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[quote]QUOTE: Originally posted by pcarrell There is a question behind your question. The question is, "what should be the minimum radius in N scale, to allow for a decent look with the equipment I am running?" You see, a Big Boy will look OK on aa 18 inch curve, but to really make it look good you are going to need a larger radius. One of the big benefits of N scale is that it has a higher scenery to track ratio in a given space then most other scales. Why not, if we have the available room, take advantage of that? One of the ways to do that is to use very broad curves. This makes our scenery look more realistic. It also makes our equipment look more realistic. Now to answer your question more directly, I would base my curve radius on several things; the era of the railroad, size of the equipment to be operated, and available real estate. Lets assume you are using Big Boys and 85 foot passenger cars. In a room where you want it to look good but not engulf the entire room: something in the neigborhood of 24 or 26 inches would look very nice. Larger would only enhance the visual appeal. Ok, now what about something smaller, say 40 or 50 foot cars and 2-8-0's and first generation diesels and such? 18 to 20 inches or so would look good. How about small equipment, say turn of the century and stuff. Maybe 15 or 16 inches minimum to look decent. Logging and trolly? Now you are getting down there. Maybe 10 or 12 inches. Now keep in mind that all or this is subjective, so... [/quote]
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