MRH - online mag (issue 5 Jan/Feb)

[grahame]

Is due now apparently;

 

http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/magazine/mrh-2010-JanFeb

 

G.

[Ron Ron Ron]

I've been reading it Grahame. This is one fantastic magazine and all for free.

Joe Fugate and his team have done a great job and dare I say put to shame the printed mags, particularly over here. The UK mags haven't a clue about the web IMHO.

 

The standard of modelling and general high quality approach to all aspects of railroad modelling on display makes a lot of our efforts look painfully poor in comparison.

 

p.s. I like the 3D click and spin feature too.

 

 

.

[grahame]

This is one fantastic magazine and all for free.

 

It's certainly exceptional value (for money)

Well worth downloading and having a browse through.

 

G.

[Huw Griffiths]

I'd like to echo all the above comments about MRH.

 

It's an excellent magazine - and highly recommended, even to people who don't model American outline.

 

Free as well - with a number of limited time bonus downloads, to encourage us to get a move on (as if they'd need to remind us!).

 

I'll definitely be back in March, for the next issue.

 

Regards,

 

Huw.

[Adams442T]

Great magazine! Stony Creek, the Australian Bush railway, made me think of trying narrow gauge for the first time ever. Not the usual twee Welsh valley line but a well thought out, fun layout.

[Huw Griffiths]

Not the usual twee Welsh valley line but a well thought out, fun layout.

 

Are you trying to say there's something wrong with rabbit-warrens - with track that turns on a sixpence - and names like "Aberflyarff", "Cwm Ddraig Goch", or something equally ridiculous?

 

Joking aside, I know exactly the sort of thing you're talking about. I don't know what's worst:

 

• Totally improbable locations and scenery - that could never be made to look credible.
• Track layouts that could never work - in real life, or even in a "model".
• Place names that are obviously contrived (so much so that even I can tell they're ridiculous - and I've never had the chance to learn Welsh).

I've never had a problem with people assembling a joke layout and being open about their intent ("Far Twittering & Oysterperch" springs to mind). The same goes for switching puzzles (which might not even have scenery) and "chainsaw layouts", to test out ideas.

 

My problem is with people coming out with stuff that clearly doesn't make sense - and then trying to convince (con?) other people that this might somehow be typical of what Wales is really like.

 

As for the "place names", this nonsense has got so bad that I've even seen guides (on how to devise sensible names). I can't remember whether I saw these on a Yahoo, or in a magazine letters page, but I know I definitely saw them.

 

(By the way, I seem to remember seeing references to the fictitious "Aberflyarff RFC" in some newspaper cartoons by the late Grenfell Jones - well, the Western Mail and South Wales Echo are published in Cardiff, so you'd expect some mention of rugby!)

 

Anyway, that's my rant over - I think it's time for me to continue reading the magazine!

 

Regards,

 

Huw.

[signalmaintainer]

I find MRH provides a refreshing and much-needed new voice in the hobby. The content of the two stalwart titles here in the U.S. -- Model Railroader and Railroad Model Craftsman -- has been stale and predictable over the past several years.

 

 

[pirouets]

I had downloaded them all last night, and I have to say at first glance, some of the tutorial pieces look excellent, plus in issue 1 there is a guide to "3rd PlanIt" for layout design which looks good, and one of the images does seem to include Peco templates.