Considering Retiring My HO Scale Layout and going all Trainz

pequeajim

New member
Hi, I just discovered Trainz and really like it. I currently have an HO scale layout that is 18' x 18' with several industries. I am getting ready to retire and will not have the room that I currently have, so all my trains must go. I am considering using some of the money from my hobby sale to build a super PC with multiple screens and buy Trainz to get my fix.

Have any of you folks made this sort of transition? I apologize that i am a new user and may not have read as much as I should have before asking this question.




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Hello,
The track icon next to your user name should have a version name. If you have not registered your copy of Trainz (you don't say which version you have) you need to do so. Without doing that you will get little response. If you have registered your copy of Trainz then you need to contact support and have them tie your registration to your forum userid. (Compare your userid track icon to others on the forum and you'll see what I refer to.)

Oh, and welcome. Don't want to appear unfriendly. This all has to do with forum users being legitimate Trainz users. The people here are nice, friendly, and helpful.
 
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I did, albeit not intentionally. I discovered Trainz by accident at point where I'd just moved house and sold most of my 4mm scale stuff with the intention of building an N-gauge layout at the new house.

15 years later I keep thinking about the physical layout, but it seems to have a great many limitations when I compare it to what I can do in Trainz.
 
Over the years I graduated from railway modelling to computer gaming (in the wider sense) resulting in an Ebay sale of the last few remaining items over 10 years ago. Lack of time, lack of space and (these days) the ridiculous cost of setting up even a modest layout with a couple of consists continue to put me off. A loss in manual dexterity and the ability to close focus without an optical migraine setting in (probably due to all the time in front of a PC screen ;) ) also a factor.

I do occasionally though miss, the look, feel and smell of the real thing going round a layout.
 
From early childhood to present (I am now 63), I have been an HO scale model railroader wannabe. I have designed and started several layouts, but I have never had the time, skill, permanence of residence, space, or money to realize my ambitions. Until Trainz. Trainz will take up your time, but after the learning curve I believe you'll be able to create what you envision more quickly in Trainz than HO. Trainz eliminates the space, permanence of residence and money issues. I subscribe to Model railroader, and am aghast at what a decent layout would cost to build today. Plus, my modeling skills would likely never attain to what's needed to makes scenes that look like what I see in the magazine photo spreads. Plus, I'm inept at woodwork and soldering. The only real issue with going with Trainz rather than HO, in my opinion, is mastering the software to the point where you can make things look the way you really want them to. This takes a while, but these forums will usually provide all the answers as your questions arise.
 
Hi, I just discovered Trainz and really like it. I currently have an HO scale layout that is 18' x 18' with several industries. I am getting ready to retire and will not have the room that I currently have, so all my trains must go. I am considering using some of the money from my hobby sale to build a super PC with multiple screens and buy Trainz to get my fix.

Have any of you folks made this sort of transition? I apologize that i am a new user and may not have read as much as I should have before asking this question.




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I used to run N gauge but the expense and dust were problems. I use a single screen basically 1920 by 1080 with a 6 core Xeon Dell refurbished workstation and an RTX2070 watch the video cards and base machine as not all video cards fit all PCs. Basically 1920*1080 gives you the number of pixels, to drive three screens that gives you 3 times the pixels so use https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu_list.php an RTX 2070 has a score of around 14,000 so to give the same frame rates over three screens you need a video card with a score of 42,000 and they don't exist. A new Dell will set you back about $2,000 - $2,500 and its the high end GPU you're after. I'd go 16 gigs of memory. Dellrefurbished.com $570 currently will get you an eight core xeon with 32 gigs of memory but you'll need a GPU that fits, low height is the key here, and to upgrade it to Win 10 which is normally free. Normally Trainz is GPU bound, not CPU and the refurbished or off lease workstations are good solid machines with reasonable power supplies.

These days I still have a 9 volt Lego train set up in the basement 8 by 4 immune to dust, but its mainly Trainz these days. I ended up more in content creation than in running using blender.

Cheerio John
 
Welcome to Trainz and to the forums, Jim.

I made the plunge in 2004. I have an extensive collection of N-scale equipment tucked away in plastic crates. In 2000-2003 I had setup a good-sized layout, layout number 4 actually, which like the others met their demise due to a number of reasons. This time was due to some neurological issues I had which caused my hands to lose their fine motor control. I noticed that I was whiffing when painting buildings and gluing stuff initially, and chocked it up to being tired, but it got wors, and when I knocked an expensive locomotive to the floor, I gave up. It didn't help that my cats were stealing stuff from the layout and ate my wires underneath. The drop of the loco was pretty much the nail in the coffin. Just as I gave up, I discovered Trainz TRS2004 in December 2003, and the layout was packed up for good in 2004 after the spiders had moved in and took over the tunnel portals and station platforms. So today I am 100% digital. I miss the physical models but do not miss the mess, cost, and space they take up.

