Proto48Patrick posted:simon you sound like you need a nap
I don't know about a nap, but I'm really tired of you already! Take a long walk on a short pier! Toodles!
bob2 posted:Yeah - that was a bit harsh. Simon seems like a good soul, and this is a lively discussion. Give him a pass.
Joe's board is without reference - as Einstein said, it is all relative. You have to look at the track as it comes out from under an NW-2, and compare that with a similar prototype photo. I guarantee you will see it then.
You guys always want to jury rig things. Give me two identical locos except for the gauge (that can be done, can it not???) Put them on identical track, except for the gauge of course. Then we'll do Joe's test looking at them one at a time.
Tell me you can differentiate between the two...
It all boils down to 3/64 difference on each side
You folks are a bit to obsessive compulsive for me!
Good Luck however you go. I'm outta here!
Simon
I feel like I am caught in the movie "West Side Story" in a struggle between the Sharks and Jets! 
If only Natalie Wood circa 1961 was here to comfort me.
Remember in the '80s and '90s when the three rail and two rail guys used to pleasantly discuss the merits of "their" particular trains? Seems like we are there again with the P48 and traditional O modelers. Remember the words of the late Al Kalmbach, "model railroading is fun." Or as we used to say in the Navy, it's time to have some "mandatory fun!"
I took some wonderful advice from lots of great people on this site and have contacted Jim Hanson and Brad Strong. Both guys can greatly assist me in the P48 endeavor so I am going to tiptoe in sometime this fall after classic car season ends and train season officially begins.
Since my layout is VERY small in O scale terms, I don't need a lot of motive power so the cost of converting one or two steam engines is minimal. Track is exactly the same price either way as are better NWSL wheel sets for my Red Caboose Geeps.
To the priests of P48, thanks so much for helping another convert...
Mike
P.S. If anyone knows the whereabouts of a Glacier Park Models conversion kit for the CNW ten wheeler, I need one, thanks.
Mike,
I'm glad to hear that you have found help with switches and conversion, and have a direction to move forward in.
The offer still stands for the Indy meet. If you attend and would like to meet, shoot me a note.
Jim
Mike,
Meeting up with Jim is another good reason to attend the show.
Jay
There are a few Proto 48ers in our local group. Simply comparing the track and comparing it from a distance is not a good test. I notice the inset frames and wheels on the rolling stock at the local Proto 48 layout easily compared to my own 5 foot gauge. I won't be converting to Proto 48 but to those who do I wish them all the best.
It seems like Mike's space is small enough for him to really focus on honing his skills, taking the time and patience to get it right in Proto 48. It's your hobby. Take the time, enjoy the process and make your mark with better precision. Set your goal and do what you need to do to achieve it. It's not like he's going to convert 25 articulateds and hundreds of pieces of rolling stock and run them up and down and around on three levels of the basement or something.
The obvious solution, and my personal choice, is 32mm track work with code 125rail to p48 standards and with p48 tyre profile. I think with this compromise it really is far more difficult to detect the difference in track gauge.
My choice was dictated by the fact I run 0 scale rolling stock from Europe too. I know I am not the only 0 scaler to have elected to pursue this option.
regards,
n.
I don’t care about the hub-bub. I can tell you why I chose P48. I had two pictures of the end of the boxcars, one OW5, the other P48. I compared them to a real boxcar and to me, I could see the difference. I chose P48. I have no complaint or critism of OW5.
Chosing P48 made me focus on goals instead of the endless aquisition of stuff that looks great and is available.
Larry
Larry, you make an excellent point. Besides the incredible detail I see on most of the P48 models and pikes, it gives me the ability to slow down, actually model something more intricately and use some skills rather than buying stuff I do not need just because it is there. In the last year, I sold nearly $30k worth of trains that I had been accumulating for nearly 40 years. As I began to list stuff, I had actually forgotten some of the purchases I made which made me realize that I never really needed those items. I am a firm believer that a man needs a hobby but I admit I went a little overboard and the move to P48 will enable me to control the urge to splurge since nearly everything has to be converted.
Mike
