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I can't recommend a Bachmann HO Starter Set enough. I got this particular one for my four year old son and truth be told I probably have more fun playing with it. The size is perfect IMO as it looks the part of a model train but won't take up half your basement like an O scale.

The Bachmann EZ track is very easy to assemble/disassemble and we set it up on the carpet in our family room. It's also very easy to build upon. We go to model train shows a few times a year where we buy extra track pieces and train cars for about $40 bucks total. We now have a huge layout with tons of cars.

When my son gets older I've got a crate of O scale trains and track that I'd like to restore. In the meantime though, this Bachmann HO fits the bill perfectly.

Hope this helps.

I totally agree with what CiderDrinker said. I started out on a 4x6 and got a feel for what I liked, built some models, and really affirmed that I wanted to keep going with the hobby. I started out with Bachmann EZ track and I suggest you do the same. Actually I would recommend using Kato's version of EZ track, called Unitrack. I hear better things about the quality, etc... But the "plug and play" aspect will let you focus on the basics of setting up a layout without getting bogged down in things like electrics, feeder wires, etc.

My advice to you... Plan plan PLAN! Download one of the track planning softwares on the sidebar. I have the free version of AnyRail which is more than plenty. It has every track library possible including Kato and Bachmann. If you really want, get a basic layout going but don't lay down anything permanent. Then you can see things hooked up and working which is pretty satisfying. But in the meantime, plan out a more permanent layout with one of those track planners. I've made some mistakes in planning by just setting things up without really planning out how everything will work, and to be honest I'm kind of losing interest because I don't have a ton of things to "do" on my layout right now.

You'll hear this in any FB group or subreddit, so I'll just start the conversation. Buy a copy of Realistic Track Planning... I haven't read it yet but I have a copy and I need to get into it. Everyone tells me it's a great book to have around. Pick up a couple more of those books too. Maybe one on trackwork, one on realistic operation, one on scenery... whatever looks interesting to you :) . The moral of the story is, have patience and know that it might suck to wait so long but the end result will be far more fulfilling than just winging it and hoping it works out!

The best part about this hobby is all the learning and information. You will make mistakes and come across things you like and don't like, and can adapt from there

Toddler, 1-4 years old, yes wooden trains. For ages 3-4 there are also battery operated push button locomotives and Brio even has locomotives with remotes. Great for playing with them together as well as independant play.

At 2-4 my son loves playing on an old neglected 4x8 HO layout on the floor I found for free and and a bunch of junker locomotives and rolling stock I found for $1 each that he pushes along. Then he also runs my DCC N and HO table layouts with full supervision.

For the holidays, the Lionel sets come out for around the tree. He can push play with an inexpensive set, or we run my nicer sets together powered.

He loves Legos as well as trains, so a Lego train is next.

Where are you looking at used DC locomotives for $50 to $100?

Clubs and train only specialty hobby shops only often have higher end products and don't often carry entry level with low margins or the entry level stuff is often at or higher than MSRP.

You won't find beginner level Bachmann at clubs or many train only specialty hobby shops, however it is great for getting started with a kid. (If looking for sound, skip the EZ App phone control, the sound is from the phone and not the locomotive, and get DCC with sound)

You can find lots of affordable beginner products online. Check out Train World. Lots of beginner to higher end products and lots of items %25 off MSRP or more. Sign up to the email sale list.

Much of these starter sets can also often be found on eBay new for less and even less used.

• HO DC sets starting at $89.
  
• Lionel O guage sets starting at $99.
  
• HO DCC with Sound $199.
  
• Lionel #6-84709 New Haven RS-3 Lionchief Set $199 with Lionchief remote control and Bluetooth.

Model railroading is such a broad topic that has so many facets to it that you can get advice on. Even within scenery and laying track there is so much to discuss that it is dificult to give general advice. Here goes:

• Plan ahead. You will have a lot more fun running trains if you have a well designed track plan. If you plan even just a few well placed sidings you will have fun rearanging cars. You can get advice here if you draw up some track plans.
  
