I think almost no manufacturer sells Large Scale Turntables.  Those tend to be built from scratch.

Engine sheds...there are some out there.  Colorado Model Structures sells modular wall sections and portals that are intended for engine houses, among other things.

Heretical suggestion - take a peek at Lionel Large Scale track.  Still hollow rail, and a bit flimsey - but it is brass, and on EBAY, tends to be substantially cheaper than LGB or Aristocraft track.  (I've aquired quite a pile of this track by accident - buying sets and collections where the track was just 'part of the deal).

Knuckle couplers do sometimes 'loose their spring' after awhile.  Did your set come with the hook and loop ones?

As to your locomotives performance - my first suspicion here would be dirty track, especially if your rolling stock has plastic wheels.  Plastic wheels leave a very fine, very hard to spot layer of grit on the rails that interfears with conductivity.  Wipe it down carefully.

And yes, the bachmann power connector clips are not very good.  In the past I've actually snipped those off and put on itty bitty aligator clips. 

Hmmm...

1) don't have any PIKO track.

2) The standard (grey) transformer would work, though you might want to run separate sets of feeder wires to more distant parts of the layout.  My layout has a loop with about 75 feet of track, and that is all I need.

3) In a past incarnation of my layout I did a lot of tests with grades.  The Big Hauler *can* handle R2 grades of 4% (4 inches up for every 100 inches horizontal), but it is limited to the tender plus two or three cars, max.   A grade of 2.5 - 3% is much more friendly...especially if you keep the tight curves to a minimum. 

Yes, it is possible.  Lionel brass track is tubular brass - pretty much the cheapest brass track there is.  Do enough prying and poking, and it can, with difficulty, be mated to Bachmann track. 

More through accident than anything else, I have aquired piles of Lionel Large Scale brass track.  I use it mostly for 'dead' sidings - places where cars get parked, but loco's seldom go.  (Rest of the layout is Aristocraft and LGB)

QuoteMe again...   How can I tell which trains need 4 foot turning radius and which ones are 8?  With my 90 degree angle walls I assume I will need a G train that will need a tight turning radius.

Rule of thumb: if it comes in a set including the track, it can handle R1 (four foot diameter) curves.  This pretty much includes all of the Bachmann Big Haulers, and the vast majority of the smaller steam locomotives and diesels (though the Bachmann line here is pretty limited). 

If you can manage it - that is live with the overhang at the center of the curves - then by all means go with the R3 (8 foot diamter) curves. The locomotives will thank you for it. 

Quote1.  What size train would be best for this?

Pretty much any G scale train would work.  Most folks go with one or another of the 'Big Hauler' sets.

Quote
          a.  Going to need a ton of track, which would be most cost effective?

Bachmann tinplate track is the cheapest...but it is also really cheap.  For something that would last, go brass.  LGB and Aristocraft both make good quality brass track, but the new stuff ain't cheap.  Try EBAY, get used track, sand it *lightly* to get the grit off.  Word is Bachmann will be coming out with brass track in the not so distant future.

The diameter of the curves is also another issue.  Nearly all of the 'starter sets' come with R1 track, which makes a circle just over four feet in diameter.  Typical Big Hauler will run on that, but it'll look a little odd.  If you can get it at an affordable price, go with R2 (five foot diameter) curves.  Some here might recommend going to R3 (8 foot diameter), but given the size of your room and the 'sweep' the curves require - how far out they'll stick at the center, that might be too much.

Allow at least ten inches - preferably a good fifteen inches or more if you can manage it - between your shelf and the ceiling.  Try to keep the track at least a few inches from the walls - three inches will work, six or eight inches will work better and allow for trees or false front buildings between the track and the wall.

Quoteb.  Do I need to worry about any electricity issues with that long of a track?

My layout has a loop of similar size, and I run it with the straight out of the box starter set transformer (the grey version, not the black).  An extra set of feeder wires to the far set of the layout is desirable, but not absolutely necessary.  If you intend sidings, the shelf should be at least a foot wide.

Quotec.  My first thought would be to go to a G scale for visual reasons.

Visual concerns are a big reason for going G - and there are quite a few G scale layouts of the sort you intend to build.

   

Quoted.  Do smaller trains have cheaper track?

Sometimes much cheaper...but the trains are smaller.

Quote2.  Does track come in sizes bigger than 12"?

Yes. R2 track is just under 16 inches long, and straights come in two and three foot sections.

Quotea.  Can I buy it in 5' pieces?

Yes...but you might get hit with higher shipping charges.

Quoteb.  What kind of track do I need?  Brass?

Brass is preferable.

Quote3.  What should I look out for.... be aware of...  prepare for.. with that large of a track?

Most of the cheaper rolling stock comes with plastic wheels these days.  Those plastic wheels leave a fine residue on the rails which effects electrical continuity (the train will 'stutter' on the dirtier portions.  Much less of a problem with metal wheels.

The front truck on the typical Big Hauler locomotive tends to be very light, meaning it will derail at the slightest provocation (though otherwise these locomotives are very good deals).  Many people put weights on the front truck, which helps.

Couplers can also be an issue.  Bachmann and Lionel Large Scale couplers are compatible; Bachmann and Aristocraft couplers...not really.  Many folks eventually opt to go with Kadee's, which are very good, but also spendy.

