Model railroad layouts plans

Jim’s been back in touch – this time with his HO scale truss bridge:

“Hi again Al & model railroad enthusiasts.

Jim from Cape Breton here with Part #5 of my HO scale train layout & I noticed in the last posting, a question was asked about the access bridge on my layout.

I’ve included some pictures as a reference. It spans the door opening to the layout room & the entire structure is 29” long x 8” wide x 9” high & is fastened at one end with two 1¾” hinges.

At the unhinged end are 2 small blocks of wood nailed down on the retaining wall which serve as alignment guides when the bridge is lowered into place. When opened by hand, the bridge angles back approx. 120° & rests against the wall.

Power wires from the 2 bridge tracks are routed through holes to the underside of the bridge & connected to 4 screws (2 for each track crossing the bridge). Power wires from the approaching track at the hinged side of the bridge are routed underneath the layout to 4 flattened copper pipe straps that stick out from the bottom of the retaining wall, so that when you lower the bridge by hand, the 4 screws contact the 4 copper straps & voila, the electrical connections to the 2 bridge tracks are attained.

The actual bridge itself was an Atlas single track plastic kit that I split in half lengthwise & then glued other pieces of plastic together to widen & turn it into a 2 track bridge. It was then placed on it’s plastic abutments, also split & widened, into a wooden frame made to look like a river bed with retaining walls at each end of the bridge.

The layout room is 12’ x 14’ but the entrance door to the layout room is approx. at a 45° angle to the room, so it was a bit of a challenge because there had to be a curve in the track both leading up to & after the bridge.

The white-water rapids below the bridge were made with clear silicone caulking & some white fibrefill using a brush to whip up the waves before the silicone set, as I also did for the waterfalls behind the curved wooden trestle on another part of the layout.

The silicone caulking worked really well, however, a word to the wise, use gloves & ventilate well while working with it & then leave it for a day or so to let the odours dissipate.

This access bridge, when lowered, completes a 2 track mainline that enables me to run trains all the way around the outside perimeter of the layout. I hope this will be helpful to any modellers who are looking to span a doorway to their layout.

So, until next time, keep ‘em on the rails.

Jim.”

Latest ebay cheat sheet here.

Now on to Paul:

“Hi Alastair,

I am sending 3 photos of an adaptor I added to a Home Depot ladder to allow me to reach over my layout work on items in the back.

I did not invent this but I am cheap and didn’t want to spend $270 for the commercial version.

The ladder at Home Depot costs about $35 and the plywood and U bolts I had. The photos should be sufficient to show you how it is made. It took less than an hour.

Enjoy,

Paul”

A huge thanks to Paul and to Jim for sharing his HO scale truss bridge – both are very inventive and clever.

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.

Hall of Fame member, Rob, has been in touch with his model train layout cab ride.

I do really enjoy the ‘cab rides’ – you see the layout in a totally different way. The change in perspective can almost make it look like a different layout – they are a lot of fun.

“Hi Al,

As I recall the time I made a cab ride video on my old layout, it was very popular.

My new one on my new layout is certainly popular on my channel. It is a fun one with plenty of side views so the stations can be clearly seen.

As you know this is my second layout in. My first was disassembled to make room for my new dedicated train room. My wife wanted to finished space in our basement so visitors wouldn’t see our raw basement and I readily agreed.

There are three stations on the layout, Far Cliff which is at the beach, Far Moor located inside a 180-degree curve and my main station Howe Street.

The layout is a curving swirl and with three loops each 120 feet around.

It has a long tunnel with storage tracks and two cameras so I can see what is going on in it. There is room to store three trains.

There is also an area along the back wall that is a non-scenic area. I simply will allow me to get across the back of the layout with trains.

Thank you so much for all you do for the modeling community across the globe.

Rob Crain-Farland Howe”

Latest ebay cheat sheet here.

Now on to Andrew, who has been busy with the printable scenery.

“Hi Al,

I recently purchased your Big Kahuna Bundle – great value for money.

With the assistance of John and his entertaining ‘How to’ videos I have now constructed two buildings. I am very happy with them although they are not up to John’s standard

Thank you and best wishes

Andrew”

A huge thanks to Jim and to Rob for sharing his model train layout cab ride. It’s a wonderful way to enjoy a layout.

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.

Lawrence has been in touch again with his model railroad helix – his last post is here.

“Al

I was asked about the helix I have. It is a double track double helix six rows tall.

Initial design of a model railroad helix can be frustrating. Building is also costly as half inch plywood is best to use. And it takes a LOT of track.

Seeing I was using diesel and steam I decided the inner track on the inner ring would be 23-inch radius. That made the outer track on the inner ring to be 25-inch radius.

The center poles are one by three inches. I wanted an inch for scenery on the outer ring so the inner track on the outer ring became 29-inch radius. Making the outer ring outer track a 31-inch radius. Or the total width of the helix is 62 inches in diameter. Which is displayed by the second and third pictures.

Using card stock, I drew out the base needed for the two rings configuring what the track was to be mounted on.

Cutting each card stock ring in eight equal pieces gave me the pattern to cut the plywood.

Using the pattern gave the angle at the ends and was used to get the maximum amount out of each sheet of plywood.

The uprights were installed between where the rings were to be mounted to keep the mounting as hidden as possible. The plywood ring pieces are held in place by aluminum bars cut and bent and placed on the upright at the appropriate place for the respective circular ring and height row.

The inner and outer rings do not match in height as the outer ring first level passes over the inner ring as the inner ring enters the helix. The inner ring plywood was four inches wide with the outer ring being 5 inches wide.

Decided the inner and outer ring was enter the helix at ground level. So built the first level outer ring first. That determined the right place for the inner ring to enter the helix under the outer ring.

Before going any further, I constructed the two bridges to connect the Model railroad helix to the rest of the layout. And as I built each vertical row, ballasting, power and scenery was added.

This had to be done row by row as when the next row was put in place it only gave 3-4 inches between vertical rows. I believe the helix is part of the train layout so should also have proper ballasting and scenery.

The terminal blocks were located at each level too distribute track power and lighting power at that level. Added two trees in front of each upright at each level to hide the upright. Strip LED lighting was placed on the underside of the next upper level.

Then a picture showing the outside of the completed Model railroad helix with people enjoying the scenery and wandering in the park. A special stairway was constructed so five of the levels could be easily reached by walking.

A picture is now shown of the inside of the helix, the inner track and the large enough area that is used to access the inner track. Yes, it is hands and knees to get into the middle.

The last three pictures display people waiting at one of the train stops waiting for the train. One of the outside corners of the Model railroad helix base has a super market for any hungry passer buys. One of the other corners has a community center and playground to relax and for the kids. Notice the rest rooms available on the first vertical row.

Not displayed here, I had to take all the facing from all of the rows off as the balsa wood eventually curved in at the top coming in contact with the train. I am presently in the process of putting it all back on but lowered so the top of the facing is level with the top of the track. The added advantage is the facing now hides direct viewing of the LEDs.

Lawrence”

A huge thanks to Lawrence for sharing his model railroad helix – what an undertaking! And it looks great too.

Lastly, on to Dave:

“Hi Al, well after having a good holiday in the sun, I get back to my Model Railway with a bit of an update, and a running session… well got to give the Loco`s a run around after being sat there for a couple of weeks…

Regards

Dave”

Latest ebay cheat sheet here.

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.