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Newbie Question About Engines, Cars and Track

2504 Views 8 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  Tom Lapointe, 
J
Hi all,

I'm a newbie who  just caught the G scale bug and am upscaling to G from 2 rail O scale.  I have a very tight buget and have to keep my expenses down (for the first few years anyway).

I have been reading some of the posts that I can find and for a frist  purchse I am leaning toward either an Aristocraft 0-4-0 or a Bachmann 4-6-0 "Annie".   I want to run either Bachmman narrow guage or some Buddy L cars for now.  I understand that the Aristocraft is 1/29th scale while the Bachmann and Buddy  L are closer to 1/22.5  

My question is which engine is more reliable and  will "hold up" better?  I also under stand that the minimum diameter for these is 4.0 ft (R-1) curved tracks.  I want to keep the track radius down to a minimum as this will be an indoor lay out for now. How well do either of these engines handle this tight radius track.  I can go up to a max of  6 ft diameter.  Does the extra diameter make THAT much of a difference?

 I also have seen some Buddy L cars that can be had for $20 each or $60 for a set of 4.  Is this a good buy compared to  $30+ for Bachmann if detail is not an issue? How well to they run particullary on tight 4 to 6 ft diameter curves?

Has anyone any experience with the new Aristocraft Aluminum tack.  Is it as sturdy or as good a conductor as bass or stainless. The Aluminum seems very reasonable price wise but how good is it performance wise? Is USA or LGB track a better choice?

Hope you can help!!   

  

  
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J
Johnny,

Welcome to the world of large scale. You seemed to have figured out the LS consists of several scales ranging from 1:32 to 1:20.3. If you search the archived threads you will find numerous discussions on all. Some enthusiasts mix the scales and others don’t. It’s a matter of choice and how particular you are about a 1:22 and a 1:20.3 box car running together. I run 1:20.3 engines but many of my cars are 1:24 and 1:22. To me it looks okay but to someone else it may not.

I run Bachmann mostly but I have friends that run AristoCraft. Both are fine products. However, according to several posts in the past the Buddy L engines are of poor quality. I am basing that strictly on reviews I have read. I do have a couple of Buddy L cars and they are just as good as the Bachmann. The AristoCraft engines generally require a larger turn where the Bachmann engines can maneuver a tighter curve.

A few things to consider:
What era are you looking to model?
Narrow or standard gauge?
Steam or diesel or both?
Layout size â€" diameter of curves.
Power source â€" DC â€" RC â€" DCC
Do you want finely detailed models or average detail? Big difference in price.
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