Model railroad layouts plans

Brian’s been in touch with another layout, this time the timesaver layout he’s made with his club:

“Hi Alastair,

after reading the Inglenook post about a timesaver – switching layout, here is our groups one recently finished. Hope you can use it on your site.

Our group of guys decided to build this and have fun with it when we all get together.

Time taken to build this layout was about 30 hours over a 5 week period.

It is HO scale standard gauge 16,5 mm and is 6ft long by 2ft wide. It is built on an ISO board base surrounded by a plywood facia. The knobs on the front control the switch machines. It is very lightweight and easily transportable.

It is fully sceniced and operational. We have 7 cars (rolling stock) of different types and a small Athern SW1500 diesel locomotive as power. It is controlled by a transformer and a single pole double pole switch which is set at 3 volts to power the diesel locomotive.

All the couplers are of the Kadee magnetic type and there are magnets under the track at strategic places. Therefore hopefully all the shunting will be hands free.

All the points and track is Peco and was donated to the group.

Everything on this layout was donated by the group members as well and the local hobby shop that donated the buildings for this layout.

We plan to take it to shopping malls and schools that will allow us to display and run it. We hope to create and increase awareness of the model train hobby by doing this.

All the rolling stock has been weathered except for the diesel locomotive. That is the last piece to be done.

There are two figures (a camera crew) on the platform of the top left hand side building standing between the rolling stock and the tanker that are hoping to photograph and video the train movements.

All the best Alastair and keep up the great work of promoting this hobby.

Brian – the HOn3 guy in Knysna RSA”

Timesaver layouts:

A big thanks to Brian for sharing his timesaver layout.

Quite a few of these on the blog now, here’s a few more:

HOn3 brass locomotives

Inglenook layout

Inglenook model railway layouts

Inglenook siding layout

shelf model railway

Model train display case

British shunting layout

Next up, Gary:

“Alastair

I’ve been working along on a portable layout I can take with me when we travel in our Winnebago motor home.

We usually ‘snow bird’ it in Galveston so I thought it would be convenient to have some of my trains along in the Winnie’s basement. That’s RV-speak for the storage space under the floor of the unit. That limits my storable size to 48 inches by 18 inches that can fold down to 6 inches deep.

I prefer to model at 1/48 scale, primarily ON30, but I dabble in 3-rail O-scale too.

Since the layout and rolling stock will likely take some abuse from riding in the RV, I felt that the 3-rail track, accessories and rolling stock would handle that better than my ON30 Bachmann gear.

I really like the Inglenook Switching puzzles and found that I could fit a 3-2-2 version onto an 8 foot by 1 1/2 foot space (Google ‘Inglenook switching puzzle’ for a more complete treatment of the topic).

I devised a set of procedures to set up switching scenarios that change in a random manner.

To make the switching experience more reallistic I added a siding on which to park the switcher as well as a run around. To operate the run around I came up with a removable 18 inch extension to attach to the right side of the layout for the locomotive. I have included a picture of the extension I made.

The track is a mix of O27 tubular track and Gargraves 3-rail track. The turnouts are old Lionel manual ones with targets on the throws that stick up above the surface. Due to the need for clearance when folding the layout I had to devise offset hinges so the throws would not get crushed. Another picture shows how I did that.

Thinking ahead to when I build scenery, I built buildings to cover the hinges when I’m operating. They appear in the other two pictures I took of the layout.

I now have the GWK switching yard ready to operate. That’s for the Galveston, Winnebago & Kansas Railroad, also, coincidentally, that’s my initials. For those interested, there was a narrow gauge railroad on Galveston Island in the early 1900’s.

Future plans are to document operation procedures for my version of Inglenook, test them with my grandkids then publish them here and improve the scenery quality.

I will be attempting to create a dead-rail battery powered locomotive by adding parts from a remote-control car to an old DC Lionel 0-4-0 loco. That would allow me to operate even when I’m camping in the boondocks.

Whether I’m successful or not I will share my work.

My thanks to Alistair for his efforts to promote our hobby, seeing what everyone else is doing keeps me thinking.

Gary”

A big thanks to Brian for his Timesaver layout and to Gary too.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you decide to join in the fun, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

PPS More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

Andrew has been back in touch, adding to the inglenook model railway layouts on the blog:

“Dear Alistair,

My latest project is an Inglenook, shelf, OO scale layout of a fictitious UK branch line terminus called Blean Junction.

