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[tubby tomo]

hi all  I'm thinking of selling a couple of my tugs and have a model train set in my shed which 17ft by 15ft any suggestions on wear to start  :-\

[Youngat65]

Socks and underpants are a good start  Tubby  Sorry couldn't resist that in view of typing error 

[Martin (Admin)]

Wise guy! 

Go to a big newsagents and buy all the current magazines, Model rail is my favorite. - http://www.railwaymags.com/

Also have a look at - http://www.ukrecmodelsrail.co.uk/modules.php?name=Content&pa=list_pages_categories&cid=4

[DickyD]

Look at this web site tubby and let your imagination run riot :

http://www.pendonmuseum.com/index.jsp

I used to have a 10' 00" x  8' 00" N gauge layout equivalent size to a 20' OO" x 16' 00" OH/OH gauge. It went with the divorce.  :-\

[dougal99]

Grab some of the PECO layout plan books and have a look at their 'How to...' series I found them interesting and invaluable when I started 30 odd years ago.

Cheers

Doug

[Dave Buckingham]

What part of the country are you in

what sort of  scale

There are many exhibibitions at this time of year

Dave

[justboatonic]

Like a lot of modelling I guess you need to decide what era you want to model ie modern, steam, early Victorian etc. Next, I'd say scale which would probably be HO \ OO unless you want the really small stuff (but then you cant see more than about 8 foot away). After that, you need to decide on whether the layout is to be a scale representation of a line or just something you made up.

[tubby tomo]

hi all thanks for your replay's ill go for a modern set up but will have some old stock   sorry about spelling my mum said put a clean pair of socks on every day so i did but i couldn't get my shoes on by Friday

[djrobbo]

Hi tomo..........model rail and the new hornby magazines are by far the best.........i find n gauge too small  now i've got me bus pass oo gauge is without doubt where you can get virtually everything you could want , ready to run......been collecting locos etc for about thirty years ::)....one half of 12 x 8 shed full of stock all still in boxes .well you cant make boats and do railways at the same time can you ?.....can you ?

                      regards.bob.

[cos918]

hi tomo
I been doing model railways for +27 years and have got over 150 loco's from all over the world.
If you are not botherd which type/country you want to model i have a few suggestions.

1 american HO . with the dollar doing +2 to the pound now has never been a better time to buy. You only get what you pay for. In that i would Star clear of the cheap end and go mid range on the likes of proto 2000, atlas broadway limited , some bachman be care full ,athren geniss etc. You can get a good diesel for £60 to £100. thereis overland models but there you are talking meager bucks.

2 European Ho Now is a bad time to buy as the euro is so strong it make it all very expensive. But the best makes are roco,Fleischman,marklin/Trix. You will find roco is the cheaper of the 3 and has the same quality and often better drive system.

3 New English OO. The old hornby is nice but not of the quality IE poor picks up/ drive systems. Hornby about 5 years ago re work and introduced new loco these are of a much better quality The hornby class 50 and 31 diesel you wont be able to beat them. Price wise the are very good for your money. Bachman is all so the same as hornby. The new loco are generally better quality than the old but that not to say all old loco are bad.

4 performace Since i have English,European,American this is what i think . It is based on price,detail,slow running,and pulling power.
 
pulling power it would have to be American then European then English.
slow running it would be both European and American level then English but i would put the hornby class 50 and 31 on the same as the euro/American
detail I would rate all 3 the same
price Based on today exchange rate. English and American together and European far away.

were to put a lay out . Hornby and peco do books which have good ides . One worth coserding is agarden railway. I have one a my mums built it while i lived there. It had 2 main lines of 110m each with a back straight of 35m on a 1:75 slope. You could not beat the sight of a heavy US fright with 6 on lead 80 car and 2 helping.

If you are not sure what to do . try the mags I find model rail very good. Go to some railway shows there great for ides and final if there is a railway club near you go a long . most clubs are very welcoming and a great source of ides.

John

[tubby tomo]

hi john thanks for the info with that amount of railway equipment you must know what talking about but as you know its a slow start to get it right thanks to all for the info

[cos918]

tomo no worrys ,any questions or idea you want to ask/run by just put a post up and il do my best.

john

[Philipsparker]

I'd start by keeping at least one of the tugs 'cos you'll miss the sailing, especially in the summer.

