So my wife and I are looking at a new house. Currently I have the entire 2 car garage for my HO scale empire. Its Green River, Wyoming 40’s-50’s Union Pacific so Big boys, Northerns and Challengers. are the big wheeled monsters. Well the new house I could have the formal living room for my train room. Let me list the plusses first. #1 Inside the house with A/C Heat #2 Flat floor no sloped garage floor #3 No more window units
Negatives #1 small room 12x14
So I am thinking maybe I should switch to N
Now I am unsure if there is lots of stuff available in N scale
Not newer diesels, maybe 1st generation E-Units and F-Units. Also steam of the time period.
I have about 100 pieces of rolling stock
4 or 5 buildings
300 ft. of code 83 track with 30 turnouts.
All of this can be salvaged easily actually I can even get the cork up without any damage.
I really like having 36" radius curves and running 15-20 car passenger trains and 30-40 freight runs.
Any thoughts??
First off, let me come right out and say that I model N. I model the 1930’s in Maine, so while I do model steam, I don’t do Big Boys.
Most will tell you to keep in mind the eyesight issue as we get older, but it’s not such a big thing with a good lighted magnifier (like the one you my already have for HO).
There’s quite a bit available in N, and more coming all the time. Not as much as HO though.
There are big E units with sound, and a few of the larger steam loco’s can be had with sound as well. Sound in N is still just blossoming, so expect a lot more in the future. Check out this site for some ideas; http://precisioncraftmodels.com/N-Scale-c3096.html
There’s not much of a shortage of structures and most trackage is available.
All in all, I’m real happy in N.
One thing for you that’s a big advantage if you were to switch is that you could model the vast scenery that dominates the trains out west and still keep the square footage quite reasonable.
Oh yeah, one last thing…welcome to the dark side![}:)]
I have a 4’x8’ N scale layout here in my computer room, and I really enjoy it. You can do so much more in a limited space. Give N scale a try. I think you’ll like it.
When I faced a similar possibility this summer - I knew we were moving, but no idea where to or how much room I would have when we got there to model in - I went and bought a Walthers N catalogue. (I’m in HO.) You could get the new 2007 one, but might find a 2005 or 2006 cheap at a local flea market or something. I was pretty impressed by what was available, now even sound-equipped engines right from the factory. No question if I had ended up going to N I would have used Kato track - the range of products they have in N is like triple their HO Unitrack line. Long freights and passenger trains are a snap in N too - and 18" radius curves are “broad” curves !![:)]
For Nscale, it’s easier to bump your layout into the 50’s, 60’s 70’s.
Plenty of small 1st 2nd generation diesels & rolling stock. Kato makes nice passenger sets with ATSF, CZ, etc.
Your broad curves may drop into the 24’ zone, or 15’ for mainlines. Industrials or windy lines can have curves down to 12". You could decide to go with Code 55 or the old Code 80 standard. If you get new equipment, you will avoid all the old junk with the Crapido couplers & pizza wheels.
THe big question depends on if you are willing to depart with your HO collection & start new. Beware of old junk posing as “new” on *bay. Stick to a LHS or an ELHS.
I did the same thing a few months ago. I still have most of my HO stuff but I’m trying to sell them.
N scale is awesome. 18" radius curves are something to be proud of, and not be ashamed of, in N.
I would however recommend the following essentials when you get into N:
Walthers N & Z scale catalog - Not comperehensive by any means, but it helps you find out what’s out there.
A 1:160 ruler. You have to start thinking N scale. It’ll get some getting used to. Eventually, an HO scale loco or car will look ridiculously big. This also helps you model things by measuring them in scale feet.
An NMRA standards gauge for N scale. This will help give you an idea of your bridge and tunnel clearances and help get your wheels and tracks in gauge.
A Rix Rail-It or similar railing ramp. N scale cars are tiny, and putting them on the track isn’t as easy as in HO scale. A railing ramp helps you place cars on the track much more easily.
Get yourself those plastic containers with little compartments inside. They’re typically used for lectronics parts or sewing equipment. Use these things to store your trucks, wheels, couplers, rail joiners, ties, even turnrouts. Also keep a pair of tweezers in handy in the box. Some N scale parts may be hard to pick up with your fingers.
Where does one find this coupler height gauge for N-scale? I’ve only ever seen them for HO Kadee couplers, never for N-scale. Can you post a picture and/or link for them so I’d know what I’m looking for?
A few years ago, I’d considered switching (well, restarting would be more accurate) to N. The thing that discouraged me was that I couldn’t track down certain hyper-common locomotives, like SD40-2s. Was I just stupid and couldn’t look in the right places or do they just not exist?
