Getting Started With LEGO Trains
Book Review

By Dale Farris, Vice-President Golden Triangle PC Club April 2004 General Overview In this super book, you will find everything you need to know to build LEGO trains, from setting up train tracks to building custom freight cars. LEGO insider, Jacob H. McKee, shares some of his most fascinating and original train designs, while including descriptive articles on basic building techniques, plus high-quality building instructions for several different projects. Veteran LEGO trains fanatics and curious beginners alike will find this book the easiest way to get started with LEGO trains. More than just a guide, author McKee takes readers to the world of advanced LEGO building and the culture of model railroading. Sometimes the lingo takes a wacky turn: How could a model be built with SNOT? Connect the LEGO bricks in unorthodox ways to have Studs Not On Top, or SNOT, perfect for advanced constructions. What about the chapter on refeer? That's the refrigerated rail car model, the type of train car called a refeer by model builders and train buffs in the know. Interviews with expert builders and a section on advanced track layouts are sure to inspire the master builder and budding train enthusiast alike. With this book, newbies and old pros all have something in common - a great book to help them grow with their hobby. As author McKee explains, "LEGO trains are the 'hub of the spoke,' so to speak. LEGO trains are what bond a LEGO universe together. Once you set up your first starter train set, you want more track. More track leads to more train cars. More cars leads to city. City leads to airports. Then space, then ..." Background to the Book Since the first steam engine ran in the early 1800s, kids and adults around the world have been fascinated. Trains, then as now, hold a special appeal to many, and over the decades thousands of train models and toys have been created. Model railroads built by kids and adults alike have a long and rich history. The model railroad community consists of literally hundreds of thousands of fans of the railroad industry, especially those who enjoy building model railroads and running their trains throughout their house. Many readers may have had experience with HO or N scale trains, but they may have not had much experience with LEGO trains. Perhaps these fans have had experience with other LEGO kits and models, but with LEGO trains you have the chance to build scale model trains that actually run at your command! Why Build Trains With LEGO Parts? LEGO trains are built with only LEGO elements, so the train designs are close approximations of the real-life design. Because of this, LEGO trains require a whole new way of looking at the train design process. In addition, with LEGO parts, you can use and reuse these parts over and over and over again, assuming of course you can bring yourself to take apart some of your creations. With other railroading materials, over time you usually have to continually purchase and repurchase expendable resources, such as paints, sheet plastic, hobby wood, and so forth. Because of the reusability and non-specific scale of LEGO trains, it is possible to build all kinds of creations and train layouts. One week, you can build 6-stud-wide hopper cars, and the next week 8-stud-wide circus trains. Note that common LEGO train widths are 6 studs and 8 studs, though all official LEGO train models are 6 wide. A few builders even build 12 or 14 studs wide! LEGO Trains Development LEGO trains had their beginning in 1965, when LEGO released the first LEGO train set - a push locomotive that ran on popular LEGO wheels and did not include track. This locomotive was not powered, and in 1966, this push train was replaced with a powered version. The original LEGO track was plastic and was held together with special 2x8 plates. The gauge, or distance between the rails, was six studs (1.5 inches, or 38 mm). The gauge was determined by the width of the wheels mounted on the ends of one 2x4 brick. The powered trains have been going strong since 1966, and have included not one by three separate systems of train tracks and sets, each defined by their voltage requirements. The first powered LEGO train was in the 4.5 volt range, and the set used the standard LEGO motor, with power coming from batteries in a car directly behind the locomotive (motor). Building on the success of the 4.5 volt line, a 12 volt line was introduced shortly after. Like Lionel trains, the 12 volt system used a "third rail," a rail down the center of the track, which in this case was actually two smaller rails, to feed power to the motor, rather than using batteries. This third rail was available separately, which allowed older batter-powered layouts to be upgraded to the 12 volt system. The 9 volt system was introduced in 1991 and is still in production today. This line introduced stability and ease of use to the LEGO train line. The 9 volt motors are a major leap forward because of the improved design and because the metal wheels on the specially designed train motors safely pull power directly from the metal rails. These wheels have minimal friction on the axle, rubber rims that help grip the rails, and a brilliant system of rubber bands that constantly push the metal wheels against the track for good contact. The 9 volt line also introduced the new track system - straight, curved, crossover, and switch tracks that include both the two rails and the ties in one-piece track modules. In author McKee's book, he focuses entirely on the 9 volt line. Fundamentals