On30 Extra Board

Welcome to On30 Annual Extra Board! Here you’ll find sample content from each jam-packed issue, plus some occasional extras we didn’t have room for. We also welcome your contributions for exclusive features related to O scale narrow gauge model railroading.

Quincy Mining Co. Assay Office

August 3, 2022

Quincy Mining Co. Assay Office

Michigan’s Upper Peninsula was home to the Quincy & Torch Lake Railroad, and the inspiration for this scratchbuilt O scale model of the mining company’s assay office.

Using 1:48 Scale Model Kits on On30 Layouts

August 2, 2022

Using 1:48 Scale Model Kits on On30 Layouts

With scrutiny and forethought, a number of 1:48 military kits currently on the market can be adapted for model railroad use.

The J.B. Logging & Mining Railroad

August 1, 2022

The J.B. Logging & Mining Railroad

Using some modules built in California to create a permanent On30 model railroad in a new home in Georgia.

Rolling Your Own Colorful Freight Car Sides

May 8, 2017

Rolling Your Own Colorful Freight Car Sides

Use the popular Bachmann Trains refrigerator car model as a core to make your own colorful freight cars using pre-printed cardstock sides. Download our free color artwork to “roll your own” cars!

Re-gearing the Bachmann On30 Shay

August 31, 2016

Re-gearing the Bachmann On30 Shay

We sometimes forget our model locomotives are as much machinery as they are scale representations of the prototype; perhaps more so. You can replace the gears in your Bachmann On30 Shay for more reliable and precise operation.

History of the Bellevue & Cascade

March 1, 2016

History of the Bellevue & Cascade

The Chicago, Bellevue, Cascade & Western Railway Company was organized in 1877 and its 36 miles of 30 lb. iron arrived in Cascade Iowa, a town of 900 souls, on the evening of December 31, 1879. The CBC&W’s eastern terminus was at Bellevue, Iowa, on the Mississippi River.

Ditching the Dummy

March 1, 2016

Ditching the Dummy

The dummy coupler at the front of my Broadway Limited On30 C-16 steam locomotive drove me to distraction. It made impossible any realistic narrow gauge operations, where front couplers were used nearly as much as those on the tender. I wanted a functioning coupler up there.

How I Made On30 More Funner*

January 1, 2015

How I Made On30 More Funner*

The occasional use of questionable grammar aside, what a pleasure it has been to be part of the founding and producing of the On30 Annual. My railroad, the Cheyenne Mountain Southern has appeared in many issues in some way, but now I would like to share with you my experiences in actually building an On30 model railroad.

Speeder Shed Plans

November 1, 2014

Speeder Shed Plans

Now that I’m concentrating mostly on On30, I thought it would be neat to duplicate the speeder shed in O scale and see what photos I could take of its interior using my current digital SLR camera. I drew full-sized O scale plans with a small CAD program on my computer and printed them off to use as templates for the model.

Winnecook Flag Stop Plans

October 1, 2014

Winnecook Flag Stop Plans

The flag stop at Winnecook, Maine, was a simple clapboard structure and was long gone by the time I started as a conductor on the Belfast & Moosehead Lake Railway in the 1990’s.