How do you start?

I've been thinking of building a G Scale layout in my backyard but have no idea where to start. Can you ll give me some books or web sites to help me out.

Thanks
Polski

 

Garden Railways mag for starters.
Depends on what you want to do and how large you want it to be.

How old are you?
If you foresee an issue with getting down on the ground to work on it or throw switch controls, build it high.
My brothers and I, none of us has a back that worth a hoot....so, we killed ourselves for six months hauling rock and dirt.....and we've run it for over 20 years, regularly.
Think about attaching the track to something. I used 4X4 vertical, buried in the original grade, plates across the top...when the dirt settles, and it will, the track didn't move.
I can put track next to a cliff and not worry about the ballast shifting.
Stay away from Stainless for cost issues.
I use all, as in 100%, radio battery, inexpensive aluminium track.
Small pike, about 1500 feet of track and 90+ switches.
You need specifics on how to build track supports?
Dave

 

Ours started with a loop, oh, 40 feet, maybe 50 feet long, 15 feet wide, on sloping ground, on 4X4's buried in grade, plates on top....shallow 3 feet in the air, highest end 5 feet. Laid track and ran.

As we obtained dirt, we then got rocks, figured out where towns and industries would be, laid rock layer, dirt, wet and tamped, next layer of rock, more dirt.
From there, we expanded. Took a lot of years, but we ran trains the entire time.

 

In your area?
http://www.ggrrc.org/

Garden railway-ers(?) have a large society, they are all over. Maybe even .....everywhere.

 

I'm 65 and have no problems getting on my knees (and getting back up). My area I have is about 32'x18'.
Just looking for good reading material, so I guess "Garden Railways" is a start.

Polski

 

Ok;

Bought a copy of Garden Railway and have a question, what's up with all the different scales in "G"?

Polsk

 

Different manufacturers use the G gauge track to produce models that are scaled to fit the 45mm track. Some use it for narrow gauge trains while others use it for standard gauge trains, thus the scale discrepancy.

 

One #1 gauge track:
1:32 is 4' 8-1/2"
1:29 is goofy gauge...no known scale to gauge.
1:24 is 3'6" gauge
1:22.5 is metre gauge...initially promoted by LGB.
1:20.3 is 3' gauge.

Now.

Unless you have broad curves and good clearances, don't do 1:20.3.
Decide now, before you buy a lot of stuff you will have to get rid of, what you want to do.
Do you want narrow gauge steam? Mainline steam? Mainline diseasemal? European steam, diseasemal or electric?

Once you know, and look around, THEN buy.
Track will kill you. For decent running out doors, stainless is the way some go, requires a rail bender.
Nickle-Silver is better, won't eat flanges off like stainless can.
Brass requires cleaning...sometimes lots.
I use only radio/battery, and use aluminium...Llagas....and it is about 20 a six foot stick.

"Code" or height of the rail in decimal.
Most of the stuff is .332. Do the math. How many trains run on nine inch high rail?
Mine is all 250 and 215. With stock flanges, about .200 is the minimum you can go without reworking all your flanges.

Basic primer. There are other scales, but minor.

Dave

 

Interestingly....the nmra did not want more than one scale per gauge.
Back in the 30's and 40's, to fix the scale to gauge discrepancy in 0, at 1:48 or 1/4" scale...the gauge is what, five feet.....we had 17/64ths scale...correct scale to the gauge.
The nmra decided this was not in accordance with their new "standards", and the lock-step folks at Clambake reported in reviews that items in 17/64ths no longer met nmra standards.
The minions who just swallowed that didn't buy 17/64ths any more...and it went away. 25 years later, we got Proto48, which permanently and irrevocably split the 0 hobby....no longer could you have interchange of equipment...one of the cornerstones of the nmra.
Now they have at least 5 scales on one gauge...how's that working out for them now?
Dave