  
• Lay track well. Nothing will ruin the fun of running trains faster than poorly laid track. Kinks, s-curves and tight radius turns will lead to frequent derailments.
  
  
• Minimums. For HO scale a 4' x 8' layout is a tight minum. With modern equipment it will look unrelistic on tight radius curves and your trains could derail.
  
  
• Train shows and train clubs. Look for some in your area. A great way to meet people and have them give you hands on model train advice.
  
  
• Books. There are lots of great books out there on helping you build your first layout. These books I have and like: The scenery manual. Bench work. Track Planning.
  These books look interesting for a beginer: scenery. Step by step. If the books are out of print then search Amazon for a used copy or find them at a train show.
  
  Tell us about what your plans are. How much space do you have? Do you have track yet? What kind of track? Are you going to model a specific area or road? Do you have a DCC system? If you give us some specifics we can give you better advice on what you will be building.

Not that I know of. I use SCARM, which is free, and it's worked pretty well aside from a bit of a learning curve. I hear a lot of people use Anyrail but I like free :)

I also highly recommend the 101 Track Plans book.

I would highly highly highly recommend picking up the book ["101 Track Plans for Model Railroaders."] (https://www.amazon.com/Hundred-Track-Railroaders-Railroad-Handbook/dp/0890245126/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1503265427&sr=8-1&keywords=101+track+plans) There is essentially a whole chapter dedicated to 4x6 sized layouts, as well as 4x8s, and it is a resource that will pay dividends if future space opens up as well.

It's a great idea book, and with only so much space to work with, a lot of interesting designs have already been created for that space.

Another resource you might consider, especially since you already are using Atlas track, is any of the Atlas HO track planning books. They may not have as much variety as 101 Track Plans, but some of them show you how to build a complete railroad from start to finish, which could be useful.

Hope this helps!

Could you use Amazon. Im not a steam person so I dont know exactly what your looking for or what "cheap" is for you but I found some if you wanna check them out.

Bachmann Trains - Chattanooga Ready To Run 155 Piece Electric Train Set - HO Scale https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00000ISI1/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_IObkDbAAW8W6E

Bachmann Trains - Durango & Silverton Ready To Run Electric Train Set - HO Scale https://www.amazon.com/dp/B004NHEQWY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_yPbkDb778QMPP

Bachmann Trains - Pacific Flyer Ready To Run Electric Train Set - HO Scale https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001RG0LLE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_uQbkDbMTKK635

Bachmann Trains - The General Ready To Run Electric Train Set - HO Scale https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00NUA2RA8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_pRbkDbBBZ0K1P

Bachmann Trains - Overland Limited Ready To Run Electric Train Set - HO Scale https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0006KQGF2/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_HTbkDbGYCDSFV

Bachmann sets are good value, especially what you're wanting to do. Here's the one on Amazon I think you were looking at...

https://www.amazon.com/Bachmann-Spirit-Christmas-Ready-Electric/dp/B0038LJS9C/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=bachmann+N+scale+christmas+train+set&qid=1567614521&s=gateway&sr=8-1

Walthers sells everything at list or a little bit less.

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For the price, it's a good deal. I model HO trains and have plenty of Bachmann engines and freight cars on my layout. No issues!

Good luck!

The best answer I can give you is to look at 101 Track Plans for ideas. While most of the layouts featured are based around HO scale, a 4' x 8' HO layout fits fairly comfortably in a 3' x 5' area in N scale, and with a few changes, can often be made to fit a 2' x 4' area.

In a small space, you have to be selective about what you put in. It will likely mean tight turns, so running big steam locomotives and the larger diesels are probably out of the question. Passenger cars and long freight cars are going to look funny on tight curves, and some may not run well at all.