My computer is about 5 years old. It has a Intel 5930 Extreme CPU and 64GB of RAM, loads of disk space (highly recommended), and a GTX1080TI video card. The system cost under $1300 to build initially. Today you can build a similar system for about the same and you have even better video cards. My 1080TI is a replacement for a 780TI I had previously. If you're wondering why I have so much RAM, I use my system for music editing as well and the high-end CPU plus all the RAM allows for very fast editing and no stuttering which is really awful when editing music.
 
New to Trainz as well, and in the Boomer age group, in fact second-generation Model RR'er since I was in short pants. I don't have an active HO layout (not for 20 years), but still have all the stuff and my father's as well. Still may set up something, as I miss it. But this Trainz thing is great! To someone well familiar with the limitations of HO, it is great fun to just run through the scenarios of the wide variety of routes, and now I'm making sessions to try out operating. I can see trying my hand at creating a route, but that is way down the tracks.

If storage is not a problem, why sell everything? For a few years I had a 3'x9' switching-type pike. Even a little diorama can be fun to stage photos. Point is, the selling price and hassle is sometimes not worth it, and there is something called "seller's remorse."

I see Trainz as a supplement to RR interests (I took some photos the other day of some trackside buildings).
 
hihi - strange,

sold my n-scale - worth easily 6.000 deutschmarks for 1.500 in 1991 and always felt sorry for this loss.

Started trainz in 2004 as a substitution and started slot car racing about the same time but only in scale 1:43. Changed to 1:32 5 years ago and have about 100 cars meanwhile plus a nice track and lots of equipment.

Still felt sorry for not having a modell railway lay out.

Sold my car last year and decided, now its time to buy a modell railway again, this time in H0 as i have room enough in the house. Meanwhile, i have about 30 locos and lots aof cars and my house looks like a toy museum meanwhile.

But still - trainz takes most of my free time, I could not do without i suppose.
 
Sold off most of a large collection a while back and went all in with trainz here as well. While there are pros and cons to both hobbies, there are times when I long for a particular HO locomotive that I once had. But then, if you really want something in trainz and have the patience to learn 3d modeling, you can just make it yourself.

Still have a handful of HO/N scale locomotives (mostly NS) but the only time they see the the light of day is when they're posing for a new trainz creation on my desk.
 
One thing to remember, if you start building routes, don't expect them to immediately look like the great ones that are out there. This is an art, not just a game.
 
its a very do-able scenario. you have the scope to do things you never could with a layout. space is not a problem and you can operate and modify many existing routes before getting stuck into your own, providing you have familiar with using a PC and troubleshooting when things go wrong is see no issues. my advice is, spend as much as you can on the graphics card and have a LOT of storage space ( at least several terabytes on multiple SSDs ) and perform daily backups of any routes onto those multiple drives. make sure at least one is external in case of mishaps.
 
I sold my large H0 layout when I left school and although from a cost, space and practicality perspective it was with hindsight the only option I've frequently regretted doing so. Going on about model railways my daughter got me Trainz 2004 which I never really touched but also purchased Trainz 2006 some time later and from then on I was hooked. Trainz does not replace the model railway it compliments it and in the media of 3D animation you can achieve realities which you can only aspire to in the materials of railway modelling. So why the regrets, its not the layout but the late 1950 early 1960 Hornby models I which I still had. Today I have a young granddaughter who fiddles with that original Trainz 2004 on an old laptop. I think all children should be given the opportunity to build something with there hands and what would be better than her grandfathers model rolling stock as she does with her mothers dolls house and Lego. Peter
 
After some 45 years modelling in 00 and N scales, I was presented with TRS 2004 on my 75th birthday in 2006. Now rapidly approaching my 89th, I have no regrets whatsoever at having given up the "pleasures" of being at my workbench in a cold garage, making badly fitting woodwork joints, using sticky and noxious materials, trying to see fine lines on card or plastic card, injuring myself with sharp blades - I could go on. Much better to be sitting in a warm room with maybe a hot drink within easy reach.
But there are other pleasures, especially being in touch with so many friends from around the world, and of course making models which, however simple mine may be compared with some, can be shared with those friends. Now having to live on my own, being in contact with so many people, on this forum and Trainz Carriage and Wagon Works, helps to enrich an otherwise lonely life.
Best wishes to all.
Ray
 
I had to abandon mine when I moved from up north with a basement to down south with no basement.

Take lots of pictures and videos before giving up the HO.
 
Hi, I just discovered Trainz and really like it. I currently have an HO scale layout that is 18' x 18' with several industries. I am getting ready to retire and will not have the room that I currently have, so all my trains must go. I am considering using some of the money from my hobby sale to build a super PC with multiple screens and buy Trainz to get my fix.

Have any of you folks made this sort of transition? I apologize that i am a new user and may not have read as much as I should have before asking this question.




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This brings tears to the eyes of an old man :'(, I will fill in my story of similar situation, later tonight.......:)

I have to deal with a Roofing issue out the gate this morning.....:(

OK so now I finally got off the Roof, sat down and had a hot dinner, and got to thinking more about your moving and loss of Room issue......

