I LIKE TRAINS!
Talking of N gauge there is one thing that would be impossible to model, Stephenson Link valve gear.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephenson_valve_gear
Unless someone is feeling brave that is.....
maycontainthunder wrote:
Talking of N gauge there is one thing that would be impossible to model, Stephenson Link valve gear.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephenson_valve_gear
Unless someone is feeling brave that is.....
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stephenson_valve_gear
Unless someone is feeling brave that is.....
Problem is one needs to model such parts overscale or one will find them way too brittle. Another issue even in H0 and 00, is wear, especially the finer scale standards one is building them to. The older models that had Walshchaerts valve gear in this larger scale which ha ve survived to live another day (E.g. 50+ year old models) had all their parts made very much overscale and these have survived, but the later models where finerscale standards were required... There have been many a model with various rods worn through!
Now try that in half that scale and one is amplifying the problem and I haven't even mentioned Stevensons link valve gear!
Model railways are very much a compromize. The more we compromize to make them durable, the longer they last, and the more usable they become to us as models.
I remember a modeller who had an exact (As it was possible) H0 scale replica of a British Black 5 locomotive built from a kit. He said that as the model was built to such fine standards, one needed around 32 to 36 feet of track diameter to turn a circle, and that was considered a sharp curve which needed a check rail if one transferred that curve to its prototypical equivalent.
I compromize a lot in 7mm narrow gauge, as I turn my models within a 2ft wide board, and I am not against compromize at all, because compromize brings with it practicality.
So how to model intricats detail? Compromize! Either leave some of it out or make it larger and simpler. After all. We are like 3D artists who are tryig to capture an overal look and character of a scene. We do not have to live in the minuture world itself!
And yes, I have seen some fine models with Stevenson link valve gear, and yes, it is possible in N.
But my advice is to try and capture the look in a mechanically simplified and slightly overscale way.