Other ideas for you:

• Mike's Small Trackplans
  
• Carendt.com micro & small layouts

Thank you very much!

I guess at this point I know enough about scales, power source and current to know what to choose from.

Knowing my husband he would prefer steam train.

I had quite a look at what you could buy right here, it's not even nearly as impressive as US/EU options.

While researching myself I found Bachmann/Lionel Trains, they are actually very attractive, electric, H0 and you probably could plug them here with adapter (gonna check) not sure about AC/DC thing yet, have to check too...

Christmas Bachmann one https://www.amazon.com/Bachmann-Trains-Before-Christmas-Electric/dp/B0006MZN7C/ref=sr_1_28?keywords=Bachmann&qid=1573035232&sr=8-28

Penny https://www.amazon.com/Lionel-Pennsylvania-LionChief-Freight-Bluetooth/dp/B01N1A3JS4/ref=sxin__ac_d_rm?ac_md=2-2-bGlvbmVsIHRyYWluIHNldA%3D%3D-ac_d_rm&keywords=Bachmann&pd_rd_i=B01N1A3JS4&pd_rd_r=308bf438-5fcf-40a0-ba89-22df7c818209&pd_rd_w=6gcYs&pd_rd_wg=rXUiF&pf_rd_p=ed481207-4bea-4e19-bbad-73ed40fdc292&pf_rd_r=HT2XTHB8V41CFAXFSMWC&psc=1&qid=1573035232

Christmas Lionel https://www.amazon.com/Lionel-Christmas-Express-Scale-Train/dp/B07BDZVT1H/ref=sr_1_97_sspa?keywords=Bachmann&qid=1573035663&sr=8-97-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFWUjVZSlVGOUU4RkQmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTAzNjQ1OTFHTVU5RU1JQzhJSTcmZW5jcnlwdGVkQWRJZD1BMDE5NzkzNzNKTkk5REJIVlJJNVImd2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9hdGZfbmV4dCZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=

I'd advise sticking to one of the scales used by model railroaders because it means you'll be able to easily add to it year after year. I also recommend avoiding battery powered trains because they're kinda meh whereas trains powered through the rails typically last longer if cared for. So for scales look into O and HO and decide what you think would look best around your Christmas tree.

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For the traditional O scale train from the likes of Lionel:

here's one for $99.99 but it's a smaller diesel train.

here's a steam version but it's $109.99

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O scale doesn't really come cheap so if you wanted you could opt for the smaller HO scale:

here's a Bachmann set for $85

here's another Bachmann at $92

and another Bachmann at $81

the cheapest Christmas train I could find is from the British company Hornby for $65 this one is OO scale but is compatible with American HO scale as the track gauge (size between rails) is the same. Apparently there's two versions of this and this one is $60.

You should be able to find reviews for all of these products very easily on YouTube.

My condolences - I, too, caught the bug about 6 months ago. :)

Joining flex track is really easy. Simply slide the joiners onto each piece and solder them from the bottom or outside. You might have to remove a few ties and replace them after you're done wiring your power drops.

DCC power requirements are a bit more complex and wholly depend on what scale you're using. These two books were key to helping my understanding.

If it helps to know, my N scale 12x8 layout runs very well on the 2amp NCE PowerCab starter set. In short, it depends on how many locos you want to run simultaneously. I've run 5 locos at once with no problems.

Here's a table from the DCC Guide that really cemented it for me: http://i.imgur.com/JPzkkJq.jpg

I strongly recommend starting with a simple operations plan that covers what trains will do on your layout. You don't need to use prototype rules but if your trains have nothing to do besides go round and round for no reason, you will get bored after a couple weeks. Knowing why your railroad exists will inform your track plan much better than what will fit in your space.

For example, I'm building a railroad which carries supplies to a dam construction site.

Track Planning for Realistic Operation by John Armstrong is the bible for model railroad track planning.

