I have about 20 of the Model Trains magazines that were published back in the 50s-60s. When I got into the hobby in the early 60s, it was the first magazine I purchased. My question is, from when to when did Kalmbach publish this and why did they discontinue it. I think this magazine had a lot of really neat model building articles and I still refer to it as a source of inspiration.
Bruce
On the index page elsewhere on this site it shows that it ran from May 1948 to January 1964. http://index.mrmag.com/tm.exe?opt=M&proc=HOMT.
Enjoy
Paul
Bruce, it sounds like you got interested in the hobby about the same time I did, 1962.
I can’t directly answer your question because I have no idea just when Kalmbach began publication of Model Trains - I can, however, give you a fairly exact date for when they ceased; it was somewhere in late 1962-early 1963. The hobby shop in Moses Lake, Washington where I purchased my Model Railroaders at that time did not carry Model Trains - it would be some time before I ever saw a copy of it - but out of the blue in early 1963 articles on the Portage Hill and Communipaw project railroad carried over from Model Trains began showing up in Model Railroader.
Years later I was able to familiarize myself with some of the later issues of Model Trains magazine; I will subscribe to one thing; it did have some interesting construction articles in it. I have often wished that I could get ahold of some of their last issues so I had access to the complete series on that Portage Hill and Communipaw model railroad.
As an aside, someone at one of the NMRA conventions - either Seattle or Cincinnati, I believe - had a couple of years issues from the mid-50s for sale in the silent auction. He had started bidding at twenty-five bucks; by the time I got there the bidding was already over fifty smackers - too rich for my budget at that time so I left it alone. I think, however, if I were to encounter any at future conventions I would give consid
I too recall Model Trains when I was getting into the hobby in the late 1950’s. They had a column for pass exchanging and I had my railroad listed a few times. The magazine was intended for beginners, with MR being for the more experienced.
One thing I to remember is they had some sort of a “mascot” in the magazine, probably a drawing/cartoon of a railroader. They had a contest to name him, and the winner was “M.T. Hopper” - “Model Trains Hopper”. I assume he got pensioned off when they stopped publishing!
My first issue was a December 1960, and I was starting my first layout. I found another years later of the same year. Can’t figure out why the magazine was for a beginner, those were great articles done by Don Sims and others.
[quote user=“R. T. POTEET”]
Bruce, it sounds like you got interested in the hobby about the same time I did, 1962.
I can’t directly answer your question because I have no idea just when Kalmbach began publication of Model Trains - I can, however, give you a fairly exact date for when they ceased; it was somewhere in late 1962-early 1963. The hobby shop in Moses Lake, Washington where I purchased my Model Railroaders at that time did not carry Model Trains - it would be some time before I ever saw a copy of it - but out of the blue in early 1963 articles on the Portage Hill and Communipaw project railroad carried over from Model Trains began showing up in Model Railroader.
Years later I was able to familiarize myself with some of the later issues of Model Trains magazine; I will subscribe to one thing; it did have some interesting construction articles in it. I have often wished that I could get ahold of some of their last issues so I had access to the complete series on that Portage Hill and Communipaw model railroad.
As an aside, someone at one of the NMRA conventions - either Seattle or Cincinnati, I believe - had a couple of years issues from the mid-50s for sale in the silent auction. He had started bidding at twenty-five bucks; by the time I got there the bidding was already over fifty smackers - too rich for my budget at that time so I left it alone. I think, however, if I were to encounter any at future conv
I am going to correct myself; I remember the Portage Hill and Communipaw model railroad; I thought it was 1963 but it could very well have been 1964!!!
Nope, it was 1962. I read that series of articles so many times, I eventually shredded the issues.
BTW, Don Ball’s Moraga Springs Northern was based on the PH&C. Unfortunately, his website seems to have disappeared. Pity, since the Moraga Springs Northern showed what you can do with a published plan/project railroad.
Andre
I have the June , July and October issue from 1954, the January, February, April, May, June and September issue from 1955 and the April issue from 1956 all of which I remember buying with my own 35 cents. Why, I don’t know but, you are making me go back and take a second look.
Peter Smith, Memphis
We are on different wavelengths here; I was referring to when the last five or six installments of the Portage Hill and Communipaw were published in Model Railroader magazine; I thought it was 1963 but a date of 1964 makes more sense.
Model Trains was also the source for the HO Railrroad that Grows series and book, probably the most copied model railroad ever.
The feature that I liked was Inspection Pit where Linn Westcott or Andy Anderson would buld 3 or 4 kits a month and describe how they went together, install Kadees and sometimes modify them. The monthly range was usually from an Athearn to a moderate crftsman kit, soemtimes an advanced craftsman.
I think that Model Trains eventually got folded into MR because they covered essentially the same territory. MT was a bit more focused on beginners, but as the hobby changed in the 1960s MR became more beginner-focused. I have a few issues of MT that I have picked up at flea markets and train shows over the years, and like the style–and after reading Model Railroader from the 1940s and 50s can see why the two were combined. While there were other train magazines, and there were differences, they were pretty much competing against each other.