February 2026

The February 2026 issue of Model Railroader

Building Scituate Sand and Gravel

Part 1: A conveyor for the gravel pit

Union Pacific’s Geneva Subdivision

Go back to the early 2000s on this triple-deck HO scale layout

Scratchbuilding a turntable

Model an American Bridge Co. 95-foot half-through plate girder turntable in HO scale

More space = more fun

The B&O Ridgley Division extension improves operation

Benchwork and backdrops for East Troy

Part 2: Building benchwork in easy-to-construct subassemblies makes for a solid yet portable layout

ON TRAINS.COM, pg. 6
The latest features on our website

FROM THE EDITOR, pg. 8
What’s your modeling era?

NEWS AND REVIEWS, pg. 10
Hobby industry news

ASK MR, pg. 18
Can DC and DCC locomotives run on the same layout?

RAILWAY POST OFFICE, pg. 24
Letters from our readers

STEP BY STEP, pg. 26
Scratchbuild a modernized store

PROTOTYPE TO MODEL, pg. 56
Sunday morning local

TRACKSIDE PHOTOS, pg. 64

INDEX OF ADVERTISERS AND CARTOON pg. 73

TRAINS OF THOUGHT, pg. 74
Vastly different objectives