In preparation
A printable planning kit is in preparation. Everything it will cover is already on this site for free, in the calculators and the complete layout builds.
The flagship, with four independently controlled outputs and enough capacity for a large O gauge layout. It costs more than most complete starter layouts, and almost nobody needs it.
Best for: a large multi-train O gauge layout, and very little else
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A touchscreen WiFi throttle and a 7 amp command station from the company that makes LokSound decoders. The interface is the most modern of any system here, and the price reflects it.
Best for: somebody who wants a touchscreen throttle and runs ESU decoders
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The best selling O gauge set there is, with LionChief Bluetooth control so it runs from a phone or the supplied remote rather than needing a separate transformer.
Best for: a family set that will come out every year
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A modern high speed passenger set, which is the one thing a freight-heavy catalogue is usually short of. Note that the long cars want more radius than the oval in the box suggests.
Best for: a modern passenger themed first layout
Check price on Amazon$25
Fill-in worksheets to plan and build a layout: My Layout At A Glance, a Space & Layout Fit Sheet with minimum radius and turnout sizes from this site's own calculators, scale-specific Track Plan Grid pages, a Benchwork Build Planner with a real lumber list, a Grade & Clearance Check, a Wiring & DCC Planner with a safety note, a reusable Rolling Stock & Locomotive Inventory with NMRA RP-20.1 target weight, a Scenery Build Sequence checklist, an Operating Session Log and a Budget Planner By Phase. Two filled-in examples, a bonus scale and minimum radius quick reference card, a companion spreadsheet with a grade and clearance calculator, and an online buyer guide with three complete HO layouts by budget.
Get the kitResearched, not professional advice. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Prices and availability change often and are shown as a guide only.