Take a serious look at Z. Yes it has less than N, but it does have a lot of laser building and Digitrax has already made a dropin DCC for the MTL GP-35 and the new GP-7 due within 60 days. You can do almost 6.5 times the scenery in the same AREA of space as HO and almost twice as much as N. Hop over to TRAINBOARD or ZCENTRAL and see some of the incredible work being done in Z
[#welcome] To the dark side,I was in to “HO” for years but space has become an premium aroud here the last year or so(35 year son came home[:-^]) so I’am doing “N” scale and love it!!I have three GP-38’s,two GP-50’s an F-7A/B both powred,and one Kato-RS-2,and one Bachman 4-8-4W/oil tender all run great,my lay out is 42"wide and 8’ long,my curves are big and long trains look good.
Go for it and have fun,also all the tools mentioned in this forum are needed,Oh handle a little gentiller than HO
4018, go N for it. I did in 1968 and loved it ever since. HO is too toylike to me. A long Santa Fe Passenger train behind E-6 units is a sight to behold in N scale. At first there wasn’t much available, but there sure is now. Over the years I’ve acquired almost 100 locos, and quite frankly the hunt was a large part of the fun. Since there is a lot more HO out there (makes you wonder about the sanity of our country), when you do find what you are looking for in N, the reward is great. As an RV’er, who has small layouts including one in a rifle case, we love to stop at little towns along the way and look thru little hardware and hobby shops. I’ve found some great old N locos tucked away and have paid very little for them. The HO stuff always seems to be beat up and worthless. I have noticed that many more steamers are being offered now, but I’m a diesel fan, so I’ll leave more for you. Welcome (hopefully) to the world of N 4018, you’ll never regret it. Larry in Blaine WA (have to have something to do during the rainy season [October thru June]).
don’t fret about changing from ho to n. i have a large n layout: 13x36’ with minimum mainline radius of 18" with many in the 30-36" range. l8" in n is nearly 36" in ho. there is much u.p. equipment for your era, both steam and diesel as well as the cheyenne coaling facility as a kit. i have often been envious of up modelers for the ready-to-run equipment they have available painted for up. athearn will be bringing out a chellenger shortly. if starting over i would take a serious look at kato unitrack–you can lay the track for an entire layout in a weekend and be up and running. it is smooth, reliable and doesn’t have to be ballasted. a huge plus. altho we don’t have the selection in n that is available in ho --overall it isn’t bad.
The selection of N available today is much better than it was 10 years ago. Though there’s still room for to catch up, it’s worth the switch, if only for the larger-relative radius factor. With more people in N scale, that just means there’s a bigger market for the manufacturers to serve…That’s the only reason why there’s a lot of products in HO…
I switched from HO to N in 2002 and have never looked back! You can quickly become addcted to longer trains on broader curves in less overall space. It’s also nice when your mountains look like mountains compared to the train instead of small hills.
All the talk of the pro-N’ers is about broad sweeping curves and long trains but what about switching moves. I like way freights that pick up and set out cars at industries that require a lot of switching moves. HO locomotives of today that respond smoothly to low control settings are ideal for switching operations but I wonder whether this also applies to N locomotives.
The cool thing about N scale is that you can build scale size industries in N scale far easier than doing it in HO scale. In HO scale I was always frustrated with having to shrink buildings in order to fit them on the layout, that is not needed in N scale. I am building Dearborn passenger train station in Chicago full size in N scale with all the tracks without comprimising. I got a copy of the Sanborn map for the station and its tracks and enlarged it to n scale. I am now laying the track right on the enlarged plan (using code 55 by the way). Nothing can be more realistic than a accurate length train in a accurate length train station. Give N scale a ttry there less comprimises
I have to disagree with the last statement. There are compromises in every scale. It’s just a question of what you compromise on. For being able to build structures and operate trains closer to prototype size, you sacrifice some detail in your equipment and operational elements such as track height, couplers and wheel flanges are going to be even more oversized than they are in HO. Structure building will be even more difficult than it is in HO because of the smaller parts involved.
There are tradeoffs in every scale. You have to give up something to get something. It’s a question of what is important to you.
Fair enough… But having worked in both scales I can say today’s N diesels run as well as their HO counterparts. Just as well! N scale steam takes some tuning, but my two N steamers run as well now as any I had in HO. The reduction in detail can actually be a plus. Less detail ($$$!) is necessary in N… the presence of some level of detail in N is often enough to suggest that there’s more. Although photographs don’t lie, the naked eye is easily fooled. To each his own, I know. But the OP sounds as if he’s already leaning toward N, so we’re just helping pull him the rest of the way to our side of the fence![swg]
