Maybe I've been asleep at the wheel, but it seems to me Menards has increased their selection greatly in a short amout of time. They now have Model Power buildings, and I see the total number of train related items (both HO & O) is presently at 582. Much more than I remember.
They seem to be steadily increasing what they have to offer. I don't have any of the HO scale buildings, but I am interested in the crane that looks like a model of a Liebherr crane.
I think they are doing a great job of getting model railroading exposed to the public.
Mike.
My You Tube
I like them. I have the train station and hobby shop. The buildings come attached to a scenic base and you might have to remove it based on your situation and arrangement. Also, they have fast service when you order.
I have 2 Menards buildings. The Morton Salt Factory and Vetter Sash and Door. These are not buildings that I would put on a serious scale layout but they are well made and beutifully lit. Since my wife is a Blue Bloods fan I am hopping they will make the One Police Plaza Building in HO soon.
Joe Staten Island West
There were a lot of trains on display at Menard's in Columbus, Indiana.
.
I must say... Wally's Service Station looks very good, and it just might find a home on my layout.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
I’ve got my eye on their die cast material handler. It comes with both magnet and grapple attachments. It would be perfect for the scrap metal yard I’m planning.
Alan
Bubbytrains
I recently purchased the Menards O-gauge Martion UFO... I was lucky to find a place for it on my layout.
Last year I purchased the Pepsi Plant, which goes great with my layout's Pepsi Theme... before that I purchased the Morton Salt Factory.
I like them all a lot, however my only complaint is the 4.5 volt AC to DC power adapter that they need... I did buy the 3-plug adapter that has three 30-inch extensions, which will probably work... but I am limited to what I can plug into my power bar under the train layout.
But I would really rather be able to toggle each "building" accessory on or off, especially the Martian UFO that has a motor in the UFO that hoists the cow up and down... I'm wondering how long that motor will last.
It really shouldn't be an issue since I don't run my layout for any long periods of time anyways.
I have read where some guys connect a DC transformer to the buildings, but I'm not sure how they go about doing that, or the rewiring involved... I'm very curious on how they do that.
AirMojoI like them all a lot, however my only complaint is the 4.5 volt AC to DC power adapter that they need...
AirMojoI have read where some guys connect a DC transformer to the buildings, but I'm not sure how they go about doing that, or the rewiring involved... I'm very curious on how they do that.
If I post something and I'm wrong, the gurus correct me and I would rather learn than be offended, so here goes. Working from the building backwards.
There are various size barrel connectors. Somebody must know what size Menards uses. There are connectors on ebay that have a barrel on one side and wire terminals on the other.
There are things called buck voltage regulators. On Ebay, from China, they cost about a $1, maybe that is where the name comes from. You can dial down the voltage ot 3.3 V. Anything 4.5v or less should work and Menards buildings I have seen are quite bright at 4.5.
From there you need a bus and a 12 v supply from a wall wart.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
BigDaddy AirMojo I like them all a lot, however my only complaint is the 4.5 volt AC to DC power adapter that they need... AirMojo I have read where some guys connect a DC transformer to the buildings, but I'm not sure how they go about doing that, or the rewiring involved... I'm very curious on how they do that. If I post something and I'm wrong, the gurus correct me and I would rather learn than be offended, so here goes. Working from the building backwards. There are various size barrel connectors. Somebody must know what size Menards uses. There are connectors on ebay that have a barrel on one side and wire terminals on the other. There are things called buck voltage regulators. On Ebay, from China, they cost about a $1, maybe that is where the name comes from. You can dial down the voltage ot 3.3 V. Anything 4.5v or less should work and Menards buildings I have seen are quite bright at 4.5. From there you need a bus and a 12 v supply from a wall wart.
AirMojo I like them all a lot, however my only complaint is the 4.5 volt AC to DC power adapter that they need...
AirMojo I have read where some guys connect a DC transformer to the buildings, but I'm not sure how they go about doing that, or the rewiring involved... I'm very curious on how they do that.
