Why Did You Choose to Model N Gauge?.

silly moo · March 08, 2012, 05:55:42 PM

The size of N gauge has always appealed to me. I'm still amazed at the detail and running qualites of N Gauge.

When I was about three or four we lived in Teddington and I remember a toy shop with a layout in the window which was operated by a penny in the slot. I used my pocket money to buy Lone Star Locos and Matchbox cars. I still have the Lone Star but not the cars. I can also remember seeing Q1s shunting somewhere near to our house ( possibly Feltham )

I remember getting a clockwork trainset and a doll when I had my tonsils out. Then we moved to Hayling Island for a few years. I'm convinced the railway was one of the main reasons we moved there, my father was a railway enthusiast. Hayling Billy made quite an impression on me.

Then it was off to Zambia and finally to South Africa, by then I had put the model railways to one side and only became interested again when I started working near a very large hobby shop. They sold German models and although the German N Scale was appealing I didn't really relate to it and it was only after a visit to England that I discovered some Graham Farish in Hamleys. I came back with a Black Five, two coaches and a length of flexitrack. I built my first layout on a door using the fatal combination of Atlas points and Farish locos, after a lot of trial and error I got the layout to run reasonably well. While my children were growing up the layout was mothballed.

I took it out about 16 years ago, replaced the dreadful Atlas points with Peco ones and joined a model railway club. That was the best thing I could have done and my modelling improved no end. The layout on the door has been completely re done and extended. Our club has an N Trak modular layout and to date I have built four modules and a portable 00 layout ( to run all the models I bought in 00 because they weren't available in N )

I'm very pleased that my parents didn't stop me from playing with cars and trains when I was little, I've always found them much more interesting than girls toys although I had lots of them as well. I'm also lucky that I was welcomed into the local model railway club and treated as one of the boys. The fact that I'm interested in railways still raises a few eyebrows. I'm lucky that my husband encourages my hobby although he does get a bit frustrated when the house fills up with model railway paraphernalia when I'm building something.

Regards

Veronica

Newportnobby · March 08, 2012, 06:56:41 PM

Hi Veronica, and thanks for the explanation of how you came into the hobby but even more, thanks for sticking with it especially as your main interest seems to be UK outline

Gawd bless your hubbie too

Pengi · March 08, 2012, 07:30:35 PM

Hi Veronica. My late father was a great fan of steam trains, Hayling, and the Hayling Billy in particular. He built an OO layout based on it (complete with hand-made bridge). Although the Billy line track is ripped up, it has been turned into a scenic walk and cycleway starting from Havant through to Langstone and then from the top of Hayling down to where the old station was. There have been rumours about having a narrow gauge railway for part of the way. They really need the Billy back, as the traffic congestion can be horrendous coming on and off the island in summer.

What was the old station at North Hayling is now a small nature reserve - don't know what happened to the ghost! There is a good book on it from the Middleton Press range.

Jane

longbridge · March 08, 2012, 08:23:10 PM

A girlfriend and I were holding hands and window shopping back in the early 1960s when we came across a hobby shop, in the window I saw my first N Gauge locomotives which were mostly German but they also had a little crimson 4F steam loco, instant love for the model and my girlfriend thought I was a nut, needless to say a few weeks later the girlfriend got the boot and I got the loco.

It wasn't until the 1980s that I got into N Scale properly though when I built a small layout using American models in my photographic darkroom, this was great as I used to play trains in private because my Wife also thought I was a nut for playing with toy trains (boy could I pick them), she is now an ex Wife and my current Wife encourages me with the hobby because she loves me (I think).

N scale is not my first preference in model railways but because of space restrictions I am quite happy modelling N, my first preference is American HO scale.

railwaysymphony · March 08, 2012, 10:00:00 PM

For me it was a bit of a no brainer - my father modelled N gauge, and after dismantling his old layout, kept everything in storage. Now that I'm gearing up to start something it makes sense to get all the N out of storage, rather than spend a bucketload of money on HO/OO. I was originally considering modelling Australian HO as there are some fantastic models out there, but it's just so darned expensive. That, and I feel like N Gauge is the adult's scale, HO/OO is for kids!

