Model railroad layouts plans

Mike’s been in touch with his 3×6 N scale layout:

“AL, I am not retired yet but the kids are grown and I thought I would get back into it too.

Years ago I built an HO layout with the kids, worked and played on it for around 10 years. Now with a 13 year gap I thought I would do a n scale.

I took a couple layouts I liked and combined them and came up with this. I learned a lot with the old layout and want a solid track plan that works.

Do you think the attached n scale layout, 3X6 DC wired work good?? I need some opinions about it.

Thanks

Mike”

Now on to Martyn who has made a start with his layout:

“Hi Alastair,

I’m not new to model railways, always loved the hobby, but never really managed to set anything up myself, other than a loop on the carpet!

So for Twenty or so years, I’ve been “Making a Start”.

I had various bits and pieces that were collected over the years, but never the space. Indeed, space is still an issue, but I’ve decided that if I don’t get clever with the space that I have got, then that “Making a Start” will never happen.

Both the kids toy room, and my office, are about the same size and back onto each other. The toy room has been a tip!! So I must either sell the kid, sell the toys, or compromise! I’ve chosen the latter, and a few hours work to build some framework and tidy up the toys has left me with a bit of space to start!! This area will house the loop/fiddle area and part of the circuit that will then extend into the office – (through a small hole in the Drywall stud).

There are a few photos of the toy room showing the start of the build.

The office part of the layout is a little more tricky – The layout will be suspended from the ceiling and will climb down it’s own ropes when in use, to be retracted back up when I need to work!! A 12V winch with steel cable will provide the locomotion here. But that part is very much still in my head. So for the time being, I will concentrate on the toy room area.

My layout will be “Anything Goes” rather than a specific period. It is a single track, and will be fully automatic – (apart from the separate shunting areas and sidings). The scenery will come later, and may not be that specific. I want to get as much track on the layout as possible, so there will not be much space for housing estates, towns, fields and roads etc. but I will do my best when the time comes.

A pdf view of the layout is attached – I have used AnyRail to create it loosely as a schematic – There will be a bit more flexibility in it rather than using standard curves and straights.

DC is what I understand, I am not one of the converted yet, but DCC looked to be a big investment for what I want the layout to do.

My first thought was automation of the passing loops, so I started to think about the control – I wanted a train to run into a free part of the loop and release the next train from the loop, and so on. So with a bit of trial and error, I finally settled on something that works really well. It use 16V AC power from a transformer, a CDU, (as I would be firing several points simultaneously), glass reed switches combined with relays, Peco PL10 point motors, and PL13 on/on sliding switches attached to the base of the motors.

I have a video showing it’s basic operation, using drawing pins, (thumb tacks), in place of the reeds/relays which I have yet to purchase.

The plan is to use a acceleration module on the loop, which will gradually reduce speed as the train enters the loop until it is caught by the isolation rail, then the train that is released will slowly accelerate out of the loop. Another reed/relay set further around the layout will set the inward points to their correct position based on the position of the outward points. I’ll put in a set of control panel switches that allows me to stop automation and/or release trains from the loop at any time.

THERE’S MAKING A START!!!

Regards

Martyn”

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(All images are clickable, by the way.)

Next on to Peter, and it’s a really good comparison of the different size in scales.

So Mike is planning a 3×6 N scale layout, Peter’s is 12×24!

“Hello Mr. Lee ,

Not sure you remember me but we had some emails back and fourth about a year or so ago . Hope all is well.

It has been good , getting your emails and notes from other hobbists , looks like a good following, you put Daves layout on a lot, he has alot of good tips and hes got a nice layout.

I’ve been doing HO scale for about 60 plus years and still going stong , when I lived in Brooklyn , we only rented so i was limited in space but with 3 children I managed a few layouts, nothing big but all hand done.

We moved out to New Jersey about 10 years ago and we bought our first Home at our retirement age, what a time to do it right, but we got it with a little basement and my wife gave me 1/4 of it for my hobby.

In about 2 years i had a 14 by 18 foot HO scale layout and it was a lot of fun but in 2011 we got introduced to IRENE, you remember the storm everyone said wouldn’t happen but it did, my base filled just about to the ceiling, with water, last it all but was able to salvage some, lost 2 cars in our driveway my mother-in-law was taken out of the house in a boat. When i get a chance and if you’ll permit me i can send you some pics.

