I've always wondered why it was not more popular. They have made some strides, now that 3D printing is here.
3d printing should be a boon for TT scale (along with N). Along with 3d printing, however, there needs to be a core of RTR product to really get TT scale cooking. Once there was that core of RTR available, TT could grow quickly, as it would be attractive to a certain percentage of modelers who are currently in N and HO. At some point TT's close proximity to both of those scales could be a strength instead of a weakness... Jeff C
Printing is the easy part, but someone has to design it first in a formatted file that the 3D printers can work from. It's that design part that keeps me from giving it a go. I imagine that the learning curve could be pretty steep, and I don't have the spare time to devote to yet another project.
I started in N scale around 1993. I was advised to get a hobby for health reasons of the high pressure, high stress job I had back then. Because I was gone so much, I just accumulated boxes full of cars and locomotives. It was one of those things that just sort of happened. Never had trains as a kid, but walking by a hobby shop in San Diego, I saw a N scale layout in the window and the rest is history. In 1996 I was done with the job and moved home to Phoenix where I continued accumulating. In 1998 I built my first serious layout and it ran pretty well. But the accumulation continued. Never really had a plan, just got what I thought was cool. And now 20 years later, still in N scale, but no longer accumulating. In fact I am thinning the collection with a better focus now. Built lots of NTrak modules and a generic coal based layout that I run my NS, NW, CSX etc trains on. Started the retirement layout, and then had to start it again after criminal activity burned down the train building. Now my daughter has gotten the bug for trains so it is a quick UniTrak layout for her to run her trains on. She has 4 locomotives and about 20 cars. Such is the joy of children!
As a kid, my first layout was a 4X8 sheet of plywood on saw horses in the garage in HO. After the Navy I had a house with a full basement and had a layout in HO that took up about 1/3 of the space. Now I am in a townhouse and have a N scale layout that encompasses two walls of a spare bedroom. I think the space available in N is not that different from the basement layout in HO. I enjoy custom painting and detailing N scale locos (SP&S) and am about to begin some scenery. At this stage of my life, N scale fits the bill. John