And yes, I did do a bit of HO/OO as a child - I had a layout and a few bits and pieces of rolling stock, but my very first layout was N gauge, with a Class 08 and a few small coaches, I learned to respect the little stuff early on and now I can't imagine modelling any other scale

Just a pity there's very little Australian N Gauge out there! Fortunately I quite like British outline

oil2435 · April 18, 2012, 11:39:50 PM

for me it was a bit of a joke to start with being six feet tall and about the same width my family thought it funny so ive stuck with it but that aside the stock available is on the whole good and what can be achieved is fantastic so real

geminijkr · April 19, 2012, 04:43:56 PM

I started with OO as a boy and when TT came out moved to that to get more model in a given space and then when N became commercially available i moved to that. My first N layout included some ooo rolling stock and my first loco was a rather crude LNER kit with an Arnold Chassis. Since then my layout has grown considerably and as we now live in Canada with a finished basement I have a large layout which allows for a lot of track and still space for landscaping for the 9-10 coach trains running through it. I now have well over 100 locos, some specially built from kits by professional kit builders in the UK but with all the new models of Eastern BR several of those are being retired.
Keith

galway · April 19, 2012, 07:02:27 PM

Quote from: geminijkr on April 19, 2012, 04:43:56 PM
I started with OO as a boy and when TT came out moved to that to get more model in a given space and then when N became commercially available i moved to that. My first N layout included some ooo rolling stock and my first loco was a rather crude LNER kit with an Arnold Chassis. Since then my layout has grown considerably and as we now live in Canada with a finished basement I have a large layout which allows for a lot of track and still space for landscaping for the 9-10 coach trains running through it. I now have well over 100 locos, some specially built from kits by professional kit builders in the UK but with all the new models of Eastern BR several of those are being retired.
Keith

Hi Keith any

of your layout? sounds interesting

Paul

EtchedPixels · April 19, 2012, 07:30:26 PM

Quote from: geminijkr on April 19, 2012, 04:43:56 PM
My first N layout included some ooo rolling stock and my first loco was a rather crude LNER kit with an Arnold Chassis.

An 0-6-0 steam loco with tender ?

geminijkr · April 22, 2012, 02:13:23 AM

I have uploaded some pictures including the original N Gauge kit which still runs. My first attempt at loco building. Some of the picture leave a bit to be desired in quality I need better lighting! I will post some more if people are interested.
Keith

Pengi · April 22, 2012, 08:04:53 AM

Quote from: geminijkr on April 22, 2012, 02:13:23 AM
I have uploaded some pictures including the original N Gauge kit which still runs. My first attempt at loco building. Some of the picture leave a bit to be desired in quality I need better lighting! I will post some more if people are interested.
Keith

Hi Keith, can't see the pictures :'(

Sprintex · April 22, 2012, 09:41:55 AM

I can, they're in the Media section

Blimey Keith, that's a HUGE layout!

Definitely interested in more pictures if you can get them please, looks like a nice bit of modelling that

Paul

Newportnobby · April 22, 2012, 10:21:11 AM

I've just checked out the pics in the Media section and that is one Monster layout. It looks superb

Donkey · April 22, 2012, 10:30:48 AM

Wow that's some layout Keith. Thanks for posting

Marty

Malc · April 22, 2012, 10:45:41 AM

I come from a railway family..grandfather,father, brothers and uncles. I even had a summer job working as a messenger boy for the Hartlepool Traffic Agent. Collecting way bills and delivering running orders to signal boxes. Hence I always had an interest in trains. Had a 00 layout as a nipper, but never had time since. One of my colleagues in Norway has a big N gauge layout and my wife saw it and decided I needed a hobby when I retired, so she suggested a railway layout. N gauge seemed the obvious choice. Not sure if she regrets the decision now.

Malc