I need help on how to start my layout?

[Anonymous]

I plan on placing this layout in my basement. I need help on a good starter set. I would like to use lionel becouse there are many dealers within my area. I would like to have a deisel with noise and lights. How should i start. I also have 2 younger brothers and i am 15/

[tstage]

lovintrains,

First of all, welcome to the forum! Good to have you aboard! [:)]

A little info would be of great help. How much room do you have to put up a layout? Keep in mind that a Lionel set (or O gauge) is going to take up a lot more room than S, HO, or N gauge. Once you determine your size, then someone can help you with the kind of starter set would be most helpful to you.

Tom

[Train 284]

Welcome to the forum, glad your here! [8D]

You have to consider that Lionel does take up more space than S, HO, or N. Also lionel can be pretty pricey. I recently had the pleasure of seeing a S scale layout last Saturday and it looked pretty cool. It also depends what the size of your basement is, once we know that, it would be easier to help you. Do you plan on doing benchwork or just a table or something?

Matt

[Anonymous]

The room size is 6'8"x9'. I would like to have this be a fairly complex layout. Also what othe trains would you recomend. I plan on making this a pretty perminite layout

[ChessieFan13]

Welcome to the forum hope to see ya more.................Lionel is expensive.........its big ..and expensive..........it sounds as if you went with HO you could have a very nice layout in the space you have

[SpaceMouse]

If you want sound, you're pretty much looking at HO. If you want complexity of your layout, I'd go with N scale--and sound is coming to N Scale.

[wxtoad]

Back in the "good ole days" I built what I thought was a pretty nice Lionel layout in a room about that size. I have one picture of it at:

http://68.0.251.231:443/toad/THMP/EarlyDays1.htm

Other posters are right - you could do a lot more in a smaller scale, such as HO or N. Another question to answer is how much work you want to do laying track, etc. Lionel is good for getting trains running quickly.

[joeh19012]

Welcome to the World's Greatest Hobby! [^]

It's nice to see that you and your brothers want to work on a project together. My brother and I had a great time doing things with our layout when we were younger. He normally did scenery, while I did all the building and wiring.

It sounds like you may be limited by space. Also keep in mind that bigger trains (O Scale) means bigger costs. While you can do a good layout in O, HO, or N, I think you have to consider your resources in terms of space, time, and money.

If you need some help considering what a layout might look like, you can go to Atlas's web site. They feature the 3 most popular scales, and have plans there, too. http://www.atlasrr.com . See what you like and what fits your space.

There is a whole load of information available on the web: you just have to look for it. These forums are really good, and you can do Google searches as well. There are plenty of books on the subject, too, ranging from planning to building to wiring. If you find one at your local library, make sure it's up to date and not referring to products and methods that were common back in the 1950's and 1960's (I have some of those at home!).

Post anytime you have a question. There's always good advice, and frequently an expert in the area.

Good luck, and have fun with the trains and your brothers! [:)]

[tstage]

lovintrains

6'8"x9'? Whoa, that ain't much. lovintrains, if I were you, I would strongly consider HO or N. An oval or a switcher layout is about all you'll be able to do in that amount of space in O gauge.

A 4 x 8' layout would barely fit that room, and allow you marginal negotiation room in the aisles. HO would work. N might be a better choice if the table starts getting smaller than 4 x 8'.

Tom

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by tstage

lovintrains

6'8"x9'? Whoa, that ain't much. lovintrains, if I were you, I would strongly consider HO or N. An oval or a switcher layout is about all you'll be able to do in that amount of space in O gauge.

A 4 x 8' layout would barely fit that room, and allow you marginal negotiation room in the aisles. HO would work. N might be a better choice if the table starts getting smaller than 4 x 8'.

Tom

Actually Tom that's not quite true. Because of it's unrealisticly sharp curves, you can create some pretty nice Lionel layouts on a 4' x 8' sheet of plywood. Lionel's traditional 027 track forms a smaller circle than 18" radius HO.

Of course cost is a big factor, and HO may be the better choice from that standpoint. How old are the other kids? If they are over 8, HO should be just fine.

[Anonymous]

I have room for a 9 by 17 size layout is there any software for mac that will help me design my layout, or games[:D]. what books do you recomened i read before i start to build the table to sit the layout on, books on wireing would be nice to>[:D]

[Anonymous]

i was looking around the site what is dcc and what is the difference between it and what comes in a starter kit.

[SpaceMouse]

QUOTE: Originally posted by lovintrains

i was looking around the site what is dcc and what is the difference between it and what comes in a starter kit.

There are very technical ways of looking at the differences Between Digital Command Control and Direct Current. The simplist way is that with DC you move the train by varying current to the track. With DCC you move the train by sending coded signals to the trains, thereby allowing you to control more than one train at a time. DCC is far more high tech than DC and allows you to do things like control lights, sounds, etc. on the locmotive as well as turnouts, signal lights, and turntables all from a hand held contoller.

A low end DCC cost in the neighborhood of a high quality DC transformer.

[tstage]

lovintrains,

Another way to look at it. With DC, you control your track, which controls your locomotives. With DCC, you control EACH locomotive equipped with a decoder INDIVIDUALLY. As Chip stated, you can have two locomotives on the SAME track, going in DIFFERENT directions, at DIFFERENT speeds - just like the REAL railroad works! Is that cool, or what?

lovintrains, it might be a good idea for you to go to Tony's Train Exchange (http://www.tonystrains.com) and read their helpful link called "DCC For Beginners". Hope that's a help to you...

Tom

[Anonymous]

Is anyone able to help me in finding out how big is this layout in the picture. i would like to know how big in HO, N, O.Thanks to leighant for the picture.

I cant get the pic to go in can anyone help