New here and thinking of returning to the hobby


E

EdYoungstrom

New Member
Hello everyone! My name is Ed and I have not had a model railroad layout since 1982. I did have a small N scale train around the Christmas tree a few years ago . In fact it’s still in a box in the basement.

I am considering startingip a small N scale layout. A lot has changed and I’m particularly interested in DCC, more for the ease (?) of wiring than needing to run multiple trains.

I’ve been looking around the Internet and I also stopped at my local hobby store. I am a little confused about whether I should purchase a DCC starter set or whether I should piece it together. One question in particular I have is that I see Bachman has DCC sound equipped starter sets. Does that mean that only the sound is DCC or are they actual DCC equipped locomotives?

So that’s my intro—I will go browsing and see if I find answers!

Cheers,
Ed
 
EdYoungstrom said:
Hello everyone! My name is Ed and I have not had a model railroad layout since 1982. I did have a small N scale train around the Christmas tree a few years ago . In fact it’s still in a box in the basement.

I am considering startingip a small N scale layout. A lot has changed and I’m particularly interested in DCC, more for the ease (?) of wiring than needing to run multiple trains.

I’ve been looking around the Internet and I also stopped at my local hobby store. I am a little confused about whether I should purchase a DCC starter set or whether I should piece it together. One question in particular I have is that I see Bachman has DCC sound equipped starter sets. Does that mean that only the sound is DCC or are they actual DCC equipped locomotives?

So that’s my intro—I will go browsing and see if I find answers!

Cheers,
Ed
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Hello Ed ,

Most of the modelers here are HO scale , as a rough guess 80% , most of the other 20% are O , someone may be familiar with Bachmann N there are a few of us that have multiple scales.

Most of the crowd seems to favor NCE and Digitrax for DCC so I would at least look at those systems . From what I have seen the Bachmann systems are not quite as capable as the NCE or Digitrax so thats something that you'll want to look into . Someone here should be able to explain the differences better than I can.
 
Welcome Ed!
I used to run N scale, still have some but much has changed!
If I were seriously starting again I’d piece everything together, although a starter set does get you up and running faster.
I'd buy a good brand sound equipped locomotive and a few good cars, cheaping out here will diminish the fun right off the git-go.
The advantage of using digitrax for most is being able to control two trains at the same time. I’ve operated nce and it’s easier in some regards but not sure about the two train thing.
Which ever route you take keep us updated!

An after thought... if you just want to “test the waters” then yes try a good starter set then either upgrade if you like it or swap it for model planes or something. Talk about contradicting myself, eh?
 
This really depends on what you'll be doing. Running one train? you may want to pass on DCC. Or put it off until you're sure a return to the hobby is going to stick. If you do want DCC, I'd buy a fully capable system. I have an NCE Powercab here at home. Under $200.00 and it does everything including program sound equipped locomotives without needing a programming booster. The Bachmann EZ Command is a very basic system that you'll probably outgrow pretty quickly if you get into this.
 
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I did some more reading and stumbled across the Bachmann E-Z Command tutorial videos . That layout and what they do is pretty much what I had in mind, so I went out and bought their Roaring Rails starter set.

I also pulled out my box o’stuff and found almost enough track for the layout I found at Bachmann.

Funny—in the box was an issue of Model Railroader that I bought at the same time as that starter. I’m a little surprised to see it was September of 1993!

Thank you all for the ideas and encouragement. And the warnings! We will see how long this phase lasts!
 
EdYoungstrom said:
One question in particular I have is that I see Bachman has DCC sound equipped starter sets. Does that mean that only the sound is DCC or are they actual DCC equipped locomotives?
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To answer your question; They are fully equipped DCC locomotives. They will not be equipped with top of the line DCC decoders, but they will be ready to go out of the box. If you are like me, they will be very impressive! If you get deeper into the hobby and DCC you might want to upgrade the decoders, couplers, add details and more.

Welcome aboard Ed!

I had a train under my Christmas tree almost every year since 1974, but that is different than a year-round hobby in my mind.

I had model trains for a short time when I was a boy and returned to the hobby 38 years later. Since returning to the hobby I have seen my focus change more than once. For that reason, I recommend a starter set. It is a low-cost way to get started; if you change your plans as I did you will not be out much.

Some Bachmann DCC starter sets even come with the Bachmann Trains E-Z Command Digital Command Controller. They have everything you need to be up and running in under an hour, in one box and for one low price. That is a good place to start if you ask me. Not to mention sectional track makes it easy to change your track plan.

You can always sell what you bought on eBay if you lose interest.

I started out years ago with HO and now I focus on Lionel O, but I still dabble in HO and N. There is no right or wrong way to enjoy this hobby, just have fun with your trains.

Keep us posted if you have time.
 
I built up my small collection and set up a track plan—a double mainline with a siding—and started running a small train around it. And quickly found I had induced a dead spot somewhere.

I checked all over and couldn’t quite find a simple solution, but everything pointed toward adding another power feed to the interior oval. But I couldn’t figure out how to do that with EZ Track and the EZ Command Center.

I dug around in my old train box. I remembered I used to have an Atlas Twin switch and some wired rail connectors from the Xmas train when I used to have it blocked due to a reversing loop.

I connected them all up to the inside oval and to the EZ Track Terminal rerailer which is connected to the power pack. I used my old (and expendable if necessary!) LifeLike locomotive and it worked like a champ first time!

I then swapped the DC power pack out for the EZ Command Center, put on my two DCC locomotives and was running as I have been wanting.

Now that I know my planned layout and wiring work, I will build a table and begin the modeling. And my wife has seen what I’m doing and says she wants to help build the scenery!

Thanks again for your help.

Ed
 
I hear you both. So I’m just not keeping a list of purchases!

I played around and decided to keep the layout simple. Just one terminal siding and two ovals. No interchange. I built this track plan based on Bachmann EZ-track leftover from a Christmas train. If this continues to be as fun and rewarding as it has to this point, I will probably start another project down the line.

Cheers,
Ed
 
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