Rick’s been in touch with his Scenic Ridge N scale layout:
“Al,
I started working on my bucket-list and decided to look into making an N gauge layout.
I had some old trains and models that I had purchased back when I was young in hopes that someday I would start my layout. Well, years went by, the kids are out on their own, and now the time has come.
I stumbled onto your website (nice adds) and read a lot of great tips on what to do and what not to do. Well I had already done many of the what not to do’s.
So far I have spent four months working on my layout with all of the criticizing from family members and friends. I often here “Toy trains”. Anyhow, it’s my bucket-list.
Here are some pictures of what I have done so far.
It started as a modified Manning Oaks layout and then added the Scenic Ridge layout.
Thanks and keep up the good work,
Rick”
A huge thanks to Rick for sharing his Scenic Ridge N scale – such wonderful detail.
There’s quite a few Scenic Ridge N Scales on the blog now, Dean’s springs to mind: Scenic Ridge railroad
His comment, “…I’ve read a lot of great tips on what to do and what not to do. Well I had already done many of the what not to do’s.” raised a smile – that’s what the Beginner’s Guide is for.
Course I’m biased, but it makes your day dreams morph in to real life – but without all the blood sweat and tears in the middle.
Lastly today, for some reason, some of you didn’t get one of the recent posts, which is here (it’s on Peter’s stunning custom liveries).
That’s all for today folks.
Please do keep ’em coming.
Best
Al
PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here. Still going strong.
Rick, nice job and in so little time. I’m 76 heard all the critism, my response is usually “why aren’t you into toy trains. “. Beginners Guide was a golden find for me too.
Dave in North Carolina
Great layout lots of work and planning,picturesque .wish all the pics were expandable . Maybe you’ll show a video of action.
Robert,B
Very neat, excellent bit of scenic landscaping round the tunnels, well done.
Rod
Excellent work Rick, decent trackwork and scenery and all in just 4 months that is going some, well done. People often used the derogatory name toy trains possibly because they can’t find anything that approaches a constructive hobby themselves, ignore them and carry on the good work.
Eric (Leeds) UK
EXCELLENT WORK Rick!!!!!! ~Hemi
Very nice work in that short of a time span. TOY trains you wind up or push along the floor.MODEL RAILROADS require a stunning amount of effort(that never ends). Maybe your friends are jealous that they cannot re-create what you have accomplished. When someone says “toy trains” again,simply smile at their ignorance 🙂 and know that as MODEL RAILROADERS,you have a VAST supporting net.Great layout!!!!
Great layout with spectacular attention to detail. I can’t believe you did that all in just 4 months. I’d love to see what you can do in 4 years! Cheers! NJ Mark
Your friends are jealous HAHA
Wow, Very nice layout indeed.
Cary B
Great work. Thanks for a nice set of photos.
Dave G
What’s left in your bucket on this layout? Upward expansion?
Very nice layout.
Bruce in SC USA
Beautiful layout lots of creativity! WHAT IS OVERALL SIZE?
Great modelling and detail! You certainly have great skills . Congratulations!!
Mike in Ottawa, Ontario.
Grate layout. Two questions, (1) why did you use the pink foam. (2) How do you get to the house on the top of the hell?
I really love this layout. You should be and probably very proud of it.
An excellent job by any standards. I do not see any “toy trains” on your awesome layout.
What is your layout base made of? Reminds me of a door I once had to shorten.
Also, That is a nice Jukebox to have in your professional model train area!
Thanks for sharing!
I wanted to add that I was surprised that you did not have a station platform between the two layouts. Not criticism, just a thought. Super job on both layouts!!!!!
I am 73 and have been fooling with train all my life. When I was young N gauge didn’t exist. I think it would be great if I could start over but that thought is just as foolish s being twenty one again. Layout really looks great.
Wow…4 months…really impressive! Great detail and nice variety of scenes…really like the tie-in with the backdrops. Maybe there is hope for me yet!
Very realist. You did nice Job. What track did you use?
Bob Me. USA
Excellent work, I’m envious.