I thought for sure that was the end for me with Trains but my wife insisted you have to build another and with that said I did, this one is 12 by 24 feet, 6 outer loops, 3 inner loops, a
freight yard of 4 live rails. I can run 9 loops at the same time , I am attaching a few pics and hopefully you will allow me to send more when you say it is ok .

It is still a work in progress but I love it , alot of items are hand made some with card stock, plastics and other items i toy with . For 1 example the balast used around the tracks ,
is cat litter, but I believe most hobbists do that.

I will end here and hope to hear from you and what you think of Peter’s layout Pics.

Pic #17 is a veterans memorial that I contructed , I am a Vietnam Vet

Thank you ,

Peter”

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A huge thanks to Mike for sharing his 3×6 N scale layout, to Martyn – and an even bigger thanks to Peter.

And Peter, yes, please send more pics, we’d love to see them.

Peter’s layout brings me nicely to the brand spanking new ebay cheat sheet (loads much quicker than the old one).

You can only get a layout Peter’s size by buying smartly – have a look at what’s availble now on ebay. It really does go mad at this time of year.

That’s all for today, folks.

Please do keep ’em coming. And if you’re worried everyone else is having all 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.

PPP Or more N scale layouts here if you prefer.

John’s been back in touch, he’s added to the On30 shelf layouts on the blog:

“Dear Mr. Lee…

You have often said how much you enjoy updates.

My current On30 layout is almost complete.

For those who do not know, On30 is 1/4 inch O scale that runs on HO track to represent 30 inch narrow gauge.

30 inch gauge was a common industrial and agricultural track gauge in many places around the globe.

“Grasse Pointe” represents a small service yard at the end of a small industrial railway (tramway) that serves a brickworks.

The trackplan is the popular Inglenook in a 2-2-3 pattern (maybe 2-2-4 if I push it) I used a sector plate and one set of PECO Setrack points (Turnout or Switch here in America).

The railway is in the twilight of its operations and maintenance is somewhat lacking. The weeds are taking over!

Here is the first set of photos showing the basic setup.

The dimensions are 10 inches wide (29 mm if I have my conversion right) and 28 and 1/2 inches long (725 mm if the conversion is correct).

The layout is my smallest to date and downright minuscule for 1/4 inch scale.

It will fit on a common bookshelf.

Some call this a micro layout in that it is less than 4 square feet in total area.

John

California, USA

aka John from Cali”

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On30 shelf layouts:

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A huge thanks to John for adding to the On30 shelf layouts. I find it interesting to hear what he has to say about Peco tracks.

Over the years I’ve noticed one name that comes up time and time again when it comes to the best quality of track / points / turnouts – and that’s Peco.

I would love to hear your comments below on that.

That’s all this time folks.

Please do keep ’em coming. And don’t forget the Beginner’s Guide if you feel it’s your time to shine.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

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

Dale’s been in touch and added to the N scale train layout plans on the blog.

I really do enjoy the posts where you can see the layout from the very start:

“After having an HO layout as a kid, I decided that, at 68 years old, it was time to have another one.

This time, due to space limitations, I had to go with N scale.

My design considerations were 1) that I would be able to sit back and just watch trains run if I wanted, or 2) have a hands-on “operating” session if I wanted. The first consideration mandated a closed loop; the second mandated rail-served businesses with sidings and a team track.

The following track plan gave me what I needed.

The second major design decision was era and locale.

Era was easy since the limited space required tight radius curves. Thus, a time frame of the 1950-1970s was indicated, where locomotives were diesel and relatively short. I went with an EMD GP7 and an F7a. Rolling stock had to be no more than 60 feet long.

Locale was a bit harder to decide until I started thinking about the operation aspect. I set the scene as an area in a small town, not the center of town but somewhere on the edge of town. Since it depicts an area no more than a mile or so east to west, I kept to flat terrain.

There are two spurs at the east end where a staging yard or connection to an expansion can be done but I haven’t decided if I will build them.

The only way to get what I wanted in the space I had was to model in N scale. The layout measures 2 feet by 4 feet.

