Archive for June, 2011

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The Top 10 Model Train Shops in Illinois

Author: Larry Truett

For the past year I've been compiling a list of model train stores for my model railroading website.  These shops all look like a lof of fun to visit, but what are the most popular?   Here is a list for the great state of Illinois.

The most popular model railroading shops (based on online chatter) in the state of Illinois are:

10. Ace Hobby Place in Chicago

9. Hammers Hobbies in Springfield

8. Woodstock Hobbies in Woodstock

7. B and G Train World in Elgin

6. Denny's Trains and Things in Oswego

5. America’s Best Train Toy and Hobby Shop in Itasca

4. Prospect Bikes and Trains in Mount Prospect

3. Spring Hill Northern Train Supply in Richmond

2. Chicagoland Hobby in Chicago

...and the most popular shop for model trains in Illinois is...

1. First Hobby in Decatur

Hobby shops not quite making my top 10 were Al's Hobby Shop in Elmhurst, Atomic Toy Company in Galena, Berywn's Toy Trains and Models in Berwyn, Choo Choo Connection in Schaumburg, Des Plaines Hobbies in Des Plaines, Ed's Hobby Warehouse in Palos Hills, Golden Spike Train Shop in Burbank, Grayslake Hobby World in Grayslake, Hands To Work Railroading in Alsip, Hauff Hobbies and Train Repair in Glenview, Hill's Hobby & Collectors' Shop in Buffalo Grove, Hobbies R 4 U in Bradley, Hobby City in Berwyn, K-10's Model Trains in Maryville, LaGrange Hobby Center in La Grange, Leisure Hours Hobbies in Joliet, Mike's Scale Rails in Peoria, Oakridge Hobbies and Toys in Downers Grove, Past-Time Hobbies in Brookfield, Pat's Hobbies Oak Lawn, Pizza Express LGB Train Shop in Carterville, Rossville Depot Railroad Museum in Rossville, Royal Hobby Shop in Rockford, Sweetname Hardware and Model Train in Peoria, Thunder Road Hobbies in Moline, Tom Thumb Hobby and Crafts in Evanston, Trains and Toys of Yesterday in in Morton Grove, Venture Hobbies Wheeling, Wabash Junction in Springfield, and Walt's Hobby Shop in Joliet.

Also in Illinois be sure to visit some of the great railroading museums including Chatham Railroad Museum in Chatham, Chicago Great Western Railway Depot Museum in Elizabeth, Illinois Railway Museum in Union, Kankakee Railroad Museum in Kankakee, Monticello Railway Museum in Monticello, Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, and Union Depot Railroad Museum in Mendota.

I compiled this list by searching for the hobby shops listed on a number of search engines and ranking them by the number of web pages, discussion forums, photos, videos, etc that are available online.  I further screened this list to include only pages that mentioned model railroading.

Check out my complete list of Model Train Shops in Illinois at www.ModelTrainsWithLarry.com which has complete contact information for each shop including an address, phone number, and map to the store.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/the-top-10-model-train-shops-in-illinois-1392715.html

About the Author

I'm a freelance PHP and MySQL programmer living in the San Carlos neighborhood of San Diego with my wife and our 3 cats. I enjoy hiking, reading, gardening, watching too much television, and other nerdy activites.



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Wholesale Baby Gift Sets Can Save Grandparents Money

Author: Gene B. Pineda

Are you a grandparent who often finds yourself shopping for several sets of kids? Holidays like Christmas can quickly break any grandparent. However, if you know how to shop, you can still save money while making all the kids in your life happy. One of the ways you can do this is by shopping for wholesale baby gift sets.

Wholesale baby gift sets are sold in some specialty stores, and they can also be found online. Whether you're shopping for girls, for boys, or a combination of both, you'll be able to fill all their stockings, load up the bottom of that tree, or shop for any other occasion by shopping for wholesale baby gift sets.

Babies

Do you find that all your children are having kids at the same time? It seems like you just had a baby shower before the next one is scheduled. You can still buy for all those baby showers, and you won't leave any of your children out, by shopping for 5 pc baby gift sets and then splitting them amongst the various kids. Or, you can buy each one a different gift by shopping for wholesale baby gift sets.

