I model an indoor freelanced Large Scale logging/industrial/short line RR. Since space is very limited, I use a lot of artistic license but try to model based on prototype practices. I lean toward 1:20.3 scale but use supplies from LGB and other scales as long as it looks right to me. The lack of space dictates I use very sharp curves so I use small Bachmann and LGB locos. They may look funny on such curves but I’d rather see them run than sit on a shelf. I admire LGB’s attitude in that all their locos will run on sharp curves. I approach Large Scale from a model railroader’s point of view and love to super detail and scratch build unusual rolling stock and structures. Every scale - from Z to 7/8 - involves some form of compromise but the main point is to enjoy what you’re doing. I like Malcolm Furlow’s and John Allen’s styles and attitudes toward modeling in that they’re in the hobby to have fun.
Welcome aboard, Mike.
I agree that the primary thing is to have fun. This is a hobby, an opportunity to relax from the stresses of every day life. Why add more stress…just play and have fun…!!
Warren Mumpower said:
Welcome aboard, Mike.I agree that the primary thing is to have fun. This is a hobby, an opportunity to relax from the stresses of every day life. Why add more stress…just play and have fun…!!
Warren - you hit it there! How could I possibly call my layout, if that is the right word to use, scale, whimsical or artsy?
It is 74.8 feet long, in the shape of a distorted egg, single track [no switches to get me confused] and raised off the ground on a wooden ladder-like structure that makes it look a bit like a long approach span to a bridge. Oh yes, there is a bridge there too.
I run everything there is to run that will fit on 45mm track, except 7/8th scale, which won’t go under my bridge. I run Gauge 1 in 1/32 AND 10mm, 1/29th, 1/24th, 1/22.5 and 1/20.3.
Obviously not at the same time…
Needless to say, I have a very well developed sense of fantasy and imagination.
I get my fun running trains for kids up on the nearby base, about three or four times a year, when my pal Broos and I can set up a rather bigger portable layout on table tops with much bigger curves than I have. Or running my stuff on a friend’s 800ft quadruple track with 2.5" and 45mm dual gauge track…
I kid myself that one day I will go back to Canada for good and have a real-sized layout in our backyard, but time is running out…
So I have fun while it lasts, even in the rain.
Happy New Year to ALL!!
tac
Ottawa Valley GRS
Having fun is of prime importance, as this is supposed to be an enjoyable HOBBY.
We all find fun in different ways and this leads to the fundimental problem…what is fun for you may not be FUN for the next guy.
For example: I get great pleasure in seeing a model railroad with equipment that is of the same style (SG vs NG). With appropriate locos,
Some don’t care…
: I can enjoy watching a train running through the garden, for a while; but after a short while I get bored. (Visitors start asking “What else does it do ?”)
: I always, as a young fellow; wanted a railroad where there was enogh space to build a pike, where the loco wasn’t arriving at a station, while the van was still at the last one. This desire makes me very frusterated with little roundy-roundy pikes, that others find attractive.
: After years of putting up with having couplers looking ugly, and not anything like real ones…I am frustrated seeing so many LS train fans, using loop hooks, or being satisfied with unsightly, oversize couplers and too much space between cars, or Locos and tenders.
But; most seem complacent to this, and keep posting pictures with great pride of thier stuff, even with those things glaring at us.
Even the magazines seem to ignore the glaring goof-ups.
So you see; things that bother me, and get me on my high horse, with “Constructively meant” critisizim; usually lead to a lot of the “Out-of-the-boxers” jumping on me with yells of hatred for me spoiling their “Fun”.
Over at another site, I wouldn’t be alowed to even post this…I had a very polite letter sent to me by one of the moderators, and the web master, telling me to please keep my ideas to myself. I’m not wanted over there, because I’m too radical, it seems.
On this site, I just posted a comment the other day, to a contributor, about the idea of “Link n’ Pin” couplers, that was taken in the correct way, and I appreciate his reply. But that is why I like posting here…much more open minded people.
Yes having FUN comes in all sorts of ways…my way or your way…we all can choose, “Our Own Way”…
Happy New Year
Fred Mills said:
Having fun is of prime importance, as this is supposed to be an enjoyable HOBBY.We all find fun in different ways and this leads to the fundimental problem…what is fun for you may not be FUN for the next guy.
…
Over at another site, I wouldn’t be alowed to even post this…I had a very polite letter sent to me by one of the moderators, and the web master, telling me to please keep my ideas to myself. I’m not wanted over there, because I’m too radical, it seems.
On this site, I just posted a comment the other day, to a contributor, about the idea of “Link n’ Pin” couplers, that was taken in the correct way, and I appreciate his reply. But that is why I like posting here…much more open minded people.
