Hi all and just looking for a little info/help. My wife and I are going to get into model railroading and have decided on HO scale. We have found what looks like a nice 4x8 setup and were wondering if anyone has any ideas, good or bad about it. It is by Woodland Scenics and it is called there River Pass layout. Everything is included except for locomotive and cars.
Here is a link to the whole package:
http://www.trainsetsonly.com/page/TSO/CTGY/RIVERPASS
Thanks for any help.
Welcome to the forum and to HO. There is nothing bad to say about WS except it can be expensive. There are many ways to get a 4x8 layout that will cost less, but take more time and energy. If cost is not a problem, you will get an intro to the WS way of building and have an opperating layout quite quickly. It will help you discover if scenery and layout building is the fun part. When it comes to buildings, if you hang out on this forum, you will find an infinate number of alternatives and additions to a semi prefab WS layout. If this is all new to you, some reading of magizines and threads on this forum will tell you a lot.
When it comes to locos, cars and power pac/opperating systems, let’s talk a little before you buy much. You can spend a lot and wish you had something else.
I have only one word of advice…okay, a few then.
In this hobby, as a general rule, you get what you pay for. If you pay for what others make, or for their ideas, you may get lucky and end up with something that you find to your liking over time, or you may find that you are out several hundreds of dollars and detest the results.
So, with that in mind, here is the advice, and I give it freely: spend time on learning! You won’t regret it. The more you temper your enthusiasm, the better will be your introduction to this rather costly hobby. The more you learn, the better the results in your first and subsequent forays into developing a good trackplan and layout. Many people have started with a 4X8, and do well. Some, like me, thought big(ger) and made, not one, but several major errors. If I had only spent more time reading and asking questions, I would have had a big(ger), but much better and more satisfying layout…and fewer expensive regrets.
So, there ya go…
Welcome!! As others suggested spend some time researching!!! The river pass layout is pretty cool looking but i would suggest if operation matters building your own(with a yard loco faciltiy,yard sidings) So give some more info for use and we can give you good advice.
I cannot find a top view of the layout. But from the pictures I can find it looks like a simple “three times around” configuration. Basicallly the train will simply go around and around. There are few “operational” possibilities with it. I am afraid it will become old rather quickly. On the other hand, if all you want is a train passing through scenery for showing off to guests this has some great possibilites. The finished pictures of the layout I’ve seen are really sharp.
The DIY network featured this layout in a recent series
http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/hb_collections/article/0,2033,DIY_13874_4244752,00.html
As the others have already pointed out, to purchase this whole package (the base, the track, the scenery, the buildings) looks to be quite expensive. Doing it “from scratch” would probably be much cheaper.
Welcome to the world’s greatest hobby.
The WS layout kit will let you build a beginner’s layout quickly, but you shouldn’t consider it an end unto itself. How hard would it be to add more track - a yard - an extension to a second layout on another 4X8 table?
As others have said, there are less expensive, albiet more time consuming, ways of getting the same result as a WS layout kit. More significantly, there are literally hundreds of layout plans for 4x8 tables. Starting is a good time to make haste slowly, not to achieve perfection (since no one ever has) but to avoid frustration.
Good luck with your new hobby and your new layout.
Chuck
Thanks to all for your input.
We are looking at just building a small layout like this. I don’t know if we would ever want to go to a larger layout, but if we did I am pretty handy with modifying stuff and could probably add to this layout without much trouble. We thought this was a good setup as it came with everything out of the box, other than the trains themselves. Cost is not a real issue and we will probably have a lot more questions when it comes time to buy the locomotive and cars.
Have you seen the recent series in Model Railroader by Dave Methlie?
Have a look at some of the scenery books Kalmbach are offering too as they’ll give you inspiration to personalise your version of the WS layout.
You’ve picked a good starting point and I’d look at whether you want sound as well as there are lots of locos now coming with sound and that really enhances the overall feel. You can build in speakers for background sounds too as you build, playing off a cd or tape or digital sound unit like the Model Rectifier Corp ones. Investigate Digital Command Control ,DCC, if you want sound in the trains as it keeps them powered up all the time, but not much of an advantage otherwise on a small layout, and it affects how you wire things up like the point switches.