When growing up 65 yrs ago, my Dad had Lionel Trains setup for Xmas Tree running, I decided I would like a train set when my parents thought I was old enough and responsible enough, age 7, Lionel set, older,, then HO, and I build my first of many layout's in my 20's, come 30,40s etc, I had built from a 4x8' plywood to a 8x22' foot in our first house, moved to larger house, brought Layout over, and it set for 25 yrs because due to work schedules and change life conditions, never went back to layout.

Then 2 yrs ago, decided with my lower back issues and Sciatica, and us eventually downsizing to a smaller house, the Layout had to go. It was just collecting dust.......A super sad moment.......Took a 2 weeks to dismantle and give some items to close friends.

Now if you look at my timeline here, I have been in trains for near 6years......That was the change that also made me give up my model trains......And my Health issues..........

These decisions are never easy, there painful, full of regrets and what if's but in the long scheme, you come to a crossroad in your life more than once, the decision has to be made......Do I miss my old layout, yes, but lifestyle has changed, and I love the Virtual World of Trains, it won't cause my Sciatica to get worse, only if If forget to stand up once an hour and do some exercise and stretch to keep limber etc.........I walk generally 10-15K of steps everyday as a way to keep my wait in check. Why, because 20 yr's ago I was considered Obese and the health issues were not looking very good for me......!

Bottom line, your health is the most important thing, more important than Money, you can't take it to heaven with you, not that I am aware of.........

Financially selling what you can part with and reinvesting in new computer with enough bells and whistles to make Trainz sing along and not gripe, heck yah, go for it.........!!!
 
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To add to what I said earlier, as I said I started with TRS2004 in December 2003. I became instantly mesmerized by Surveyor and opened up various routes to see how they were made. Following the lead and checking out the various tools, I had a simple loop of track setup on a modified route I tried. I then drove around a bunch of built-in ones and got tired of those, but kept thinking about building my dream layout. Yes. I thought of TRS2004 as a giant model railroad - one that I could build to my heart's content without running out of physical space.

So after playing with the various routes, poking around others and downloading some to take a look via a modem no less at the time, I went about building my layout. The layout was a giant version of the one I dismantled except it had all the towns and cities where they are supposed to be and not squeezed into an L-shaped N-scale layout.

I started with 4 small baseboards and worked outward from there. My route is now about 190 miles if not longer. I made some changes after I lost a rebuild in 2010 due to a catastrophic system failure and had to go back to a previous version. As time has gone on, my route has gone through various renovations as I've improved my building skills. As I explored various routes, I adopted the style of those I "learned" from. This helped me create my own style which I've finally settled into.

The thing is when building a route, just like building a model railroad, it's necessary to keep a backstory and theme. This limits the scope to some extent, but it helps keeping the route consistent. My route happens to be a New England regional that serves old mill towns and eventually, someday maybe, will reach the main mill town but for some reason hasn't yet. This is something I stress a lot here in the forums.

So fast forward a tiny bit more than a decade and half, and I'm still at it. My routes are still here including the one I started originally. I opened up version 3 of my route recently and laughed at my track work. I had the gist of it there with a lot of good things in there, but it was pretty bad. The assets back then were limited, and my route building skills were quite low, but the core is there. . I took that very tiny core of those 4 baseboards and rebuilt that section and imported into my current iteration. They work quite well after a major renovation and I see a few more things I can do to it to improve things further, but alas, like any model railroad stuff is never completed and there's always something to tweak somewhere.
 
I'd always scratchbuilt my own railway models and I always had some kind of handmade model on the go, but then I developed narcolepsy and working with any kind of tools became seriously dangerous for me. Reluctantly I dismantled my workshop, sold my lathe, tossed all my models into a box and became a very depressed woman indeed.
It was my daughter who introduced me to railway simulators. Ever since she's been young she had been keen on flight simulators and I think she's flown them all by now right from the very early ones to the current crop of highly realistic ones. Anyway to cut a long story short she said to me why don't you try a railway simulator. I was doubtful to say the least, but I picked up a second hand copy of TS2004 on our local auction website thinking it would be a waste of time, but within the first half hour of running TS2004 I was hooked. I swiftly went on to buy a legal copy of TS2009 WBE and I never looked back. Both my daughter and my doctor noticed an almost immediate change in me. I became a lot happier and I found I was coping better with my illness and my general state of health started to improve.

Yes I do regret not being able to work with tools and I do regret that I can't shape raw materials into railway models anymore, BUT it's important for me to look at what I can do and not what I can't anymore. Since I took up with Trainz I have honed my graphic arts skills even more to create new textures for re-skinning models, - a good many of which are on the DLS. And I have been able to build railway layouts of the kind that I never thought would be possible. My first layouts were not so good even though I had a lot of fun with them, - as I gained more experience what I was building improved and this forum has been a big part of than.
So I say, - 'go for it', - you won't regret it.
 
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