Now that my three-day probationary period is over, I can finally introduce you to my Garden Railroad through a video I shot during my last Open House this past July. I hope you enjoy watching it:
That is very impressive. Nice work you have done on that layout. I certainly like your choice of steam locomotives, as briefly as she appeared. Great video, and thanks for sharing.
I think my favorite thing about the garden railway crowd is the attitude. Is it a train? Will it run on my track? Ok then, lets have some fun. I love seeing the mixture of steam and modern diesels without any need for explanations. It's there because you like it. Very nice layout. And the setting is really beautiful as well; with all the surrounding woodland. Who needs to buy backdrops when you have real plants? he he he I love seeing people's garden layouts regardless of scale. I really do not have the space for G scale so I do HO scale in my garden; actually it's my front yard. hee hee hee And it's less of a garden layout, and more of a shelf layout out doors. But I do understand that need to be outside with your trains. An old video of the first stage progress on my layout: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epnb_rrJPOE How long have you been working on your layout? Do you have plans for expansion or are you pretty much happy with it?
Well if you really want more of my J1e Hudson, here ya go: I also have a small indoor loop for running in the winter: I hope that gives you your "fix" for steam.
I have to say that is the first time I have ever seen an HO-layout outdoors! Have you an updated video showing your progress? My layout is about three years old. I'd love to expand, but between the price of track and the fact that I live in the woods and trees fall all the time, I probably won't add anymore. If I was in open space, I would have already expanded to a lot larger layout.
Thank you for the additional footage. I see you have chosen 5344, the most famous of the J-1e Hudsons, twice streamlined, once as the Commodore Vanderbilt, then to match the 20th Century Limited Dreyfus streamlined ones. Yours accelerates just like the real ones once did, before they were all scrapped.
I had no idea about all the history of the locomotive. 5344 was the only road number left in stock when I was looking to buy.
I have about 700 feet of track in a 70-foot x 36-foot area. Sorry, I don't know how to convert that size into metric.
Thanks for the ride.Your open house probably encouraged others to build a layout - indoor or outdoor. Space is always a problem even in the real world; the Commander at Fort Hood was hot to build a railroad to deliver ammunition to firing points on the range - until he found how many miles it takes a 100 ton flat car to make a turn; gave it up. Seems like when we have enough space, we change layouts to a scale that requires more space. Really like the long consists you run.
That'a great layout - and video - Doctor. Another entertaining, British-outline video in the same gauge is here: