The Story
About the MP Railroad
A fictional HO scale railroad inspired by the real Missouri Pacific — built in a spare room, one section at a time.
Mississippi & Pennsylvania
HO Scale · DCC · Sound
Who I Am
Hi, I'm Cody
The MP Railroad is my personal model railroading project — a fictional HO scale shelf layout inspired by the real Missouri Pacific Railroad. I started this project to combine my love of trains, history, and building things with my hands.
The "MP" in my version stands for Mississippi & Pennsylvania, a fictional shortline that connects the industries and landscapes I find most interesting to model. It's not prototypically accurate — it's my layout, my rules.
This site and YouTube channel exist to document the journey — the wins, the mistakes, the techniques, and the community. If you're learning how to build a model railroad, you're in the right place.
The Journey
Build Timeline
The Idea
Got back into model railroading after years away. Started researching the Missouri Pacific Railroad and HO scale layouts.
Benchwork Begins
Built the first section of benchwork for the shelf layout. Laid the first rails and ran the first locomotive.
DCC Conversion
Converted the entire layout to Digitrax DCC. Started installing decoders and sound in the fleet.
Scenery & YouTube
Began scenery work and launched the YouTube channel to document the build.
Ongoing Build
Continuing to add structures, improve scenery, and grow the fleet. The layout never stops evolving.
The Layout
By the Numbers
HO
Scale
DCC
Control System
6+
Locomotives
Shelf
Layout Style