Build details:

The layout is on a piece of 3/8 inch MDF attached to a framework made from 1×3 lumber. The height is 42 inches. This height is right for me to operate the layout while standing (and high enough to keep my lazy cat from jumping up on it.)

The track is a combination of code 80 Atlas flex track and Peco turnouts on N scale cork roadbed. The sidings to the businesses are sloped so that the track at the business is at ground level. The tightest radius on the layout is just under 8 inches.

Wiring is 14 gauge for the DCC bus to the track with feeders every 24 inches. For the LED lighting in the buildings and the street lights I used 18 gauge stranded wire. All wiring is color coded so I can tell easily what lines are for what purpose.

Taking my time, the layout took about a year to build. Or, more correctly, I took about a year to build it. I wanted to go slowly and get it right, especially the trackwork. I had to take up and replace two of the Peco curved turnouts because the original ones kept causing derailments and I finally got tired of trying adjustments. Once replaced, both worked fine without fiddling with alignments.

Operations – Running trains

As I mentioned earlier, the layout is designed for two styles of running. Sometimes I just want to sit back and watch the trains run. For this, I will have one train running westbound (clockwise) on the inner loop and one eastbound (counter-clockwise) on the outer loop. I often do this when I’m thinking about some other problem or deciding on what to do next.

Although there is a station, there is no passenger service. With the tight radius required, passenger cars are just too long, or too old style for the era, to look good on the curves, so the station is pretty much abandoned.

Operations: Operating session

Even for such a small layout there is sufficient challenge for operating it as a railroad. Here’s how my imagination guides it.

The outer loop becomes an inter-city mainline and is not part of the local scene unless the manifest train on it needs to pick up or drop off cars. Pick-ups and drop-offs are done on the back part of the inner loop. Once that is done, the manifest is constantly in motion around the outer loop but is “seen” as going to or coming from somewhere off site. Since the outer loop is not “really there” it can’t be used in the switching of cars for the local businesses.

I looked through a lot of N scale train layout plans to find what I wanted.

So, an operating session, which may take anything from 10 to 30 minutes, starts out by the switcher picking up the cars that are due to be routed out the next time the manifest hits town and staging them on the back of the inner loop. When the manifest, headed up by the EMD F7a, has arrived, dropped off the cars tagged for the town, picked up its new batch and departed, the EMD GP7 switcher has to do its job of delivering the cars to the appropriate business or to the holding track.

To keep things interesting, (remember, you can’t use the outer track) the siding to the Feed and Seed at the west end of the layout can only hold the locomotive and one car and still clear the turnout.

The run-around there can only hold one car and the locomotive and still clear the turnouts at each end. The distance between the points leading to the fuel depot and the Feed and Seed can hold the loco and two cars. All this together means that care must be taken to move the cars so that the loco can be at the proper end of the car it needs to spot.

A car may be at a business or on the holding or team track for no less than one and no more than three operating sessions. Plus, some cars may be routed to either the Feed and Seed or the freight warehouse, depending on what I think it’s carrying. Other cars will never be sent to the Feed and Seed since their contents make no sense there. And, of course, tank cars only go to the fuel depot or the holding track.

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N scale train layout plans:

Lastly, just for fun:

I printed out a three-page wide backdrop and taped it to the wall behind the layout.

Dale”

I love what Dale has done, there are lots of N scale train layout plans on the site now, here are some that spring to mind:

Small N scale train layouts.

N scale steam layout.

N scale switching layout.

Lots more N scale layouts here.

Rob’s N scale also springs to mind because of the stunning detail:

London underground model trains (N scale).

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Now on to Dave:

Hi Alistair… just uploaded this video, showing two different ways to add lights to a coach on the layout, also adding people, then I show the CMX track clear at work, and how it works, and of course finish off with a bit of a running session

Dave”

Brand spanking new ebay cheat sheet here.

A huge thank you to Dave and especially to Dale for adding to the N scale train layout plans on the blog.

Really liked Dale’s narrative – so many folk overlook a theme / locale / era – and they are so important to breath life in to a layout.

That’s all this time, folks.

Don’t forget the Beginner’s Guide if you want to stop dreaming and start doing.

Best

Al

PS More N scale layouts here if that’s your thing.

Need buildings for your layout? Have a look at the Silly Discount bundle.