[NOS2Go4Me]

So we don't get booed or banned for crapping in the tax refund thread :P

What scale do you model?

Do you prototype or freelance? Freelance being "making up your own railroad", prototype being that you attempt to recreate (at least partially) a real-life railroad.

Any particular equipment likes / dislikes?

DC or DCC?

Size of your layout? Any diagrams?

As for me:

- N-scale, but I have a whack of decent HO with Rapido couplers if anyone wants to get into it. No power units, but LOTS of decent freight rolling stock.

- I quasi-prototype. The rolling stock is all true to my layout's geographical area, but the route is completely made-up. Geographic points (Toronto, North Bay, Cochrane, Moosonee) are real but the route items are faked.

- I've used Rapido (slam-together plastic) couplers all my life, but I'm getting into Kadee / magnetic couplers now with my new ONR SD75Is. I'll be retrofitting my existing rolling stock to take Kadee couplers. I like Athearn stuff for its trueness to proto quality. Walthers is a great Internet portal for shopping for EVERYTHING.

- DC for now, maybe DCC if I'm feeling adventurous down the road. The new SD75Is are DCC-capable.

- Current layout: 4x8' table being altered to 2x11' benchwork with a 2' wing from one end for a switching yard and a turning loop. It should have a river with a trestle and some good old 2-lane highway action when it's done. Most ground cover will be the real thing, and I'm toying with real water over resin for the river.

[darkpuppet]

sorry.. not the big train guy, but you should set up a slot car track as a highway.. SAWEET!

[focusracer]

Good call on the new topic.

Like I said, I'm not real big into it, it's my dad's retirement project/hobby. It gives him something to do.

He's running n scale. Just converted to dcc about a year ago. He loves it. He retrofitted the majority of his cars over to the magnetic couplers.

Layout would be what you describe as freelance, it's kind of based on about a billion railroads he's studied over his life (this is about the 10th time he's built it) along with sections created in his mind. He's dedicated an entire room to it, about 18x12. There's 3 tiers to it covering 3 of the 4 walls.

He's put a lot of work into it over the last few years. Don't know if he'll ever actually finish it.

He orders from both Athearn and Walthers as well as a couple others. It seems damn near impossible to get good n scale out here on the wet coast so he orders out of the U.S. gets it shipped to a friend just south of the border and goes and picks it up, saves the brokerage just has to pay the duties but he'll take mom and go for a 3 day jaunt.

[NOS2Go4Me]

^^ That's actually a cool idea (in reply to Puppet's post). I'm not sure why most folks don't do that already, to add some extra simulation to the area. I guess you'd have to match scales, first off.

The stuff I model is so small, slot cars are about the size of monster trucks next to the engines.

[torradan]

I have all N scale that I use, and a ton of HO that I got when I was little in my parent's attic.

Most everything I have is DCC. I've even done surgery on a steam engine to stuff a decoder into the boiler. That was definately a challenge, and it took a couple of calls to Kato to get replacement parts shipped when I sorta broke them. Except for a couple of engines, everything had drop-in decoders. I LOVE the DCC though. It gives you so much more control over what is doing what, and no real need to have everything insulated. Search for JMRI sometime.. computer interface for it, its pretty sweet.

I just have a freelance set up right now, but its going to be taken down permanently until I get a house up there and can have space to build. No diagrams really, just a couple of ovals, crossovers, and spurs. Its like page 1 of "how to build a model railroad".

Have a half dozen of the tortoise switch machines too that I will be using too (and need to buy more). But they're pretty pricy.

I'll get pictures up as soon as I figure out where I put them.

[Focus man. Focus.]

I used to model railroad when I was younger. I used and still have HO and most of it is Hornby from England. I am saving it all up until I get my own place to set it all up again. I had a lot of fun with it until I got my drivers licence and then I forgot about it all and was forced to box it all up by Mom and Dad.

It is a very satisfying hobby if you have the time and paitience.

Oh and I have to say it..... :postpics:

[NOS2Go4Me]

Pics are coming... patience :D