Radius Question

[JoeG]

I am new to N scale modeling and have been out of the rail road modeling for many years and I have some room in my garage to make a small layout, about 2x6. I also have been reading some forums on here about the proper radius. From what I can see is an 11'' radius will not leave much room on a 2' layout. My question is can N scale run on a smaller radius?

 

[Burlington Bob]

You can run most any (not going to say all) N scale equipment on a 9" radius if it is a short four axle loco or under 50 scale foot car. The larger the radius the better it will look as well as operate. At least in the old days that was true. I imagine that would still be the case.

 

[TrinityJayOne]

There is a gentleman's agreement among Kato, Atlas, Athearn, etc that 9.75" is the bare minimum, but 11" is a more common limit for modellers. It's not only wheels you have to look out for on tight corners though, as 6-axle diesels with overhang will cause the couplers to swing out further & further the tighter your turns are, eventually derailing the first car.

 

[MRLdave]

2 ft width will lend itself best to smaller equipment. If you want to run modern equipment, you'll be a little disappointed.......most of it WILL run on 11 (or 9 3/4) but it won't look as good and you WILL have more problems. A layout the size you want to do works well with small steam engines thru the early diesels and into the 4 axle second generation diesels. You can also do some great switching layouts in 2 X 6. There is equipment out there that will run on 6 or 7 inch radius, but reliability gets spotty........we have a small loop on one of our NTRAK modules that is about 7 inch radius. I have 5 Atlas RS1's and one runs fine on the loop, the other 4 won't.....which means you might get a loco that works and you might not as the radius gets tighter. A good rule is use the largest radius you can. If the largest you can fit is 9 3/4 then you need to accept the limitations, find more space or find a different hobby........I hate to say that but I'd rather see someone never start in the hobby than see them struggle and leave the hobby in frustration.

 

[JoeG]

Thank you for all the great information everyone. I’m thinking I might have to make the layout 26" or 28" to accommodate an 11" radius. I might also run a smaller radius on the inside and just have a shorter wheel base engine running on that track, and link the two tracks together.

 

[otiscnj]

Sounds like a good plan. If you can go 30 or 32", you might be able to get a few shorter sections of a larger radius curve, on both tracks.

 

[Metro Red Line]

If space is really an issue for you, have you considered Z scale? If you want to be happy and be able to run everything in N scale, I personally recommend nothing smaller than 15" radius. I left HO scale strictly because of the radius issue (I had 18" radius, which is sort of like having 9 3/4" radius in N scale, and I couldn't run the cars I wanted to run). I now have 18" radius in N, and I can run anything on my layout.

 

[otiscnj]

FWIW, I agree with Metro Red Line's comments 100%. I've debated these same issues several times over the years. My latest variation is considering switching from HO to 3-rail O, due to space concerns and time for modeling in the future. By going up from HO to O, you reduce the 'effective square area' of your layout, by a factor of 4, if my math is right. I have a large space, but limited time and budget to play with. Giving up some scale fidelity, in my case, would allow me to focus on fewer, rather than more space to scenic/detail as I wish.

Scales have continually become smaller and smaller, the latest I am aware of, being T scale at 1:350. When I see what is available in Z scale vs, say only 5 years ago, if I was just starting out, with a desire to model things prototypically, but with very limited space, Z would be a viable option in my book.

Regards,
Otis

 

[JoeG]

I was thinking about Z scale but it seems awfully small to handle.

 

[D&J RailRoad]

The area that you have to work with is the equivalent of a 4x12 area in HO scale. Most layouts are of this size or smaller, 4x8 and keep modelers happy, for awhile.
You might also consider a switching layout that doesn't provide loop running. You can get more track on that with a lot more useful turnouts and you can merge it to a larger layout later on.

 

[Metro Red Line]

I was thinking about Z scale but it seems awfully small to handle.

I used to think N was too small to handle, but I eventually got used to it. Now I can put cars on the track without a Rix Rerailer ramp, and HO seems REALLY BIG to me now.

I think N is the new HO and Z is the new N!