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Welcome Hal.

CLICK HERE to see how to post pictures. It's easy.

Welcome Hal!!! Hope you will enjoy the forum as much as many of us do.

Welcome aboard Hal.

If you are looking for a good small to medium sized steam locomotive with sound and DCC keep an eye on MTH.  The only western road name smaller steam locomotive they have cataloged so far in 2 rail with DCC (Proto 3) is the USRA O-6-0.  It is a great running switcher but not the road locomotive you are looking for.  They will put out a spring and fall catalog next year and they just might have some western steam in them.

Welcome to the best R/R forum in all the web, Bad Order Hal.

we are glad to have you aboard!!

Great to have you with us, Hal!  Enjoy the ride!

Welcome Hal.

Welcome aboard Hal.  This is a great place for us retired kids to hang out.

Welcome, Hal!

John, I'd like to thank you and all the others who have welcomed me on board!

Hal,  (Formerly "Bad Order", now "Old Hogger")

Hal, to answer your question just go MTH, Lionel, or Williams web site check their latest catalogs, I'm sure you will find the item with all  the bells, whistles and other sounds and features they have available.  Also your local hobby shop can explain how to operate and repair any problem that you may come across.  Good luck and welcome aboard.

Jack  

Hi There,

Can you explain the 119 feet?  Is that the length of the mainline, the length of the layout, or what?

Thanks,

Ed

HEY ED,

The 119 feet is the length of the circuit, which is a folded dogbone.

It represents 1.08 scale miles.  Now I'll see if I can submit a picture of the track plan:

Hal

Hal, is your layout 2 rail or 3 rail. If it's 2 rail what track are you using? Just curious.

Bob

BOB,

I'm using 0-scale 2-rail, and my track is Atlas Flex Track, code 148.

Hal

I hope your having a good time with it all Hal. Show a picture if you get a chance.

Bob

Welcome aboard Hal. Now THAT's how to furnish a game room.

Thanks, Matt!

Here's a shot of the exterior and the layout:

(How many pictures can I put on one post?)

Hal

That looks very nice.  What track are you using? Hand laying ect?

I hereby nominate Harold as owner of the cleanest train room on the two rail forum.

Harold, please remove photos of the bare clean floor b/4 our significant others see that it is possible.

A little background info please on striking the Yosemite rocks.

HEY MATT,

My curves have the following radii:

Large loop:  43". 

Small Loop:  36".

Layout Corners: 48".

HAL

HEY TOM TEE, 

Awww shucks, Tom...you're makin' me blush!

But you see, I've got to keep the game room (it's NOT a Train Room) clean, because there's a Sofa, a Coffee Table, a Lamp Table, a Piano, and a Stereo Equipment Cabinet all sharing the room with my Tournament-size Pool Table. 

The railroad layout is secondary.

The Yosemite Rocks are actually Valve Covers. (I'll explain if necessary)  What looks like a 400-pound boulder actually weighs about 3 or 4 pounds, because it's a cast resin shell!

HAL

Chemoflaged industrial size frost protection valve covers?

Details???

Welcome, great bunch of guys & gals in here......and a few stinkers.......

Welcome,

OGR Forums is where all your dreams come true.

-Ted

PS> the Boulders are cool.

Hal

With the 36" radius curve you are going to need to find a small steam locomotive.  An 0-6-0 or 4-4-0 might be just the ticket.  A mogul or ten wheeler would be "Big Steam"  for 36 inch radius.

Hello Hal and welcome.

Your train (game) room is top notch and your layout is simple and effective. I like it and would love to see trains running there on.

Rick.

HEY TED,

My big GP-60 Diesel loco has a longer wheelbase than some smaller road steamers (such as the Consol and the Mike), and it doesn't have any trouble on my 36" loop.

The Mogul is a good choice, but it doesn't have Walsheart valve gear, which I like.

A Ten-Wheeler might be a good compromise, but wouldn't it look out of place pulling my 40's-60's era rolling stock?

Here's a shot of my LGB Mogul, which ran on a 150-foot indoor main line between my game room the 3rd car space in my garage, passing through a portal in the wall.

Thanks,

HAL

welcome to the club Hal!!!!

its nice to have you old timers

on board so we can learn from

your life experiences!!

happy Training

Welcome to the forum. Very nice layout.

Thanks for the compliment, Rick!  Simple is my watchword in model railroading!  

What I've made is nothing more ambitious than an expanded version of the old "Circle around the Christmas Tree"!

However, I may want to include a turnout leading to a dead-end siding, just for storing a few freight cars.

Cheers,

HAL

HEY POPI,

While I have some life experiences in the cabs of steam switchers (0-6-0) as a

6 to 8-year-old with my dad when I was on summer vacation from school in 1942-44, and he had yard duty as a Fireman in the huge yards of Benwood, W. Va., I know that I'll be trained by YOU people when it comes to model railroad layouts and their operation.

"Push that Johnson Bar all the way forward...we have a big coal consist to push over the Hump into the classification yard."

HAL

My big GP-60 Diesel loco has a longer wheelbase than some smaller road steamers (such as the Consol and the Mike), and it doesn't have any trouble on my 36" loop.

Hal

Your GP60 has a much shorter rigid wheel base than a consolidation or a mikado.  Check out the MTH or Sunset web sites for the minimum radius on their eight coupled two rail steam locomotives.  Two rail locomotives usually have all drivers flanged so wider turns (often double three rail requirements) are needed when compared to three rail O. 

The ability to operate any locomotive on 36' radius on one of the reasons that three rail scale model railroading is popular.  With the center rail come blind drivers that allow consolidations, mikes and even Berkshires and northerns to operate on less than 36 inch radius curves.

A Ten-Wheeler might be a good compromise, but wouldn't it look out of place pulling my 40's-60's era rolling stock?

 

Many class one railroads ran ten wheelers into the 1950s.  It would look no more, or perhaps less, out of place with 40's-60's rolling stock than a GP60 built in the 80s or 90s. 

Ted, I'm inclined to believe that you're right!

In fact, there's a beautiful 2-rail SP Mogul on Ebay that I like, even though it has the old-style valve gear.

Now, a Mogul would really be going backward in time with 40-foot rolling stock, wouldn't it?

Thanks for setting things straight!

HAL

(Here's a shot of my LGB Mogul that used to roll around my 150-foot indoor layout.)