Hello there…
I noticed that this site/mag mainly concentrates on the Larger Garden Railway scales, like G scale etc etc, But have you ever considered expanding to the smaller Gauge? As I believe 00 & O Gauges are on the up in the Garden! and quite succesful in the UK anyway!
Probably not a bad idea, I don’t believe anyone else does with their “forum”.
mikadousrp
We concentrate mostly on the larger scale simply because it was designed for outdoor use, and in the long run it is a better choice for a number of good reasons. There are several of the smaller scale outdoor railroads, some even in HO, but they are relatively few in this hobby.
I would love to hear more about your layout, it looks very interesting! I suppose if more of the smaller scale outdoor enthusiasts would submit articles or otherwise discuss on this forum what they are doing it may well spark greater interest in small scale outdoors.
Welcome to the forum!
[#welcome]
Perhaps part of the unspoken reason is the relative size of the average real estate lot.
In long developed Europe, the average lot size would be considerably smaller than those seen on this side of the pond, thus reducing the size of space available and making the smaller scales much more attractive.
Wasn’t available room space a large part of the evolution of the O, to S, to HO, to N, and so on ? One could put twice as much HO railroad in the same space as the O layout!
Thus, I, with my 30 acres, don’t care how much space it takes up; but someone with a total available yard of 20 feet X30feet has to fit in his trains, the dog’s potty, and room for the barbecue, so, opts for the smaller scale!
I don’t see it being a viable subject until manufacturers begin making the smaller stuff specifically for outdoor use. That would include the UV resistant plastics not only in the trains, but also structures and other accessories! You’d still have the problem of a blade of grass derailing a smaller train that you don’t have with G.
Well, as in saying that, Hornby have just produced some rather impressive Buildings, and bridges, in their “Scaledale” Range. And these are made of Resin. Personally I bring in all my Buildings after useing the Garden Railway. I also take great care in possitioning the Locomotives and Rolling stock in the shadey areas, as and when I can. We are quite lucky in that we have lots of shade in our Garden.
Yes I agree that it is quite hard work keeping the Garden Railway up to a standard in this scale, where by the Grass is always trimed back, and not over hanging etc etc. But I think this adds to all the fun, of maintaining your own private Railway!
00 In the Garden is truley Fantastic! I recommend it to anyone![:)]
Thank you all for the warn welcoming![bow]
Thank you for your interest! The Garden Railway has a website… I’d be greatful if you would take a peek at it sometime… [:)]
You know, anytime somebody says, “You just can’t do it that way,” somebody comes along who’s been doing it that way quite successfully[:-,]
I wasn’t saying it couldn’t be done, I was saying i didn’t think it viable as a mass market thing without “Outdoorization”!