hello all im john hall in north florida. thank you for letting me in. ill try to not be too much of a pain.
i want to ask you all some things if thats ok? hope im in right forum ive loved trains since early on growing up around real ones in jacksonville. models of all forms scales guages and about anything to do with them. especially mow units
like many i have no layout and also live in very rural north florida (yes theres still
rural florida) im wanting to find club any club of any scale near enough i can get ride to. i dont drive. not supposed to anyway and if thats a no go
get a nice large portable building and start an N scale group.
enter my issue i got hurt 3 years back when my jd 4x4 loader tried to squash me and ive lost 3/4 of my sight. then 2 heart attacks. lotta crap for a young guy anyway. im thinking if i once again run my trains ill feel better.
even if it just a loop ill be happier. being as you all are in the know can you share advice of things that might make N scale doable or at least easier?
i dont want to change scales as ive spent my whole life to get what i have in rolling stock and structure. especially with the fianacial hardship an injury causes
last question do any of you know or remember a fellow named harry myers from near green cove springs fl? he was an N scale club president from over that way.
much thanks to admin and my new forum friends. john
Welcome to the forum John.
My first thought with the sight challenge was to recommend a larger scale than N such as S,O or G. Having too much âstuffâ already does not lend itself to that change. But where there is a âwill there is a wayâ, We just have to find the wayâŚ
So what are the specific challenges that you envision having to putting together a layout, and what outside resources do you have to over come the challenges, friends, neighbors, etc⌠Even with out handycaps we all have challenges to accomplishing what we want in the hobby. We are here to attempt to provide help, suggestions, and advice on certain pitfalls we have learned along the way.
Again welcome to the forum, I hope we can provide you encouragement and aid in your quest to run some trains.
Will
P.S. While the name Harry Myers is familiar for some reason, I am afraid I do not know the one you were asking about.
Well I am working in N scale but even after 4 operations on my eyes I think my eyesight is still OK. I need a lot of light in the work area. So much that I donât need much more when I take photos. A good magnifying glass would help but I have been to stubborn to get one yet. I have a cheap digital camera that I use a lot. I find that it is easier to pick up on faults with a model or scene on my computer screen than by looking at the actual item. This could be because the image is larger or it might be something about the two dimensional image or just that taking the photo and loading into the computer puts some time between working on the object and critiquing it. I donât know why it works but it works for me.
One of those rerailer ramps is nice to. I had to hold a big Mag Light flashlight a few inches from the track to get a car on the rails before I got one of those.
Welcome aboard John,
I canât help with your N scale questions, I model HO. I will say that I considered
N scale before starting my current layout, but I was a little intimadated by the size.
I use DCC and all I could think about was the trouble I would have installing
decoders. Not to mention couplers and such.
After reading what you wrote about your eye sight, N scale could be a problem
for you. But you have modeled it in the past, so Iâm sure you have considered
this.
There are several people here that model N scale and could help you better.
Good luck and welcome, Dave
EDIT: See, Iâm a slow typer and before I could post some N scaler
already chimed in[:D]
thank you all for the warm reception . even just thinking about trying to get back running trains makes me feel better. funny how trains do that
well im sure id be better with HO or larger but too deep to turn back now. of course what i think is a lot of stuff might not be either. maybe 300 cars 50 engines and of the engines only 5 or 6 altlas or concor. but i have about 70 structure that i doubt i could replace.
i do like north florida lines FEC SCL Chessie and equipment but i never got to the level of actually having it all together. and modelling say jacksonville to green cove springs or like that.
i been away from trains so long i dont even know what dcc is when i took my layout down years ago cab command control was just begining and certainly not in my reach.
im fortuante that my gal like trains too and is very happy we going to set them up again. she can see but is in wheelchair. i will have to check module heights and either go
with staionary layout she can reach and do seperate modules if indeed i ever do find N club OR make a walkway near the modules to raise her up??
i can see ok out of the top quadrant of left eye so i can still enjoy watching them run and seeing well done layouts. hope it stays that way. had 2 surgeries on eyes and doc cant fix but says i will not see at all in furture. scary stuff.
so im thinking using the kiss methods with minimal blocks and wiring manual turnouts
and such . im very sure there are new products i dont even know exist yet i been away so long too.
the building is going to either be a 12x24 or x 16 depending if they can get it past my wells.
dont get me wrong i have plenty of room for a garden railroad and really enjoy making
wooden structure for the large scale trains but i have this N now. since the ssi denied me i was making some small wooden strcuture and selling them as birdhousing . i had a doctor stop and buy all i had an
As far as finding a club, both the Model railroader Magazine home page and The Worldâs Greatest Hobby website have club finder functions where you plug in either your town or your zip code and they produce a list of clubs in you area (if any).
