My son Austen is 11 yaers old and is turning 12 in a few months and would like to get into model railroading. He has a passion for trains and has shown me that he really wants to proceed with this hobby. For his 12th birthday we will be getting him set up on a basic 4x8 set-up but we are looking for advice on where to start. We want to start with the good stuff so that if he would like to expand he is not having to buy everything over again. So, what kind of track, locomotives, cars, controllers etc. Any help would be apreciated. Thanks, Dean & Austen :w20z6q: :w20z6q:
Hi AJB1995, Are you interested in HO scale? How much are you expecting/willing to spend? There are some nice starter sets from Walthers/Life-Like and you may want to consider whether to use DC or DCC (digital command control). If you have a track plan in mind, then buying the track and a loco and cars may be the best way to go.
I would personally avoid the "starter sets" as they typically include poor to average rolling stock, track and power packs, even if the engine is good. You are farther ahead taking a trip (if possible... if not, come back for some more ideas... ) to the local train shop. Good names in locos include Atlas, Bachmann Spectrum (not just Bachmann), Walthers' Life-Like Proto series, and Kato. Rolling stock kits that are easy to start with include Athearn and Accurail. Trackwork can be had from Atlas, turnouts from Peco. Power supply/control is a little different... For DC ("traditional") control, MRC makes good equipment. If you want to go "digital" (think computer network meets model trains), then Digitrax, NCE, Lenz are leaders. A good talk with the train shop staff should set you on the right path. You may wish to check out the beginner information at www.nmra.org, and track down the "World's Greatest Hobby" info too... Good luck! And welcome to a great hobby. Andrew
Thanks for reply. He will have a few hundred dollars to start with. I am trying to encourage that he starts with nice equipment so that as he builds he will have a good foundation to work off of. He is looking at HO scale. I am not sure if there are model train stores around me, we live in So Cal and dint even know they had stores dedicated to this hobby, but I will look into it.
Well is it 4x8 foot? If so you might wanna go with N Scale cause you'll heve more stuff to mess with. Thats just my opinion.
N scale seems awful small. I am worried about him getting frustrated with the size, but what do I know. I guess I need to see some actual models so we can see the difference.
You got it made! Where in SoCal? If it's the greater LA/ OC megalopolis, you got it made! PM me if you have any questions. As a source of inspiration to the boy, this coming weekend is Fullerton Rail Days http://www.scrmf.org/rrdays/ , as well as two open houses The Glendale and Pasadena Model Railroad Club's will be presenting their 2007 Spring Open House this weekend and next. The Pasadena club will be open April 28th, 29th, May 1st, 5th and 6th. Glendale Model Railroad Club will be open May 5th, 6th and 7th. The Pasadena Club is located at: 5458 Alhambra Ave. Los Angeles, CA 90032 Show hours are: Sat. 1 - 5 pm and 7 - 10 pm Sun. 1 - 5 pm Tue. 7:30 - 10 pm Donations are Adults $3.00, children $1.00 (under 7 free when accompanied by an andult) The Glendale Modle railroad Club is located at: 619 Hahn Ave. Glendale, CA 91203 Show hours are: Sat. May 5 10 am to 4 pm Sun. May 6 1 pm to 4 pm Mon. May 7 7:30 to 10 pm Admission to the Glendale Model Railroad Club is free.
Well ir eally dont know much about modeling. I have an HO set but i dont really model it. HO is a fun size. But i dunno how your son would take it with a small N Scale size.
N scale also cost about twice as much and (around here anyway) there isn't the amount of stuff available as is available in HO. I model in HO scale, use Bachmann nickale silver EZ track exclusively, use DCC control and I have locos from Athearn, Proto 2000, Kato, Bachmann and Model Power. For a young person starting off I recommend Athearn Blue Box locos as a starting. They run well, though are a bit noisy, are relatively easy to maintain and have a good drive train. I have some expensive locos (Proto 2000, Kato) that I almost have to take the entire loco apart to clean it. Athearn, Bachmann (Silver Series) and Proto, Atlas, Accu-Rail and some others have very good rolling stock that won't bankrupt young modelers. Some of these are kits and others are pre-assembled. It's up to the person buying. In some cases, you can find an LHS (Local Hobby Shop) that can assemble the kits for you, for a small fee.