That way, everyone gets something different and they won't think you're just being a cheap grandparent. After all, you want to make everyone happy but you don't want to send yourself to the poorhouse in the process. For that reason, shop wholesale for all the babies in your life to make all those babies, and your children who are now parents, happy.

Specialty Shops

If you know where to shop, you should have no problem finding wholesale baby gifts. Places like Sam's Club and Costco, and other wholesalers, will have all the wholesale baby gift sets you could ever want. There are even some wholesale places that specialize in children's gifts and these are also great places to make everyone in your life happy.

However, you can even shop online for the wholesale baby gift sets. Do an internet search and you'll find loads of shops and items that you can buy for everyone in your life. You can order with your debit or credit card, or even a Paypal account, and then have the items shipped right to your door, or the children's doors so that they can be ready to go for whatever occasion you're shopping for. Then you can be a happy grandparent knowing that your children, and their parents, are happy too.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/babies-articles/wholesale-baby-gift-sets-can-save-grandparents-money-1562769.html

About the Author

If you love this article, you will also love another article written by this article's author on instep double jogging stroller and bob jogging stroller.


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Understanding model train scale

Author: Philip Redfearn

Whether you are totally new to model trains or you’re an experienced hobbyist, the scale of the train you decide to use is very important. For this reason it is good to understand what’s involved and what makes the model train scale a deciding factor.

 

The model trains scale is the first question that you need to ask and answer before you start seriously collecting. This is going to determine how you can expand your railway layout, what locomotives you can buy and use and also what’s possible.

 

One of the first factors that needs to be thought over is the space that you have open to use. If you are limited by available space then you will have to rule out the larger scales unless you want to create very small layout. This is very unlikely, and you will regret the decision later. As such, you will need to think about the smaller scales that you can choose from.

 

The large model train scales are called O and G. These are also known as garden railroad scales, as they are generally used outdoors in the garden. This is primarily what they are designed for. The tracks that you need to run this scale of model train are very large and made of brass. They are very durable and don’t require much care and attention to maintain. All you need is some wire wool in order to ensure they are clean and smooth for the trains to run on.

 

Next you have the HO scale, which is very popular and chosen by many people. This scale has a ration of 1:87. This is the most popular scale in the world of model trains and is therefore the easiest to find in hobby stores and other model train shops. This is what makes it a very popular choice with newcomers to the hobby.

 

The HO scale can fit into most people’s homes, as it is small enough to accommodate a limited range of space. However, the detail is very good on the locomotives and the wide choice of accessories make this a good choice. You can start of with a small, standard oval track and then expand from that point forward.

 

If you feel that the HO scale is still too big for your home or spare room, then you will need to look at the next scale down. In this case, I would recommend the N scale. The N scale is named such because it represents 9mm, which is the distance between the rails on the track. As you can imagine from this representation, the track size and the locomotives that run on it are very small.

 

Although it is small in size, it is also still very popular. In fact, many experienced hobbyists like to move to this scale as it offers many advantages and benefits. One of the benefits is that the locomotives and cars seem to posses more details and accurate placements of features. This makes them even more life like which is hugely important to model train enthusiasts.

 

Anther big benefit of the N scale is that it is very easy to construct, even for a beginner. As you can see, there are a number of scales to choose from ranging from the very large to the very small.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/hobbies-articles/understanding-model-train-scale-1350034.html

About the Author

Philip Redfearn is an avid model train enthusiast. For more great information on model trains, and to sign up for a free Ultimate Model Railway Secrets 11 lesson mini-course, visit http://www.ultimatemodelrailway.com



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KidKraft Pink Retro Kitchen And Refrigerator (822)

Author: Ted Maser

Who Is This Little Life-Like Kitchen Suitable For?

The KidKraft Retro Kitchen and Refrigerator in pink is designed for those aged between 3 and five who would be altogether delighted to have their own little kitchen to play with.

According to Client reviews, many parents are buying this kitchen set for their two year old daughters and other children are playing with it up to 10 years of age!.

KidKraft Pink Retro Kitchen and Refrigerator Review

If a big and complicated toy kitchen is what you want to get your child, then you may want to pass on the KidKraft Retro Kitchen and Refrigerator.

The advantage of having this particular kitchen set, is its simpleness so it doesn't stick out too much, but blends in with the house, blending into the wall and seeming as though it was meant to be there.

