Hello, I am failry new to the hobby and am planning on building a 9x5 layout that will be prototypical and follow a railroads prototypical operations. The only problem is, there are so many railroads our there that I am not sure how to choose one. How do model railroaders choose to model a certain railroad? And, how do they choose what part of the railroad to model?
countryman How do model railroaders choose to model a certain railroad?
Well, for me the choice was easy. I grew up on a farm in Oregon, and on the far side of our cow pasture was the Southern Pacific mainline. Trains went by all day long, so I modeld what I saw. ( plus, it bring's back "Happy" childhood memory's)
countrymanhow do they choose what part of the railroad to model?
There's a term called "Selective compression". You cant build an accurate 20 mile long mainline ( unless you build your layout in a HUGE warehouse ) so you model a small section of it. Maybe a town at one end, a few "noteworthy" landmark's along the way , and a "Destination" ( another town ? ) at the other end.
I know I kinda simplified this explanation, so I'm sure other's here can fill in any gap's I left.
By The Way : Welcome to our forum , Glad to have you here !
Rust...... It's a good thing !
Thank you so much for your help! It really gave me an idea of where to model.
"One difference between pessimists and optimists is that while pessimists are more often right, optimists have far more fun."
Try to model the CSX line between Bostic NC and Charlotte NC
Russell
Okay, thanks for the idea. I will conduct some research of the suggested railroad. Thanks!
Since most of our layouts are too small to model significant portions of Class 1 railroads, I was looking for a short line to model and stumbled onto one that existed in my own back yard. Yes, it was long gone well before my time but there are still a few remnants remaining. It has been a lot of fun being able to model recognizable locations and businesses. Researching this line has also given me a more thorough understanding of the history of the area I live in.
One of my favorite layouts to operate on is a friend's small logging railroad. Since such railroads don't have to go far, and since they don't necessarily have to connect to another railroad (but still could), a lot of entertaining operating potential can be built into a small layout. My friend's layout includes a small town with a rail yard, a saw mill, and a couple of logging camps "up the hill." Trains of empty log cars run from the town, up the hill to the logging camps where the empties are exchanged for loaded log cars, back down the hill to the saw mill where the cars are emptied, then back to the yard in the town. A mining railroad could provide similar entertainment. Substitute a smelter for the saw mill and mines for the logging camps and you've got a mining railroad. The best thing about such railroads is that you don't have to invent reasons to ship cars to and from customers.
Another attraction to a logging/mining layout is that they often used geared-type locos from Shay, Heisler and Climax. Since such locos are usually very slow, it takes them longer to travel around even a very small layout.
Hornblower
countryman there are so many railroads our there that I am not sure how to choose one.
You could go "completely nut's" ( like many of us here ) And make up your own Rail Road.
I Loosly based my Demon's Hollow & Pacific on the Southern Pacific.
My "theory" is that the DH&P bought it's equipment used from the Southern Pacific. ( It took me FOREVER to come up with an "Acceptable" paint scheme. )
countrymanThe only problem is, there are so many railroads our there that I am not sure how to choose one. How do model railroaders choose to model a certain railroad? And, how do they choose what part of the railroad to model?
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Choose a railroad with a paint scheme and equipment you find attractive and can keep an interest in. Choose an area of the country that meets the same criteria.
HAVE FUN!
-Kevin
Living the dream.
Interesting, shortline railroad modeling sounds like an amazing idea! Thanks.
That's a nice paint scheme. I will definitely consider making my own railroad, and come up with an interesting backstory. Thanks for the idea!
Any advice on finding a happy place. My approach to finding my happy place was making a list of features I would like on my layout, and then finding a railroad that meets my criteria. Do you think that's a proper approach?
I grew up near Baltimore, but missed most of the B&O, WM and Ma & Pa operations when I was a kid. I remember traveling to Western PA to visit grandparents and experience farms, coal mines and even seeing a PRR double header steam engine, I think.