I also like Byron Henderson's website for learning basics while waiting for the book to arrive from Amazon, and for tips and tricks which the book doesn't cover.

John Armstrong's Track Planning for Realistic Operation is a great book:
https://www.amazon.com/Track-Planning-Realistic-Operation-Railroader/dp/0890242275

I like Lance Mindheim's books for modern operations on smaller layouts too:
http://lancemindheim.com/book-store/

I believe this is pretty much required reading around these parts. If nothing else it'll give you some good ideas to build upon.

It's really just a Lenz LS150 branded for Atlas and they've been on sale for awhile now; I'm surprised they're not sold out since the Lenz version is usually like 3 times the price. It's nice because it controls 6 turnouts for such a low price, compared to buying six individual accessory decoders and hard wiring them. This way the turnout doesn't have to be modified at all. It requires AC power so I just use a small Lionel transformer.

I actually kept the connectors and used these: https://www.amazon.com/Allytech-x100mm-Length-Connector-Adapter/dp/B00RT611JW/ I just cut off the connectors at the other end. You have to use some diodes to make it work but it's pretty simple.

Read this article on how to do it: http://www.jnsforum.com/community/topic/8119-lenz-ls150-kato-switches-jrmi-software-planestrains-and-automobiles/

Yes. There are ready-to-go products like https://smile.amazon.com/Bachmann-Trains-Nickel-Reversing-System-Ho/dp/B0038LDLQI, or you can do it yourself with your own sensors.

You could get a Christmas train (basically a decoration) for £50~ and set it up around the tree just to test the mood/interest and then expand on it.

But you'll need to know what era/country/scale/railroad company etc he likes to get something specific.

I also saw a Hornby starter set in the middle aisle of Lidl yesterday if you have one near you

First, decide on your scale. HO, N or Z. Then, decide whether you are modelling any particular country. If not, you can pick up for example the Christmas Train packs for quite cheap. That will give you an analogue controller, a loco, and a loop of track. Hornby (OO scale, compatible with HO track), sells their Christmas train pack for 81 euro om Amazon.de...
https://www.amazon.de/Hornby-R1248-Santas-Express-div/dp/B07N8BSFPS/ref=sr_1_2?__mk_de_DE=%C3%85M%C3%85%C5%BD%C3%95%C3%91&keywords=hornby&qid=1573392910&sr=8-2


All DC analogue locomotives are compatible with each other. Digital (DCC-fitted) locomotives will not run on analogue track. DCC locos expect a fixed high voltage. Analogue locomotives expect variable voltages. Some digital systems will allow you to run a single analogue locomotive along with the other digital locomotives. If you want to play around with digital, again I suggest looking at a DCC starting set. Hornby has one coming in for around 200 pounds...


https://www.hornby.com/uk-en/shop/all-sets/digital-train-sets.html

This and This

Edit: Look into some bachmann nickel silver HO scale EZ track too.

Good score! Now all you need is the tender that goes with it. You will need the tender, because it's part of the electrical pickup for this model.

Alternatively, you could adapt another tender.

This is one of the train sets this model comes from: https://www.amazon.ca/Bachmann-Trains-Durango-Silverton-Electric/dp/B007923CBG/ref=asc_df_B007923CBG/?tag=googleshopc0c-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=292965456384&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=18359523241816481068&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9001444&hvtargid=pla-435387396451&psc=1

I bought Lionel's Pennsylvania Flyer set last year as a black Friday special, believe it was only $180. Fantastic value, and more surprising, the engine is actually damn nice (for its size anyway). It's no Big Boy of course, but it ran around the tree just fine. Hell, for that price you could buy 3 of them and tripple head them, and still have change left over compared to the price of a Big Boy. (Of course, if you want a BB, get that, just realize you're looking at more like $1300 not $300).

If you go used, be careful, Lionel has used that name for decades across multiple sets and price points, so it can be hard to tell them apart.

What track are you using? Were there any pieces taken from something like this?