Love the close-up shots, especially the train depot and the blue mountains in the background in one shot. Great detail and realism in your layout. Love it.
AS everyone says great job, I have a question if you don`t mind. Where did you get your back ground mountain pic`s? I love the simplicity of them looks real but not over done Thanks Tom in Payson AZ
Great bit of modeling there. Nice details and backdrop too.
Jim AZ
Can I please ask where you got back ground sceens Thanks Tom
Rick, great layout and your detail work is fantastic. I am at the starting point you were in developing my N gauge layout. I like the way you have it set up and from your pictures I will probably build my layout using yours as a go-by.
Started building the table, keeping a picture history as I move forward.
Thanks again for sharing, this makes me want to really get going on my layout.
Rick in Houston
For the backdrop I….
1) Downloaded a mountain scene from the internet
2) cropped it to about a 1×10 size
3) Printed it “Portrait” with “fit to” 8 by 1 pages borderless (if you don’t have borderless printer then just cut the left side of each page)
4) Used thin foam board cut 14″x 8foot and glued pages to the board in layers.
Hope this helps,
Rick
Wonderful clean work on your layout Rick………….Paul—-Ohio
Awesome job Rick. Now that I live in a townhouse, I might do an “N” Gauge layout. Yours is great. Can you tell me the demention’s of you initial layout please?
nice layout
great detail
keep em runnin fellas
love how you tied 2 layouts together
Rick:
OMG! WOW! Wonderful layout! You give me hope!
Rick, great job on you”r layout.
To the 73 year old gentleman who thinks it would be foolish to start all over again, it’s not foolish to do something you’ve loved all your life.
Well done,
John from Cali
Impressive and inspirational. Well done.
4 Months!? 4 Months!? WOW! takes me that long to ponder my next move let alone build TWO layouts! Great job!
Perhaps I should retire to have the time to focus on getting a bit further with mine.
and as for “Toy Trains” – yep so what?! We are having fun!
Mal
(Wales)
I am 76 also. Rick, thank you for demonstrating that my half-completed N layout,
upon which I have laboured for 35 years, can yet become something worthwhile
Such a fun layout. It has everything. Good for you. Fabulous bucket list layout for sure. Well done. Rob McCrain – Farland Howe
Very impressed, That is a very good model railroad.
That’s one helluva bucket. Great job
Love it
Rick! What a great layout! I really liked your photos and your track plan is very good. Thanks for sharing. Cheers Rossco, Adelaide, Australia
Al; I thought you would appreciate this new version of an old chesnut. My son has started an HO layout in his basement. So far, he has a run-around track on the walls and a small switching yard. I was extolling the romantic steam age, but he is adamant about staying with Diesels. I guess the discussion went a little too far, when he said “Dad, you run your railroad the way you want to, and I’ll run mine the way I want to.”
I don’t get no respect!!! PS: Thanks for all you do for model rr people!
Rick hit the trifecta of Studliness!
N-scale, Kato track and DCC!
Kato is the best there is with utterly reliable switches and 18 curve radii, plus the only reliable double crosser. You can tell its Kato by how neat all of his curves are.
Very nice work Rick! Thank you for sharing.
What a lovely feeling of spaciousness! Well done.
Great progress in such a short few months. I started mine about the same time as you and have nowhere near that much progress.
Graeme
Victoria, Australia
Rick great job! I recently did some 1″ insulation board to different area of my layout if a big if, I do it again will do foam boards again has been fun to work with. Great job again! Mark
Rick,
You’ve made amazing progress on your layout in just 4 months. You must work on it every day for most of the day. Great detail and clever merger of two different track plans into a single more interesting entity. Please keep us posted with your future rapid progress.
Age? I will be 82 in October and I am still messing around with N Scale; forget the naysayers….. Did you combine Kato EZ track with regular track in the addition? Very well done!
A great layout Rick, definitely not toy trains. I couldn’t help notice your Rowe Ami JAO. I hope yours is in better working order than mine. All the best Colin. Norfolk UK