Bachmann mid-year announcements 2025

 Now that we've gone over Lionel's 2025 HO scale catalog, what does Bachmann have in store for their mid-year announcements. Like the Lionel catalog, I wont' be going over all the announcements, but I will leave you a link to check it out. 

Bachmann came out swinging with the Freedom Train set, and I'm not talking about the Norman Rockwell one. For the first time since Lionel's HO scale set, the GS 4-4-8-4 in it's Freedom Train paint scheme will be available to purchase in a set. 

The set comes with 4 cars that light up, and more Freedom Train cars will be sold separately. 

Bachmann also announced the Siemens S70 light rail vehicle in HO scale. While I'm personally not a big fan of these trains, I do understand why Bachmann would want to have them in the line-up, especially for those who have modern day train layouts or city settings. 

A Freedom Train Ho scale train set isn't the only thing Bachmann is bringing back, as they've announced that they will be releasing an HO scale DeWitt Clinton. Bachmann has released an HO scale Dewitt Clinton before, so it's nice to see them re-release it again to those who didn't get it the first time. 

The final trainset that Bachmann announced was The Golden Spike train set. This is technically anther train set that Bachmann is offering again, though there are a few changes to the new Golden Spike vs. the only one. 

Bachamnn's old release of the golden spike, photo curtesy of Ebay 

 

Closing Thoughts:

While it's not much, I do want to cut Bachmann some slack. A decent amount of the stuff they announced does look pretty interesting, and I do think it's awesome that we're finally getting an HO scale GS Freedom Train set after many, many years. 

It is a collector's limited edition set, so I recommend saving up now for when it goes on pre-order or becomes available. 

Lionel summer HO scale train catalog

 Summer is here, and so are the mid-year announcements from Lionel. Lionel released two mid-year catalogs in O scale, and HO scale, and in this blog, I wanna go over what Lionel had to offer in their HO scale catalog. I won't be going over everything, but I will be going over things that I felt stuck out the most. 

Right from the get-go is an advertisement for a sweepstake involving Lionel's new Berkshire HO scale steam locomotive. From July 16th to August 22nd, folks can enter the sweepstakes in order to win the Berkshire steam engine, with a winner being selected on September 2nd. 

I think it's neat that Lionel's giving people a chance to win the Berkshire for free, especially as it's a newly tooled engine as opposed to something made from the Model Power molds. 

While Lionel has had cars in HO scale that make sound before, the stock sound cars are a nice new welcome edition, and can add some depth and realism to your HO scale layout. 

Glow in the dark and weathered cars are also a welcome edition. I know pre-weathered cars are becoming more of a thing in HO scale, but I can't say the same about glow in the dark ones. 

For those who love Halloween but are sadden by the lack of HO scale Halloween trains (or the fact that Bradford Exchange is your only option), Lionel has you covered. Alongside some new box cars, Lionel also has a Halloween billboard to put on the layout. 

Honestly? Good for Lionel. It has bugged me a bit that Halloween hasn't been that represented in HO scale as much as Christmas, and I'm sure there's someone out there looking for a Halloween train to run around their Halloween village. 

While not new, I do want to bring up the Halloween train set that Lionel currently has which is the Translyvania Railroad train set. 

While yes the steam engine is a repaint of the Polar Express engine, the colors do look nice and I really like the Midnight Hallow box car. 

As I mentioned at the start of the blog, Lionel has released sound cars already, with one example being the Halloween sound car that plays as long as their is power to the track. 

Lionel's cash cow (AKA the Polar Express) has some new items in HO scale this year too, with a reindeer stock sound car and present transportation. 

Lionel is also offering Polar Express billboards which I do like. 

Alongside the Polar Express, some other new Christmas stuff Lionel has is a Christmas reindeer stock car (with the same features as the polar express one), and sled ex transportation car. 

Final Christmas item I'll mention is the Santa's Choice Milk Reefer. The tagline "Cookies have never had it so good" alone makes me want to buy the car. 

The only thing I have to comment about the Harry Potter cars is while yes Lionel, they look good, I kind of wish you'd give us a Hogwarts Express HO scale engine. I don't know if they have the rights to do it in HO scale, but I know it's been a LONG long time since Bachmann did one...

I will give Lionel some props for the Peanuts and Tom and Jerry box cars. It's not much, but a part of me has been wanting to see more HO scale Peanuts stuff, and I do still like Tom and Jerry. 

The last noteworthy thing in the catalog I want to talk about is some of the buildings that Lionel is releasing in HO scale. The more urban buildings look nice and can go next to each other in any order that you please, and I do like the town hall building Lionel is releasing. 

 The Cape Cod buildings are something I would like to see a bit more of. Maybe it's because I'm looking in the wrong places or haven't considered building it myself, but I feel like there's just not that many beach buildings or shacks in HO scale. 

And yes Lionel I think the "On fire" building kit is cool. Expensive? Yes. Cool? Also yes. 

Closing Thoughts: 

I do like how Lionel's HO scale line is starting to come together, and I'm still hopeful that by 2026-2027 at the latest diesel's will be introduced into the line (doesn't have to be anything too fancy Lionel, it can just be a simple F7 Diesel's.) 

I also would like to see Lionel continue to produce some more buildings in HO scale, specifically Halloween and Christmas themed ones. Nothing against Lemax or Department 56, but their houses aren't exactly in scale with HO, and it does bother me a bit that there are a ton of HO scale sets out on the market, yet nowhere near as many HO scale buildings. 

To see the full Lionel catalog, click here

What was Roadside America?