No memory of RR barge operations, swing or Bascule bridges, even though they were nearby. So I model a freelance railroad somewhere between PA and WV
Less is more as far as what to model. Unless you have enormous space, you can't model, a wharf, a coal mine, a steel mill, an refinery, a grain elevator, an ice house. You have to pick and choose what you have the skills to model and what is interesting to you.
As far as prototypical operation, a must have book is John Armstrong's Track Planning for Realistic Operation.
to the forum. Don't be afraid to ask lots of questions, especially when designing your layout. All newbies try to pack too much track into too little space and with turnouts that are so sharp, they don't really exist, even in the model world.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Countryman ....
A 5 X 9 layout is good for smaller locomotives and smaller freight cars. ... I suggest you avoid large locomotives with long cars. ... You could model a branch line of a big railroad or model a short line railroad. ...
Model Railroader publishes track plans, and you may find one to your liking. You may find one of MR's books to be helpful.
Having fun is what it is all about.
GARRY
HEARTLAND DIVISION, CB&Q RR
EVERYWHERE LOST; WE HUSTLE OUR CABOOSE FOR YOU
Well, first, decide what part of the country you like. That will give you a smaller list to choose from.Then, don't be afraid to include more than one railroad; many larger industries had more than one railroad that switched them.If you still can't decide, find some historical material about railroads that used to be in your favorite area but disappeared, and model that, however you like.
Disclaimer: This post may contain humor, sarcasm, and/or flatulence.
Michael Mornard
Bringing the North Woods to South Dakota!
I guess my first question for you would be: What type of railroading are you drawn to? Freight? Passenger? Industrial? Rural?
Once you can answer that then I would pick a region and see what railroad best fits that criteria and the space you will have designated for your layout. At least that should narrow the field down to a list that's more palatable.
Tom
https://tstage9.wixsite.com/nyc-modeling
Time...It marches on...without ever turning around to see if anyone is even keeping in step.
I wish I'd had a forum like this to ask the questions you did. Here's what the advice here will help you NOT to do...
Some of these suggestions may be wandering off the specific topic a bit, but are good to think about as a new modeler, along with the actual topic.
Again, I repeat NOT TO DO:
Buy every structure kit that appeals to you.
Buy every automobile that appeals...
Every locomotive that looks neat, regardless of era or region...
Every freight car or passenger car that looks interesting... like cabooses. Aren't they GREAT? So much character...
Buy an assortment of track components before you have a track plan down...
Every nifty little detail (or big ones) that just look so neat.
Cram as much track and action into the layout as is physically possible.
(End of my limited DO NOT list. Others may add to it)
Many here, myself included, have done these things, to find it can waste money and recources, even time trying to fit what turns out to be illogical choices that don't fit together over a given location or reasonable time era. Cabooses, for example, don't fit in everyday modern RRing, if that's the route you go.
So, as you may well be aware, narrowing down your location and time frame helps you make your purchases count. Then narrowing it down further to what your little segment of the RR world is there to accomplish will help you decide what equipment to do that with. I will add that going with local helps in the scenery and geographical reference dept.
Also, it seems theres about a 50/50 split over whether to go with DC or DCC for control on the layout. Learn about both, make an informed decision.
Also do look into the different sizes of rail available early on. Regular old code 100 (common train set size rail) is HUGE. Even code 83, at 83% that size is a notable improvement. Then there's code 70, and even smaller, which gets hard to work with.
Just a few added suggestions to consider before taking the plunge. Any unfamiliar terms used can be quickly cleared up with a question to the forum. Welcome aboard! Dan
Lots of great advice here, countryman. Some may seem contradictory, but it's not so much that as finding what you like and focusing on it. Dan sums that up pretty well, plus reminds what NOT to do, which is to take such a scattershot approiach that it'll just not add up to what you want.
I'll distill what many have contributed to already. Pick a smaller part of a bigger whole. Having a popular prototype that gets regular attention by mfgs. This keeps one's interest level high while you develop the skills you need to make a more exacting model layout as your skills grow.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
countryman Hello, I am failry new to the hobby and am planning on building a 9x5 layout that will be prototypical and follow a railroads prototypical operations. The only problem is, there are so many railroads our there that I am not sure how to choose one. How do model railroaders choose to model a certain railroad? And, how do they choose what part of the railroad to model?
