Some model railroaders believe bigger really is better. Garden or
Garden railroading is an entirely separate pursuit from "scale" or "prototypical" modeling, which places greater emphasis on realism. To confuse matters further, G scale is just one of several gauges that share a single size of track known as #1 gauge, with rails 1-3/4 inches apart. The overall designation "large scale" includes sizes of 1:30.3, 1:22.5, 1:24, 1:29, and 1:32. Manufacturers include LGB (the European originator of G scale), Bachmann, Aristo-Craft, and USA Trains, among others. To the untrained eye at first, the differences between these scales can be slight, but intermixing equipment from each will not create a pleasing effect due to obvious stylistic as well as size differences. In most scales - the best-selling HO scale, for instance - one can purchase equipment from any number of different manufacturers and have all of it look good and operate well together. But the large scales require more research and window shopping before one buys any trains. Sticking to just one manufacturer will ensure uniformity of equipment, but you first need to decide in exactly which scale (and which style) you wish to work, and which manufacturers serve that scale. Garden Railways, a magazine devoted solely to the large scales, is one good resource for learning about the types of equipment that are available.
Big trains are far more expensive than the mass-produced smaller scales such as HO and N. But one train with only a few cars can make a very arresting impression as it rolls through a well-planned garden route or layout. In addition to garden railways and other outdoor setups, one familiar indoor application of G scale trains is the overhead display. Many restaurants and bars have installed a large loop of track on roadbed suspended from the ceiling, for the entertainment of their patrons.
While indoor layouts are certainly possible in G scale and the other large scales, they tend to look much less realistic than the smaller scales because the curves must be tremendously sharp just to fit a layout into the space most people have available. Indeed, long locomotives (not found in LGB trains but available from other makers) and cars can barely make it around such curves, if at all. Large outdoor or garden layouts can utilize much more space with gentler curves and satisfyingly long straightaways. Weather presents challenges in keeping the track clean and maintaining good electrical connections, but non-traditional methods of propulsion exist that can lessen the need for constant cleaning of the rails. Some enterprising hobbyists have installed radio-control motors in their locomotives, and there is a whole group of "live steam" modelers whose steam locomotives duplicate the operation of the full-size prototype. One belief unites them all: "bigger is better!"
