International Trains Volume 1

International Trains Volume 1 By Henri Patey (13 May 2002) Figure 1 The Sylium team has created a first class engine and cars add-on called International Trains Volume 1: The Paris - St Gervais Sleeping Car Train for Microsoft Train Simulator, which includes the BB22300 and BB22307 engines, and 11 different "UIC" type cars, which are sleeping berth and passenger cars. The Sylium team spared no detail in creating some of the best engines and cars on the market today. Th...

LMS Steam & Freight Add-On By Nels Anderson (27 March 2002) The LMS Steam & Freight CD from 3D Train Stuff gives the fan of British railways the chance to do some realistic freight operating. This is a nice complement to the default passenger equipment for use on the Settle & Carlisle route. Though little noticed while zooming past in the Flying Scotsman, the route does have quite a number of sidings and industrial tracks making it quite suitable for freight operations. Now ...

Western Pacific GP-35 Collector's Edition By Nels Anderson (19 March 2002) General Motors Electo-Motive Division began production of the GP-35 in October 1963. This series of four axle road switchers proved popular, with some 1250 units being produced for U.S. railroads before production ended in January 1966. The 16 cylinder 567D3A engine produced 2500 hp. The classic styling of the GP-35 should also be familiar to American rail fans, as the basic layout is quite similar to o...

Trainz By Matt Peddlesden and James Hunt (22 February 2002) With the final retail release of Aurans' Trainz is now either on store shelves or on its way to store shelves, it seems that the "virtual" railway enthusiast has another product to choose from. Not bad when you think only a year ago people who loved trains were feeling very left out by the P.C. gaming industry. Trainz was first released as an online purchase before Christmas at a cost of $49 US. Since then Strategy Fi...

Modern Tehachapi Pass Route Developer's Edition By Nels Anderson (8 January 2002) In the few months that Microsoft Train Simulator has been out it's become clear that the biggest challenge for developers is creating routes. The available tools are not easy to master and use and apparently there are restrictions in the EULA (end user license agreement) that restrict what commercial route developers can do. Still, there's always going to be someone up to the challenge, and one...

Trainz First Impressions By Pete Higginbotham (22 December 2001) My name is Pete Higginbotham. I am a 51-year-old retiree from the San Francisco Bay Area now living in Southern California. I have been a train enthusiast for quite sometime and worked for a short while in a retail store, which specialized in H.O., and Lionel model trains. I have been involved in several, I believe, rather impressive model train layouts. I spent the afternoon downloading the “demo” version of ...

ProTrain - Rheintalstrecke Koln-Frankfurt By Nels Anderson (19 December 2001) One of the first commercial add-ons for Microsoft Train Simulator, ProTrain takes you to the scenic Rhein Valley region of Germany. ProTrain is a complete add-on package, with some 400 km of track to run on, several complete trains (locomotives, cabs, cars) and a matched set of activities. Installation is typical Windows-simple; insert the CD-ROM and let the install wizard do its work,...

Shantytown Climax 1203 "Patrick" By Michael McReynolds (5 November 2001) I'll be the first to admit that I'm more of a flight simulator person than a train simulator person. However, I do enjoy running a steam locomotive through mountains. It is a challenging, and relaxing hobby. That being said, I'm always on the look out for a good steam locomotive. I believe I have found a locomotive that is revolutionary in its design, and usefulness. The designer is a Kiwi chap named Barry Mun...

TrainMaster Review Note: Click on any screen shot for a full size view. Winter Park, on the Moffat Subdivision, lives up to its name. Introduction I suspect that many people have looked at vehicles and wondered what it would be like to be the person at the controls. Could I fly that plane? What's it like to be sailing that giant ship? Or, since it's the current topic, what's it like to run a train? Trains are perhaps the most intriguing since they offer the least po...