Author McKee starts out with a marvelous chapter on the fundamentals of building a LEGO train. The system is simple in design, and with his background, anyone will be up and running in no time. He covers how to get one of your very own first LEGO train sets, and then describes the variety of LEGO train sets from which you can choose your first set. The LEGO company offers several great starter train sets, complete with all the components you need to create your first LEGO train layout. Everything you need to get started is in the box, so you will be up and running in no time. He follows with a helpful chapter on the basics of building LEGO t rains, discussing and explaining how to use various LEGO train parts, including couplers, buffers, wheels, bogie plate, and train base plates. Customized LEGO Trains You Will Build Author McKee includes 3 chapters that thoroughly describe how to build three LEGO trains. These include a GP-38 locomotive, an old-style refrigerator car, and an intermodal container car. In each chapter, he explains the various types of LEGO train parts you will need, and the number of each of these pieces, and in an amazing array of 4-color, high-gloss diagrams, shows you each step of the design process. These layer by layer design steps follow the classic tradition of all LEGO building systems, with extensively detailed drawings of the parts used in each step with clear lines indicating where the parts are to be placed. After obtaining the various LEGO train sets that contain the parts included in his three original designs, anyone can follow these easy instructions and build their very own working LEGO train. Links to LEGO Train Information Author McKee supports a neat Web site, www.bricksonthebrain.com/trains, that is filled with more information about his book, along with links to various other sites where you can purchase all the various LEGO train parts you need to customize your very own original LEGO train. Other super LEGO train links include the following: http://news.lugnet.com/trains LUGNET trains www.lego.com/trains Official LEGO trains Web site Special Features Learn to build LEGO trains Learn how to set up train tracks Build 3 customized LEGO trains Learn basic building techniques Survey different types of locomotives, cars, and tracks Learn all about the various LEGO train parts In-depth discussion of different LEGO train layouts Tips and tricks for maintaining your LEGO train set Interviews with several well-known LEGO train fans Table of Contents The seven (7) chapters include the following titles organized into two parts: Part One 1: Introduction 2: Fundamentals Part Two - Projects 3: Train-Building Basics 4: GP-38 Locomotive 5: Old-Style Refrigerator Car 6: Intermodal Container Car 7: Track Layouts In addition, the Appendix contains 2 sections, including: Railroad Terminology Where to Buy LEGO Trains Target Readers The focus in "Getting Started With LEGO Trains" is on the massive LEGO train community. Whether you are a veteran LEGO train fanatic, or a curious beginner, this book is the easiest way to get your trains rolling in no time. When purchasing a LEGO train set for the first time, you will get all the pieces you need to build the various LEGO trains supported by the respective kit you select. These LEGO train sets are filled with all the parts, as well as the instructions you need to build the various models that can be built by the various kits. After becoming comfortable with the LEGO train parts, motors, tracks, and designing LEGO trains, I suspect many LEGO train fans will flock to this super new book from Jacob McKee. Author McKee provides all the detailed instructions you need to build 3 additional, customized LEGO trains not yet supported in any existing LEGO train set. I also suggest parents plan to set aside a great deal of time to work with their new LEGO train sets, as well as the 3 customized designs explained in this book. Very young LEGO users will need parental guidance and assistance, and the suggested age to begin working with LEGO train design is probably around 8 or 9. Book Contents 120 pages; high-gloss, 4-color design; extensive, step-by-step instructions; numerous 4-color cut-away diagrams; Web site URLs; appendixes Author Jacob H. McKee About the Author Jacob H. McKee has been building LEGO creations since he was a young boy. He is now a well-known figure in the LEGO trains community and the LEGO community development manager for North America. Jacob has worked on more than 400 Web sites and countless community projects, including the official LEGO trains Web site. ( www.LEGO.com/trains ) ISBN 2003 - First Edition 1-59327-006-2 List Price $19.95 $28.95 CAN About No Starch Press San Francisco based No Starch Press, Inc., publisher of such best-selling titles as "Steal This Computer Book 3," "The Book of JavaScript," and "The Linux Cookbook," is an independent publishing company committed to producing readable, information-packed computer books that make a difference. No Starch focuses on Open Source, Web development, computer security, programming tools, and alternative operating systems. No Starch authors are highly regarded experts who have the rare ability to write about complex topics clearly and concisely. As a result, No Starch books share a no-nonsense manner that both educates and entertains. The Linux Journal Press series offers readers books on cutting-edge Open Source topics that make a difference, in an effort to advance the acceptance and usability of Linux. 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