Itâs on the magazine home page, in the list of âresourcesâ on the left side of the page. The link to the Model railroader Magazine club finder is: http://www.trains.com/clubs/findaclub.asp
The list of suggestions is almost endless, and probably warrants several more posts/replies as you start to develop more of an idea. But Iâd give you two to start with. Not sure if theyâll apply to your situation, but anyways.
Consider using hollow core wood doors for your layout. They are easily found at Lowes or Home Depot. Theyâre light but very rigid. Easy to move, can be set up on a table (which could help in wheelchair access) or propped against the wall when not in use. Standard length is 6â-8" and they come in widths from 24" to 36", although you probably need at least 30" to get in a decent curve radius. Can be easily made into modules (obviously not N Track compliant) for a home layout.
Consider one of the combined track/roadbed systems such as Kato Unitrack. It costs a bit more but gives bulletproof track, which is important in getting N scale to run without problems.
Your more than welcome to ask more questions. The more specific you can be the easier it is to provide answers.
thank you ed. im lacking track anyway. helped a friend get his going so i dont have much left after that. i had considered the kato track . it was excellent back when and im sure even better nowadays.
i like door idea too for a start up , i do want to once again get a copy of specs for n trak modules as they may be the only way i do get any fellowshipâŚ
being N scale a lot of MRR can be put into a 12x14 or larger building. price is right also at 44 bucks per month on the shed. delivered and set and also wired. i have a 12x24
already but its full of wood tools.
much thanks ed i do apreciate it and will centainly ask lots as i get it going. best regards. john
Hello John, and welcome to the forum. Iâm an N scaler myself - at least for the moment, but am considering moving up to HO in the near future. Youâll find a great bunch of people here that can answer any question you might have about model railroading, which Iâm sure youâre probably already well aware of.
Happy railroading, and weâll be seeing you down the lineâŚ
Here are some links that should get you some information on the N trak modules. They do have a lot of local orginizations and I am sure they would like to add a member with a nice wood shop.[:D]
since youâre determined to stick with N scale (and who wouldnât with all the equipment youâve collected already!) i think a high quality magnifier would be a good investment .
think of DCC as the evolution of the cab command control systems that were being sold back when , with the decoders stadardized so that any manufacturers decoder works with any other manufacturers control systems . the problem DCC is going to pose for you is that installing decoders in 50 locos that werenât designed for it is going to be a lot of work and fairly expensive . even low price decoders are about $15 - $20 per decoder . and the hard part is going to be modifying the locos to install them , not going to be easy with your vision challenges . paying someone else to install decoders will also be expensive . i guess you could do a few at a time . the upside to DCC is that wiring is generally less compicated than the old block DC system . and you wouldnât have to look at the switch position to see which cab is assigned to which block
so DCC is still a hard choice in your case . a lot depends on if you can get help installing it
you guys are great . somewhere in the vastness of this wonderful place i say it said âthis is the best club we could ask forâ and it is.
i did search for current clubs near me. i p[retty much guessed right. nobody within 75 miles
but did find hobby shop 21 miles from me. thats something i try to do is buy from hobby shop instead of bulk seller. even though money is always an issue what little more it costs to patronize a shop is far outweighed by the fact i dont have to worry about my drunken mail carrier placing the anvil on my train , i get to get it now, im seldom disapointed as i get to handle it and be sure. and the wisdom and advice of the shop owner cannot be priced.
this shop is in high springs florida btw. called his and hers hobby. my squaw will like that too. she always says gals like trains too
yes these sheds are easy to insulate as they have metal studs. made by lark out of vidalia ga. my lot is shady so most likely a small ac will be just fineâŚ
thanks so much for links. the computer has opened a new world of info for me . not being able to see little small print in mags makes it tough. i cant see what im typing in here either but can enlarge it to read it. so it works good.
