Now Retired and Trying to Start over
Good evening folks. I discovered this website by logging onto another website who very much enjoys this website and highly recommended it. So here I am, newly registered and logged in. So I thought I would try and put in my two cents as an old hand, but a new beginner. A little back ground about me. I'm Retired Military and now retired as a civilian too. I've spent the last 15 years as an O.T.R. Truck Driver (and I still own my own Semi Truck and Trailer (even though it is now parked out in my back yard as a house hold storage shed)). Now finally, I'm retired and am wanting to start my Model Railroad Hobby over again. I've built several layouts over the years Both in HO and in N-Scale, and each time I've had to tear them down again when I've had to move to a different house and/or to a different location or state. This time I have gotten a hold of an older model discarded twenty foot long by eight foot wide single axle "RV" travel trailer which I have already gutted out and have remodeled with new interior paneling and ceiling. Until the other day I hadn't decided what I intended to do with that travel trailer except maybe for an odds and ends storage shed. But two days ago I decided to make that travel trailer into my Model Railroading layout, and Hobby Shack because I have decided that I want at least a Semi-Portable / Semi-Permanent house and room for my new layout and where I won't have to tear it down again if I ever have to move. ( I can just hook onto it with my pickup and go). It's not going to be anything fancy, but I think it will provide me with a decent size layout for me, my wife and grandkids to enjoy ourselves in our spare time. I still have a lot of HO scale equipment as well as a small G-scale starter set and an N=scale Starter set which I have never had out of the box yet. At this time I have more HO equipment than N-scale equipment and I'm still not sure whether I want to build an HO scale layout into that travel trailer or an N-Scale layout into it. Any Ideas? Well, enough jacking my jaws for a spell, and I'll let some other nice Model Railroading fans have their say. Have a great evening, and a better day tomorrow folks.
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For figures of soldiers try the war gaming crowd. They set up or at least they used to, battlefields complete with everything need to show what was going on.
I belive Grandt Line has wagon wheels in their parts line. The Gazette at one time ran a whole series of wagon plans.
Jack
Grandt Line (Circus) wagon wheels
Chuck
https://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/blog/33495
@ The Old Prospector
See if these fit your time period and evaluate the scales.
This is O scale http://model-railroad-hobbyist.com/node/14605 and http://usmrr.blogspot.com. There is a video of Bernard's display layout on TrainMasters TV too. Oh, he is a member on here too. Check out his blog for his home layout.
This On30 http://thundermesaminingco.blogspot.com and This is Verne's layout also a member here; http://sonoragrandeenterprises.com/esgrr/home.html
This is in HO http://sandcrr.blogspot.com
Do a search for the N scale Bradshaw Mountain Railway. There are several really good videos on YouTube of this N scale layout.
All the above should give you ideas to get you started. You just have to decide how much detail you want to see. The bigger the scale the more detail you will see. Also, take a good look at the colorful steamers in the larger scales. The smaller the scale you have less detail, but more landscape and taller mountains.
Also, take a look on Shapeways.com. There are a lot of old time train models there to choose from. You are required to do all the finishing and detail work. Some of our members here have designs available on Shapeways.
I think we can all agree that it would be best for you to get to a hobby shop and get some of the different scales in your hands. Especially before investing heavily in any scale. You may find N scale is too small for your eyes or O scale eats up to much floor space in your hobby room. Only you can decide. Let's us know what you decide.
Den
Dennis Austin located in NW Louisiana
Reply to: How about this, there are others - by Rob in Texas
Once again, thank you for your nice response - I think because of what you and the other fine Model Railroading fans on here have informed me to do, and because I have lots more HO scale equipment and track on hand than N scale, I will go ahead with an HO scale layout in my travel trailer. So I've almost totally finished the gutting and restoration work on the interior of the travel trailer (the only interior furnishings I left inside was the following) - The overhead cabinets, one small short partition wall, (on the left side, next to the door as you enter) the bathroom sink (and a smaller cabinet next to it, as I want to use those two cabinets for part of the layout supporting framework as well as train equipment storage) and the four foot long wall that was behind the toilet (which ran along and just 8 inches inside from the main exterior wall from front to rear) which was a combination storage, area and which now hides the long electrical power cord that plugs into the nearest remote external RV or Household power receptacle and now also hides the recently relocated circuit breaker panel.box. -Note : I can also use this wall for both storage of train equipment as well as use it for good use as a tunnel in that left back corner. - Now, on with a question that I have in mind and need possible clarification on - I want to build a complete wrap-around bench-work layout that starts at the right hand side of the entrance door and goes forward to the front wall and then crosses over to the far wall and then travels along the far wall to the back rear wall the then also travels across the back wall then goes back toward the front again and ends at the small partition standing beside the entrance door. Here is the interior floor size dimensions of the trailer 19 feet 9 inches from front to rear, 7 feet eight inches from side to side - Now the question is ? - Knowing how wide the normal modular sized bench-work is (which is usually 24 inches wide), do I need to make this the standard 24 inches wide or do I need to make it only 18 inches wide for an HO scale layout ( eventually want to either scratch-build (or buy) a couple of turntables one for each end, or build in a couple of "Wye's" for turn-around at each end (plus if I know my wife she will want me to probably install a figure eight reversing crossover as well) I also will eventually want a double track that basically runs side-by-side next to the original track so that I can run more than one locomotive set as well. - Once again thank you all for your kind and nice responses back to me. Now once again, Happy Layout modeling to each and every one of you who has responded back to me. and to you too Rob.