Hello everyone. I have been modeling in N Scale my entire adult life. I began with HO but took up N at 17. I am considering switching back to HO. If anyone else has made a similar change I would appreciate relevent thoughts. Thanks.
Declining health and problems with my fingers led me to switch a couple of years ago. I have regreted it from the first day.
I’ve seen wonderful railroads in HO, I don’t hate the scale, but it’s not what I wanted to do.
I will say that it has allowed me to stay active, where I probably would be out othe hobby at this point, but I miss my N Scale layout every day. For me, there’s no going back, but think hard about this. I know people that are very happy with their move form N to HO, but think hard about it. If you’re happy with the look and feel of N and you feel you can model in it, why change?
Don
I switched from N to HO in the 1980’s, mainly because the rolling stock I needed wasn’t available in N. HO has some lovely stuff, especially during the past 15 or so years, but N has come a long way in the last 15 years too in terms of available rolling stock.
HO, of course, needs a lot more space if you want a model RR with a decent run, so that’s a factor.
When I switched, I sold off some of the N scale stuff I had but kept a shoebox with an old Trix UP F7, UP caboose and 4 or 5 freight cars and a bunch of track including 5 turnouts. I’ve recently started to pick up some N scale rolling stock and have plans, at the prompting of my wife, to build a small N scale layout in the back basement room.
[#welcome] to the Model Railroader forums. Your first few posts will be delayed by the moderators, but that will end soon enough. Please stick around and join into the discussions.
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I switched from N to HO in the 1990s because the new Proto-2000 freight cars were so beautiful. At least that is what pushed me over the edge, there were other considerations as well.
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I have no regrets. I gave all my N scale stuff to a close friend that models the NORFOLK SOUTHERN in N scale. As far as I know, he has the only layout in existance that interchanges with the STRATTON AND GILLETTE.
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I disposed of all my other N scale stuff in a violent purge, bought an HO scale diesel locomotive and never looked back.
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If you ask any specific questions, I will be glad to let you know my experiences.
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-Kevin
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Violent? [*-)]
I built an N layout in 1987-8, although my normal modeling was in HO. I had a spare bedroom and felt I could get more RR in a given space vs. HO, and of course that was true.
But then the real world hit me…While I could work quite well with HO, N was soon found to be a struggle. For me, I just couldn’t work to my standards in N vs. HO. Of course aging eyesight made it worse too.
Today, at 75, with the help of all kinds of aids, I can still do pretty good with HO, but seriously doubt I could with N.
Anyway, I sold all the N, built a room filling HO layout that lasted to 2008, tore it down and built a new one - also in HO - …and I am happy MR!
If room is not a concern, I don’t see a problem.
I chose N because my home’s boss gave me only a corner of a small bedroom.
I second Kevin’s [#welcome]
After Adult Life comes OLD AGE and the bigger the better. That’s 68 years of model railroading experience speaking. [:(]
Mel
My Model Railroad
http://melvineperry.blogspot.com/
Bakersfield, California
I’m beginning to realize that aging is not for wimps.
I am about 10 years away from being able to build a layout in my basement. We need to address the water seepage first. I was at first thinking of doing n-scale, but looking at Pelle’s layout is changing my mind. I have roughly the same amount of space he does, and he is able to run 30 car trains on it. I belong to an HO scale club, so by the I will have a substantial investment in HO gear. I used to belong to a n-trak club, so I also have all of my n-scale stuff from there. I expect I may build a small ISL, or a roundy-round in N, or build an n-trak module that is also an ISL to hold me over.
Ouch [B)] Only a corner of a small bedroom? Bummer!
I’m in my second marriage and she made it a priority to find a house that had a decent sized space for a layout. It was a top priority on our house hunting check list.
It’s goint to take 10 years to address the water seepage? I had a water seepage issue in my town home prior to moving which needed addressed. Dealing with it from the inside was only a short term solution. As a long-term solution, we found a contractor who who dug down to the bottom of the basement foundation and sealed the cracks in two places (two excavations) and included a membrane to cover over the cracks and block the seeps. We later sold the town home as we wanted to move into a stand-alone home with bigger basement and a yard but we left the townhome in better shape than it was when we moved in.
