My wee layout

[alcuin]

Hi everyone,

Just thought I'd share a pic of my little layout which is in the works. It measures only 2'4" x 3'11". The last few times I tried something bigger the projects all stalled, so I thought I'd keep it small and manageable this time. But there are possibilities for expansion with the two spurs at the upper corners, which at first will be connected to unscenicked staging yards but may eventually lead to the "wider world".

It's built on a 2 1/2" foam core base, so there's a fair amount of depth for building down as well as up. A good chunk of the right hand side will be covered by a large mountain, which hopefully will go some way toward hiding the oval/racetrack shape. The two spur tracks will service a coal mine. I haven't decided on what to do with the left side of the switch back.

I'll post more pics as things progress.

-Chris

 

[TrainNut]

Off and running with a spectacular start. I've seen a small layout like this with a very similar track plan on this site somewhere... can't remember the name. Well done so far. I look forward to more progress pic's!

 

[steamhead]

Hi...I believe it is the "Carolina Central" or something along those lines. It's "featured" in the thread about drawer glides for the controller of a couple of days ago.

 

[TrainNut]

Nooooo, while that is a similar track plan, the one I am thinking of was finished and I saw it a year, maybe two years ago. It had a real industrial area in the middle.

 

[Biased turkey]

Nice little layout Chris.
I agree 100% with you, it's better to have a small finished layout than to have several stalled big ones.
The big advantage of a small layout is that by the time you get tired of one part of the process it's time to to move on to the next .

Will you add a river, lake or pond ?
I'm in the same situation as you are, and unfortunately I'm a procrastinator and a perfectionist.

I hope you'll post more pictures of each step.

Jacques

 

[alcuin]

Thanks for all the encouragement. I actually did get a few ideas (like the foam core base and some of the track arrangement) from the Carolina Central design. I was considering adding a small lake at some point, but we'll see how things progress. I'm going to build it in stages, so the next step is to put the mountain in place and then add the basic ground cover and ballast the track. Exciting times are ahead.

Chris

 

[umtrr-author]

Ah, I see from the photo that I'm not the only one to use a Tyco HO power pack on an N Scale layout! They do work... I powered a Unitrack test loop with one when I didn't have anything else handy.

Great start... thanks for sharing!

 

[AmericanAirFan]

Nice work there!

Ah, I see from the photo that I'm not the only one to use a Tyco HO power pack on an N Scale layout! They do work... I powered a Unitrack test loop with one when I didn't have anything else handy.

I too have one of those power packs used for HO scale though what's annoying is my athearn engines seem to only respond to between the 75 and 100 mark on the controller wall1

 

[alcuin]

I've had that power pack for ages, since I got my first HO train set when I was a kid. It's definitely time for an upgrade, but it does the trick for making sure the wiring is sound.

Speaking of power packs, can anyone recommend one with a good momentum feature? I'd like my trains to slow down and stop a bit more realistically. Thanks!

Chris

 

[mcbane666]

I love My MRC you can see it at the link below.

 

[roch]

Thanks for sharing. :thumb:

I was going to start a 3' x 6' layout and have now changed my mind. Just for practice I made as small of a circular layout the other day as I think is posible. I even thought about sticking with it and putting a volcano in the middle. :mrgreen:

Keep up the good work.

roch

 

[Biased turkey]

Here is a pic of my even smaller layout ( 25" X 36" ).
With N scale, nobody as an excuse , such as " I don't have enough space " , for not starting a layout.
Some even have a layout in a shoebox.

 

[alcuin]

Looks great! Nice job with the hill there. How do you plan on making the water?

 

[jesso]

Look like it is going to be a fun little layout! Nice job on the control panel!

 

[alcuin]

Thanks! Just some contact paper on a piece of plywood, but it does the trick. Now that the wiring's all done I can finally move on to scenery.

 

[Biased turkey]

"I haven't decided on what to do with the left side of the switch back."
Check Mike's Small Trackplans Page
It might give you some idea.
Or you could use that space for a shunting puzzle:
The Model Railways Shunting Puzzles Website

"Speaking of power packs, can anyone recommend one with a good momentum feature? I'd like my trains to slow down and stop a bit more realistically. Thanks!"

I have a palin MRC Tech4 MRC 200 from Model Rectifier Corp. I really like it.
They have a model with momentum control, the Tech4 220:
MRC - DC POWER Series - TECH 4 220 WITH 16VA & MOMENTUM, Item: AB121, TRAIN CONTROLS/DC POWER

"Looks great! Nice job with the hill there. How do you plan on making the water?"

It'll be one of the last phases of the layout, after all the scenery ( roads, buildings , ground cover ) is done and before ballasting the track.
One highly respected member on this forum ( Doctorwayne ) , suggested using acrylic
Professional "Varathane" Varnish FLECTO



1) Cast some thin ( 1/8" ) plaster or spackling compound
2) Paint the plaster a dark blue color
3) With a paintbrush apply one coat of varnish.

DoctorWayne wrote a tutorial about it, but I couldn't find the link.

I found the link:
http://forum.zealot.com/t109268/

Jacques

 

[alcuin]

It's been a while since my first post concerning my little layout, so much so that the original picture has disappeared. Here's a photo of things as they currently stand:

I'm kind of anxious to move things along, as I have a new track plan in the works for a bigger layout. But this one is proving valuable as practice to help me develop my techniques. As you can see, however, there's still much to do.

 

[COX 47]

Looks like you are making good progress...

Looks like you are making good progress....I like the way you have worked the Walther's New River mine in...I am guessing you are gonna haul a lot of coal?..This is my small layout...Its on wheels so I can move it around to work on it and my wife lets me keep it in our living room

Here is what it looks like with the top folded over it..I shut down operations at Christmas and our Christmas Tree goes on top and we use it as a buffet table at thanksgiving

Cox 47

 

[jesso]

I really like how your bridge area turned out. Nice job!

 

[hickstmj]

Your layout is really coming along, nice job.