00559 Interim PDF Edition - Champex-Linden

Your garden layout doesn't
even have to be in a garden.
Anywhere outdoors will do.
Build a simple garden layout
There are countless styles of garden railways. A good way to get started,
though, is to think small and simple with expansion later on.
Put aside those grand and glorious thoughts of an LGB garden empire
for today. Take a thoughtful walk around the yard, looking at every single
area with a new frame of mind. Chances are there is an ideal spot to get
started right under your nose.
Pick a bed of shrubbery or flowers that is fairly level. Get some loose
track and see just where the train can go. Trim a few branches here or
there, tunnel through a bush or two. Push a little dirt or mulch around to
support the track. You can worry about permanent roadbed later.
Go grab an engine and power supply. You will be amazed how quickly (a
matter of a few hours) a garden railway can get started. Put in a couple of
turnouts to allow for future expansion if you want, but concentrate on a
simple loop for now.
You can run down to the local garden shop for some appropriate plants
if needed, or set out a building or two. Don’t forget to add some people—
they can really bring a railway to life.
The quickest way to get started, though, is just get the train running
around what is out in the garden already. Many layouts are simply tracks
running through flowers, plants and rocks. Others credibly recreate scale
scenery in a whole little world. Some have water features, others lots of
rocks.
Create a traditional model railroad
Just because these trains are constructed with garden railroading in mind
does not imply that an outdoor layout is for every LGB fan. If you do not
enjoy working outdoors on a hot summer day, pulling weeds and getting
dirty, maybe indoors is the place for you to be.
While LGB is large, the tight radius possible with narrow gauge equipment
allows for an indoor layout in less space than you may realize. A
spare bedroom, covered porch, garage, basement or other space in your
home should be a fine spot to construct an LGB layout.
One LGBer sold off the living room furniture, hired a carpenter to build
cabinets around the wall, and now has a beautiful layout encircling the
previously little-used formal room (a two-track hinged bridge spans the
doorway).
Your local hobby shop should carry a myriad of books on benchwork,
trackwork, scenery and more to get you going in the right direction.
Methods for smaller scale railroads work just as well on our large trains.
But Remember…
However you do it, it is important to be sure you are enjoying the trains.
There are not many wrong ways to go about it. But if you are not having
fun with a particular phase of building or operating, chances are it may be
the wrong way for you to do it, even though someone else does it that
way.
Many a model railroader has made the mistake of biting off more he can
chew. Remember that this is a hobby. Have fun!
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