Hello everyone, my name is J.C. from WVa. I'm 35 and work in IT. Since I'm behind a keyboard all day I've been looking for a new hobby besides being behind yet another keyboard when I'm home. Model railroading has set off the geek in me and I've spent the last several weeks reading and learning a lot about it. I also have an 8 year old son who I'm hoping will take a interest as this new hobby progresses and gets him out from behind his keyboard. At this stage I have a small space carved out of my garage and I'm starting into trying to plan out my bench work and get an idea of a track plan. As you can see I have more than a 4x8 space but not by much. As all new people to the hobby I have grand delusions of what all I want to cram into this space vs. what I can actually do. As I progress I'm sure I'll have lots of questions and need advise.
Hi J.C.! There are many possibilities, some of which will be controlled by your chosen scale. Modular is a goo thing to investigate. If N scale, there is NTrak, oNetrak, Bendtrack, T-Trak, Free-MoN. You an build multiple modules, storing those in the way as you work on others. Then one day, back the car outside, set them up for a weekend, and really go crazy. Or look for a group in your vicinity to join up with your modules, at a show or informal gathering. Then there is the ever sturdy ("HCD") hollow core door. We have an HCD Group here at TrainBoard, as well as T-Trak. T-Trak, ("T" for Table Top), is great as they can be quickly rearranged for variety, and being small are easy to store on shelves, or? If you can get your youngster involved, that would be great. You'll both have memories for life. Above all, just have fun!
Right now I'm leaning towards N scale just to get more into the space. Thanks for the advise on Modular. I had read about NTrak but hadn't heard of the others. My wife has said I can take the whole garage so long as I'm willing to sweep snow off the truck in the winter. Lots of modules maybe a good compromise.
There is a very large N scale community here on TrainBoard. It is quite rare when someone doesn't have the answer to a question. If any come into mind, just hop over to our N Scale Forum area, and give them a try. I am an N scaler of 40+ years. Of those systems I noted previously, experienced in all except Free-MoN. But we have some really talented folks doing that, so they'll know what you need there. Researching, planning and even just dreaming is part the fun we have in this hobby.
Hi J.C., Welcome to the TrainBoard, glad to have you on board. Ken(BoxcabE50) mentioned a Hollow Core Door, which gave me an idea. If the modular concept involving group or club participation doesn't interest you, consider mounting a HCD on hinges so that it can be folded up against the wall. The hinges would need enough offset to protect scenery and houses. Of course that would mean gluing down anything that isn't supposed to move. Storing the trains in a cabinet would be no biggee. At least that would allow you and your wife to walk in front of the truck when the weather's bad. Oh yeh, I've been an N-Scaler for over 30 years, and HO for 35 years before that. Though I'm not addicted, addicted, addicted.......
Glad you found us, JC. I'll give a plug for looking around a little to see if there's a club close enough - it's a great option as often the club will have a layout, and many of the members will have their own as well. Not quite as convenient as a home layout you can get to any time, but a great option for we who often dream bigger than the resources we have!
Welcome aboard, J. C. I see you have already heard from some of our modelers. There are many who contribute to progress on layouts here.