im a florida blind services client and they brought me a big monitor a 17" and its very nice. they as i hope that with it i can find some sort of employment on the net. no market for semi blind high rise neon guy . so im hopeful something will come along thats real.
selling the doc all them buildings make me think maybe if i had real deal plans instead of just something i clabbered together. folks with longer green but less time might do as the doc did. i did not even know what a well detailed and painted structure went for but the doc and i were both very happy. if you treat folks well they will be anything i guess.
he told me he wants me to build a water tower and station for him and there is no rush
but li
the power control i have is old as me i guess comapred to dcc equipment. the they both
mrc units.
even though i have lots of engines . well quite a few anyway. only a treasured few are smooth runners like atlas. so in total maybe 8 atlas and 3 concor. all the rest are mini trix
or old lead sleds of some brand probably bachmans . been so long i have forgot what models they are but long nose. most likely to be come siding birds.
hearing of the bachmans with built in dcc might be my avenue. right now id bee out there if it was a sigle line with a single rs3 or gp40 pulling for me.
John, let me add my welcome to the forum. These fellows have given you very thoughtful advice, and they have helped me a great deal since I joined the forum early this year.
Would you profit from a video camera set up near the tracks to help you to see what is happening in and around your hands? With a 17" monitor, you might have a useful tool in the camera, and get even more enjoyment with your N-scale rolling stock and locos.
Perhaps you are way ahead of me on this.
I, too, would ask you to consider DCC. With your sightedness issues, you will find that DCC frees you up from having to reach for block controls so oftenâŚit will give you a better buffer, or more leverage over the layout is maybe a better way to put it.
Too bad about that train bug. Itâs a nasty one and takes years to get rid ofâŚ[:D] and multiple visits to the train âclinicâ.
my middle name should be off topic or forum challenged
to be more specific and answer the questions from folks trying to help me. the problems i see are wiring any kind of layout as i remember how bad 50 plus blocks and 20 switches
were back when i could see a lot better.
next i would say figuring which path to travel either staionary or modularâŚi think hollow doors and uni track might solve both issues⌠i do want to find someway to quiet the resonating of the doors if i can.
not being prottypical but still liking good scenery i wonder what im now capable of now.
as far as help goes i have 1 crippled ex florida beach bunny scheduled for major back surgery on the 7th.
what i do have is 2 big totes a pair of good men will struggle with and thats a lotta N
i also got the bug again and the will to see it so. what else i got is the very best darn place i coulda ever ended up at.
i do at this time have another question . on these new bachman N locos how well do they run and pull? anyone else making entry level locos that are ok or good or ?
is lifelike good or still iffy or for that matter still around at all in N scale.
never even thought about cam and biggie monitor. wow! that would be so so good. i can just see my steel train passing my mill complex right now⌠would take a small little cam to be in an N loco . i been away waaaaay to long i can tell already
Welcome to the forum, John. I have to concur with those who recommend changing scales. I changed from HO to On30 some time ago, and love every minute of it. I highly recommend it, especially with the mentioned vision trouble. On30 is O scale narrow gauge. It runs on HO track. You can have a LOT of railroad in a pretty small space. Check it out, you might like it.
thank you all very much for the wisdom. and yes im weighing all the choices. there are so many nowadays. i thought the 80âs were full of choices.
harry myers lived around the area north of green cove springs florida about 10 miles near the st. johns river. he was an avid N scale collector and a main engineer for the club ran out of the old jail facility annex in green cove. its been a long time and i was just curious if anyone knew him. he loved trains and had untold numbers of tackle boxes packed with primo rolling stock. a wonderful man whom enjoyed the best hobby going.
Thereâs another model railroader and poster on this forum who lives in Green Cove Springs. On the blue tool bar near the top of the page click on âmembersâ and search for capt_turk. You might try emailing him and see if he knows him. He hasnât posted in a week but he spends a lot of time at sea and might be off on a cruise.
ive loved trains since early on growing up around real ones in jacksonville. models of all forms scales guages and about anything to do with them. especially mow units