I wish the UFO was available in HO!
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
UFOs can be any scale - maybe the aliens are 10 feet tall, then the O scale UFO is perfect for HO. Or maybe they are like 2 feet tall, then the O scale UFO is perfect for G scale.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
I have only done a cursory experiment, because I have the HO Wallys service station, but, it seems that the board Menards uses to drive the LED's and motors is regulated. I have a 'wall wart' that has switchable outputs. Anything under 3v and nothing works at all. Lights are not really noticiably dimmer at 3v vs. 4.5v, which leads me to believe the board is regulated. You might have to disconnect the lighting from the board, and/or use pulse width modulation to dim the LEDs, which I can't stand, because I can see the 'strobing' effect on the LEDs.
jrbernierI wish the UFO was available in HO!
https://www.walthers.com/ufo-flying-saucer-kit-with-working-lights-5-alien-figures
A little too modern for my era, plus mine would need dynamic brakes. The flying saucer was a hot-shot freight on the Erie, IIRC.
Regards, Ed
There is no such thing as a UFO being the wrong era
True, but no one really reported them until the 40's. My theory is the aliens aren't interested until a planet achieves atomic status.
Meynards has some great buildings, but they are too expensive for me. Walthers Cornerstone or Pikestuff(for generic buildings) are my preferred picks. If you like their stuff, all the better.
According to some bona fide scientists, octopuses might be from outer space: https://www.newsweek.com/alien-octopuses-outer-space-930942
joe323There is no such thing as a UFO being the wrong era
Roswell got bad reviews.
My theory, we will never be visited by aliens.
The nearest galaxy, Andromeda, is 2.5 million light years from Earth which means it takes light 2.5 million years to get here from there.
When we look at Andromeda, we are not seeing Andromeda as it looks like today, we are seeing Andromeda as it looked 2.5 million years ago.
The people on Andromeda are not seeing Earth as it is today, they are seeing Earth as it was 2.5 million years ago, in other words, they are seeing a planet inhabited by T-Rex!!!
They ain't a commin here!
I recently bought the HO scale Menards Pepsi plant, and I am very impressed with it, and I got a free package of trees as well.
I am looking at their Starbucks store, but now they are only giving a $6.60 coupon with the purchase. The fine print says you can only use the discount in one of their stores, not on line.
Since I live in Florida, not much chance of me driving to the North Central US to visit one of their stores.
Would it really break their bank account to allow the coupons to be used on line?
B. BryceMy theory, we will never be visited by aliens.
They may already be here. Aliens are like ghosts.........just because you can't see one doesn't mean they don't exist.
This is a good model of the Roswell UFO scene on the Pasco County Modular Railroaders portable layout.
I wish I was at home right now to share pictures of some of my UFO models.
The Menard's UFO is a neat item. I really like the cow being abducted. To change it to HO scale you would probably only need to replace the cow.
B. Bryce My theory, we will never be visited by aliens. The nearest galaxy, Andromeda, is 2.5 million light years from Earth which means it takes light 2.5 million years to get here from there. When we look at Andromeda, we are not seeing Andromeda as it looks like today, we are seeing Andromeda as it looked 2.5 million years ago. The people on Andromeda are not seeing Earth as it is today, they are seeing Earth as it was 2.5 million years ago, in other words, they are seeing a planet inhabited by T-Rex!!! They ain't a commin here!
If you had the ability to resolve a dinosaur from that distance, you'd almost certainly be able to magic your way to Earth to see what intelligence arose from those lifeforms.
Without skipping over the neighbors, a civilization modestly advanced from our own over at, say, Chalawan would readily detect the sudden ramp up in our EM emissions over the previous decades and deduced what some of them are, based on their properties. It would take 200 years for a Bracewell probe to get here, if they're basically us, but they are know someone is there to find it.
