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Showing posts from April, 2022

Learning how to hand lay track in N scale -1

The N-scale Japanese commuter trains I'm modeling are 1:150 scale.  U.S. prototype N scale is 1:160. The Japanese commuter trains are a slightly larger scale because, with the exception of the Shinkansen (bullet train), most heavy rail Japanese trains run on narrow gauge (1067 mm, or 3-foot, 6-inch) track.  In the miniature world of Japanese commuter trains, 9 mm N scale track is used. As I found out at the Pacific Coast Region convention this weekend, the track is not exact. Oh, well. (Sigh!) The Takadanobaba in Alameda is envisioned as a shelf layout with roughly six square feet of scenic area. There will be a high ratio of railroad to other scenic features.  For that reason, the raised right of way will be the layout's dominant feature. It needs to be properly represented.  When I first cooked up this layout concept, Atlas Code 55 flex track was considered. That's what I have on hand. But, the prototype track needed to be studied. In the selected era, the second decade