Quote4.  Do all G scale trains work on G scale tracks?

Yes, although a lot of the cheap sets are battery powered jobs running on plastic track. 

Try EBAY - and pay very close attention to the size of the figures.

Unless you mutilate either the figure or the seat, sitting Bachmann figures will not fit in the seats in the 'Big Hauler' passenger cars. I mucked around with this quite a bit before digging up 1/29 figures from USA and others from the model car crowd.

This distinction applies mostly (or maybe 'only') to Aristocraft Track.

With 'Euro' (also called 'Narrow Gauge') track, the ties are large - 3/8ths of an inch long, and spaced 5/8ths of an inch apart.  This represents both the larger scale of 'narrow gauge' equipment and the fact that ties are spaced further apart on European railroads than they are in the US.

'Regular' track, the ties are 1/4 inch across and spaced 1/2 inch apart to be more in scale with standard gauge US track.

Yep, you got yourself a pair of freight trucks.

You might try swapping out just the wheels themselves. 

Fatbob...

a couple things you might want to take into account about your loco.

First, the front truck is too light - way too light.  They have a tendency to derail over even otherwise minor track issues (like switches).  Best keep the switches on your pike to a minimum.  Some folks do a partial fix for this by putting extra weights on that front truck.

Second, the front coupler is way too high and has way too limited motion to be of any use, switching wise.

Quote1.  The loco is "narrow gauge".  Do I have to be careful what kind of rolling stock I buy?

Bachmann 'Spectrum' is 1:20, meaning it is larger than the norm. 'Big Hauler' loco's and rolling stock tend to be a bit smaller.

Quote2.  The same holds true when buying track.  Is all Bachmann track equal or do I have to get "narrow gauge"?

45 millimeter track is the standard.  I would very strongly recommend you go with something other than Bachmann track; it is suitable for indoors, but is also flimsey and gets dirty in a hurry which impairs the electrical connections.  Outdoors it will rust away pretty quickly. 

Most folks go with Aristocraft or LGB track, which are fully compatable with each other.  These tracks are made out of solid brass; aristocraft track connects to each other with very tiny screws (found in the bottom of the ties).

If you have the room, the folks here and elsewhere will recommend you go with wider radius track; Bachmann track has a 2 foot radius/4 foot diameter.  This is called R1 track, and is the norm for starter sets of all the major manufacturers.  R2 track has a 5 foot diameter, while R3 is 8 foot diameter.  R3 track and up can get real spendy in a hurry.  Bachmann makes only R1 track.  Most switches, including all those made by Bachmann, are R1; so far as I know only a single minor manufacturer makes R2 switches.  R3 and up switches are dang expensive.

Quote3.  What kind of transformer/speed control do I need for one loco with no more than four cars traveling relatively slowly around and around on about 100 feet of track?

The standard Bachmann silver throttle with the white dial in the center would work fine.  However, the Bachmann track connectors are not the greatest; you might want to see about tracking down some LGB connectors, and doing a splice job.  For 100 feet of track, you might want to have a second set of wires connecting to the track at the opposite side of the layout, but for what you intend, the Bachmann power unit would work fine.

Quote4.  Since the loco is "Denver & Rio Grande", I'd like the cars to be the same.  Where might I go for decals/transfers for D&RG?

I would suggest hunting around on EBAY a bit more.  Lots and lots of D&RG stuff there, some Bachmann, some by other companies.  IF you do pick up non-Bachmann rolling stock, you will probably end up having to standardize the couplers - go with all Bachmann or kadees or some such. 

There is one person (can't remember his name right off or if he posts here) that does do pretty good decal work.

Loco Bill -

I bought the cars from that set as part of my 'getting into G scale' (and getting back into model railroading) program about five years back.  That group of cars also came with an AT&SF bobber caboose. 

I was running trains on my indoor layout a couple days ago, partly for fun, and partly to see about fixing a couple minor track problems.  The cats were in the train room 'helping out'.

At one point, I have an R2 'distance eating loop' with a 30 degree crossover that basically triples the distance between two of the stations.  The one cat would position himself on the track just past the exit point from the loop.  He would watch the train approach, go through the skeletal 'mountain' that will eventually hide the crossover, go around the loop...and then head right at him.  Happened three or four times; he inspected the crossover at least twice, but I doubt he ever figured out what was going on.

The other thing that kept happening dealt with a long 'ridge' (site of a very unfinished future metropolis) with the loop on either side and a connecting tunnel.  Time and time again, one or another of the cats would be screwing around on one side of the ridge, see the train coming, and either jump over the ridge to the other side or go through the train tunnel to the other side, no doubt figuring that this would be enough to get out of the way...only to be caught flat footed when the train would go through the tunnel and come out on the other side where they were - sitting right in the tracks.

After a while, they sort of figured that one out, and took to perching atop the ridge tunnel, watching the train very carefully as it emerged - the one cat would take an expperimental swipe at it now and again.

There were no model train/kitty colliisions/

I have a moderate sized layout with probably 60+ feet of mainline trackage.  During testing, I sometimes ran the whole layout - Big Hauler plus up to ten cars on the single transformer that came with my original Bachmann set.  Feeder lines and stronger transformers are a big plus, but not absolutely essential, at least until you get into much larger layouts.