Choice of railroad prototype is subjective. Ultimately we pick a prototype than we like. In many cases we pick the prototype that ran near our childhood homes. If you are undecided, which it sounds like, consider prototypes close to where you now live, it makes rail fanning trips and photographs easier. Consider doing your own free lance road and model an interchange point with a major class I road. That way you can have the fun of painting your rolling stock with your own paint schemes, AND you can run rolling stock painted for a Class I road with a convincing story. Consider what sort of trains you like, long coal drags, strings of double stack container flats, commuter operations, streamlined class one passenger trains, solid strings of pulp wood, oil tank cars, mixed freight, steam, diesel, or both, electric operation under wire, and so on.
In the end, pick one that appeals to you. BTW, how are your carpentry skills? You can fit more railroad into a given space with an around the walls layout. The John Armstrong book, "Track Planning for Realistic Operation" is the bible for layout builders. A subscription to Model Railroader is invaluable. Good luck, have fun, post some pictures.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
In 1967 I went to school in Chicago, and on weekends I used to go to the Prudential building observation area at the top of the building where I could watch trains and other things. One thing that stuck with me was the CB&Q paint scheme.
Years later when I built my first layout I modeled the Q and as time went on, it morphed into the BN, then I added the C&EI. When that ran it's course, I repainted my C&EI engines and cabeese into a fictional Illinois Western scheme. Now many years later I'm still modeling the BN plus the RI.
There are too many choices to really offer advice, that's something you need to research and find something that clicks with you.
Good Luck and Welcome.
Joe
I like the look of shorter cars on a small or medium sized HO scale layout. That could dictate railroad or era.
Modern era railroads would run cement hoppers, corn syrup tankcars, etc.
Older eras would provide more options.
- Douglas
Suggestion,
FREELANCE
You can do this and be prototypical, I plan to do so with my NWP SWP, so if you feel like it that's an option.
Steve
If everything seems under control, you're not going fast enough!
SouthgateBuy every structure kit that appeals to you.
DONE!
SouthgateBuy every automobile that appeals to you.
SouthgateBuy every locomotive that looks neat.
SouthgateBuy every freight car or passenger car that looks interesting.
SouthgateBuy an assortment of track components before you have a track plan down.
SouthgateBuy every nifty little detail (or big ones) that just look so neat.
SouthgateCram as much track and action into the layout as is physically possible.
Oh wait, you said DO NOT do these things. Uh oh.
Oh yah. That was my start to the hobby. Except, people gave me all their train junk, so I didn't have to buy anything... I was elated, until I discovered it WAS junk.
I'm beginning to realize that Windows 10 and sound decoders have a lot in common. There are so many things you have to change in order to get them to work the way you want.
BigDaddya must have book is John Armstrong's Track Planning for Realistic Operation.
I agree. If you only buy 1 book, this is it.
Since you're new to the hobby, I would not worry over much about a prototype. You won't really fit a portion of the prototype in 5x9, so pick a railroad whose paint scheme you like. Use Armstrong's book to help you develop a track plan and start building.
Some experience with a layout will go a long way toward helping you understand what you want to do in this hobby.
Good luck
Paul
SouthgateBuy every structure kit that appeals to you. Buy every automobile that appeals... Every locomotive that looks neat, regardless of era or region... Every freight car or passenger car that looks interesting... like cabooses. Aren't they GREAT? So much character... Buy an assortment of track components before you have a track plan down... Every nifty little detail (or big ones) that just look so neat.
I do all these things. This is a hobby not a job.
Okay thanks, that's a good idea. I could model my own railroad but still run it prototypically. Thanks
countryman Okay thanks, that's a good idea. I could model my own railroad but still run it prototypically. Thanks
Consider the cargo you'd like to haul. That will limit your selection and help decide facilities and rolling stock.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.