On the occasion of its 40th anniversary, the fair will present more than 30 model railways from five European countries, including 14 German premieres.

Railways in a Bottle

The unique railways in a bottle by Torsten Gutsche from Magdeburg, Germany, will be a very special eye-catcher at Intermodellbau 2018. Everyone knows ships in bottles, into which a bottle is pushed and then erected. But is this also possible with model trains? This was the question the trained engine fitter asked himself 15 years ago and got the idea to try the same thing with model railways. Of course, a model railway system cannot be pushed into a bottle as a whole. So another solution was needed: The systems are assembled outside the bottle, taken apart again and then placed in the bottles in individual parts. Over the years, this has led to the creation of artistic bottle tracks ranging in size from 2 to 54 litres, with each line having a different motif. There are mine, field and park railways, summer and winter landscapes, some with astonishing functions such as rotating carousels, water wheels and lighting. All vehicles have been specially built for the bottle tracks. The impressive unique pieces amaze and show that everything is possible in the world of model making.

Day and night in the Ruhr area

The members of the association Reviermodule e.V. from Essen/Bergisch Gladbach, Germany, did a great job. This year at Intermodellbau, they are presenting their specially developed and expanded replica of the railway and industrial operation in the Ruhr area. On an area of 19 x 6 meters the club shows its industrial railway in this size for the first time in gauge H0 1:87 according to motifs of the "Ruhrpott". The tour begins with a generous crossing-free overpass or unthreading of a double-track main line. This goes from the coal and steel sector to an inland port in which the handling of coal, ore and general cargo is handled. A large shunting and parking area must not be missing here. As a highlight, the trains pass through a colliery and a coking plant, which is typical for the region. The elaborate coking plant module was extended by 120 cm in 2017 and 2018 and is now being presented to the public for the first time. Here the club shows a threading out to a blast furnace plant with two furnaces. In addition to long freight trains, the facility is particularly impressive due to the numerous shunting traffic between the individual coal and steel motifs. The system is controlled digitally with Uhlenbrock's "Intellibox II" on Märklin's K-track. A large canopy provides for realistic side effects, in which a lighting equipped with day and night effects is integrated. To make the extraordinary model even more realistic, the system is rounded off by a specially made background by JoWi.

Through the Swabian Alb Mountains with the Hohenzollerische Landesbahn

The Interessengemeinschaft Modellbahn Neuhausen from Tuttlingen will be represented for the first time at Intermodellbau in 2018 and invites you on a train journey through the Swabian Alb on the original Hohenzollerische Landesbahn. During the ride on the traditional private train you have breathtaking views of the huge Hohenzollern Castle, a grotto with dinosaur excavations and a concert on the Honberg near Tuttlingen. Within the H0 gauge, the lively operation of regional shuttles, several "Gravitas" with cement wagons, railcars such as the NE81 and many other trains can be observed. In addition to the artistically recreated landscape, the numerous technical highlights on the site are impressive. In addition to autonomous, radio-controlled vehicles in 1:87, there is a fully functional crawler excavator to marvel at, which carries out earth movements in the quarry and loads the trucks. These then transport the goods to the trains ready for loading in a realistic manner. All vehicles, from the bus to the crawler excavator to the tractor, are masterly one-offs, all of which were built by the Neuhausen Model Railway Association itself and provide inspiration for all model building enthusiasts.

Gauge 1 from Saxony

The only 1-gauge layout comes from Saxony and was designed by Frieder Neumerkel from Chemnitz. A regional train and museum trains commute on the complex. Magnet-guided cars also drive on a country road.

Visitors to Intermodellbau will find interesting exhibits and innovations in all areas of model making. Around 550 national and international exhibitors will be showing what they have to offer.

As in the previous year, the model railways will be represented in Halls 4 and 7 following the expansion of the exhibition grounds. Fine Models, Spur1-Exklusiv and Wunder have a joint stand with many new models and hand-made samples, a few metres away the Lokladen and Dingler are exhibiting the latest EW1s, among others. The other companies are present in the well-known places. MBW has renounced a stand at short notice.

It won't get hot in the exhibition halls because of the new exhibits. For Thursday temperatures around 28° C are announced. A hot summer's day in April.

Further information in German language can be found here or by clicking on the banner.

The model railways are listed here.