I'm genuinely excited to see the interest in T Gauge is blooming. Membership at Talking T Gauge has grown faster than expected, and even better, T Gauge blogs have been sprouting up. In response, I've started adding new content to my T Gauge website.
Some of the recent discussions have focused on layout size. In particular, why does a smaller scale always seem to inspire modelers to build still smaller layouts? Well, it does solve the space crunch problem, which some of us must endure. I've received emails from folks who have been waiting for the advent of something like T in order to satisfy their desire for a layout while having no space for one.
However, countless other modelers do not have such space restrictions; so why aren't more of them leveraging smaller scales to realize comparatively larger layouts? This is an excellent question. Think about it: in the same space as a traditional 4 x 8 foot HO layout, one could have over twenty-five times as much T Gauge. Put another way, in an 18 x 24 foot space, one could model over five miles of railroad, point to point, without doing any laps. A mile is less than twelve feet! Whole scenes could be modeled from life without compression.
Yet the first thing many modelers seem to want to do with a new small scale is try to cram a layout into a shoebox. And these are not people with space crunches; they're just doing it for the novelty, to enjoy all of the oohs and ahhs at shows over the "cute" trains. While there's nothing wrong with novelty layouts, "cute" doesn't do much to advance the scale. Imagine the oohs and ahhs when someone walks into a cavernous basement and sees mile after mile of track threading through enormous, scale-sized vistas.
Of course, the "biggest" aspect of modeling at 1:450 is the challenge. One would need to make almost everything from scratch. But modelers have been doing that for generations. When will we see some plucky fellow step up to the plate and have a crack at a real T Gauge empire?
Alas, as much as I like the idea of a basement full of T Gauge, it won't be me, because I'm one of those modelers in a space crunch. My Z Scale James River Branch is a mere 15 by 36 inches, not because I wanted a shoebox-layout, but because that's what the space allowed. Assuming I venture into the T Gauge layout pool in the near future, it will be roughly the same size, because that's about as much space as I can spare presently.
Years from now, however, when my space crunch is relieved, I'll be faced with another, tougher challenge: choosing between N, Z and T for my permanent home layout. Now, that makes my head hurt.
15 September 2008
12 September 2008
Yet Another T Nut Blog
Please welcome Michael to the T Gauge blogosphere. Michael has launched tgauge.ca to chronicle his adventures in the land of 1:450. You can also join Michael and me over at Talking T Gauge. It's great hanging out with so many T Nuts!
07 September 2008
What a Little Paint Can Do
For those who would like better-looking track, but are not up for the challenge of handlaying their own, some paint and some patience can do wonders. Eishindo's roadbed track has a couple of inherent cosmetic issues that are easily addressed. First, the plastic is rather shiny, as is the raw rail. And second, the color scheme is a bit odd—I suspect it represents track with concrete ties.
If you'd like a bit more realism without a lot of work, you'll need the following ingredients (subject to availability and personal preference):
When this base coat is thoroughly dry, then it's time to break out a small brush (I use a #000) and start applying Railroad Tie Brown to the ties. This will tend to be a bit tedious and time-consuming, but after a while, when you get the hang of it, you'll develop a rhythm and the process goes faster. Plus, it's still way easier than handlaying track.
Next up, Rail Brown for the rails. This tends to be a bit more tedious than the ties: the trick is getting all of those enormous "spikes" painted. The final touch is to apply an India ink wash. This step helps to bring up the texture of the ballast, hide painting flaws, and pull all of the colors together with an overall weathered look. Remove the paint from the rail heads with fine sandpaper or a sharp knife, and the job is done.
Note about the rail joiners: you'll need to go easy with the paint around these. You may find it necessary to scrape away some of the paint with the tip of a small, sharp knife to keep them happily conducting. To kill the glare of the brilliant gold, though, you can lightly touch them up with some rail brown after the track is assembled.
The finished effect is quite an improvement over the appearance of "as-delivered" sectional track. Bury some of the bulky roadbed with scenery to blend everything together, and I think you'll be very pleased with the results.
If you'd like a bit more realism without a lot of work, you'll need the following ingredients (subject to availability and personal preference):
- Rust-Oleum Automobile Primer (flat light grey)
- Krylon Primer (flat dark grey)
- Floquil Railroad Tie Brown
- Floquil Rail Brown
- India ink wash
- Small paint brushes
When this base coat is thoroughly dry, then it's time to break out a small brush (I use a #000) and start applying Railroad Tie Brown to the ties. This will tend to be a bit tedious and time-consuming, but after a while, when you get the hang of it, you'll develop a rhythm and the process goes faster. Plus, it's still way easier than handlaying track.
Next up, Rail Brown for the rails. This tends to be a bit more tedious than the ties: the trick is getting all of those enormous "spikes" painted. The final touch is to apply an India ink wash. This step helps to bring up the texture of the ballast, hide painting flaws, and pull all of the colors together with an overall weathered look. Remove the paint from the rail heads with fine sandpaper or a sharp knife, and the job is done.
