Model railroad layouts plans

I have another collection of model train tips and ideas today:

“If you use home water filters (Brita style) cut them open for the charcoal – great “coal”)

If you make tea from teabags, dry them after use and save the tea – great “dirt” and ground cover. Coffee grounds work too.

For ballast, buy roofing granules. They come in a 5-gallon pail for about $25, assortment of colors, and you can size them for your scale by sifting through window screen or some other material.

I’ve heard concern about iron in the material that could interfere with electronics, but I have not experienced it.

Mike”

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“About the only landscaping tip I can think of is on my former layout I had the tracks rise in elevation.

The way I hid all the blocking was to cut foam rubber pieces ( came from and old couch) 1” thick by about however long was workable.

I would glue to the track bed and then to the table bed.

I would brush or spray glue on the foam and sprinkle grass or dirt ( it came from the vacuum cleaner. Easy embankment.

Wayne”

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“Al,

You are no doubt already aware of this but, in case you are not, I printed one of your buildings directly to card stock. By doing this the step of gluing to an empty cereal box or whatever is being used is eliminated and greatly speeds up the process. Further, the card stock accepts the glue far better than cereal boxes and appears to be quite sturdy.

I strive for convenience whenever possible. As the Pennsylvania Dutch say: Ve grow to soont ald und to laid smardt.

Russ”

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I keep meaning to move all the print-out buildings in to one place, but I haven’t got round to it yet.

Here’s the first store.

And here’s the second.

Pretty much all of the buildings in the video below are from the first store. Hard to believe they are all made of paper.

Have you seen the latest ebay cheat sheet? It’s here.

Lastly, not long ago, I asked for your ‘best tips’. And some of you posted some wonderful, smart advice. So I thought it worth ‘reprinting’ some none of you miss them – they really are gold:

“When laying track, “that’s good enough” never is. Mutter some select unprintable words and do it again.

Roland”

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“Don’t let any one issue bog you down when it cones to scenery. Sooner or later you will come up with a better idea anyway. I have more redevelopment projects than the city of Las Vegas.

Timothy”

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“Design your layout so you can always work on it easily, this is a life time hobby enjoy it,have rests from it and even make some changes now and then.Most of all it has to give you a laugh and good times with some mates.

Ian”

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And of course, hundreds more model train tips and ideas like this in the Beginner’s Guide.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

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

Ray’s been in touch. He has a problem – his model train keeps stopping.

It’s a question that keeps getting mailed in again and again – so I thought it a good idea to publish.

Please post your answers in the form at the bottom of the page if you can help (lots have already).

“Hi Alastair. I have problem which one of your contributers may be able to help with.

My layout is not digital but has three separate tracks each one having its own power supply, all goes well apart from one track which will run for about half it’s distance then it runs out of power, switch it off for a few minutes and off it will run, again for a short time, very annoying.

I have checked all connections, all flitch plates, made sure all track is clean and that my locomotive wheels are clean.

The other two tracks continue to run fine no problems at all and yes they are all fed from the same supply. I have also changed the transformer to no avail.

Help please

Ray”

If you can help Ray solve the mystery of why his model train keeps stopping, please leave a comment below.

Now on to Frank:

“A short night view of the Layout with a track cleaning car running.

Small New England town with a quarry , lumber yard, farm, oil terminal,

An some night paving no going on.

Still a work in progress .lights,roadbed , etc.

Frank”

That’s all for today folks – thanks for all the comments on the latest print out scenery.

Surprisingly, I got a few mails asking if it really is made from sheets of paper that are printed out.

Well, yes, the clue’s in the name: print out scenery. You just download, print and stick together. Here’s some pics of them:

Today is the very last day for the launch price, so if you want to grab this offer and save $5 you can grab it here.

Here’s the page with more details on the wooden barn and stone cottage.

1. You print them out and stick ’em together.

2. They print out at HO scale. For N scale, reduce by 54%.

3. For O scale, increase by 48% (here’s one of the houses in O scale)

4. Print as many, and make as many as you like.

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.

Rick’s started a 4×8 HO layout for the grandkids – looks great too:

“Al,

Thank you for your always engaging posts and emails which have been a great support in getting back into model railroading once again. I set up an HO set when the boys were very young while we were in the military. But with a lot of moving around and kids getting older, the trains sat in storage for over 30 years until this past Christmas.

Having grown up with a Lionel O Scale train set around the Christmas tree every year, we finally purchased a Polar Express set for our tree this past Christmas. Seeing the reaction of our young grandkids finally got the fire going again to set up our own set that the kids of all ages could enjoy.

Unfortunately, the only space we have left for year round use is in the crawl space that only has a 40” clearance from floor to ceiling. After spending last winter clearing out the space, I took a corner and began building.

The entire setup is literally assembled on my hands and knees! I first built a 4×8 HO layout’ table on 6 sets of casters so I could move it around while building and for maintenance. I used foam board for nearly all the foundation and hills which I find is easy to work with and mold. I forwarded a few pictures of the progress leading up to the finished (for now) setting. The left wall behind the tunnel is temporary so I can expand beyond the tunnel.

The train yard represents the rich train history here in the Chicago, Illinois area here in the states. The two engines in the middle are both over 35 years old and do not work so I set up an homage to the Illinois Train Museum in nearby Union, Illinois that has quite a collection of engines and cars from many different eras. You can see I made good use of your print-outs for the residential area including the sound wall between it and the park to the right of the table. The park represents several areas where I run and bike to stay in shape to keep up with active grandkids!

You tips and ideas along with the downloaded printouts made it easy to stay motivated based on what others have shared with your community. I am now working on the landscaping, ballasting the tracks and expanding the yard to include container cranes and additional construction as well as an overhead walkway to get from the residential area to the park. As many have said, it is really never finished.

Thanks again for what you do for this community of enthusiasts!

Rick”

A huge thanks to Rick. It’s great to see a 4×8 HO layout – I know it’s a popular size. It takes a lot of determination to make a layout like that in a 40″ space too. And glad to see he’s using the print out scenery for his tunnel.

Speaking of which, don’t forget today is the last day to buy the bundle deal below for just $14.97.

1. You print them out and stick ’em together.

2. They print out at HO scale. For N scale, reduce by 50%.

3. Print as many, and make as many as you like.

Here’s the page with more details on the wooden barn and stone cottage.

That’s all for today folks. Please keep’ em coming.

Best

Al

PS Beginner’s Guide is here.

PPS More Here’s another 4×8 layout if that’s your thing.