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So with my vast new-found knowledge, I imagine that I pull my train off the main line onto some arrival side line. The little switcher comes out to take my caboose over and out of the way to some caboose place. Already I'm baffled. Assuming I already have the tech needed to operate two...

I've been looking at a number of track photos and reading about the use of crusher fines for ballast, etc. What I've seen is ballast that, in most cases, includes at least some rock with a 'feature size' that is close to the narrow dimension of the sleepers--that is, rock chunks that, to scale...

I'm talking about cant, or...banking the corners. Never see it in the books, never see it discussed. Seems kinda important. So The Newbie's questions are (and 1 gauge is the context): 1) Do we do it at all? 2) Do we wing it? 3) Do we have rules-of-thumb for setting it up? 4) If we do it and...

As a pre-beginner, you folks know I have a million stupid questions. Here's another one. I'd like to understand how switches are designated--I have the impression there are low-angle and high-angle switches (acute and less acute). I'd like to know if that's true, and what the typical...

Please forgive me if my terminology is sloppy. I've not found anything on what can be done with model trains other than running them around the track. I'm wondering...with available scale equipment can you build up a train from cars in a way similar to protoype operations? Now, I don't know...

I'd like to learn some real basic stuff about how rail companies own, operate and/or share track. I assume this has a lot to do with mergers & acquisitions, government regulation and era. But for example, I'd like to know at least enough so I can at least ask intelligent questions. As it is, I...

So my dream locomotive model is said to "run on R3 curves", which is a wonderful thing I suppose. Now, I know it takes 12 pieces of 30 deg track sectors to make a full circle, but none of this information tells me what the actual radius of the track sector IS...unless I know the length of the...

15' radius for 4-6-6-4 or 4-8-4 Gauge One? I'm interested in garden rail, but the portion of my back yard that I can use is about 70' wide by 30' deep, and that's fence-to-fence (wide) and fence-to-patio (deep). I'm concerned that only having a max. 15' radius turn is going to look pretty...