hello everyone . just wanted to stop in and say hello to everyone. i started this hobby when i was young with a n scale santa fe kit , big piece of foam with a double loop layout. i watched trains with my dad on the weekends at the GTW elston yard on the sw side of chicago. saddly my hobby stoped when my stepdad took over the garage and i had no way to expand my layout even a little bit. thus it fadded away but never died. i finally went to a train show in the schaumberg convention center (world greatest hobby on tour). I was amazed at how the hobby has advanced in technology and so much to choose from wow. i wanted to start a n scale model but i lost my home in this economic mess and i live with my girl friend in a condo. So i became very interested in z scale. since space is a little limited for the short term i want to start a z scale model. i have so much catching up and so many questions .............. :tb-biggrin:
Welcome aboard Steve. I too lost my house because of various reasons, but I still have a layout (N). At 6X3, it fits in my small 2 bedroom apartment and soon will fit in my girlfriends small home in Central Illinois. Lucky for you we have a very active N and Z scale forum as well as forums for track layout and design. Take some time and read the N and Z forums before you make any purchasing decisions, there is a lot in both scales now. Also consider modules, be it the standard N-Trak modules or the T-Trak modules. Both are popular in Illinois and there are plenty of shows to bring your modules and meet like minded modelers. Also don't miss some of the shows in the area. Cook county fair grounds has a monthly train show and every June, Galesburg Illinois throws the largest summer train shows in the midwest. Its so big because one of the layout tours is the BNSF Galesburg yard! If you have any questions, feel free to ask.