It's also small, so it doesn't take up too much space in what could be an already overcrowded house.

But it's big enough for your little girl to have the feel of a real kitchen, and big enough for many kids to play together. The extent of realism is quite spectacular, with practical detail added just where it's needed - with clicking knobs on the cooker as an example example..

You'll be astonished with all the added kitchenware that comes with the KidKraft Retro Kitchen, including a baking set, mixer, spoons and even a liquidiser, which prevents you from having to buy all these parts separately.

Despite its small size there's more than enough of storage space within the cabinets and refrigerator, so you can not only store all the additional kitchenware that comes with the kitchen set, but there's also room for a lot of extra kitchen equipment that you may wish to purchase.

How Does This Kitchen Set Compare To The Pottery Barn Pink Retro Kitchen?

A lot of parents learn about miniature kitchens from the Pottery Barn range, but the KidKraft Retro Kitchen is bought by more people than the Pottery Barn mode.. For what reason?

While the Pink Retro Kitchen by Pottery Barn is praised for being as close to real life as possible for a kid's toy, it also comes with a very high price point.

The KidKraft and Pottery Barn kitchens are both pink in color and each come with the same type of unit which look very comparable. The KidKraft edition however, has a much softer price tag. The KidKraft model is also much smaller, giving you more room for more toys or furnature in the house.

The Pink Retro Kitchen by Pottery Barn is a little more sturdy and impecably designed, only the majority of parents tend to realise it isn't good enough to justify the cost.

Which Stores Sell The KidKraft Pink Retro Kitchen and Refrigerator For The Best Price?

The stores that sell the sets for cheapest tend to be the ones that most people buy them from. Thanks to all the extra money they make, they're able to cut off the prices and still make a profit, while pleasing their customers and selling more and more.

Quite by luck I stumbled across a reputable store that's offering a whole 25% discount, bringing the price down to 9. I'm yet to see any other stores in the U.S. beat this price, so click this link to check it out before they run out of stock.

Other Toys For Christmas

Fisher Price Power Wheels Kawasaki
ideas for christmas gifts

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/shopping-articles/kidkraft-pink-retro-kitchen-and-refrigerator-822-3386806.html

About the Author

Hey I'm Ted

I'm a senior reviews editor for popular electronics and toy magazines, including Toy News, Toys n Playthings, and the Everyday Practical Electronics Magazine.

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A Quick Glimpse At The KidKraft Retro Kitchen and Refrigerator



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New technologies introduced in the remote controlled locomotive

Author: Jack Kalis

The electronically controlled brake:

The basis of this facility is a communication system between the locomotive remote control and wagons carrying that allow simultaneous control of the braking safety and achievement of brake tests agent alone.

Currently, two communication systems and braking systems in long trains and the large number of cars are under consideration:

- A system based on a wired bus (currently used by some trains in America)
- Braking systems based on communication in hyper-frequency radio or from the remote controlled locomotive leading to all cars.
The main specification of the braking system with electronic controls are:
- Maximum train length: 2250 m
- Maximum number of the remote controlled locomotives: 16
- Maximum number of cars: 125

The limitations in the design of curves and curved lines-cons circulations appear to be still present in the same order as the technology of remote brake.
Also because of the existence of a landline communications alo

ng the train, the brake electronic control allows the introduction of information technology on board the remote controlled locomotive and cars. I can implement many innovative applications such as traction long trains and / or heavy, the automatic composition of trains connecting to appliances (hot box, shock, ...)

This technology, which had been developed since 2004, should provide many opportunities to make significant progress in productivity and quality while promoting transport related services.

Automatic coupling:

A recent research center of the SNCF is based on a technology invented a century ago, which was launched without success in the years 60-70. The principle is that the automatic coupler. This would make the coupling junction between each car can absorb the longitudinal stresses caused by braking of long trains (» 2000m). This technology would make only one venting during braking and especially trains longer without changing the braking system features of each car.

Conclusion:

For many years the railway braking relied mainly on the adhesion between wheel and rail will continue. Today, a strong trend is developing towards the search for new braking systems that leave the adhesion between wheel and rail.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/electronics-articles/new-technologies-introduced-in-the-remote-controlled-locomotive-3184852.html

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