How to Build a Ho Train Track

A popular hobby that dates back a century in America is model railroading. Model railroads allow you to build your own little world, which you can base on factors like a certain region of the country or historical time period. There are several different scales of model railroads available, but one of the most popular is HO. HO scale is 1/87th the size of a real railroad, and gets its name because it is half the size of O scale trains (the most famous of which were Lionel trains). HO scale trains are economical, relatively small, and have a wide variety of products available, making them ideal for beginners.

Instructions

1

Decide where you will build your layout, and measure how much space you have and what shape the layout will be.

2

Sketch your layout on a piece of paper. If you plan to add to your layout over time, you might want to start in a small section and build out from there.

3

Build the platform for your layout. This can be anything from nailing a sheet of plywood to an old table, to building a platform from scratch.

4

Lay out the track, following your plans. Once you have all the track in place, nail it to the surface with finishing nails by driving the nails through the middle of the railroad ties (one towards each end, and one in the middle). It's important to secure HO track to the platform that it will be placed on because if it's not, when the trains run over the track, they'll make it come apart, breaking the electrical circuit that runs through the track and possibly derailing the train. If you don't have enough room to keep the display up permanently, nail the track itself to the plywood, but don't nail any accessories down. This will allow you to store the track by leaning it up against the wall in your garage or basement, taking up very little space.

5

Hook up the wiring to provide power from the power pack to the tracks and any switches and accessories that you have in your layout.

6

Choose what scenery you will use. Your layout can simply be tracks laid on a bare, flat surface, or you could dress it up with supplies from a hobby shop, such as bushes, trees, buildings, and pre-made groundcover, which you sprinkle on to a painted surface to give the appearance of grass.

7

Continue to add on to your layout. One of the great things about model railroading is that you can spend a lifetime expanding and upgrading your layout if you choose.