I know that model railroading isn't the most popular hobby these days (depending on who you ask), but it does sadden me to hear or see a model train exabit shut it's doors for good, especially in the case of Roadside America, which wasn't just a train display, but a handmade miniature village made by one man...

Laurence Gieringer

Photo curtesy of Wiki Commons

The creator of Roadside America Laurence Gieringer was a fan of miniatures since he was a kid. At 5 years old, Gieringer went out on his own to collect what he thought was a miniature building of a hotel. It certainly looked that way out his bedroom window, but when Laurence went out on his own to get the "toy", he found that it wasn't as close by as it appeared to be. The boy got lost and spent a night in the woods, but was able to be found the next morning. 

You'd think such an event would put a damper on Laurence's love of miniatures, but it didn't effect him. 

Later in his teenage years, Laurence would try to craft his own miniature buildings, with his parents building him and his brother Paul a workbench with some tools to use to make the buildings. While Paul became uninterested in making the miniatures, Laurence kept at it, and became better and better with practice. 

On board with the trains 

One little known fact about the miniature village is it didn't have trains in it at first. When Laurence started out making the village that would become Roadside America, it featured buildings and scenery only. 

In an interview Lionel, the manager of Roadside America Brian Hilbert explained that it was Laurence's son in law that asked to add trains to the miniature village. Laurence was OK with this as back then, trains were the main transportation in America. 

It should be noted that when the display was growing, Lionel was starting to become a household name in the model railroad industry. Lionel was going through both it's pre-war and post-war era when Roadside America was growing. 

Be prepared to see more then expected

Trains weren't the only thing to see in the display. Hundreds of handmade buildings of all kinds (movie theaters, barns, stores), 4,000 miniature people, and even a waterfall and river could be found in the display. 

The water features on the display are what I find to be the most impressive. It's no secret that water and electricity don't mix well together, yet Laurence somehow got real water to run throughout the 7,450 square foot display, even including a little pond in the back with folks fishing in canoes. 

Anther good feature of the display was the night show. At times, the lights would be dimmed, and folks who stayed to watch the display would be treated to "God Bless America" playing, followed by a plane going around on the ceiling, and even light up fireworks that would display on the wall. 

It was both a patriotic show, and something for those that wanted to see the display lit up at night. 

The end of Roadside America 

While the pandemic was the last straw for Roadside America, it wasn't what mainly killed it. The family/caretakers of Laurence's display wanted to sell the place off to new owners, but those plans fell through. Finally, it was announced that Roadside America would be auctioned off, with all the houses and trains sold off to those who wanted them. 

Closing thoughts: 

 A part of me wishes someone had saved Roadside America or even donated it to a museum. Nothing against any other train displays out there, but what made Roadside America special was that almost everything was handmade. Yes there were some pre-made things such as the train and track, but every tree, buildings, and road was handmade by Laurence himself. 

It gave the layout both a personal touch and made it a time capsule, letting those that went in look at a display that was most likely older then them... 

Lemax Christmas Village 2025

 Not to be that guy, but at the timing of this blog entry, we've got 5 more months before we're going to be singing about old Saint Nick coming down the chimney while relying on twinkling Christmas lights to help us forget that it's dark before 5. 

I've already gone over Lemax's Halloween collection  for 2025, but what do they have in store for Christmas village collectors? Like the Halloween blog, I won't be going over every new item, but I will be going over ones that I feel stand out the most. 

Musical Tree: 

The Musical Christmas tree may not look like much at first glance, but the features it has are worth the investment. Simply connect the tree via bluetooth and it will play some of your favorite holiday hits for you and your Christmas villages to enjoy. 

Kringle's Courier:

This piece just looks too cute to not consider having in your collection. Kringle's Courier shows how Santa and the elves get packages moving from the workshop to Santa's magical sack, with moving conveyer belt showing packages moving along to where they need to be. Also while not a very huge detail, I do like the light in the back of the truck, alongside the "Guaranteed same day delivery" sign. 

The Rocky River Grist Mill: 

The Full Moon Lagoon isn't the only piece that Lemax is offering this year that can second as a table top fountain. Rocky River Grist Mill is a nice looking table top fountain that has everything from light up buildings, ducks in the river, and water moving the mill itself. I really hope Lemax considers making these pieces a thing more often then not. It doesn't have to be every year, but every two or three years would be nice. 

Polly's Pot-Bellied Pig Rescue

As I mentioned in the Halloween village blog, I'm a sucker for Lemax's made-up stores and or company buildings. The Pot-Bellied Pig Rescue is more cute in my opinion then humorous, though I do get a kick out of one of the pigs being named Wilbur. 

Sweet Songbird Music School

Soft spot for made up company's/stores aside, this building reminds me of the old Victorian era homes, and hey, the village choir does need somewhere to go to practice singing for the big Christmas concert. 

The Holly Jolly Hardware Store

Considering how busy the North Pole must get around December, I wouldn't be surprised if there was a few of these around Santa's village. I also really like the elf hat on top of the building. 

The Reindeer Cafe

I'm a sucker for going into Cafe's and getting myself something warm to drink or eat, so it should be no surprise that this piece is one that would catch my eyes. I just hope the Reindeer Cafe sells Carmel hot coco. 

Rolling Roaster Coffee

I'm more of a tea and hot coca guy, but I'll give Rolling Roaster Coffee credit, they do have an interesting set up. 

Northern Lights Skating Pond

I am a sucker for ice skating rinks. It's just not Christmas/winter if there isn't skating around the local frozen pond. 

To see a complete list of Lemax's new Christmas village pieces for 2025, click here.