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HO scale speed

Bill’s been back in touch with some thoughts on HO scale speed – have a look and see what you think:

“Hi Al,

Here’s my latest model railroad operations video, along with a few photos of my layout.

I find photography to be a lot like fishing: Sometimes you cast 10 or 20 times and only catch one. And sometimes they just ain’t biting!

Speaking of operations, I had a few comments to the effect that my locos were running too slow. So I did a poll on my YouTube community tab, and only 4% thought the speed was too slow.

I’d be interested in what you and your readers think.

Take care –

Bill”

(Watch on youtube.com.)

A big thanks to Bill.

When it comes to running your trains, finding the right speed is something that comes up often on the blog.

I do concede it’s very tempting to let your engines zip around at full throttle, but I’m definitely in the camp of slower speeds to create realism.

Personally, I thought Bill’s train speed was spot on.

I remember one post recommended running HO scale at about 20 to 25% of its maximum speed, which translates to around 25-35 scale miles per hour, which sounds about right for most freight trains?

Let me know in the comments in below, I’d really like to hear your thoughts on this one.

But at the end of the day – as you all know – I’m very fond of the only mantra that matters:

“Your layout, your rules!”

If you enjoy running them fast, then fast it is. And it’s the same for slow.

Having said that, I’m sure you’ve all experienced derailments with trains whizzing round tight curves – and it’s always heart stopping when you see them leap off the edge of your layout into the abyss.

Anyway, I thought Bill’s question was really interesting – please do leave a comment if you can add to the HO scale speed conversation.

That’s all this time folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you get started on your layout, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

PPS More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

Lights for model train layout

If you’ve ever wondered about whether adding lights for model train layout is worth it, have a look at what Rob’s done:

“Hi Al,

After putting considerable effort into adding lighting effects to my layout over the last year or so, I thought it might be time to demonstrate how it all came out.

I even replaced a house on the layout with one I scratch-built so that I could add lighting.

The original house model was a resin casting but did not include openings for the windows as many of them do. Without windows, I could not have added lighting to the interior.

My farm area has always been my favorite area on my layout, so I decided to put in the effort to build a semi-duplicate for the original house, except it would have windows.

Running trains in the dark has always held a certain magic. With this in mind, I have produced a video of trains running with their windows lighted. I also let the camera dwell on some of the little scenes around the layout.

You’ll notice I have added traffic lights to the one intersection I have on the layout. Maybe that car trying to turn left will finally be able to get around the corner. 😉

The video:

(Click here to watch on youtube)

Here are some pictures of the new house in the build process.

A big thanks to Rob for sharing his take on lights for model train layout.

There are many more posts on the blog about LEDs, it’s a popular topic.

Here’s some more if that’s what you’re after right now:

model railroad LED layout lighting

LED lights for model railways (another one of Rob’s).

LED lights for model trains

LED lighting (another of Rob’s).

How to connect led strip lights to power supply

Model train LEDs

And when it comes to LED lights, there’s always one of Fred’s posts I think of – here’s a pic from it:

(You can see Fred’s post here.)

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you get started on your layout, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

PPS More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

Have a look at the Silly Discount bundle too.

U shaped layout HO scale

Michael’s been in touch with his U shaped layout HO scale:

“Hi Alistair,

I was seven when my father took me for a ride on the Penn RR as it made its way back to the railyard.

While he swept and cleaned the passenger cars, I got to sit with the engineer who let me blow the horn. Seventy-one years later I still love railroads and the sound of the horn or the whistle.

Though I started with Lionel 027 trains as a kid, I switched to HO when my sons were born. That was fifty years ago and the layout for the boys was, err, let’s just say not very good.

Fifteen years ago, shortly after my first grandson was born, I decided to take up the hobby more seriously. I scraped everything and started over.

With advice and diligence my second basement layout was considerably better; in fact, guests often commented it impressive. It was a horseshoe, 16 feet long with two 4×4 legs coming off the sides.

When I moved from Long Island, New York, to Flanders, New Jersey five years ago, I gave my precious away to a sailor on a US Navy cargo and ammo ship.

While at sea, he had contacted me when I made it known I’d be willing to give it away. We arranged for him and a fellow seaman to come to take it when their ship arrived at the port of Newark. They had to load it on to the ship for storage until it arrived in Virginia where he lived. He sent me a video of the layout being lifted onto the ship and it brought a tear to my eye.

Our new house doesn’t have a basement but, on the second floor there was an HVAC room that abutted a decent size storage area Three years ago I restructured the two areas into one decent sized room.

Then I began creating the “Flanders Valley RR”. I guess you could say I got lazy, because I began by ordering two Woodland Scenics Layout kits, Grand valley and River Pass.

I reconfigured the layouts into my imagining of a unique railroad I would call the Flanders Valley Railroad.

I created an “L” shaped layout: 12×4 with a 4×4 leg on one side. It was okay, but I wanted to be able to run four trains at once and it was happening. So, I added another 4×4 leg on the opposite side.

Thanks for the opportunity to tell my story, and hope it helps to appreciate how it’s turned out. I’m including a few photos and video.

Peace,

Michael (aka Doc)”