Thanks Pat, DoubleDAZ/Dave, and Stan...that quote from Pat's site is a great way to put it. Immediately thoughts of all different stories start popping into my head that could be incorporated into a "story telling" diorama landscape. Winter weather and all, brought to mind a particular scene where my older brother and I went sledding on old car hood, down a snow covered hill at the park near our childhood home...best sled ever!
Another one when my dad and my younger brother come walking back to an East Texas cabin soaking wet after capsizing a small aluminum boat trying to take it out for a ride...my dad's cigar boxes floating on top the water afterwards like deck chairs from the Titanic. I can see all the scenes populating the layout. Tons of stories to tell, and I'm sure they'll have plenty to contribute. Very neat idea.
Layout location?
In debating where I can allot the most space, I was considering the garage. Since most, if not all, O-gauge sets are not rated for outdoor use and my garage is not climate controlled, am I asking for trouble?
Transformer for this old Lionel engine?
I didn’t end up getting a chance to try the Z750 (will be doing that tomorrow), but I did get to run the old engine on my nephews’ Lionel set they got last year. They got a kick out how old it looked, inside and out. I don’t know if they had a CW50, CW80, etc transformer, but it sure did seem to take a lot of the throttle throw to move it. Is that normal for the old engines (higher draw), or is there a minimum power transformer that is needed to run the old engine around a basic oval?
I read something about measuring voltage off the track. Is there a minimum voltage you would want to see at the farthest point from the transformer? Or does it depend on equipment?
Best lube?
Another thing that didn’t help was I didn’t really lube up the old engine before running it, but we did not run it very long...just a test. The general info out there seems to be use lightweight household oil on the lube points, is this like 3-n-1? Is there a common standard, or is this like asking which train brand you prefer?
How about using a lightweight grease (e.g. lubriplate, or similar) that could be substituted to suspend and stay longer?
I’ll be researching and reading more on how to grease the engines themselves.
Good deals at shows?
Go to the train show, you'll have a good time checking everthing out, and if your wallet is too heavy it will take care of that too!
My brother(s) and nephews are going to the show...should be fun. I may have to ask them to hold my wallet and check book 
Seriously though, are there ever any really good deals on equipment or other items at these shows? Any tips on finding them or things to check out there?
(Seeing full fledged DCS and Legacy are high on my list)
Really looking forward to checking all the different equipment and new tech stuff from all the manufacturers, and sorry for yet another long post with a bunch of questions. I appreciate all the advice and suggestions offered. This is also helping me keep track of some of the information I still need to search and learn.
On other thing I'll be on the lookout for at the show, and searching for on the forum, is a recommended good first book to read about old and new model railroading...like a "model railroading for dummies"
Thanks again,
Robert