Note about the rail joiners: you'll need to go easy with the paint around these. You may find it necessary to scrape away some of the paint with the tip of a small, sharp knife to keep them happily conducting. To kill the glare of the brilliant gold, though, you can lightly touch them up with some rail brown after the track is assembled.
The finished effect is quite an improvement over the appearance of "as-delivered" sectional track. Bury some of the bulky roadbed with scenery to blend everything together, and I think you'll be very pleased with the results.
05 September 2008
Constant Change
Eishindo is executing a series of product improvement cycles. Having just received some new track sets, I noticed that they've completely retooled all of their sectional track.
The first run of track certainly had me curious as to the whys and wherefores of the unusual and complex design. Excluding the rails and joiners, each track section was comprised of five parts: a central "core" part, two side parts with the ballast slopes, and two joiner caps. I suspect they went this route because initially they were unable to incorporate the rail into the injection molding process. The downside to this design for Eishindo was a lot of complex tooling and considerable labor for assembly; the downside for us was that track sections would occasionally pop apart, due to the fact that they could twist slightly owing to the weakness inherent in an assembly of several small plastic parts.
The new version of the track is a single injection molded piece; the rail is fully integrated into the plastic part. The upside to this change should be self-evident: simpler tooling and reduced assembly labor. For us, the cosmetics are improved—the ties are more finely tooled, and the separate side part joints are gone; plus, we have the improved the reliability of a single, strong part. Mechanically the two designs are identical, and will join together with no problem.
This is all a very good sign. It means they're actively working on the product line; it also means that sales are sufficient to support the cost of such improvements, considering that tooling all new track would not be cheap. And this is in addition to trying a new coupler design. I'm anxious to receive a new train set to see what they may have improved in them—especially the drive.
By the way, don't forget to join Talking T Gauge. Seven members joined within hours of launch!
The first run of track certainly had me curious as to the whys and wherefores of the unusual and complex design. Excluding the rails and joiners, each track section was comprised of five parts: a central "core" part, two side parts with the ballast slopes, and two joiner caps. I suspect they went this route because initially they were unable to incorporate the rail into the injection molding process. The downside to this design for Eishindo was a lot of complex tooling and considerable labor for assembly; the downside for us was that track sections would occasionally pop apart, due to the fact that they could twist slightly owing to the weakness inherent in an assembly of several small plastic parts.
The new version of the track is a single injection molded piece; the rail is fully integrated into the plastic part. The upside to this change should be self-evident: simpler tooling and reduced assembly labor. For us, the cosmetics are improved—the ties are more finely tooled, and the separate side part joints are gone; plus, we have the improved the reliability of a single, strong part. Mechanically the two designs are identical, and will join together with no problem.
This is all a very good sign. It means they're actively working on the product line; it also means that sales are sufficient to support the cost of such improvements, considering that tooling all new track would not be cheap. And this is in addition to trying a new coupler design. I'm anxious to receive a new train set to see what they may have improved in them—especially the drive.
By the way, don't forget to join Talking T Gauge. Seven members joined within hours of launch!
04 September 2008
Talking T Gauge
Regardless of whether or not T Gauge sticks around, there's no denying that, right now, it's hot. Not a day goes by that I don't receive at least a couple of emails from people looking for merchandise or more information. So, in addition to my new (and recently updated) T Gauge! website, I've launched a forum devoted exclusively to T Gauge: Talking T Gauge.
Up to now, discussion about T Gauge has mostly been taking place on the fringes of existing forums otherwise devoted to other scales. Such discussions can easily get lost in the noise of the rest of the chatter taking place, so I felt that T deserved a place of its own, where every thread was relevant.
If you are pursuing T Gauge at full steam—or perhaps just have a passing interest—please consider joining the new forum. Not only will you be in the company of other confirmed "T Nuts" like me, but you'll be able to learn as much about T as you possibly can, all in one place. Please, jump in and have fun!
Up to now, discussion about T Gauge has mostly been taking place on the fringes of existing forums otherwise devoted to other scales. Such discussions can easily get lost in the noise of the rest of the chatter taking place, so I felt that T deserved a place of its own, where every thread was relevant.
If you are pursuing T Gauge at full steam—or perhaps just have a passing interest—please consider joining the new forum. Not only will you be in the company of other confirmed "T Nuts" like me, but you'll be able to learn as much about T as you possibly can, all in one place. Please, jump in and have fun!
03 September 2008
More Than a Novelty?
Seems like T-Gaugers are popping up all over. Check out this newly-minted blog by Ian Holmes: more t please. I'm not sure what critical mass must be reached before a scale moves past the novelty stage, but I can say there's nowhere near this level of interest in ZZ scale, the previous record-holder for world's smallest.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)