I'm perhaps an even newer newbie to N-Scale model railroading. At 34 yrs old, I am just looking to get into the hobby. I have related skills in scenery, modelling and dioramas, so the prospect of doing a highly detailed layout is rather appealing. Being a Canadian, and living about 200 metres away from the main CN Montreal-Toronto-Windsor cooridor, doing a CN/Via Rail layout is rather appealing. I've recently acquired a locomotive... and I don't have any track yet... I picked up Kato's new P42DC in the new Via Renaissance Paint Scheme... No passenger cars to go with it just yet... I don't think anyway. The close proximity to that gives me lots of ideas... Recently I actually saw a switcher engine (not sure what type), hooked up in a consist with a Dash-9 and one other locomotive (I'm still new to locomotive identification). They occasionally park on the track near my place in London.
I've been doing a lot of reading on the hobby in general. While I've not made any purchases in the realm of equipment, rolling stock, track, etc., my library is beginning to build. I am pretty technologically minded, so things like DCC doesn't scare me. In fact, I find it quite intriguing. So here are my questions:
For entry level in N-Scale, what am I best to look at? I'm not afraid of technology and am quite willing to go for DCC right off the bat. My space and budget considerations are limited, so I won't be able to build anything so spectacular as SD90's layout (most impressive).
I recently downloaded Atlas' track planning software, which is pretty basic, but does serve what I need for the moment. I decided to take an existing track plan, their "N9" from their site:
I then modified it to this variant using elements from the other track plans:
I then turned the yard slightly:
All of this is supposed to fit on a 32"x80" door. My spacial considerations won't allow for anything else. I would love to be able to take over a room, but my wife and I live in a modest-sized townhouse, with a LOT of shared space. A room for dedicated railroading is not in the cards... not yet... However, that can always come later
I still have to learn a lot of the skills...
I've been doing a lot of reading on the hobby in general. While I've not made any purchases in the realm of equipment, rolling stock, track, etc., my library is beginning to build. I am pretty technologically minded, so things like DCC doesn't scare me. In fact, I find it quite intriguing. So here are my questions:
For entry level in N-Scale, what am I best to look at? I'm not afraid of technology and am quite willing to go for DCC right off the bat. My space and budget considerations are limited, so I won't be able to build anything so spectacular as SD90's layout (most impressive).
I recently downloaded Atlas' track planning software, which is pretty basic, but does serve what I need for the moment. I decided to take an existing track plan, their "N9" from their site:
I then modified it to this variant using elements from the other track plans:
I then turned the yard slightly:
All of this is supposed to fit on a 32"x80" door. My spacial considerations won't allow for anything else. I would love to be able to take over a room, but my wife and I live in a modest-sized townhouse, with a LOT of shared space. A room for dedicated railroading is not in the cards... not yet... However, that can always come later
I still have to learn a lot of the skills...
