New N Scale Member from Wisconsin

Markie888 Jan 20, 2019

  1. Markie888

    Markie888 New Member

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    Hi folks, I just ran across this board and am happy to have found it!

    I've been fascinated with trains, mostly N, since I was about 10. Had kinda built a few things over the years, but never had the money, patience, or skill (or all of the above), so either abandoned projects early, or ended up with unsatisfactory results (track, jerky engines, poor scenery), so paused the hobby for a bunch of decades.

    Well, the time has come and there is no turning back this time. I've found a lovely lakeside home with a small, but decent basement, of which I'm going to appropriate enough to have a 16' x 9' around the walls space. I'm busy devouring everything I can find online in terms of tips and tricks and hope to find some good advice here (promise I won't be a nuisance). Going with Unitrack for reliability, building on foam for the first time, and the rest will be a journey of discovery...

    Looking forward to chatting with members on here as well

    Cheers!
     
  2. Eagle2

    Eagle2 Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Welcome aboard! Hopefully you're finding that things have been much improved since your first foray. As you may already have realized, we have quite an active N scale community, and hopefully you're finding much useful.
     
  3. Markie888

    Markie888 New Member

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    Hi Eagle2

    It’s absolutely amazing the improvements that have come along. That’s a big part of why it’s encouraging me that I can be successful this time.

    The other side however are the costs. I remember an old model railroader cartoon saying that they call it a “layout” because you lay out 10 and $20 at an alarming rate. Well I think you need to add a zero to that now. I’ve made three purchases in the last week all of them absolutely tiny ones and I was 40 to 60 for really almost nothing LOL

    Be that as it may I’ve never stopped believing this is the most wonderful hobby in the world and I am truly grateful to be back in it with a full head of steam (sorry folks).
     
  4. Markie888

    Markie888 New Member

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    One question I have. On a different forum one of my inspirations was from a couple people that posted frequent progress with pictures of their layout builds. That way the comments, feedback, successes, and frustrations we’re all kind of real time and made for kind of a cool story to follow every couple days sometimes.

    Is something like that welcomed on here or is this to be more topic and discussion based? I want to be respectful of the culture at the same time I want to contribute. Perhaps my own lack of recent experience could be helpful to other members who are either new to the hobby or Who haven’t attempted to “come back from the dead” yet like myself until now
     
    Onizukachan likes this.
  5. Hytec

    Hytec TrainBoard Member

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    Hi Markie, Welcome, happy to have you on board. I converted to N about 35 years ago, and, like you, am amazed at the advancement in technology since then. My area is about the same yours. What I found was that with N Scale, I was able to build a series of rural and community scenes with a railroad running through and serving them, rather than with larger scales, having a bunch of tracks with occasional scenes to break the monotony. Looking forward to sharing your progress, and offering help and suggestions where appropriate.
     
  6. Markie888

    Markie888 New Member

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    Thanks for the comments. I love what you said about having the train go through the scenes, rather than trying to wrap a few things around the tracks. Even in N, I still have to fight the temptation to cram as many tracks into the layout as I can, but at least I have a fighting chance to get some decent scenes in there too, lol.

    In my 16 x 9 around the wall layout that i'm planning and just now starting to attack, I plan on having 3 separate towns, each with a distinct personality, and have separation in both elevation and some mountains (more like hills) in between. That's the vision anyway.

    I do want to avoid the "round and round" as best I can, but still being able to watch trains run by themselves sometimes, but not circle right back on themselves. To that end, my plan is a folded dogbone, which makes a single lap take twice as long, plus change elevations a couple times. I certainly will control the train's journey more often than not, but would like the option for it to go around by itself as well.

    I found the following diagram on a google search and it provided the basic inspiration for what I had in mind...

    twist.png
     
  7. Markie888

    Markie888 New Member

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    Here is an outline of my space (green area)

    I currently have a comfy loveseat in the wide opening, which is kind of nice to have there, but that could someday get eaten up by an expansion either from the right or the left.

    The railroad could always exercise it's right of "eminent domain" :)


    Train Area.png
     
  8. Eagle2

    Eagle2 Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    We do really enjoy ongoing build threads. We have one in the Inspection Pit right now about a bowling alley project, and have had many through the years, both for specific projects and for layouts.
     
  9. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    Welcome to TrainBoard! Looks like you have a good potential topic for our Layout Design forum. :)
     
  10. Hytec

    Hytec TrainBoard Member

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    Don't know your wall construction for supporting brackets, but consider this technique for mounting the layout. The brackets are 21" with random length 1"x2" mounted on top. This provides unrestricted access underneath. Then cover with two layers of 1/2" or 3/4" foam board. The wide areas allow for the reversing loops. Where the narrower ares allow access to the back of the layout and inside centers of the loops. Also it provides an interesting visual experience for the visitor.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
    Markie888 likes this.
  11. Markie888

    Markie888 New Member

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    Hi, thanks for the reply. I was wondering what the preferred forum area for these kinds of ongoing threads might be, as I had gone to the new member intro thread because... well I'm new, but I don't want to clutter that up. I was thinking either "Layout Design Discussion" or "N Scale" forum areas were better suited, so I'll take that as a cue to move over to Layout Design.

    Thanks!
     
  12. Markie888

    Markie888 New Member

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    I'm continuing this over to "Layout Design Discussion" but your suggestion on the long brackets is the way I went. I didn't do the wood strips on top, a good idea, but didn't think of it when I started the foundation a few weeks back, wish I had.

    Thanks again!
     
  13. Onizukachan

    Onizukachan TrainBoard Supporter

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    I do that. Some folk don’t.
    Everything is welcome imo. You can read my story, and occasionally I’ll do a stand-alone post.
    You do what works for you! And welcome!
     
  14. Onizukachan

    Onizukachan TrainBoard Supporter

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    I started in new member, then copy pasted to an ongoing thread in Nscale and provided a link to “close” the new member thread.
     
  15. BoxcabE50

    BoxcabE50 HOn30 & N Scales Staff Member TrainBoard Supporter

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    We have several ongoing such long running threads. They are indeed welcome. Some update often, others, infrequently. That is a choice of the OP. :)
     
  16. BNSF FAN

    BNSF FAN TrainBoard Supporter

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    Welcome to TrainBoard!!!
     

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