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my first layout
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Don, <br />Let me also welcome you to this forum. There is a vast wealth of knowledge to be tapped into here. As for the garage layout, it is something that is done frequently, just as basement layouts are. I am in California and have seen quite a few garage layouts here, but we don't have the humidity you folks do back there, so I'll leave that subject to those more knowledgable than I. You can get a lot of layout into even a small garage, so I'd suggest that you start by deciding what kind of trains you intend to model {passenger, local freight, unit train (a long train with a lot of the same type of car, e.g. a coal train), trolley, etc.}, and then decide on the details like roadname, era, geographic region, etc. Knowing what kind of trains you want to model will help you to determine what kind of track plan you will want, then you can start looking at track plan books for the basis of your plan (of course you can create your own plan, too, but these books are helpful in deciding what kind of plan works well for what you intend to model and making it fit the amount of space you have. <br /> <br />Once you know the type of trains you intend to model and have a basic track plan, then you need to decide what kind of benchwork you'll need to build it on. There are quite a few good books on this subject, too. After that, there's scenery, with lots of different ways to go, too. Again, more books available. Then it comes to laying track. Lots of options, more books. Then there are the details, with, you guessed it, more books. <br /> <br />So, as the others have said, read up! This is a fun hobby with infinite possibilities when it comes to layout building. There are probably dozens of different ways to do every step of layout building, none of which are wrong, but most of which are not right for you. You will find that you will end up liking a few different techniques for the various steps of layout building. The main thing is to enjoy what you are doing, and to get enough information before you embark on a new mission so that you don't become discouraged. In time you will find that you have learned a lot from this forum and from reading books that you will one day be offering advice to other newcomers. <br /> <br />Enjoy your new hobby (it's the World's Greatest)!
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