The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does [Paperback]

John H. Armstrong (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 270 pages
• Publisher: Simmons Boardman Pub Co; 3rd edition (May 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0911382046
• ISBN-13: 978-0911382044
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #700,199 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Even my curiousity was satisfied, January 29, 2000

By 

J. G. Heiser (Sunninghill, Berks) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does (Paperback)

I'm the kind of person who wants to know why things are made the way they are. This book kept me busy for hours. It is incredibly comprehensive, and is a good read. It explains technology choices (locomotives, cars, track). It explains how operations & dispatch works, and it explains how different signaling systems work. It even delves into business and ownership issues. If you want a core dump of the rail transportation business, get a copy of this book.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For modelers, train buffs and anyone who wants to know!, April 22, 2004

By 

Leonard R Budney - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does (Paperback)

John Armstrong is both a railroader and a railroad modeler. He wrote "Railroad: What it Is, What it Does" to help modelers create realistic layouts by understanding how a real railroad operates. But it doesn't matter if you're a modeler: whatever your reason, if you want to know how railroads operate, then this book is for you!

Armstrong covers every aspect of railroading. Starting with history as far back as the Roman Empire, he surveys the evolution of rail transport from mining cars on wooden tracks through the "big steel rail". He covers the pros and cons of flat wheels on flanged track versus flanged wheels on flat track, stone ties versus timber ties, steel rails versus iron rails, and all of the engineering issues that go into building a stable, long-lasting track--and that's just in the first few chapters.

From there he explains the economic issues that go into deciding where to run the track, how to route the trains, and everything that goes into establishing a railroad operation.

Finally he covers all the details: how a consist is put together; the various cars and their construction; the railroad workers and their various jobs.

This is one of the few books that leaves me feeling like I know all about the subject. It's incredible how he packs so much knowledge into these few pages! He obviously knows, and loves, his subject. And he writes with a storyteller's flair, so it's more like a novel than a text--I was sorry when it was finished!

Do yourself a favor. If you have any interest in trains whatsoever, get this book. You'll read it more than once.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Want to know about the RR.. This book is for you., August 18, 2001

By 

Dennis Cody (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Railroad: What It Is, What It Does (Paperback)

I purchaced the book used and found it to be an asset to my RR Library. It covers all aspects of the RR especially freight service. My only complaint was the maps in my book are hand drawn and needed to blow them up on copy machine to get a good understanding of what they were talking about. They reference the maps quite a bit and turning back and forth got to be a little tough, so made the copys. Great book... buy it NOW !