Hi,
To all intents and purposes I'm new to modelling and want to start off with a small 009 layout. Pardon my ignorance but is Peco the only manufacturer of 009 track?
Pete Sykes
Welcome Pete,
Tillig Modellbahn GmbH from Germany comes to mind. They do make some nice stuff but expensive.
I think their track is code 83, peco is code 80. (some one correct me if I'm wrong) Micro Engineering Company from the US produce N scale track. Nice stuff, low profile track, but it's not like peco random sleepers made for narrow gauge.
These two companies come to my mind right now.
I'm quite sure other members will add to the list.
Hope this helps,
Robin.
There is also Roco, Bemo and Tillig track, but I don't see a UK supplier of Bemo track.
https://www.osbornsmodels.com/roco-hoe-track-system-click-here-to-view-1194-c.asp (https://www.osbornsmodels.com/roco-hoe-track-system-click-here-to-view-1194-c.asp)
https://railsofsheffield.com/products/tillig-85637-tillig-elite-track-right-turnout-hoe-narrow-gauge?variant=39947035705535¤cy=GBP&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&srsltid=AfAwrE7MlvanWIjP-DmBNQEjhmVRHxhKpVpMmfRjBL-X4gldE3-6BgFcT_k (https://railsofsheffield.com/products/tillig-85637-tillig-elite-track-right-turnout-hoe-narrow-gauge?variant=39947035705535¤cy=GBP&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&srsltid=AfAwrE7MlvanWIjP-DmBNQEjhmVRHxhKpVpMmfRjBL-X4gldE3-6BgFcT_k)
Essentially for 009 track its Peco and their 'Crazy' / Irregular track. However we can probably get away with HOe track (the gauge is the same and the sleeper size & spacing is much the same) available from Peco (their 'Mainline' range) along with those from European suppliers (Roco, Bemo, Tillig) as GraemeD suggests.
At a pinch one can also 'get away with' using standard N gauge track as the rails are at the correct spacing, and when it comes to the sleepers just bury them in the ballast...
There is also Shinohara track, but I thought they ceased trading, though Scalelink have a very few points and some rail joiners left!
https://www.scalelink.co.uk/acatalog/Shinohara_Track___Pointwork__HOn2_5_.html (https://www.scalelink.co.uk/acatalog/Shinohara_Track___Pointwork__HOn2_5_.html)
There is Minitrains too, though if and where it is possible to get track I don't know.
https://www.minitrains.eu/mt-acc.html (https://www.minitrains.eu/mt-acc.html)
Might be worth trying Society Sales to see if they have anything - sometimes they have odd bundles of various brands which are often not advertised for sale in the online 'shop'.
Drop Lee an email at members-sales@009society.com and he may be able to rummage through his garage and find something. Let him know what it is you're after.
David.
Thanks for the replies everyone. I'm not quite ready to start yet (too much clearing to do!) but I'm trying to get all my ducks in a row so I can hit the ground running when the time comes.
There are other manufactures as mentioned above, but I would recommend that you use Peco track from the start.
As mentioned the other makes do not have the same rail profile (size) so joining two makes together can cause a step in the rail that will give you rinning issues.
In addition I would also recomend that you only use the electrofrog Peco 009 points, not the smaller set-track Peco 009 points that have a plastic section of track that can cause issues with some locos stalling at slow speeds.
Something else that might be useful is that if using Peco 009 track, it is physically compatible with their N scale/gauge track if you are willing to disguise the undersized sleepers, or live with them. Their N track is also useful in non-scenic areas such as fiddle yards. Similarly, if the track is inset into roads, cobbled yards and so on it makes little difference what the sleepers look like beneath the surface.
Their N selection can be useful too for other configurations of pointwork. They may be quite rarely seen in prototypical NG permanent way but, for similar reasons it is often done in standard gauge layouts using items such as a three way point or (horror or horrors ;) ) a double slip from Peco's range might be used.
It might be wise though, if tempted by complex pointwork, to check that your stock will run through it, especially if you have 'vintage' models.