I was ruminating before dinner this evening that I have 3 different railroads on order. Such is living when you are in a condo with no garden.
The first, smallest, is a HOe or 009 (n gauge, 3.5 or 4mm scale) “park railroad”, otherwise known as a a “ride-on”. Jerry (Naptowneng) has a garden with the SC&M RR and it incorporates several garden features, including a vineyard and an RV park. He has a collection of N scale trains (and a layout upstairs for rainy days,) so we suggested a park railroad next to the vineyard to amuse the visitors and allow him to use some N scale equipment outside.
So I ordered the 009 track from the UK, as they do HO narrow gauge on 9mm track. Then we discovered that Bachmann has a whole range of Thomas’ gear in that scale, including this delightful loco:
It’s actually very small as you’d expect. Bachmann calls it HOn30, just to be consistent with the On30, I guess.
Second railroad is O gauge, or SM32 as it is known in the UK. I have several live steam locos from Regner and Roundhouse which are outside frame regaugable between 32mm and 45mm. I also acquired a bunch of Faller eTrain curves which are 32mm gauge and 30" diameter! In our new MD condo we have a long deck along the side, and wife suggested I install a railroad. The wheels started churning, and I noted a bunch of Peco SM32 straight track and switches for sale which complemented my curves. So they are on the way too. Here’s the curve on my kitchen counter.
Finally, I live in a 9th floor condo in FL with a long lanai as they are known in that part of the world, (long enough for a railroad, but that’s another story.) Below me, on the roof of the garage, are 4 flower beds approx 14’ x 40’. Hmm I says to myself - a good size for a train. And someone offered a box of new Aristo 12.5’ diameter curves which I snapped up. And now there’s a case of Aristo 4’ 6" straights available that I am negotiating on (shipping being the problem.) Here’s the “garden”.
How did I get myself into 3 new railroads?