Model railroad layouts plans

Nick’s been in touch with a simple model train layout that looks fab:

“Hi Alastair

I re-inherited the Hornby rolling stock and tracks I bought for my son 25 years ago, after he moved.

During lockdown, I decided, as you keep exhorting people, to just get started.

My layout is fairly simple compared to some of the amazing creations that you showcase, but it was at the level of my limited ability, and I was able to get it completed in about one month – my wife even helped with the hillside painting!

I utilized your printable buildings for the cul-de-sac.

I’m very much enjoying running the trains as a way to pass some time in these cold Canadian winters.

Keep up the great work.

Best regards

Nick”

I think Nick’s layout is superb, simply because I’m very, very biased – he made a start and his houses are fantastic (they are from the printable buildings).

Now on to Mike, whose last post is here.

“My friend Al:

Greetings again from Michigan.

I’ve recently completed another building for my Western town based on a setting from “Rio Bravo.”

Using etched foam for adobe and printed images for other facades, if you look closely, Ricky Nelson is in the window ready for action.

Then an attempt to get a Delorean up to 88 miles per hour.

However, I’ve finally settled on a theme for my extensive layout, a Railroad Fun Park called “Gracieland” named for my daughter.

The plan is to create various settings reflecting the use as a people visited theme park where railroad trains cart one around to explore the scenes.

My latest attempt at scratch building is chain-link fencing to keep patrons from wandering on to the tracks.

I know it’s not an original idea, I’m not even sure where I got the idea, but cutting strips of window screen material at a 45 degree angle fairly replicates the look of such a fence.

Using painted dowels as posts placed in a jig I constructed, the fencing can be glued to the posts.

I lay them out to dry on wax paper before trimming the posts and adding the horizontal bars.

End result is crude but looks pretty convincing. I’m continuing to improve the process.

None of this would have been possible without consultation provided by your web site. Many thanks again. I strive to improve.

Cheers,

Mike
Grand Rapids, MI USA”

Now on to Paul, who just goes to show a little thought can sort most problems in this hobby.

“Hi Al,

I am sending you 2 photos of my SW7 switcher which has been causing me trouble because it was so light.

Most of the time, it had difficulty going over switches that didn’t have power to the frog or some areas of track that were not perfectly spotless.

The situation was the fact that it weighed only 9 ounces. I could help it along by placing my finger on top to give better contact.

I tried many things such as cleaning the wheels and even cleaning the track in front of it as it ran along.

I powered all the frogs that seemed to be causing the problem.

Finally, I decided to remove the engine’s body to see if I could add weight inside. That was hopeless because it was so stuffed inside with gear and electronics. The engine is only 6 inches long.

The next step was to see if I could add weight externally and also justify the act of doing so and still have realism.

I found some new brass toilet bolts in my junk box that weighed in at almost 3 ounces.

As you can see, those are now sitting on top of the engine. I cut the heads off the bolts, but didn’t want to lose that weight.

So I decided to use the heads to bind the threaded parts of the bolts around the engine’s exhaust stacks.

I then hot glued the heads to the bolts from underneath. I painted them black so they blended in and sat them on top.

They added 2.85 ounces to the engine and made all the difference in operation.

Now I had to justify what I did to the model train world. In keeping with the current state of the world regarding Covid-19, I rationalized that this engine was assigned the task of moving refrigerated cars which carried the vaccines from place to place.

So therefore what you see on top of the engine are the cooling coils for the refrigeration system that was retrofitted to the engine to make things happen.

Case closed.

Paul”

A huge thanks to Nick, Mike and Paul.

Nick shows it’s all about making that start. Nothing happens without it. What’s more, even a simple model train layout is still huge amounts of fun. It’s a sensible starting point.

And Mike’s layout is a great example of how your layout can be anything you want it to be.

Lastly, Paul shows us that even when the head scratching moments drive us mad, a little thought and ingenuity can often save the day.

That’s all for this time folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if you want to make your start – just like Nick did – the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

Greg’s been in touch with more model railroad planning ideas.

Well, when I say update, he seems to be having just as much fun planning his layout as building it.

Personally, I think he’s doing the right thing. A little planning can go a long, long way.

If you want to get up to speed, his last post is here.

“Well, as I was developing the switching area on the left side, I realized that I had one spur facing in each direction.

That meant there was no way for the steeple cab loco to get to the other side of the cars being spotted.

I had three choices: get rid of the switching altogether (Nah!), keep all the spurs facing in the same direction (maybe, but not a great idea) or build a runaround track.

Here is my first attempt.

While this is doable, it is starting to infringe on the Waukegan area. So I put in some streets to help define the separate areas.

Putting in the streets gave me a better idea of how crowded it would be, so I eliminated one of the railroad interchange tracks. It was only there for scenic purposes anyway.

XTrkCad also allows me to add some buildings. They are just 2 dimensional, so you are looking down at the roofs. I drew the Main Street Station, City Classics 5 story buildings and Walther’s Merchants Row 2. They are all drawn to accurate dimensions on the Chicago side.

The runaround seemed to be causing some problems for me, so I tried a version with both sidings facing the same way.

And you can’t have spurs without industries on them. So I did some research as to what industries were served by the North Shore.

