Beautiful structure: The no. 279-5926 Cripple Creek Engine Works by Menards ($89.99)

The design may lean more toward 1930 than 2020, but it can get the job done whatever era you model.

The front of the Engine Works features suitable signage, two employees, detail pieces and Jack the German shepherd.

I never made room on my layout for an engine service facility (steam or diesel). Oh, I suppose part was available space, but mostly it was finding the right look – a building that captured my imagination. The Cripple Creek Engine Works by Menards may be the closest to my ideal maintenance shop.

The first thing that leapt out to me was all the window space. Locomotive maintenance requires light and there were serious, tall windows on front and rear of the building. There were also skylights galore (six). These are all done in a traditional window styling that could easily date from the 1900s to the 1960s.

There is one run-through engine stall and another dead-end to fit smaller locomotives. There are twin exhaust stacks on the single entry side, and it has the usual base decoration of grass, shrubs, and staff figures. One thing in particular I liked was that there were simulated vines growing on some of the structure’s corners!

The exterior lighting makes the place shine in low lighting. Most notably, you’ll see this at the Cripple Creek Engine Works signage on either side of the building.

The building has a modest footprint, roughly 19 inches wide and 12 inches deep. Illumination requires the Menards 4.5 volt power supply, sold separately.

Check it out at www.Menards.com/Trains.

The rear is identical to the front, save for the detail pieces.

Light is an important element of heavy maintenance. Tall windows, a door, and a power hookup denote the employee entrance.

Ample ambient light should make maintenance and repair work easier for you 1:48 scale workforce.

The building has plenty of room for you to customize the building for any purpose.

The K-Line Berkshire and the MTH 2-6-0 were both good choices to illustrate shop clearances.

You can run a diesel repair shop two. Here is one of a handful of New Haven locomotives in my fleet.

Note the orange Alco through the skylight.