Welcome '3Bird'!
You may well think "You Brits!" about the jokes, but there are quite a few people who rock-up here from your side of the pond..
Have a look-see in the Media section(s) and browse a few of the galleries there..
Give us an idea of what/where you are heading with your rail(way)road, and we can offer advice.
Enjoy!
PhilP.
I lived on your side of the bond for quite a few years (north of the border though), so I do enjoy the special brand of jokes and puns.
I was given an LGB set when I was 4 years old, and it was returned to me a couple years ago in my (and its) 40s. I sure wish I had taken better care of them when I was young, but they were the focal point of much of my childhood play.
For the past couple years, I've had them out at Christmas only with just a simple oval and siding. I have two immediate goals 1) add a car, some accessories (e.g., crossing, signal, building, etc.) and (maybe) a new locomotive for this Christmas, and 2) begin to repair and enhance (e.g., replace/add lights) the cars I have. The longer term goal is to begin to plan a garden railway and maybe get some track down this spring.
Associated with the first goal, I find catenary really appealing. I was thinking about having a longer straight track adjacent to my oval this year that would run a small engine (maybe an LGB 2030 Electric), streetcar or trolly on catenary so I could get a feel for it. That may, however, just be a pipe dream.
Anyway, those are my thoughts at the moment. Thanks for the warm welcome!