Dean&Austen,I too live in So.Cal.!!..I don't think anyone has brought up benchwork to you in this thread..All the advice on equipment is A1..But,please consider how/where you are mounting the RR.Many people start with a solid,usually 4x8 plywood sheet on legs..It's OK,but, IF you get serious about your modeling you will run into some frustration due to this..One, is grades;going up and over,or down and under tracks..Another is reachability.A train derailed or stuck must be reached, as are scenery, buildings and wiring..Also,if you securing track right to ply it's both noisy and tough to put miniature spikes into...Don't mean to scare you off..just trying to help you remain happy by your getting into it smoothly.I thus HIGHLY suggest one of your very first purchases to be a book on MRR benchwork..3 types you should find in it are:Cookie-cutter,Open-grid,and L-girder...Choosing one of these techniques up front will save you anguish down the (rail)road...But,have fun,always..Mark:teeth: PS.Cookie-cutter,of the 3 is only one which will near guarantee a train not plummeting to floor(exept at edge).Other 2 are more advanced but have some element of danger in this Dept..."ALL-Aboard,Austen.Have a nice journey!"
Just take your time guys. You have excellent advice about what to look for, now do your research. Either N or HO will work the best if inside the house or preferably a basement. Dust and weather changes are a problem if you set up out in a garage, plus the 'train table' can easily become a 'catch-all' for things being taken out of a car. That is a NO NO! Look on here for the Forum on Layout Design and Discussion. Spend some time reading through it and studying the photos. Do not be discouraged by some of the layouts you will see, because most have been worked on for several years so are quite finely detailed. Working together, you can eventually achieve the same thing or even better. My Dad and I started together way back in 1937 in HO when I was 7. I still model HO today. If there is any chance you could move to another house in the next 2 or so years, you may wish to start by making 2' x 4' modules (tables) each on its own 2"x2" legs. Bolt the legs on, so they are easily removed for moving later if needed. Use cross braces bolted through the legs too. Pick one, mount your power pack on one side of it so the table top can remain free for track. Use something like cork to mount some track to. Glue the cork to the table top in a few places for now. This will give you something to 'run' when you need a rest, and will help keep the enthusiasm going during construction of the rest of the modules, see? Make a sketch of the space available and post it here for us to see so we can help advise you as you go along. Decide if you can have room to move all around the (4'x8') or however you wish to assemble the 'modules'. (You can play dominoes with modules and come up with a layout that can go around a corner if of advantage, see?) These modules can be easily carried up or down stairs, through the room doors of a house, and can be stacked for moving in a trailer or truck. Try to make good square joints, use a wood glue and screws so it is sturdy. It could get heavy over the years. I started with a $29.00 Toy's R Us 'Train Set' one time, while my other trains were still in storage. It ran, had three cars, power pack and a loop of track, but I had something to run, see? My son learned to run it. It will tip over and get scratched up. So what? He will have to learn just as all of us did, it isn't the end of the world. Now if he had tipped over my 4-8-8-4 Big Boy steam loco, back then, he wouldn't have woke up until he was 30! The rest is all on the Layout Discussion Forum, and you can ask questions here, and email us direct if you need a quick reply. We are all like Uncles and Brothers here, always willing to help when you ask. OH, and by the way, Welcome to TrainBoard guys!
Thank you all for your advice. I can see that we came to the right place. :thumbs_up: We will take into consideration everything. As far as HO vs. N do you have any opinions for a twelve year old starting out, will N be to difficult?
I'm 34 years old... and I find N to be too small :embarassed: and frustrating at times... So we use HO here where I have a 13 year old and a 3 year old (who loves running Gordon and Henry as cameos on our mainline ). The general consensus on the LALLEY OHIO RR line is that HO can't be beat for smaller hands and larger selection at our LHS.
In my book, HO is easier to work on, easier to work with and easier to find stuff for. Plus it costs less.
Both HO and N scale I think would be good. I have a preference for HO, because I'm a bit of a butterfingers, but for a 12 year old, I think N scale will be OK. I will say that there's tons of available support for the hobby in SoCal and if you end up going to a swap meet, you're gonna find an order of magnitude more HO compared to N. Especially in the used. If you're looking for inexpensive, but quality equipment, you can't beat HO. As for LHS in SoCal, you don't say where you are specifically, but trust, me there's some great shops around. Also, I think A trip down to San Diego and the Model railroad museum would be a great trip for you guys.
