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In my day there were made tracks out of wood and metal starting at 32" and working down to 24" Anything smaller was used for yard and industrial. Big engines were not sent into these areas. There were plenty of big houses with basements also. Not so today. Sure they are being built but sometimes are so pricey compared to apartments etc. Sectional track of 18" radius was considered toy train track back then too. Today it seems to be the minimum that everyone needs to get any kind of mainline on a small 4x8 type layout. And virtually everyone who is new to the hobby discovers that those big beautiful engines dont always fit on the 18" I know.. been there done that. I myself will be adding onto my house in the future the planning is completed, even then the train room will only be about 16 x 36. It will take some money to accompli***his. But first the bills need to be paid off. Until then I have a small 24" radius loop with a 3 foot test track on the bench. I do like to see the equiptment to match the radius. For example a spectrum 2-8-0 on a 18" working up to 3 towns down the line with 7 cars to switch is a "train" on a 4 x 8. Now large equiptment is fine to have and there is nothing wrong with running it. I suggest something like a loop of 35" radius Bachmann ez-track on a hardwood surface or something similar.. no carpet. to get the big engine bug out of system for day. To me, more of a concern on these forums is rather a feeling of disappointment in routine items that are considered fixable.. such as broken couplers and such. Also couplers are causing confusion and possibly a lack of workbench space or tools to fix these minor issues. There is alot of energy being invested over trains that wont stay on track these days rather than trains that will run well on well made track. I wonder if the decline in craftmanship and exposure to the different "skills" needed to enjoy the hobby with a minimum of outside support (hobby shop, service etc) is the real problem? [soapbox] I am sorry for a long post but somethings get me steamed up and ready to roll and I never know when to stop. Best of luck all. Lee
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