Yes having FUN comes in all sorts of ways…my way or your way…we all can choose, “Our Own Way”…
Happy New Year
Fr. Fred,
Smack on the money!
As far as radical goes… hmmmmmmmmm… perhaps it’s more a matter of some people terming any criticism as “detrimental to the Hobby”. I’ve had that reply once or twice, in both English and German. To which I reply, in both English and German: “G” - wie Gummi!
Of course these are the very same people who proclaim that “everything is just dandy as it is”; “we don’t need those improvements”; “if it runs on 45mm track and looks good, it is good!”.
It will be interesting to see what happens when today’s scale crowd in the smaller scales - we are all paying attention what is going on in the smaller scales, aren’t we??? - start to migrate to the Biggie Size Toys because they can’t see the minute detail as well as they used to, but they sure like it as an accurate model.
Happy New Year!
I can remember years ago before Klambake took over Garden Railways magazine, a couple of fellows by the name of Herb Chaudiere and Jack Verduci wrote articles introducing operations into garden railroads. Oh, the hate mail that followed those articles would have started a fire. At the time it wasn’t something I was into, but I found the articles interesting and got me thinking which I’m sure was their whole purpose. HJ’s comment about “detrimental to the hobby” got me thinking about that. Some of the hate mail refered to exactly the same thing. “The end of Garden Railroading as we know it…!”
Things don’t seem to have changed much…at least in some people’s attitudes…
As far back as I can remember there have been those in all scales that will just pi** into the wind to see who will get wet…and then complain. The term “He’d complain if they hung him with a new rope” has been around for eternity. And I imagine that the complainers will be around for another eternity…whether in HO, O or G. I doubt if switching guages will change their habits. Those that are now non complainers will be satisfied when they change over and those that are pi**ing and moaning now in HO will continue when they become too blind to continue there.
Some folk’s hobby is Garden Railroading. Some folk’s hobby is criticizing those who actually do the hobby, have fun and don’t sweat the details.
Warren Mumpower said:Warren,
As far back as I can remember there have been those in all scales that will just pi** into the wind to see who will get wet....and then complain. The term "He'd complain if they hung him with a new rope" has been around for eternity. And I imagine that the complainers will be around for another eternity...whether in HO, O or G. I doubt if switching guages will change their habits. Those that are now non complainers will be satisfied when they change over and those that are pi**ing and moaning now in HO will continue when they become too blind to continue there.
Ahhhh, but imagine the possibilities that you missed in your black and white portrait…
There are uncounted numbers of operating groups north and south of the border, there are uncounted numbers of model railroaders who follow the prototype much closer than some of the LSers imagine.
In addition to all those good folks there are enough hardcore prototype modelers to make my head spin, people I would refer to as rivet counters if it weren’t for the fact that they model modern welded stuff to the 'nth degree.
They set the models on a super detailed diorama, photograph it outside and anyone will be r-e-a-l-l-y hard pressed to tell the difference between real and model.
Do they pee and moan? You must be kidding! Do they worry about the non-complainers “shake-the-box” types? Not on your life, but my impression is, when they migrate to LS they won’t be running “Tip-toe-through-the-tulips” layouts, they will carry on with what they know from the smaller scales. If they refer to themselves as Garden Railroaders or Large Scale modelers only time will tell. BTW the same applies to the operating groups!
No, operations isn’t necessarily for those who like a hobby that is strictly “relaxing”, as in: you put your brains on idle, just like you do in front of the boob tube.
OTOH sipping a few beers and watching the train go round and round isn’t all that intriguing to some of us.
BTW don’t restrict the “moaners” to HO, O and G. Haven’t you seen what some people do in Nn3?
Worse yet would you believe there are some “moaners” who model Zm. Yes Sir, that is Meter Gauge in 1:220 on 4,5mm track gauge.
Yeah, I know there’s a 1% error in the track gauge, 
Perhaps one day we’ll get only consistent little 1% errors at least on the main dimensions in LS. No, I’m not holding my breath. 
Geez…Almost 2007 and we are still beating this dead horse…Time to walk folks…you can’t ride this nag she’s dead. People’s likes & dislikes are as different as they are…Either accept that fact or argue until the cows come home…Or just learn to hate everyone with a different view point!..then you can don white sheets with pointy white hats and attend bonfires.