As far as the HO v. N - N is definately more finicky. Becasue of this you may want to stick with HO to keep the frustration level down. Just my take and I'm an N scaler. Eric
Best to keep it simple to start out. Get a simple DC HO Atlas or Kato diesel engine with 4 wheel trucks. It may not be as interesting to watch as a steam engine when running, but the diesel is very forgiving of flaws in track, inexperienced rough handling, and can fall off the track and still run OK. This will give you some experience in throttle and direction control. Get a car or two, any kind. You can practice coupling and uncoupling, and how fast to go around curves. Most kids will want to know "How fast will it go?" In HO scale speed, some diesels will do about 285 miles an hour and roll off the first curve they hit! After he gets that out of his system, you can start "modeling" the railroad more seriously, and you have not spent a whole lot of money. If you can find a club to visit, ask questions all you can. Study both N and HO scale, maybe they will even allow you both to run a train or two. BE CAREFUL! A 12 year old MUST mind you, because if he crashes one of those expensive trains, you will have to be prepared to write out a check for it there and then! These trains are NOT intended to be toys, so teach your son how to respect these as fine little pieces of machinery that they are. Boys will be boys when excited, so he MUST understand the "club trains" are not to 'ply' with. He can play rough with his own trains, but he better be very careful with another person's train! Start out slowly, build up a reasonable speed for the distance, and come to a gradual slow stop. Reverse is the same thing. Do NOT bang the cars together when making a couple! In real life, if we back in to couple at any speed up to 3 miles an hour, it is a 'couple', but at 4 miles an hour it is a 'collision'! Drive down to a rail yard and watch the trains shift cars around. The whole idea of HO or N is to make your train look just like the real thing, not to cause train wrecks! Look at the disks and VHS tapes available from one of our sponsors: pentrex@pentrex.com or greenfrog.com and observe how real trains run. They also have some on how to build a layout, step by step too!
Hey, I was 10 when I got my 1st N scale train.39 years later,& some of that is still on my layout today.Also,make sure he gets a good job when he's older enough.This can be a very expensive obession........err hobby.:shade: Not bad for #2001 :thumbs_up:
Nice job on #2001 congrats SW. As to being a model railroader. Scale: Ho or N. Just ask your son what he wants, don't let us tell you what to do. It's his train set. Both scales are viable options. Something that has been getting overlooked here, books. Your local library will have lots of train books no doubt. Go to the library and do some research. Purchase one of the how to books for beginners. I still own the ones I bought 30+ years ago. They still come in handy. Train magazines such as model railroader are incredible sources for info.
Model Railroading Advice You need a minimum amount of time, space, and money, and two of those three in more abundance! First, decide on just what interests you about the railroad hobby. If you've dedicated some space and want to build a model railroad (some just build the models at home, and operate them at model rail clubs) by all means get a copy of "Track Planning for Realistic Operation" by the late John Armstrong. This has gone through several editions and is the 'bible' for actually planning a model rail 'layout'. He goes through all the advice areas and shows how to fit specific plans into your space. For examples, curves can only be so sharp and still have the trains go around them; if you buy more cars than will fit on your track space, you should be aware of what you're doing. What is the theme or principal activity of the railroad? What is it suppose to depict? What era, in general, are you modeling - the 1860s, the 21st Century, or when in between? These things will control which engines and cars you buy. Second, be a good 'purchasing agent'. Locomotives of any quality, in particular, and also freight and passenger cars, have become much more expensive in recent years; you wouldn't want to waste money on a misfit. Expensive new realistic controls ("DCC") are now offered, but if you only run one train at a time you don't need them right now. Ask at your hobby shop(s), read the model rail magazines, get introductions to local modelers and clubs; inquire about the National Model Railroad Association and National Railway Historical Society; both have good web sites www.nmra.org and www.nrhs.com respectively, plus local affiliated clubs or chapters. You'll get much invaluable advice. Good luck! Finally, be aware that many of us are primarily historians and prefer to read, photograph, write about, and where possible, ride railroads. Some of us model them in addition. Some are rail enthusiasts but don't want the expense and time of modeling; a really involved model railroad is a GREAT time consumer! James E. Bradley Hawk Mountain Chapter Natl. Ry. Historical Society
