Around The Layout - A Model Railroad Podcast

With only a few days left before Christmas, Tony Cook and I thought it would be a good idea to check in with Ken Bianco Jr at Trainworld and Trainland. Ken tells us about the items flying off the shelves this holiday season and shares the joy he gets from introducing new folks to the hobby. Later, Tony tells us about new releases from Bachmann, Kadee, Tangent, Rapido and many more. Get your last m...

Meet Campbell Rice, a man who has moved more times than the Raiders football team, but has carried his passion for model railroading with him along the way. Campbell takes us along on the journey through several states and multiple layout builds, leading to his recent move back to Tennessee and the development of the freelanced Tennessee Western Railway HO scale layout. It's a story of perseveranc...

What does it take to start a model railroad company and lead it to the position of the "Cadillac" of the industry? On this episode, we get to hear from ScaleTrains president Shane Wilson as he tells us about his model railroading journey that led to entrepreneurship at a young age and set the trajectory to a career in the hobby business. Learn the reasons why Shane and his team took the risk to cr...

It's late November, but we're still talking about late August and the 2023 NMRA National Convention in Texas. During that week, I was fortunate enough to visit the outstanding layout of Mike Armstrong and it was a thrill to talk to him tonight about how his Rock Island Mid-Continent Route came to fruition. Mike shares the story of growing up in Iowa and the many influences during his youth that le...

The growth of technology in model railroading has brought a whole new level to the hobby. On this episode, Tony Cook brings along Chuck Stancil of Logic Rail Technologies to tell us about the amazing products he has created that bring life to layouts. Chuck tells us how his products can help add theatrics to your layout and reveals a new product that will provide amazing lighting effects in a numb...

On Wednesday, November 15, 2023, I appeared as a guest on TSG Multimedia's Talking Trains with hosts John Abatecola and Tony Cook. The topic was model railroad podcasts and I was joined by good friends Andy Dorsch from Second Section Podcast and Thomas Gasior of the Twin Cities Division Crossing Gate Podcast. I had such a blast talking about Around The Layout and how all of our podcasts compliment...

One of the most memorable stops during the whirlwind week of the Texas Express 2023 NMRA National Convention was the visit to Devin Jackson & Family's Mesquite Belt, located about 2 hours south of Fort Worth in the town of Palestine. Joining me on the trip were Don Irace and Mark Herrick and on arrival, we were amazed to see a depot building in the backyard containing a large and well done HO...

On this special episode of Around The Layout, we talk to Art Dutra and Mike Wheeler of the Nutmeg Division of the NMRA and learn what's new and exciting from the division covering Connecticut and portions of Massachusetts. We often hear about the big changes happening at the national level; now hear how those changes are making positive impacts locally, and how Art, Mike and the rest of the Nutmeg...

We first met Matt Stern on the May 2023 What's Happening In Model Railroading episode where he represented Bachmann as their Communications Manager. During the recording of that show, we spotted a layout behind him, and we knew we had to get Matt back to tell his model railroading story. Well, that time has come, and Matt has an incredible story to share. He tells us about living in the United Kin...

Freelance model railroader and YouTuber Matt Forcum pays a virtual visit to the Around The Layout studio. Matt shares with us his model railroading journey that has includes stops in Lego and N scale on his way to HO scale and the Metaline Falls Railroad. He also tells us how he's using his MFRailroad YouTube channel to create a video journal of his layout build and share what he's learning along...

Coming to us from northern Colorado - seemingly a hotbed of model railroading, is the creator of the BNSF Fall River Division, John Parker. John shares his model railroading story with us, from humble 4x8 beginnings to the beautiful empire he has today. We learn that he's had a lot of help along the way, and he shares how that dedicated group of friends helped him achieve the goal of a railroad em...

On this edition of What's Happening In Model Railroading, we step into the 1:220 world as Ztrack Magazine's Rob Kluz tells us all about Z scale. Rob shares how military modeling started his near 40 year journey in the hobby as a publisher and distributor, and how, in that time, Z scale has made amazing advancements in detail, capabilities, and availability. Ray and Tony also talk about exciting an...

