Welcome back to the world's greatest hobby!
"The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination."-Albert Einstein
http://gearedsteam.blogspot.com/
Nice Looking table top layout. Looks like you have a young rail fan there. Good luck.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
Welcome Mitch86. I'm in a similar situation. My two year old son was my motivation to get back into the hobby (he's almost four now). With work and family, progress has been slow - but fun. Good luck and have fun!
Mitch86 I like to take my time (which is limited with work and family) and am a perfectionist at this type of stuff. But this is just the kind of long project I've needed.
I like to take my time (which is limited with work and family) and am a perfectionist at this type of stuff. But this is just the kind of long project I've needed.
Here are two N Scale websites -- You'll find useful...
[1] Dave Vollmer's N Scale Juniata Division started on a hollow core door, and; more recently, added another hollow core door for staging. See YouTube for the prototype staging inspiration of the Enola Yard. Two eras are modeled, depending on "the mood" with the Pennsy (1956), or Penn Central/Conrail (1980).
[2] Spookshow's N Scale Model Railroading is literally an extensive N Scale encyclopedia. Spookshow's "good, bad, and ugly" experience from half a dozen layouts is discussed in a quite frank manner at the Mediocre Layout Blogs.
Don't forget to go back to each website -- To see what you missed the 1st time, the 2nd time, etc.
Conemaugh Road & Traction circa 1956
Welcome to the forums.
Wish my little ones, either generation, had been more interested.
Don't let your perfectionist side get in your way. Nature is not perfect and most humans that have built the prototypes aren't either. Redoing as our skills improve is a very common occurance with many here. Do it. If you decide later that you want to improve it, do it again. If you try to do it to "fine" the first time, the little ones may lose interest. Brushing on some paint, sprinkling on some ground foam are simple tasks that they can do and it will improve the general look of the layout a lot. I had always planned to give each one a spot that could call their own and do as they pleased. As their skills improve the area will blend in better and better with the rest of the layout. Unfortunately, gramp's train space, became their dad's home.
Have fun,
Richard
Mitch,
Welcome to the forum. This is a great group of people who can offer advice on so many different aspects. I like that your layout has interest from young kids. I also understand the challenges of balancing a young family, work commitments, and trains. Someone suggested that you try and devote about 30 min/day working on the trains. That is a great motto!
Feel free to reach out with anything. Perhaps consider purchasing some books or getting from a library to further broaden your horizons.
Hi Mitch86:
Welcome to the forums and welcome back to the hobby!
Sounds like you and your kids are in for a lot of fun!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Looks like more than one person in that house is going to have fun. I still remember setting up my first HO train set for the first time, watching it go around the oval, and how much more realistic it looked than my Lionel trains, and how much smoother it could start and stop. And before long I learned that the rail joiners on snap track really don't hold the track together very well after they have been used a few times. THe track you have is better in that regard and you can do more track plan experimenting with it.
Don't be in a hurry to use that flex track you just bought. Let it sit for a while, and do some experimenting with the EZ track. You have two switches ("turnouts") creating a sort of passing track, but another thing to do with them is to create two sidings for industries that can receive or ship from your freight cars. If the siding is long enough there can be more than one industry on a siding.
I see tank cars in your train and one possible industry would be an oil dealer that gets tank cars. In my old home town the oil dealer was also a coal dealer as long as folks still had coal furnaces for home heating, so on his siding he got oil tank cars and coal hoppers.
Dave Nelson
It's a great hobby and this is a great place to find support and advice. Be sure and take advanatage of it. If you do make a mistake or do something that doesn't come out quite as well as you imagined it, don't let it faze you. Give it your best, then realize that it's a hobby that is very friendly to do-overs, where what you learn the first or second time around improves your performance on the next go round.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
Don - Specializing in layout DC->DCC conversions
Modeling C&O transition era and steel industries There's Nothing Like Big Steam!
Mitch86:
Welcome to the forum! 'Looks like you are off to a great start,although the little engineer in your second pic may need a taller chair.It was my 2 year old(27 years ago!),dragging me to Denver's Union Station to see the UP 844 steam engine,that rekindled my interest in trains.Keep us posted on your progress.
Mike