I have enough reality going on every day that I don’t need to replicate it in perfect scale. I prefer artistry to counting rivets. That being said, I don’t usually go off the handle and do things completely outragious either. Most of my models are based on reality, “could have been models”, but I don’t go crazy either. In either direction. I do have a few fantasy-type models. What do you expect from an artist who has spent more than 14 years in Imagineering at Disney? Its fun to play every now and again. I guess I am more interested in the “finish” of my creations that making sure all the nuts and bolts are a scale 1-1/4" instaed of 1-1/2"! I am interested in the final “effect” a model has upon the viewer. Perhaps even emotion. Of course there are those that are effected by a row of rivets that is one short of the prototype, but I have little interest in that kind of attention to detail.
I am in it for the fun. I also like to depict a little slice of history, even though it may be selectivly changed a bit for effect or to dramatize a point. Most of my personal model building is in Gn15. I am doing an indoor island railroad. The gauge of 15" isn’t really practical as far as a real line would go, but that is my major concession. I like the “color” and slightly funky quality I can represent without being too outlandish. The most important thing for me is to have fun. To escape the world’s problems for a while. I don’t need that all day long. A little reality goes a long way these days.
Cheers,
Tom
John Joseph Sauer said:Ah.... and other folks' hobby is Large Scale model railroading, both indoors and outdoors. Rather than sweating the details, they add them in the right places to make "things" look better. ;) And while they do that, they have fun.
Some folk's hobby is Garden Railroading. Some folk's hobby is criticizing those who actually do the hobby, have fun and don't sweat the details.
For some really nice indoor pictures check out Dave Winter’s WinterValleyRegional RR. Take the tour!
Not a “let’s add one more piece of track to the one square foot of free space on the Plywood Central” operation.
Here are a few of my thoughts on the subject:
I’m not a “rivet counter”. I don’t care too much if a boxcar is a foot too short, as the average person could never tell the difference anyway. I’m more interested in general appearance than 100% scale accuracy, and so I’ll put in enough rivets or other details to make something look “fairly” realistic. How much accuracy is “enough” to achieve that is purely subjective and will vary from person to person. I don’t have a problem with that, and I can enjoy and appreciate whatever level of accuracy another person chooses to put into their own layout.
I’ve seen layouts that are purely “out of the box” trains rolling through non-scale gardens, and while it’s not what I would choose, I can still enjoy watching it. I’ve seen others that are complete fantasies, and enjoyed those too. My personal preference is for a bit more realism, and I am most impressed with layouts that swing that way. Either way, “trains is trains”, whether they be toys or the 1:1 scale “real thing”, and as such they are all cool in my book.
Having said that, I find the mish-mash of scales in “G” to be really annoying. As someone else put it, why is the gauge dictating the scale?? None of the other scales in model railroading do this – for instance, all HO trains are the same scale, regardless of the gauge of the track. Same with N, O, etc.
One can certainly choose to model only one scale in “G” but you’ll find yourself extremely limited in product choices under the current irrational system.
For instance, one could model only 1:20.3 for 3-foot gauge railroading, but there are very few models available at that scale, nearly all of them from either Bachmann (moderately priced) or Accucraft (Ka-ching!) Bachmann is only just now producing rolling stock in that scale, after selling 1:20.3 locos for several years. And if you want to model dual guage, you’re stuck because all the standard guage models are in a different scale!
Then there’s the “support materials” – things which are not locos or rolling stock, yet are vital to model railroading. There are very few 1:20.3 figures available. Same with structures, vehicles, scale lumber, doors/windows, detail castings, etc. Most of these things are in 1:24 scale, which is virtually unsupported by any of the current large scale RR manufacturers!
(I’ve been reading my old issues of the Narrow Gauge & Short Line Gazette from the 80’s, and back then it seems that all the finescale modelers in “large scale” were modeling at 1:24. Now hardly anyone uses that scale, but the “support materials” haven’t kept up.)
If you choose to model one of the other “large scales” such as 1:29 or 1:32, you’ll find even less support materials in your scale.
The large-scale modeler is stuck with two choices: Either scratchbuild every flipping detail, or mix scales a bit. Now, I love scratchbuilding, but I don’t have the time or patience to build every single detail. I prefer to buy doors and windows whenever possible, and those are pretty easy compared to scratchbuilding scale autos or realistic figures. I don’t have the tools to cut my own scale lumber, so I have to use what’s available (and at prices I can afford). Rolling stock and locos? Even if I decided to scratchbuild them, it would take years to produce enough for even a moderately sized railroad, and until then I’d have to settle for weathering and modifying whatever I can get “out of the box”.
On top of all that, it’s a pain trying the whole mish-mash everytime someone asks, “What scale is G?”
So, I’d love it if we didn’t have this problem. In a perfect world, “G scale” would be one specific scale, and only the track would change if you wanted a different gauge. Until that happens, I’ll just make do the best I can with what I can get and try not to worry too much if everything isn’t exactly to scale.
That’s my 2 cents. Take it for what it’s worth.