Railway modelling or model railroading is a hobby in which rail transport systems are modelled at a reduced scale.
A narrow-gauge railway is a railway with a track gauge narrower than 1,435 mmstandard gauge. Most narrow-gauge railways are between 600 mm and 1,067 mm.
G scale or G gauge, also called large scale, is a track gauge for model railways which is often used for outdoor garden railways because of its size and durability. G scale trains use a fixed track gauge of 45 millimetres (1.75 in) to accommodate a range of rail transport modelling scales between narrow gauge (~1:13‒1:19‒1:20), metre gauge (1:22.5), Playmobil trains (~1:24), and standard gauge (~1:29–1:32).
St Neots is a town and civil parish in the Huntingdonshire district of Cambridgeshire, England. It is 18 miles (29 km) west of Cambridge. The areas of Eynesbury, Eaton Ford, Eaton Socon, and Wintringham form part of the town.
N scale is a popular model railway scale. Depending upon the manufacturer, the scale ranges from 1:148 to 1:160. Effectively the scale is 1:159, 9 mm to 1,435 mm, which is the width of standard gauge railway. However the scale may vary to simulate wide or narrow gauge rail. In all cases, the gauge is 9 mm or 0.354 in. The term N gauge refers to the track dimensions, but in the United Kingdom in particular British N gauge refers to a 1:148 scale with 1:160 track gauge modelling. The terms N scale and N gauge are often inaccurately used interchangeably, as scale is defined as ratio or proportion of the model, and gauge only as a distance between rails. The scale 1:148 defines the rail-to-rail gauge equal to 9 mm exactly, so when calculating the rail or track use 1:160 and for engines and car wheel base use 1:148.
The Midland Railway – Butterley is a heritage railway and museum complex at Butterley, near Ripley in Derbyshire.
A garden railway or garden railroad is a model railway system set up outdoors in a garden. G Scale is the most popular scale for garden railroads, though 16 mm scale also has a following, especially in the United Kingdom. Model locomotives in this scale are often live steam scale models of British narrow gauge prototypes. 16 mm scale track, the same gauge as O gauge is probably now more popular in the UK than G scale.
The Fairbourne Railway is a 12+1⁄4 in gauge miniature railway running for 2 miles (3.2 km) from the village of Fairbourne on the Mid-Wales coast, alongside the beach to the end of a peninsula at Barmouth Ferry railway station, where there is a connection with the Barmouth Ferry across the Mawddach estuary to the seaside resort of Barmouth.
Live steam is steam under pressure, obtained by heating water in a boiler. The steam may be used to operate stationary or moving equipment.
The Ruislip Lido Railway is a 12 in gauge miniature railway around Ruislip Lido in Ruislip, 14 miles (22.5 km) north-west of central London. Running from the main station at Woody Bay by the lido's beach, on a 1.02-mile (1.64 km) track around the reservoir, the railway passes through Ruislip Woods to Willow Lawn station and tea room near the lido's car parks. It is the longest 12 in gauge railway in the United Kingdom.
A train ride or miniature train consists of miniature trains capable of carrying people. Some are considered amusement rides and some are located in amusement parks and municipal parks. Backyard railroads and ridable miniature railways run on tracks, and especially if the service is provided by a non-commercial hobbyist club, their trains may be exact scale models, often with a live steam locomotive. Some train rides are kiddie rides, which are commercial children's rides that often use simple, colorful equipment with the driving mechanism hidden under vacuum-formed plastic covers. Trackless trains do not use tracks and usually consist of railroad-like cars towed behind an ordinary, or modified motor vehicle. This type of ride is often used for sightseeing tours. Some roller coasters like the Big Thunder Mountain Railroad attractions in several Disney parks resemble train rides, but may not be available to children under a certain age or minimum height.
A backyard railroad is a privately owned, outdoor railroad, most often in miniature, but large enough for one or several persons to ride on. The rail gauge can be anything from 2+1⁄2 in to 7+1⁄2 in or more. Smaller backyard or outdoor railroads that cannot be ridden are called garden railroads. Some backyard railroads use full-size rolling stock, such as the former 3 ft narrow gauge Grizzly Flats Railroad owned by railfan and Disney animator Ward Kimball.
A ridable miniature railway is a large scale, usually ground-level railway that hauls passengers using locomotives that are often models of full-sized railway locomotives.
Minimum-gauge railways are railways with track gauges smaller than those of narrow-gauge railways, primarily designed for light, industrial, or tourist transportation. The most common gauges for minimum-gauge railways include:
Rail transport modelling uses a variety of scales to ensure scale models look correct when placed next to each other. Model railway scales are standardized worldwide by many organizations and hobbyist groups. Some of the scales are recognized globally, while others are less widespread and, in many cases, virtually unknown outside their circle of origin. Scales may be expressed as a numeric ratio or as letters defined in rail transport modelling standards The majority of commercial model railway equipment manufacturers base their offerings on Normen Europäischer Modellbahnen (NEM) or National Model Railroad Association (NMRA) standards in most popular scales.
Gn15 is a rail modelling scale, using G scale 1:22.5 scale trains running on H0/00 gauge track, representing minimum gauge and miniature railways. Typical models built are between 1:20.3 and 1:24, or up to 1:29.
The San Diego Model Railroad Museum is a museum in San Diego, California, that focuses on the heritage of railroading through model railroads. It was founded in 1982. The museum is located on the lower level of Casa de Balboa on the Prado in Balboa Park.
The Sonoma TrainTown Railroad is a tourist railroad and 10 acre amusement park in Sonoma, California. Its main feature is a 15 in gauge miniature railway, which closely corresponds to a 1:4 scale model of a 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in standard gauge railroad.