Good luck there’s loads of good advice and opinions on this forum
I echo ARTHILL – take a look at past threads on this forum if you have the time. I can’t tell you how much I learned by reading various topics posted over the past few years. There’s almost nothing that hasn’t come up time and time again. Couple your own ideas and aspirations with the advice of some very accomplished hobbyists here and you will be on your way to a very satisfying adventure playing with trains.
Obviously I have a lot of respect for the folks who hang out around here – They’ve all contributed to my education.
Welcome to the hobby.
[#welcome] Starting out is always a confusing time, There is so much available these days. Read alot and get good advice from some of the top modelers around this site. Art Hill , Bob Beaudreax ( I most likely slaughtered his name ) Antoniofp45 just to name a couple really good guys.
welcome to the hobby and the forums
plenty of good advice above , so i won’t even attempt to add to it
just remember the end result is to have fun [:D]
Just to be contrary, I would maybe recommend going with something simpler to start. A couple manufacturers offer versions of what’s called the “World’s Greatest Hobby” track packs. Everyone is different, but I would tend towards starting out simple and getting things working, then adding things as time goes on.
p.s. If you do go with the WGH trackplan, I’d probably get the Kato HO Unitrack version.
[#welcome]
That is awsome that you AND your wife are both getting into it! I imagine that might make purchases easier…
I am guilty or biting off more than I could chew and I thing starting out with one of those WS kits is a great idea.
Have a great time building it.
Peter
[8D][#welcome][8D]
The only bad thing I can about the WS layout packs is that they’re expensive. After you build it, take time to get some items together and see if you can build your own scene to maybe incorporate into it. I always find that starting a new layout is the most confusing time. I find it goes much better if I lay the track down temporarily to get an idea of what I want, then design the scenery areas around it. I like a continuous run setup, but I also like to have some switching action. I’ll have one train drop off some cars and pick up others then have another train pick up the cars from the first, or just pu***hem into the siding for later pickup.
The main point of this hobby is to have fun. Some people find the most fun to be in the building and making scenery. Others like a lot of switching, shuffling action. I like to have a train doing some switching while staying out of the way of another train running the loop.
Have fun.[:D]
Ditto to what Jeffrey said. I like having a mainline train running continuously while I work a local switch job.
As for the WS products, the expense is from having WS build all the parts for you to assemble into a railroad. If you examine the pieces you get in the WS kit, and you are pretty handy with modifying things, you should be able to buy foam at the local home center and cut the parts you need to build a layout. I did that several years ago in N scale, using the Terrain For Trains module as my guide. It worked out well for me and cost less than half of what the pre-engineered module would have cost, plus I was able to make changes as I went along.
Any way you start in model railroading is good. If money isn’t a big consideration, go with the WS product line. You will have fun, learn along the way and be able to go on to bigger and/or better layouts in the future, if youso desire.
Good luck, have fun and keep the forum posted!
Darrell, quiet…for now
Do you like package holidays? Riding the bus? Fine for a week or two but would you want to live there?
Everything’s in the box… yeah, okay… maybe like a Chinese meal… half an hour later you want a real meal.
Just to be even more grim… if you go with a plan (someone else has made complete in itself) branching out is not so easy and you will always tend to be stuck with the limitations of the original.
Not being rude but modelling RR with your wife is pretty unusual - GOOD LUCK to both of you- you both might benefit from considering what you each and jointly want to get out of it… better to do this before the $$$ flow. I would recomend not trying to use a “joint activity” as a side door to getting a solo activity started… also hot solder, burnt fingers, “who lost/broke/melted/trod on that bit” is not a good source of positive bonding… this applies to layouts “for the kids” as well.
Great if you both get interested and both develop the interest… also good if one of you only develops further… just be real about what you’re doing going in… it’s cheaper than alimony.
Be warned… “she” can get just as miffed about your eyeing up and SD60M or a Challenger as any sexy blonde. (Been there, done that, not got the T shirt… had the bruises…)
Whatever…welcome and have fun!
PS in a thread last year someone commented… if she comes into the train room wearing only pearls DON’T hand her the DCC control…
EDIT…
Okay now I’m going to be really grim… if you’re new together GREAT[:D] but most of us RR people will tell you that what was a "wonderful hobby/interest/little train (that’s the worst) at the start can VERY fast become “you spend more time/$ on/with that THING than with me… I only showed an interest because…re-written history…” Never forget why fishermen use bait…
But… HEY! Miracles DO happen… I used to have a damaged spine and I don’t any more… without surgery. <