You're Welcome at the LHR Railroad

The plan is to document the home layout from start to probably-never-finished.

I'll start out with a few pictures 'cause I think we like those most. I'll put a few words along the way to avoid a major dump in the beginning.
 

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Nazgul

Active Member
Rust Spike
Nobody can say you haven't been getting your rolling stock ready!:thumb:
That layout looks great! I'm hoping you have more pics that show how you got to this point. Could you post the track plan?
I read your biography: father to 4 and husband to 1
I like that. I also noticed that trains came after your family in your list of "hobbies"
got your priorities right:thumb: Look forward to more pics.....and words
 
Layout Goals:

1. Have fun with the kids - planning, building, weathering, operating.
2. HO scale semi-prototype of our local scene - UP with local yard with moderate switching and several industry jobs and freights that drop and add cuts of cars at the yard.
3. Some fictional through trains of intermodal and coal unit trains
4. Interchange and shared track with DM&E
5. High quality scenery and detail but at a reasonable cost
6. Derailment free operations
 

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CCT70

Member
green_elite_cab said:
uh oh, thomas is missing in action!

Nice work so far!

He's busy "shunting" the hump eh? sign1

Hey! I didn't see any beer.....:D

Great train room, I'm envious.
 
I have a ton of respect for Thomas, even though he's not very useful on this layout. It was my son's interest in Thomas that helped get me back into model railroading. I sold all my radio control car racing items (what do you call the stuff associated with your current addiction?) and we've been modeling for 4 years now - small section in a basement, then the whole basement, then moved to CA where we had a shelf layout and now back to MN where this room was the previous owner's boat building shop.

I can't say my wife understands my intensity when it comes to a hobby, but today is 14 years we've stayed married! Heck, every moment in the train room is time I'm not annoying her in person - perhaps that part of the secret. ;-)
 

CCT70

Member
Congratulations on your anniversary. By the way, I call my addictions "hobbies", my girlfriend calls them.... well, never mind, this is a family forum....

At least she's starting to show interest in the model railroading and is getting involved. She loves doing scenery.
 
WOW, Rusty Spike, you've done an aufull lot in 4 years, nice work. I couldn't help noticing in the 4th pict from the top, in the lower R/H corner, it appears to be a Laptop, do you intend to run your layout by computer? Had to ask, as I intend to when I get that far.
 
Planeshavings - the laptop is for my real job - I was on the way from upstairs to the downstairs office and stopped off in the train room to snap the photos.

In the long run I would like to have automated train running but it is a few years away.

What benefits are you looking for by doing computer controlled operations?
 
I've been running trains on the track for a week or so and have discovered significant issues despite my best efforts to put down smooth running track. Vertical easements, actually, the lack of them, hurt me in several spots. I had transitioned from 2% grades to flat before and had few issues without having to knock down that "edge". I have some 4% grades and that abrupt transition to flat throws couplers out of alignment and trains unhook.

Also planned to have the mainline run around the room in a loop where it was visible most of the time. This wasn't working for me either as I really want to create the impression of a long train arriving in the yard area, doing its business and then leaving town not to be seen for some time again.

The yard worked out better than I hoped. I really like the 3 way switch into the yard as the ground throws are in spots that make sense for routing the cars. I found that having every yard track exit the other end was not necessary and cost me some storage space.
 
I've now re-drawn the track plan to address these issues.

Main goals here:

1. stage trains outside the train room
2. have a double track mainline where none of the return trip is visible (it will be routed beneath the layout near the front edge for easy access).
3. flawless train running on the main with very few turnouts and large turn radii
4. 2% or less grade on all mainline
5. operations - inbound freights with class I power drop off and pickup cuts from the local yard
6. local yard work to tear down and build those cuts
7. local road crew to service various industries that feed the yard (grain, flour, sand, canned veggies, scap metal, metal supply, veggie oils and corn sweetners)
8. add some ficticious coal and intermodal trains that don't stop as they pass through town
 
Welcome back after a few months . . .

I made a push in the last couple of months to get some scenery done. What you see is in the lower left corner of the track plan in the previous post. It's a mix of scratch built and other familiar structures. I've been working on better photography with help y'all here - some progress but better shots are ahead of me. Excuse the lack of ballast, etc. but you can get a feel of where I'm going . . .
 
Welcome back after a few months . . .

I made a push in the last couple of months to get some scenery done. What you see is in the lower left corner of the track plan in the previous post. It's a mix of scratch built and other familiar structures. I've been working on better photography with help y'all here - some progress but better shots are ahead of me. Excuse the lack of ballast, etc. but you can get a feel of where I'm going . . .
 

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The push to weather so much preceded my skill in doing so. ;-)

My kids love to weather the cars so I let them have full and free creative license. My son is big into masking and painting patch panels on boxcars and covered hoppers. Never has so much paint been sprayed in such a small area. One of my daughters always points out the shiny new cars in the real trains we see and says "see dad, not all cars are weathered". She's 7 and all opinion.
 
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