flatcar with an undecorated model - see the review. Also, construction on BNSF's bridge over the Missouri River near Bismarck-Mandan, ND, is nearing the halfway point. And more!