Dave Owens from the Amherst Railway Society joined me to record a special on the upcoming Vernon Train Show happening on October 29, 2023 in Vernon, CT. It's good to see a smaller format train show back on the schedule as we kick off model railroad season, and putting the guy who's made the Northeast Railroad Prototype Modelers Meet a 20 year success in charge leaves no doubt that this event will...

Anyone who has listened long enough to the show knows my affinity for cottage industry, so it was a thrill to talk to Ron Klaiss about his model railroading journey that led to the launch of Mine Mount Models. Ron talks about his early days of model railroading, then talks about how his business was born from a love of structures and a desire to recreate. Later, Ron and I discuss a common side eff...

Comedy and model railroading - the two definitely can go together, especially when you start talking to the very funny William Sampson! William makes his return to ATLP to tell his model railroading story, recapping the Father's Day episode he did with his dad and continuing his story. Willam shares how laughs with his dad while running trains set the tone for his outlook on the hobby and how he's...

One of the big announcements following the NMRA National Convention in Texas was the hiring of Lucy Dormont as the new Social Media Director for the National Model Railroad Association. With this breaking news, it was time for a special What's Happening In Model Railroading episode with Tony Cook, Editor of Model Railroad News, to get to know Lucy and find out what she has planned to help grow the...

As the author of Show Me Katy, Mike Landis has taken his childhood experience with the MKT Sedalia Subdivision and turned it into a passion that has led not only to writing the book Show Me Katy, but also an HO scale layout paying tribute to the railroad in the 1980's. Mike tells us about choosing the portion of the line that he relates to most and how video creation for his YouTube channel The Ma...

There's something really cool when you find out that someone you watched on television and in movies is a fellow model railroader. Tonight I had the privilege to learn more about Michael Gross, the man who, among many acting accomplishments, portrayed TV dad Steven Keaton on Family Ties for seven seasons. It becomes clear early on that he's no actor when it comes to being a model railroader; he's...

Another month has passed and it's time to find out What's Happening in Model Railroading with the Editor of Model Railroad News, Tony Cook. Tony brings along Jason Hill of Owl Mountain Models and we learn how his business of producing lumber loads and much more began. Later, a bit of role reversal as Ray tells Tony about his experience at the NMRA National Convention and the National Train Show. C...

It's never too late to build your dream layout. Alan Saatkamp is a testament to this, as he, at age 70, is building the railroad he's always wanted, taking the experience of multiple layout builds and moves around the country to his new home in Normal, Illinois. Alan shares those experiences, from childhood to today, and tells us how his wife encouraged his return to model railroading for a family...

With just under 500 videos published and over 45,000 subscribers on YouTube, DIY and Digital Railroad has become one of the leading sources of information for model railroaders on the internet. When Jimmy DIY reached out, it was a no-brainer to get him on the show and learn more about how he started in the hobby and how it led to the creation of his YouTube channel. Jimmy tells how he was led to m...

On this episode of Around The Layout, we get to know Paul August, owner of the C&NW Mondovi Line and the YouTube channel that covers it. Paul tells us about his family's roots in railroading and how that led to multiple generations of model railroaders including a father with a passion for brass steam locomotives. He also shares with us how moves in the midwest exposed him to different prototy...

If you've ever been to the Railroad Hobby Show in West Springfield, Massachusetts, there's a good chance you've seen Ron's Books and their massive collection of new and used books and DVD's. Now, as they enter into the realm of publishing, it was a great time to have Lee Rosenberg on the show to tell us about the history of the company and what their future plans are. Lee shares how his father, Ro...

It's quite appropriate that this episode is just slightly larger that most, as we bring S scaler Michael Ostertag on the show. Mike tells us about his railroading roots and how he's put together a long career on the high iron. The controversy begins when Mike tells us about his decision to move from HO to S scale - it's not for the faint of heart and if you're a hardcore HO modeler, just remember...

When Michelle Kempema first appeared on Around The Layout alongside John Gardberg to talk about the Rocky Mountain Train Show, it was a no-brainer to get her back on the show for a full episode, and here it is! Michelle shares her story of going from a volunteer to the Executive Director of the Colorado Model Railroad Museum. Michelle tells us about the museum's origin story and how publisher Davi...