I used northshoreline dot com and found a complete list of businesses served by the North Shore and tried to find those types of businesses.

I was looking through Walther’s catalogue and found the Grocery Distribution kit.

This kit has the perfect look for this area, so I drew it and put it in.

But that didn’t leave much room for an industry on the second spur. But Walter’s Interstate Oil doesn’t have a fixed footprint. It comes in three parts, so I started to work that in.

After looking at it for a couple of revisions, I realized that the Grocery Distributors is a huge building.

So in an effort to save space I will use Suydam’s Day and Night Hot Water Heater factory.

That is a big building too, but the spur runs INTO the building, instead of ALONGSIDE the building. That is a big space saver.

I can also cut off the last two sections of the building to help it fit even better. And I also already own the kit, so it saves money as well.

The pictures are not my building. I have an unbuilt kit.

So without showing you every tiny change I made, I fit in the runaround and Ravinia Park.

I planted a few trees, added a whistle stop in the upper left hand corner.

The grayish streets will be asphalt, the reddish streets will be cobblestone and the tan roadway will be gravel.

As I was looking through Walther’s catalogue I came across their Urban Embankments. These things just shout “Chicago!” So sorry Al, your flats (which I have already paid for) are being replaced.

Also, being raised higher than the rest of the scene, it should add visual interest.

And if I put a passenger train on top instead of a freight train, I have one more stop for the streetcar to make.

I’m just not sure yet, whether they will be single or double track. The street level track will pass into the opening and become hidden.

I’ll probably wait until I start planning the trackage full size before I commit to the width.

I named this XtrkCAD file “SecondTryPretttyGood”.

Think it’s done? Hah! Model railroads are never done. Watch for the next update.

Greg”

And now on to Peter who is making good use of his retirement:

“I have been enjoying your posts for a while and decided it was time for me share my efforts with you.

I rekindled my interest in railways when I retired 5 years ago and having a reasonable space in the garage dug out all my old models from 50 years ago and bought some new track.

Needless to say I still have lots to do but here are a few photos.

Peter”

Next, Cassio.

He’s never a man of many words – I think it’s a language barrier, but what a layout:

A big thanks to Greg for sharing his model railroad planning ideas. Some folk just like to jump in, others like to plan. Both are fun.

That’s all this time folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And don’t forget the Beginner’s Guide if you want to get planning, and get going.

Best

Al

Tim’s been in touch with his N scale railway:

“Hello Al and greetings from Northern California.

I started my N scale layout, based on an English countryside village, in March, during lockdown.

I named my mythical village Covidshire.

Almost everything used in the layout was acquired from the U.K. I want to send a special thanks to the various shops, and people that I had the pleasure of dealing with.

Most of the structures are Metcalf kits and all of the landscape/trees, and stone walls were hand made.

Although I still have some finishing touches remaining, I wanted to share.

Sincerely,

Tim in California”

A big thanks to Tim. His pics reminded me of Ron’s: N scale model railway.

Now on to Gary. He’s been kind enough to answer some of your questions on his last post, which is here.

“Hi Alastair…. thanks for posting……I wanted to send some thanks you to some of the modelers who responded.

To James: Thank you for the info on Walther’s White Tower Restaurant kit #933-3030. I am going to order one and see how to modify it. It would at least give me the foundation for the structure.

To George from LI, NY: Yes, I have to dirty it up a bit. Railroad yards are very dirty places. I have to figure out the best way to do that; I am going to use charcoal to dirty up the pavements and parking lots and vehicles. I am going to also use scraps to create garbage piles and liter. Thank you.

To Greg Schaefer: Thanks for the info and thoughts. You are right about the trash…..I have to dirty up the yard. I am going to add some pigeons and gulls aroun the lunch wagon. I have to figure out how to make paper trash on the ground. Also, that is a great idea with the sound of the trucks. I have an old cassette recorder that might work. Thanks again.

To John Reynolds: Thank you. I had to find a building that was two levels and those kits I thought were perfect.
John

To John Thorogood: Thanks, you are right about the maintenance in Delaware for the GG1s but I took some liberties with the engine yard because I love the GG1 engines; I think they are the best looking locomotive ever built.

Gary”

Now on to Mike.

You’ll remember him from this post. Well, now he has a question. Who can help?

“Hello Al:

As you’ve seen from my previous photos, I have a track layout (HO scale, Bachmann track) on several 4×8 tables and a 4×5.

I have created a satisfactory town resembling the Universal Studios backlot and the Western town from Old Tucson as you’ve seen. I have drilled holes and dropped all the remote switch track wires ready to hook up for the command center.

However, now that I have a great start, my layout is still primarily flat table top (except for one mountain with tunnel).

My question to the experts is: what is the best way to create realistic landscape and ground cover? That is, how do I create slight variations in elevation for the scenery in the areas surrounded by the tracks?

I have been attentively watching all your postings and have seen some great landscapes. I still haven’t concluded what are the best materials to give the landscape some vertical depth.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

You’ve been an inspiration to get me going. All the best.

Mike
Michigan, USA”

That’s all for today folks.

A big thanks to Tim for sharing his N scale railway, and to Gary and Mike too.

Please do leave a comment below if you can help Mike.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you get started on your layout, 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.