subject: Model Railway Trains: What Is It About This Hobby? [print this page] The popularity of model railway trains is very broad and deep. They are sometimes dismissed as just toys, but they are a far more involved hobby. The trains and layouts are small worlds unto themselves, created with great attention to detail. Getting involved in model trains can help you relive the fun parts of childhood as an adult in a meaningful and fulfilling way.
When you were young there is a chance that you thought about becoming a train engineer, but as you grew older you discovered that it either did not pay as much as you thought, or perhaps you found something else you were interested in. Either way, reality sinks in pretty hard at times, but not all is lost! We can once again experience the thrill of a train by taking advantage of model railway trains.
An especially enjoyable part of model trains is that you can create almost any layour or scenery for them, make up different themes for your railroad world, and select the control scheme as well. You can power your trains with batteries or electricity or steam. It is all up to you to choose. Yes, steam engines can cost a little more, but they are great for their realistic features. Whatever power source you pick, there will be some trade offs.
Model train scales go from the biggest or G scale down to the smallest or N scale. People who want outdoor garden trains often choose the G scale because of its size, but this is usually too big for an indoor smaller layout as part of a hobby room. N scale is the smallest common scale for model railway trains, and it gives you more opportunity to build elaborate scenery in small areas. At the same time, the N scale board can have trouble with digital command control electronics. Get expert assistance if you decide that you want or have to use N scale trains.
Track pieces come in a wide range of choices as well, from curved to straight and even flexible. Experts often recommend using the flexible track to make your layout more interesting. The flexible track pieces are also neat for complicated scenery where you need to get the train through an area in the layout without having to make it less realistic. Most model train people learn the hard way that they do not really want to re-locate a body of water, for example, by a couple of inches to one side when they discover they had not planned well.
The benchwork itself is a crucial part of the set up for your model trains. Getting benchwork right is a huge help; getting it wrong is a huge hindrance. Think about what you might want to do with your model railway trains as you get more into the hobby. For instance, you might want to move your trains to a show or to some other location within your home or into a different home if you move. Being able to disassemble the benchwork makes all the difference.
Permanent benchwork does not move well, obviously. So, avoid this problem if you can. Select the right benchwork in the beginning, along with the accessories that work well with your model railway train so that you have the kind of model train hobby that fits you the best.
