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Hackmo, <br /> <br />You’re where I was two months ago – fascinated by the trains but completely confused by the myriad of options. Aristo Craft, LGB, Bachmann, Accucraft? 1:22.5, 1:29, 1:32? Battery, track power, DCC? (And what the heck is DCC, anyway? Isn't that our nation's capitol?) American ties, European ties? You begin to wonder if the fog will ever clear. <br /> <br />Being a fellow newbie, I am hardly the one to offer many answers but there is a BUNCH of info in these forums and on the internet. I’m also finding that people in this hobby love to share and to help. As a fellow newbie, let me share a couple of things I’ve found over the last few months. I qualify my comments by saying that these are only my opinions and based on my experiences and ask forgiveness in advance if I offend anyone or accidentally tweak any forum rules. <br /> <br />As others have said, read all you can from the forums. Great stuff and pictures. Then Google “Garden Railroad”, “G gauge”, etc for internet information. There’s lots of it out there. <br /> <br />I learned a lot from an article on “Mixing and Matching Large Scale Cars/Sample Car Measurements” at <br /> <br />http://www.btcomm.com/trains/archives/measure.htm <br /> <br />This cleared up the scale conundrum for me and the fog began to lift a little. It seems that manufacturers specialize (mostly) in particular scales. Bachmann does 1:22.5, Aristo does 1:29, etc. I still didn’t know what scale I wanted, though. <br /> <br />The scale issue became clearer when I decided what type of locomotive most interested me. I discovered that particular manufacturers, while offering both steam and diesel locomotives, tend more towards one or the other. In going to the dealer websites (I used Wholesale Trains, Ridge Road, and St. Aubin, but there are lots of others, as well as the manufacturers’ websites) and I probably looked at ALL the manufacturers and the locomotives they offer – you’ll get a feel pretty quickly for what you like. Your own loco preferences and the article above will help you decide on which manufacturers to focus on and in turn you will start to focus on a particular scale. I love the older diesels that are offered by certain manufacturers and, therefore, decided to go with 1:29. <br /> <br />Before go any further (like ordering anything), I also suggest you read “Building a Garden Railroad on a Budget” at <br /> <br />http://www.btcomm.com/trains/primer/budget.htm <br /> <br />It has some good tips that will hopefully help us avoid at least SOME expensive missteps. <br /> <br />So far my railroad consists of a subscription to Garden Railways magazine (not a plug but I love it), a box car (1:22.5 scale, but oh well) and four pieces of track, all of which my wife gave me for Christmas. She keeps saying, “I’m going to regret this, aren’t I?” and I keep replying, “O-o-o-h Yeah!!!” I have a brand new yard so most of my rail construction will have to wait until next year but getting there will be half the fun. I hope you have as much fun, Hackmo. <br />
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