All about the community of model railroading and rail enthusiasm
COWCATCHER MAGAZINE
Cowcatcher Complete Sets
From the 2023 set, the May/June issue features Mike Armstrong’s Rock Island HO model railroad. The issue also takes an inside look at how Ross Custom Switches has become a premier O-gauge track builder.BUY THIS ISSUE ONLY
Pay by credit card or PayPal and start shopping here! Orders will be shipped USPS Priority Mail within 5-7 business days. Price includes shipping in U.S. (International orders please email at cowcatcher@verizon.net for rate).
Prior to 2011, the magazine was known as Cowcatcher Round Up.
2004 Cowcatcher Round Up
SOLD OUT
2005 Cowcatcher Round Up $14.95
2006 Cowcatcher Round Up
SOLD OUT (some single issues available)
2007 Cowcatcher Round Up $14.95
2008 Cowcatcher Round Up $14.95
2009 Cowcatcher Round Up $14.95
2010 Cowcatcher Round Up $14.95
2011 Cowcatcher Magazine $24.95
2012 Cowcatcher Magazine $24.95
2013 Cowcatcher Magazine $24.95
SOLD OUT! Some individual issues of this set may be available HERE
2015 Cowcatcher Magazine $24.95
2016 Cowcatcher Magazine
SOLD OUT! Some individual issues of this set may be available HERE
Current Issue: Sept/Oct 2025
$6.95 (U.S. Orders Only)
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!