Nicholas - the SR&RL #24 prairie type loco is my favorite NG engine. Train and Trooper just brought out an HOn30 version in brass.

This engine is long and would need some really good engineering to get it to negotiate tight curves. I think Bachmann is going to stick with little teapots that blend in with their previous offerings.

In my opinion,  a scaled down Tweestsie ten wheeler would be welcomed by many On30 modelers.

I second ebtbob's request for an EBT 2-8-2 and a small articulated.

It is apparent that Bachmann is doing some really fine research looking for smaller engines that complement their On30 line.

Bachmann should compromise for the EBT fans and do an EBT caboose.

The Model Power website indicates that new production has knuckle couplers. Items can be ordered directly from them.

It is hard to produce a K-27 in On30 - the prototype is three foot gauge and would dwarf On30 rolling stock. As indicated above, one has already been produced by another maker.

I think that the small engines Bachmann has chosen for the line are really good choices. The Forney is a great little engine and the new 4-4-0 fills a niche.

Matt - there are some people who make their own ties from strip wood. It is not as tedious as it sounds. I used to use thies by Kappler but I don't think they are still in business.

Get yourself some HO track gauges (including, of course the NMRA gauge). Look for the smallest spikes possible.

In my old club we used to spike down one rail using a straight edge or template. Then we did the other using several gauges. (A machinist member made gauges for us from round brass stock.)

My suggestion would be to practice. Get a three to four long piece of whatever you use for roadbed, glue down some ties, and spike down one rail, then the other.
Most people I know use a needle nose pliers but there are spiking tools out there.

The soldering is done with smaller rail - code 70 or 55 because the spike heads are really big with smaller rail. Tou can easily spike code 70 if you have small enough spikes.

I made a tie jig with my radial arm saw. All I needed to do was insert the ties, which were prestained (Flouquil grimy works nicely). Then you pick up the ties with a length of masking tape.

Inder - most of the old timers who prefer steam (like me) will tell you not to worry about the kind of diesel - they all look alike.

There are a number of layout planning books out there. Also, if you have access to old Model Railroader magazines, they feature layouts in almost every issue. The publisher, Kalmbach, may have some layout planning books. Try their website.

You can always fabricate your own coal load. People did it for years with brass engines - they'd use balsa wood, shape it and add HO coal. It's easy to do and it helps individualize each locomotive.

Scotty - one drop of green? Too much!

I saw an actual PRR paint chip once at a model railroad meet and if you went into the sunlight the color is a very, very dark green. The color was actually available at one time from the manufacturer. I don't know why the Pennsy bothered.

Penn Central solved the problem; they covered everything in PC black except the books - those they covered in red ink.

As for NdeM I believe it is now private and called FerroMex.  I wonder what colors the new line uses.

I'm not up on my N de M so it may well be possible that the ones you saw were painted black. Black is cheaper than buying colored paint.

The SAL engines that were painted pullman green with light yellow and orange trim often looked black and a lot of Pennsy fan will swear that the Brunswick Green engines were actually Brunswick Black!

Reasonable people who like green will paint their rolling stock Southern Railway green.

Inder - it is refreshing to see someone going to Barnes and Noble to get books and looking at DVDs for information.

As for what a consolidated type engines could pull keep in mind that there were small ones, like the ones used on the Ma & Pa in Pennsylvania. Then there were the big guys, such as those used on the Pennsy and Reading railroads that had a lot more tractive effort.

Concerning your mentioning the steam dome - these were situated on the highest point on the boiler because all the controls are steam operated and the controls were supplied from either the steam dome or a turret nearby. Even if there wasn't enough steam to run the locomotive, there was steam enough to start the pumps and injectors.

Welcome to the hobby. Don't mention reading too much. There are some young contributors to this message board who might get scared off by that word!

The original purchasers of the sharknose were the B&O, NYC and PRR. Later, some used units were sold to the Monongahela RR and the D&H.

N de M used a very dark green for a while - usually referred to as "pullman green" if the paint got a layer of grime on it, it looked black. CN used a similar green with yellow. SAL also used a pullman green with pale lemon yellow striping. There are lots of others, I'm sure.

The Pennsylvania used a very dark green called "Brunswick green" on its locomotives. Most of the time it looked black. I once saw a clean GG-1 in the woodside, NY yard late in the afternoon. In the afternoon sun it was obvious that the paint had a green caste to it.

Your hard earned dollars might be better spent sampling some of the wonderful adult beverages brewed in Germany!

Gene - your advice for soldering and dropping leads should be posted somewhere in a reference section for all the neophytes with questions.

Back in 1982 I attended the NMRA convention is Washington and they had a steam excusion behind a 2-8-4. It may have been a C&O berk but I'm thinking NKP (which I believe were very similar). In any event seeing that big big berkshire pull a long string of passenger cars into the station at Alexandria was quite a sight. I hope you can unload your PFM model.