BigDaddy There are various size barrel connectors. Somebody must know what size Menards uses. There are connectors on ebay that have a barrel on one side and wire terminals on the other. There are things called buck voltage regulators. On Ebay, from China, they cost about a $1, maybe that is where the name comes from. You can dial down the voltage ot 3.3 V. Anything 4.5v or less should work and Menards buildings I have seen are quite bright at 4.5. From there you need a bus and a 12 v supply from a wall wart.
Thanks Harry... Hopefully someone knows the proper barrel & pin sizes for the Menard adapters.
I tried hooking up my Martian UFO, but I was about 2 feet short using the available 3rd plug from my adapter, so a cable extension would be nice... you would think that Menards would sell one, but I don't see one available.
Did look online, but I need the exact specs... I emailed Menards, so I'll see how that goes, but I'm not hopeful on an accurate or quick response.
I'll probably just add a dedicated power bar for the adapters located more central to the layout instead of where my regular power bar strip is, which is way to one corner where my transformers are.
B. BryceMy theory, we will never be visited by aliens. The nearest galaxy, Andromeda, is 2.5 million light years from Earth which means it takes light 2.5 million years to get here from there. When we look at Andromeda, we are not seeing Andromeda as it looks like today, we are seeing Andromeda as it looked 2.5 million years ago.
Andromeda is the not the closest star to us, that's only 4.2 light years away.
Problem as I see it, even if we learn to travel at 90% light speed, is not the time, it is the capital envestment and the operating cost to go exploring. If you have to spend years to get to each star and then propbably not find a new home, why pay for it.
Dave
AirMojoHopefully someone knows the proper barrel & pin sizes for the Menard adapters.
The 2.5 and 2.1 mm connectors look the same to me. Surely they didn't invent a one off odd ball plug to use.
davidmurrayAndromeda is the not the closest star to us, that's only 4.2 light years away. Problem as I see it, even if we learn to travel at 90% light speed, is not the time, it is the capital envestment and the operating cost to go exploring. If you have to spend years to get to each star and then propbably not find a new home, why pay for it. Dave
According to :
"The Andromeda Galaxy (aka Messier 31) has been estimated to be somewhere around 2.5 million lightyears away from us here on Earth. Due to its relative size and proximity to the Milky Way, Andromeda can actually be observed with the naked eye in the night sky.
Also because of its blueshift we can determine that it is approaching our galaxy at around 110 kilometers per second. The Andromeda Galaxy (aka Messier 31) has been estimated to be somewhere around 2.5 million lightyears away from us here on Earth. Due to its relative size and proximity to the Milky Way, Andromeda can actually be observed with the naked eye in the night sky."
Also because of its blueshift we can determine that it is approaching our galaxy at around 110 kilometers per second."
This is from Neil deGrasse Tyson: Collision of the Milky Way and Andromeda
Wikipedia: Andromeda–Milky Way collision
The Astrophysical Journal: The M31 Velocity Vector. III."
As for myself, I've never been there, so I must rely on the Internet, because no one ever lies on the Internet !!!
Either way, they are not seeing us, they are seeing us a really long time ago, and if they are seeing T-Rex, this is the last place they will come.
My theory and I'm sticking to it!
Aliens would not necessarily need to be from a whole other galaxy. They could simply be from another solar system, which potentially could be any number of stars in our own galaxy. 4.2 light years is a more accurate distance to consider.
It looks like Menards does have what I need... they were quick to respond to my email !
8-Piece Plug and Play Accessory Kit...
https://www.menards.com/main/home-decor/menards-collectibles/train-stuff-from-menards/train-stuff/8-piece-plug-play-accessory-kit/2794035/p-1493187863820-c-13318.htm
joe323 There is no such thing as a UFO being the wrong era
The mention of the dynamic brakes might suggest that I was being a tad sarcastic.
I should have used a "Funny, ha-ha" emoji.
Model Railroading IS Fun!
Cheers, Ed
I have tried to get on the Menard's web site through the ad on this forum but it doesn't work, that is for me. I tried on line with Google, similar problem noted.
Any suggestion, I like the gas station..
Robert Sylvester
Newberry and Columbia Line, SC