Interchangeability?

[MotoLinz]

First of all, I know nothing about model trains, hence what is likely a very stupid question, but...

"Santa" is leaving this Athearn set (http://www.athearn.com/Products/Default.aspx?ProdID=ATH1077) under the tree for my four year old. Are different brands generally compatible as long as they are of the same scale? Since this comes with Bachmann track, I am assuming (?) Bachmann locomotives will run on it - but, can I hook a Bachmann locomotive (or cars) up to the Athearn unit? Are there any brands that are especially compatible with one another, and are there brands that are absolutely incompatible?

Thanks for any info - as I said, I know zilch.

[thpbears]

As long as it is HO scale it will work on that track. The only thing that will not run is if you buy a engine that has a decoder in it (DCC). Then you would need and DCC system. But as of right now any HO engine or freight car will work. You can not go wrong with a NS engine. ;D

[MotoLinz]

As long as it is HO scale it will work on that track. The only thing that will not run is if you buy a engine that has a decoder in it (DCC). Then you would need and DCC system. But as of right now any HO engine or freight car will work. You can not go wrong with a NS engine. ;D

Ha! Yes - we're going NS because my four year old is NUTS about Norfolk Southern. ...but, he's also crazy about Conrail, so I figured we could add some of that on for his birthday in a few weeks. I just want to make sure that it will hook up to his Christmas stuff if it happens to be of a different brand.

[E.M. Bell]

And the nice thing...it can grow and grow and grow. You have a basement..garage??? The kiddo gets the modeling bug and poof, you don't anymore. My folks lost a whole furnished upstairs room that way about 30 years ago

Its great you are supporting your sons passion, even at such a early age...there is sure a lot worse things for a kid to be into!

[Ed Fury]

You might have to make sure the couplers match when buying new rolling stock and engines. Some older, and cheaper, products use horn hook couplers. Newer and more expensive models use knuckle couplers. It's pretty easy to change them out yourself or just swap one end of a piece of rolling stock so it has a different couplers on each end and you can connect everything up that way. Some of the mom and pop hobby stores will do the coupler change out for you for a small fee. The larger box hobby stores.. good luck even finding a sales person to help you locate the model aisle.

Almost all of the old Tyco, Bachmann, and AHM HO scale stuff used the horn hook couplers. This is the stuff you see at flea markets, yard sales, and swap meets. Athearn, Atlas, Kato, and the newer Bachmann models now use the magnetic release knuckle couplers.

[csx6900]

Well, I hope I don't get hunted down and stoned for saying this, but...

I tried model railroading once (or twice).  It cost me tons of money and practically nothing ever worked right.  Either the trains kept derailing or the transformers had problems, whatever.  Of course, it was just a couple of knuckleheads trying to do all of this stuff from scratch, but eventually I gave up all together and got into something a little bit more reliable: Virtual railroading.  PC games like Microsoft Train Simulator and Auran's Trainz series let you have the fun of model railroading (creating maps, acquiring rolling stock, etc) with the freedom to expand your collection endlessly... and all you need is space for your computer!  No limits (except for your graphics/video card, but compare the price of that to a whole model railroad) or boundaries, plus you can create all sorts of activities and sessions to simulate whatever type of railroading you want.

That's not to say that model railroading doesn't have its own appeal, but overall, I find virtual railroading much easier and much cheaper.  I think that every kid needs to have a real train set at some point, so this is a good gift choice.  But when you want to expand (or he wants to expand), think about going electronic. 

-Evan

[GP30Rider]

As long as it is HO scale it will work on that track. The only thing that will not run is if you buy a engine that has a decoder in it (DCC). Then you would need and DCC system. But as of right now any HO engine or freight car will work. You can not go wrong with a NS engine. ;D

Ha! Yes - we're going NS because my four year old is NUTS about Norfolk Southern. ...but, he's also crazy about Conrail, so I figured we could add some of that on for his birthday in a few weeks. I just want to make sure that it will hook up to his Christmas stuff if it happens to be of a different brand.

Somebody needs to work on that kid.  Gotta get him educated about Southern before Norfolk.

[thpbears]

And the bond you will build with your son by building a layout or if you all start railfanning. The bond will last a lifetime. I know from experiance. Like EM said there are far worst a kid can get into. But the couplers there are the horn type and then the kadee looking. Those usrally just require a screw to be loosened and then replace if you need. Ebay has alot of great deals on trains. They also have some rip offs. Also Youtube has some great vids you all can watch. Welcome into the life changing experiance for you and your son.Oh not to forget there are alot of great vids and pics on this site. Plus you get all the info by people that know a lot more than I ever will about trains.

[MotoLinz]

Somebody needs to work on that kid.  Gotta get him educated about Southern before Norfolk.

According to Jonathan, Southern is a dirty word in our house since the boys' great-great-grandfather worked for L&N out of Etowah. (You can prod him the next time you're by CCA and show him the light.) I figure the kids are interested (Jackson intensely so) in trains, and that's probably good enough for the 'ol boy. ...but I snagged one of Whittle Shortline's L&N engines for their wooden train collection, anyway, just to be on the safe side. But, Jackson is more familiar with Southern than L&N, presently.

As far as going broke and losing space, Evan and E.M., too late! The garage is full of motorcycles, and we have no basement. The guest bedroom has become the boys' playroom and currently houses what I believe to be the entire Island of Sodor. Talk about expensive. What they've already got in felled trees would pay for a Harvard law degree. If the model thing catches on, we'll put it all in the sunroom. After that, they'll just have to move out and get jobs.

Thanks for the info about the couplers. I'm an anal retentive tinkerer by nature, so this sounds like it should all work out just fine.

[MotoLinz]

Like EM said there are far worst a kid can get into.

"Crack is whack. Let's assemble some track!" 

[Badhorse79]

Lol sorry that's funny had to post a laugh to that

[fireball451]

Model train set was the best present I got as a kid. I was around 6 and have been into it ever since.

[MotoLinz]

Model train set was the best present I got as a kid. I was around 6 and have been into it ever since.

I hope he'll like it. He enjoys re-creating what he's seen, so I think this will be fun for him. After we saw Southern 154 in Alcoa a few weeks ago, I walked into the playroom the next morning and found this setup. I referred to my photos, and he got it correct, right down to the number of cars and the diesel assist. The kid's a genius - I'm sure of it.