my wife and i want to invest into a train set to have for christmas and to past down to our children. my question is how do i get started? can anyone suggest any books that maybe i can read or make any suggetstions on how i can get started?
A couple of questions…
Will this train ONLY be used at Christmas?
Do you otherwise have interest in model railroading?
Do you have a specific scale in mind?
Are you looking for accurate models or toylike representations?
Are small children involved?
All that being said, I would prefer LINK if it was strictly a holiday decoration. Beyond that, the choices are endless…
Hello. Not all train sets are created equal, and many are downright awful in terms of quality and reliability…and that essentially means very little fun. Poor value to hand down to young 'uns, if you follow me.
Instead, I suggest you think of specific questions, and place the syntax at right in the space under “Search Community”. You are sure to find many threads that are yielded that will answer all your general questions.
Our hosts, Kalmbach Publishing, sell many good ‘how-to’ books about model railroads. If you just want to begin a very modest collection of engines and some rolling stock, then I would point you to Bachmann Spectrum steam engines (their line of diesels doesn’t get so much positive support from what I have gathered here and there). Another set of excellent engines can be had by the “Master” series of engines from Atlas…they’d be diesels. Athearn Genesis makes decent enough steamers, but I would steer clear of any first runs of steam with sound decoders. Their Genesis line of diesels are generally very good, but same for the MRC decoders…be cautious about them. Kato makes nice engines in both N and HO scales. Broadway Limited Imports makes good steamers and some good diesels…again, not so positive in the diesel lines.
All these companies make good rolling stock.
If you are adept and brave, try your hand at eBay once you have a good handle on what you would like to purchase. Caveat emptor, of course.
You could phone or email M. B. Klein’s, Broadway Limited Imports, Caboose Hobbies, Internet Hobbies, Tony’s Train Exchange…all sorts of places would probably coach you to a sound decision once you let them know of your needs and any financial constraints.
Oh, try Craig at Dallas Model Works, too. Other members may add to this list of reliable and helpful owners wh
When I think Christmas, trains, and passing trains to the next generation, I think Lionel trains. Check out Lionels website. Their train engines are die-cast metal, whistle and smoke. They are easy to set up on the floor and made to last for generations. Good luck.
I started our Christmas tree tradition with G-gauge trains. They are very expensive but I got the starter set when my son was 2 years old. We added one piece a year. We started with a company called Kalamazoo which no longer exists. We soon discovered LGB and have stuck with them for all track. The issue with LGB is that they make mostly Eurpoean equipment, so one has to watch to make certain the loco’s and cars are American equipment (assuming of course you don’t want the Eurpoean stuff).
Something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/LGB-Denver-Grande-Passenger-Starter/dp/B000GL1EZ8
or this:
http://www.harrysrailyard.com/LGB_files/StarterSets/SantaFeStart_72423Lg.gif
It says “authentic” in the ad but they are not. They are “shorty” cars to fit around the sharp curves. But they look good - especially for Christmas and one can build from there. The additional “authentic” cars run about $100 each, locos between $300 - $1000.
Another company we buy rolling stock and locomotives from is Bachmann. One really has to watch those also since Bachmann makes two grades of product. There are just general Bachmann things and there are the Spectrum line. The Spectrum locomotives would be the ones to get. Do not start with a Bachmann set as the sets (especially the track) are the lower