I have been lurking in this group for a couple of weeks now, and I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I have been modeling in N scale since the mid 1970's (early teens). I took a break during High School and college, but came back full-force in 1999. For the last couple of months I have been debating about switching to a larger scale, because N scale is getting harder to see and operate. HO scale never really "felt right" to me, but I had been attracted to S scale in local shows and home layouts here in Houston. I finally made the decision last weekend to switch from N to S.
I have been doing a lot of research on the web and reading through my large collection of magazines to get up to speed in S scale. In N scale I have been handlaying code 40 rail, so I want to continue to do the same thing in S scale (with a larger rail, of course) :-) My point is that I very much enjoy scratchbuilding track, structures, and creating scenery. And I want to be as true to the prototype as possible (i.e. true scale modeling). I use Digitrax DCC. My first question is this. I wish to continue to model the PRR in 1954. Bill Lane recommended that I look at S Helper Service for my first switcher engine. Once some of my N scale collection has been sold, I would like to purchase a PRR SW-9, but the SHS web site lists the engines as sold out (http://www.showcaseline.com/Archived_product_pages/SW9_ar.html). What I don't know is, does SHS re-run some of the sold out engines from time-to-time, or was that a one-time deal? Should I hold my breath, or plan on looking for another engine? For the time-being I plan on only buying one small switcher because I don't have much space. I sure do like the idea of sound and DCC installed in S-scale switchers! Something that is an impossibility in N scale. My second question is related to rail height. In N scale I used code 40 rail because even code 55 felt too tall to me. I realize the PRR used heavy rail on the mainlines, but in this case I am more concerned about how the model looks. I thought code 40 looked better than 55 and especially code 70. Given my personal preference, should I be looking at code 100 or code 83 rail for my S scale switching layout I plan on building next? If you are interested in seeing what I have done in N scale, click on the second link below in my e-mail signature. Thanks for any and all feedback, Peter. ------------------------------------------------------------ Peter Vanvliet ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) http://www.fourthray.com/ http://www.fourthray.com/Peter/ Houston, Texas ------------------------------------------------------------ [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/S-Scale/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
