New to the hobby. Want to build an interesting layout for weekend use in approximately 8’ by 10’ space. What is the largest gauge I should consider for this space? If HO, which manufacturers of equipment and track should I consider, with an emphasis on quality?
Thanks.
Ho 4x8 might work, get some Athearn rtr or bluebox to start out. They are reliable and not to expensive
This is an Atlas HO trackplan for a 6X10 space.
http://www.atlasrr.com/Code100web/images/10016.jpg
I see no reason that you can’t add two feet of length to the foot portion of the sideways L. That would give you a longer passing siding and maybe room for another spur. I always thought that a nice big hil in the middle of the Foot of the L and a town on the leg, would be an interesting layout. But I am doing differnt things. But I hope you find this of use.
Sincerely.
James
no offence to rbr60, but man do we need some mods and stikies, this question must come up atleast 3 times aweek. seriously, we need stikies so we wont get the same questions over and over again
But it’s for a different space each time, with different needs. After all, everyone’s differnt! But we do need some stickies, like a “right DCC” sticky…
Matthew
And of course I completely didn’t answer your question. The best manufacturers on the market are Kato, Atlas, Proto 1000 and 2000 (owned by walthers) Athearn Genisis, and Broadway Limited Imports (Sound units)
For beginners, normal bluebox athearns are good, as mentioned nefore, they are cheap and reliable. But as you get into the better quality models mentioned above, price can double, or in the case of BLI, go up by a factor of four!
HO sounds like a good scale for your space, and those manufacturers are in HO. I wouldn’t rule out N however, and the same brand names for the most part make good N scale engines.
Matthew
Ok, lets answer his question, not turn this into a “ba***he forum” thread.
rbr60. HO is the largest I would use for this space. You could get away with O scale, but there would not be anything in the way of operations. I agree with the suggestion for athearn, but only to a point. The athearn blue box freight and passenger cars are a great value, and pretty cheap. But for the same money as an athearn engine, you can get a better running proto 2000 or Atlas engine. You can only get this deal if you look around online at places like www.trainworld.com . However, if this layout is for a small child, the more durable athearns might be better. If you are looking at steam engines I suggest IHC. Also, you might want to consider going with DCC control from the get go so you dont have to upgrade later.
My opinion; A 4X8 is the was a lot of people start out and it may be the easiest way to go. Since you have the space, you may may want to build around the room, by that I mean to build it next to the wall around the room, this way you can make it no wider than 2 to 3 feet running down each side of the wall and on one or both ends you can have a turnaround (loop) to go back the other way, the main advantage of this if your like I am is just watching your trains run!! Mine is like this in a room that is 9X9 and it leaves plenty of room on the inside to move around and everything is easy to reach. It also helps when doing scenery because you have smaller spaces to to work with from say 18" to 24" except on each end where your loops are. You can find lots of ideas from people here on the fourm, lots of nice layouts and ideas for industries and scenery. Feel free to ask questions someone always has an answer!!
Here is a link on the fourm that may help you out some. http://www.trains.com/community/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=25663
My Sticky…
http://www.rolleiman.com/trains/clinic2p1.html
Good luck,
Jeff
thanks all, for the useful feedback.
Wade through all the “Newbie”, “Need help”, “Where to start”? etc. etc. threads. There’s a massive amount already been said.
But then…
Try to clarify (list) your own questions and ask those. They won’t be dumb… dumb is NOT asking a question about something you need to know the answer to.
It is MUCH easier for those of us who have been around for some time to answer specific questions… and equally much easier for other new beginners to pick up both answers and things they haven’t thought of from specific question heads.
This isn’t a knock. I’ve only been on this forum a couple of months and I’ve seen your type of question over and over… As I say, I’m not knocking… but there is far more there than I can even begin to remember to tell you.
BIG thing to tell you… enjoy yourself!
if it was me i would go with N scale. but you have 2 have good eyestite 2 work with N scale.
I want to disagree and say that you don’t have enough space to build an 4x8 layout. You pretty much have to build an around the room shelf layout. Iain Rice has a couple good books that have plans that would fit your space.
Download XtraCAD and take a stab at designing something. Upload it here and we will give you comments and ask questions that will make you think about what you want. Someone will suggest reading Track Planning for Realistic Operations by John Armstrong, so you might as well get it on the sooner side. It is required redeading.
Also think about this. For the amount of time and money you are going to put into this hobby , it really makes sense to plan, plan, plan, post your plans, research, plan post your plans and plan some more.
hi and welcome to the forum !
largest scale in an 8x10 room … well you could squeeze a G scale layout in there if you went around the walls . it would have to be a pretty simple trackplan though . i think O narrow guage would be the largest practical size for your space . the trackplan wouldn’t be overly complicated and to avoid ‘finishing’ the layout too soon you could have a rule to only have craftsman quality rolling stock and buildings .
[#welcome]
Any scale - Z, N, HO, S, O, or G - is workable in this space. You could shoehorn some interesting layouts into this space, but the most practical would be an around the walls layout that is 2 1/2 ft deep leaving a 3x5 center operating area. This requires a duckunder or gate of some kind. Another alternative would be a 2 ft aisle along the door side with a 6x10 or 8x8 layout. This would require popup access to reach the back.
You have to decide what you want to do. Smaller scales favor longer trains, more railroad for a given space. Larger scale place more emphasis on the trains, scratch/kit building is easier, and are easier to see for those of us whose eyesight is declining. I personally would do an around the walls in S scale.
Enjoy
Paul