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JVRR

New Member
Hi I Am A Begginner And I Need A Really Nice Layout For Ho Scale It Cant Have Any Switches In It Or A Or A Cross Square If Any Body Can Help Id Appreciate It.



Jvrr
 

JVRR

New Member
more info

I am talking about a 72" by 36". Iam not sure what it is called it is where the trains track cross



JVRR
 

zedob

Member
It's called a crossing.

Why not a crossing or turnouts? Just curious. Running trains in circles gets old quickly.

36" wide is tight for HO, unless you are planning to run short locos. Are you using N scale or HO equipment?
 

JVRR

New Member
zedob, iam not using them because i dont have any. i will be using short trains. this is my first one so i am using a bed board. if you know what that is.


jvrr
 

zedob

Member
Humm, bed board? Nope, not familiar with the term or what it is.

Do you mean "bread board" as in an electronic test board, only with trains? Or, do you mean a board that goes under a bed?

AS for starting out simply, you are on the right track (pun inteneded). Keep it simple. Get to know how to align track, make good connections(electrical...and others) and build a few buildings while not getting too expansive in the beginning.

The key ingredient is quality track laying. I recommend any of the layout books put out by Kalmbach. However, I don't think they will have even one layout that doesn't have any turnouts. So, with that in mind, plan for them. You don't have to put any in until you are ready for them. That's how the big railroads did it. They didn't put a turnout("switch" in real RR jargon) in and wait for an industry to build next to it.

It's just easier to install while you are cruising alone laying down the mainline.

What scale are you modeling? N, HO?
 

green_elite_cab

Keep It Moving!
well you know, its not difficult if you buy liek a snap switch or anything, and crossings aren't a big deal if you need them for something. personaly i think you should get a track plan that has som sort of switching in it. a switch isn't that much money. it also looks like you are stuck with 18' radius curves. what kind of equipment ( locmotives, freight cars, etc) do you have or would like to run?

i'm sure you can get your parentes to lend you money, lol, its keeping you occupied and out of trouble, lol, thats the excuse you give them!
 

green_elite_cab

Keep It Moving!
looks like you are stuck with an oval

you can build one oval that has 18 radius cruves, that has 2 straight sections connecting each side of the oval, and an inner oval useing 15 inch radious curves. just so you know, 15 inch curves are so tight, that you really will only be able to run trolleys and traction on the inner oval. on the outside you have more freedom, but you won't be able to run anything to big, and i suggest nothing bigger than a GP-40. freight cars will also have to be short.


even if you did have switches, i doubt you'd get much of a layout in. However... i strongly suggest you switch to N scale, that would be much mor appropriate for your space, and you could have a bigger layout, with longer trains. its probably worth it for you to go N if you have no other space.
 

JVRR

New Member
thank you for the suggestion. i was just talking to my dad about that. It gives you more spaces to build on. one guestion though how much more expensive are they and do they sell the same stuff for N scale like HO?:confused:





JVRR:confused: :confused:
 

Pitchwife

Dreamer
Hi JVRR. N may be a little more expensive than HO and some items may be a little harder to find, but once you get an idea of what you want to do there are a lot of nice items available on ebay that you can pick up at good prices. One warrning about ebay, do your homework before you bid. If you see something that you would like to get, check out your local and some on line hobby shops to see what the item sells for normally. I've found that often the starting price on an auction is equal to what the item sells for at full retail. If you would like a list of some online shops try my Links page.
I agree with the others. With the limited space you have availble, N would give you more capabilities and satisfaction. Either way, good luck and have fun!! :thumb: :thumb:
 

SAL Comet

Member
green_elite_cab said:
looks like you are stuck with an oval

you can build one oval that has 18 radius cruves,


FYI, An 18" radius half circle won't fit on a 36" table since the radius is measured from the axis to the center of the track, you'll need at least 38" for such a curve.

I agree with the others that suggest N scale if you are limited to such a small space.
 

JVRR

New Member
thank you for the correction. I am going to switch to N scale so Iam can make a bigger layout. I am going to have a mountian running on one side with it dropping into a valley with a town. Iam going to have a track in the town running up the mountian and a track running along the top and down in the valley. a lot of work.







JVRR:sleeping:
 

green_elite_cab

Keep It Moving!
here is a reack plan you might consider, it has opertunities to switch, and also has loads of space for continuos running. best of all it fits in your 36 by 72 area requirement. i got this off of www.thortrains.net , which is loaded with different layouts. this layout was smaller, and slowly grew, but if you are liek me, you will want to get all your track work done at once, instead of haveing to make your railroad then haveing to adjust it to fill more tracks. this the final version, and it has the mountain, and also a lake and stuff. in square b-4 ( as if the grid was a battleship game) you could disconnect them, and turn them into switching spurrs, the end result is you will have 3 seperate ovals, and a few opertunities to shunt and deliver cars with a freight railroad, and also a commuter line, with Budd RDCs going from station to station. i hope this is a layout you might try out.

poorn91e.gif
 

JVRR

New Member
thank you for the layout, Iam going to go ahead and start getting track for N scale . so I can start building. I will try and post pictures of my progress.one question what should i make my mountain out off.


JVRR
 

green_elite_cab

Keep It Moving!
well there are alot of different ways to build a mountain. one way is to go to your local hardware store, and buy Extruded foam Insulation board you pile it up as high as you want your mountain, and you use a serated edge knife to cut it off and shave it in teh basic shap of a moutnain you want. at this point you can star putting scenic materials on it, or you can cover it with plaster, and then scenic stuffs. make sure you glue the insultion boadr together so it doesn't slide.

rember though, if you are building a tunnel, leve plenty of access inside the mountain, like at the edge of the table, so that if there is a derailment you can reach it. give lots of space in tunnel alongside the tracks so that bigger and long cars can make it through. even if you don't have anything large now, its good to plan ahead if you ever want to put something bigger on your layout.

there are many many other ways to build mountains, i can think of atleast 3 more ways right off the top of my head. i first suggest you go to your local library ( i sound a like a little kid show don't i?) and pick up some books on model railroading scenery. also, your local hobby shop probably has a rack of books that probably include model railroading scenery tips. and lets not forget the internet. there are probably indepth guides to makeing mountains on the interweb. you can try the NMRA website, which i can't rember the adress, but i know they have how to make mountains on it, becuase i have the paper printed out somewhere. its worth a look.

rember though, if you are building a tunnel, leve plenty of access inside the mountain, like at the edge of the table, so that if there is a derailment you can reach it.
 

JVRR

New Member
thank you, I think the insulation will be the eseaist. Is there a thing that gets hot and just slices through the foam.



Jvrr
 

siderod

Member
Yep...called a hotwire tool, or a hot knife. I made my own for rough-shaping....took some picture wire, folded it onto itself, clamped in a set of vice-grips, lite the blowtorch and heated the wire til it was red hot and shaped the foam. Not good for precise shapes, but it works wonders for rough carving.

Beware of hot molten plastic and the fumes, though
Later
AR
 

JVRR

New Member
thank you I will look for one what kind of stores sell these things. and how much do they run.



jvrr
 
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