Length 6 feet 1 inch X 1 foot 5 inches (185 cm X 45 cm) that may be used as an Inglenook shunting puzzle.

The baseboard is an old offcut of chip board strengthened with 2″ X 1″ battens and covered with ¼” polystyrene.

The track is laid on 1/8 “ MDF and screwed to the baseboard and still awaiting ballast.

The points are operated by wire from a metal coat hanger, cut to length, bent and filed to a sharp prong (see photos X, Y and Z).

Power is from a DC controller with four isolated sections; the main line, the station platform, the goods yard and the engine shed. Initially designed to be operated with just one locomotive, it is possible to have two engines working, one at a time.

The station platform is made from MDF shaped to allow clearance for locomotives and long coaches.

Buildings are modified and kit bashed card downloads (some of which you might recognise); landscape is polystyrene coated with PVA and sawdust of various coloured. The roadways are real road grit collected from the street gutter and sieved. Trees are from garden pruning covered with strips of painted kitchen paper. Fencing is balsa wood or matchsticks threaded with florist wire.

The water tower, loading dock crane and signal gantry are bespoke, made with balsa wood and based on photos found on Google. People and cattle are the only new items and purchased from eBay.

I hope you and your followers will be interested in the attached 29 photos and a short video of the layout with my 63-year-old 0-6-0 Hornby in operation.

Yours sincerely,

Andrew in Oz”

Inglenook model railway layouts:

Inglenook model railway layouts:

A big thanks to Andrew for adding to the inglenook model railway layouts.

I do really enjoy the layouts with lots packed into them, but at the same time, don’t look crowded.

Here’s a few more inglenook layouts:

Inglenook siding layout (another one of Andrew’s)

Inglenook layout

Inglenook shunting puzzle

Inglenook display case (the finished version of the one above)

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you get going on your very own layout, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Remember, it’s the start that stops most people…

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

PPS More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

Dan’s been back in touch again – this time with some Model train backdrop scenery:

“I was working up a brief topic for a US web site I have been posting on for years. Parts of backdrops came up. As your bloggers know I do the South West and I live in the Mid-West in Indiana. I am often asked about the thunderstorm I have on my coved corner. Here is the explanation.

The bank space awaiting the finishing touches. I actually waited about 6 years before attempting the storm. I was not sure how to to do it. I learned to paint trees with sponges first.

An example of a developing anvil topped thunderstorm I took this Monday. In the Mid West, basically east of the Mississippi River we do not get to see these clouds. Out West the thunderstorms are what we call high based storms. The reasons are interesting. Basically, it is because the dew point for condensation is at a high altitude. Here in the area I live in, our storms are low based and often wrapped in rain. Yesterday was a rather rare chance to see them with the tops exposed.

I used pieces of sponge to paint the cloud. I just dabbed on the paint adding a little grey to the white as I went.

Dan”

A big thanks to Hall of Fame, Dan for sharing his model train backdrop scenery.

You can see Dan’s last post – and more of the thunderstorm pics, at the bottom of this post: Model railroad test track.

There’s quite a few backdrop posts on the blog now – here are a few more:

Paint model train backdrop

Model train backdrops

Model railroad backdrop

Painting model railroad backdrops

N scale backdrop

Paint clouds on a model railroad backdrop

Above is just a few of them, I really need sit down and create a ‘map’ of the site one day.

Next, on to another Hall of Famer, Brian:

“Hi Alastair.

I have completed the track work on the lower level of my HOn3 layout running from the harbour round to the next section. Two out of the three sections are now connected and running as well as completing the buildings in these areas.

I used my Blackstone K-27 – a 2-8-2 locomotive as a test running on the new sections.

This coming week I will do some shunting of rolling stock to the various industries as a further test to see if the track placement works out the way that I required.

Once that is all okay then I can start with the ground cover and the rest of the scenery on these sections.

Below is a video of the test run of the locomotive and track work.

All the best and we all appreciate what you are doing for all the modelling fraternity around the world.

Brian – the HOn3 guy from Knysna RSA”

A big thanks to Brian, you can see his previous post here: Model railroad test track.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you take that first step and join in the fun, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

PPS More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

Got a model train question?