Then go and visit some model railway exhbitions. The Railway Modeller magazine has a full listing every month. Spend time talking to the people behind the layouts and picking thier brains. It will save you time and money in the long run.

Next, find your local model railway club and join it. You'll get the chance to help out building the club layouts, meet loads of new mates and learn from thier mistakes.

Also, go find a local model shop and use them. Do not use box-shifters as they won't be there for the little bits or to offer advice. OK, so you pay a few quid more but that gets soaked up in postage from the shifters and if anything is wrong they tell you to get stuffed, or just don't answer your call ! The local guy will sort it out for you.

As someone else said, get some Peco plans books. And anything by Cyril Freezer. Go to your local library. You'll be suprised what they have in stock or can get for you. Read everything you can get your hands on.

Then you'll need to insulate the shed properly. Then work out what you want to build. If you visit shows the idea of a portable layout might be more appealing which means it can't be fixed to the walls. I wouldn't start with a big project anyway. Do something small to get the hang of all the techniques. Remember building your first boat ? Well you are going to go through the learning curve all over again. If you do the big project straight away it will be like starting a scratchbuilt warship as your first boat - you can do it but it's much easier if you build a little model first to get your hand in.

Hope this helps. I'm a railway and boat modeller. I write up what I build on my blog - http://philsworkbench.blogspot.com/ which might help too.

Phil

Get rid of any old stock you have. Modern stock works to much finer standards and you'll struggle to get track that works for everything. The new stuff is MUCH nicer anyway.

[tubby tomo]

hi phil
thanks for your advice sounds good to me i was at mershame not sure about spelling on Saturday I'm getting hooked good show i like the oo my workshop is fine its brick built its also as a loft its 18ft by 20

ft and alarmed ill keep you up to date as i go ill look for a local club Ive rushed this reply as I'm getting ready to go over to our lake          ps    i like modern

[Mike D]

Hi Tomo

I am a keen model railway enthusiast,

I joined this site for some help as I know nothing about model boats as I just wanted to find out some model boat parts and the fellas here have bent over backwards to help me, so hope I can help

I have been a member of my local model railway club in Liverpool for over 10 years now, Ive learnt loads of model making techniques from the guys there which translate over to all model hobbies, Ive learned woodwork and electrics, scenery building,scratchbuilding buildings, soldering brass kits, painting, weathering and detailing of models, Im one of those fussy rivet counter types :)

I would reccommend you search for a local club, there are 100s of them in this country and go along one night, even if you didnt join, you could go for a few nights and ask questions, theyre usually keen to help, If you cant find one, let me know and Ill try and find your nearest.

the other best move I did a couple of years back was to join this forum

www.rmweb.co.uk/forum its a busy forum with lots and lots of knowledgable people, every question Ive ever wanted to know Ive found out there, dont be afraid to ask even what you may think is the silliest question

if your interested, I have a fotopic site of my layout, which Im in the process of finishing off and exhibit around the country, its based on a real location in Liverpool in the 1960s

http://michael-delamar.fotoblog.co.uk/

cheers

Mike

[dgp1957]

16mm LIVE STEAM

[tubby tomo]

hi mike  you are right about mayhem   lots of help full people  i like your pictures very nice I'm going to join a local club ill let you know which one at the moment I'm building some Thames barges for my tugs to tow ill put some pics on hear when Ive finished them   

[Mike D]

theres been lots of good layouts that have combined boats/harbour scenes with dockside railways, although Im not sure how easy it is to get boat detailing parts in 1/76  OOgauge

one for the future for me, will be based on Liverpools docks in the 50s, Raes tugs and the Liverpool overhead railway

Mike

[djrobbo]

Hi guys..........langley miniatures do a fair selection of ship and boat kits for oo gauge , along with farm vehicles and machinery and a very good selection of road vehicle kits.........if you like modern, cars are available from cararama but modern trucks are a bit thin on the ground , as for buses there are litteraly hundreds.........as you can tell railways are my other hobby............i wont tell you how many loco's i've got etc........but been collecting since the sixties.........

                   regards.....bob.