Those seeps did delay construction of the layout in the basement room affected.
Mel,
You’ve got me by a year!
Let me add a couple of points.
I first saw N in 1973. I remember it well - I was TDY in Germany and stopped in the BX to get some shaving cream on the way to a swing shift duty. I saw an Atlas set of cars and was immediately taken with it. I skipped lunch a couple of days and bought the set - just cars, no loco. The guys thought I was nuts. It was a couple of years before I could swing some flex and a loco - a truely terrible Lima switcher, but I was launched into N Scale. It boils down to what grabs you.
David K. Smith said recently in another forum that we each have a home scale. Sometimes we have to explore a bit to find out which one that is.
I’m in HO now and will be to the end, but after a year and a half, I still feel that somethings wrong. Everything looks too big. I have room for thirty inch radius - the same as I used in N, but things look silly going around them. Let’s not talk about buildings.
So, my advice is stay in N or go to HO, whichever scale you feel most comfortable in. It’s all about having fun.
Good luck
Don
I’m too old to get a second wife or another house, so I guess I’ll have to be satisfied with the small layout!
Yeah, we need to do the expensive option. We also need to get the driveway done. It’s second on the list for extremely expensive home repairs. It’s why I said “10 years” becuse other more expensive stuff is higher on the list.
Also, the area I want to build the layout also has the circuit breakers, so I am thinking of moving that out of my way.
Keep your N scale stuff . Buy Ho & see if you really like it ! There is no law saying you need to sell your N scale stuff when switching scales .
My ex’s father remarried in his early 80’s so there isn’t necessarily a “too old” thing.
But it’s sad or disappointing your wife won’t let you have more space so you can enjoy your hobby. [sigh][:(] She sounds like quite the taskmaster.
We got some quotes to dig down and fix the seeps from out side. One guy came in and did a dog and pony show and it was looking like something waaaaaaaay out of our budget, especially for a townhome we only planned to live in 4 or 5 years. Guessing he was in the $15k price point. After about 10 minutes into his presentation, I interupted him and said I didn’t think it was worth spending more time when this solution wasn’t going to fit our budget. The guy got offended and left quickly and forgot his notebooks and materials and had to contact us later to retieve them. SMH.
We finally found an outfit that charged us $1550 for each of two seep areas, costing $3100 total. A good chunk of change but much cheaper than $15k or more! It required a small crew of guys to hand dig down about 8 feet each excavation in summer - quite the job.
Anyway, I get that to-do list! The house my wife found with a decent open basement (unfinished); the home was a bank owned home built in 2006 and it had been neglected and needed some rehab, mainly the kitchen, which is why som many probably walked away - but good for us. While it had been painted and new carpet th
My brother in law is an electrician, so I am hoping to save some money there. There are also two poles in that layout area.
Hopefully that will keep costs more reasonable.
As for poles, I do have a pole that’s going to be inconvenient but I’ll have to work around it.
I started with HO, switched to O, and then to S. For me S represents the size where it’s big enough that I enjoy building stuff, yet small enough for a decent layout.
Since you don’t say why you’re changing, it’s hard to comment. But since you’re changing anyway, don’t just look at HO. Look at S and O, maybe even On30.
If you can, save all your N stuff. I have all my HO, O, and my son’s N scale - my son when he got back into trains as an adult went the 3 rail O gauge route.
Good luck
Paul
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Yes, I stand by my choice of adjective. I don’t remember you being there, so I don’t know how you formed your oppinion.
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I have had four of these violent purges of old hobby material, the most recent one was right after I joined these forums.
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Nothing gets the new projects moving like getting rid of ALL the old projects.
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A saws-all, ripping hammer, and prybar are great for stress relief.
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-Kevin
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Settle down there bud. I didn’t express an opinion but simply parroted back the term you used and was a bit confused by it.
I’ve never heard anyone use that term before in this context and was wondering what you meant by it.
So I guess that is what you mean then (above). I suppose that’s one way to deal with stress.