Model railroad layouts plans

Stef’s been in touch, he’s added to the Lionel train layouts on the blog:

“Hello Alastair,

And greetings from Middleton MA, just north of Boston.

I, as all of your subscribers do, truly enjoy and look forward to your postings from araound the world.

As with many of your readers, I too enjoyed my first Lionel set from Santa back in mid fifties…a #600 MKT diesel switcher and , of course, a Baby Ruth box car/still own the set today and will send photo in next communication.

It appears that many of your postings involve HO and some N scale and the occasional O gauge which I really look forward to viewing.

I am an original ‘Lionel guy’ and I hope our other Lionel enthusiasts will especially enjoy this posting and photos as well as your other subscribers.

Actually, I was going to wait until I nearly completed my layout before contacting you, but, as I have seen many postings sent in at various stages of completion, I thought it appropriate to send in my photos at this time to share with others. Will follow up again as the layout achieves more completion.

I am a ‘non technical’ enthusiast and stay with the ‘basics’ and I guess I am ‘old school’ as well and age 77; so, my power connections and future lighting and accessory connections will be as they were way back then!

Since I still maintain my retirement financial planning practice and have for many decades both here and in SWFlorida where we also reside and travel back and forth each month, I cannot devote
‘full time’ to the layout; after all, it is a hobby! In addition, I host and produce a weekly financial information radio show heard in MA and FL and have done so for nearly 25 years.

After my wife and I ‘downsized’ from our much larger home with a very large Lionel multi train layout [12 train operation] about twenty years ago after our children married, I sold almost all of my Lionel collection.

The thought was to switch to HO in our new home attic where I started to build a basic layout. After buying a good deal of HO ‘stuff’, I realized that Lionel was truly what I enjoyed and started to restock with Lionel, original accessories along with some Williams and Kline from the internet and some local MA purchases.

I then set up the current 13.5’x6.5′ layout seen in these photos. My intention was to operate as many lines as possible given the confined board area and add some basic landscaping which I enjoy and find very soothing and satisfying.

So, I now have a 9 train operation and two bumper tracks for the Lionel gang car and the ever present Lionel trolley.

Many of your readers often comment about offering ‘space’ on a layout; so, they may not appreciate as much what I have created with limited board space in the lower level of our home which also serves as my home office and repository for my many collectibles; however, I do think there is much to view and, ultimately, I will send in photos and video of the entire operation.

Also to note, that my rock facing is actually spray painted aluminum foil that, when crinkled, resembles craggy rock facings, in my estimation. It still needs some detail, but I have found the foil to be next to zero cost, but, most importantly, easy to work and not requiring plaster and multi course rock work.

I agree that is not as perfect as many of your layouts viewed; however, it serves nicely for me. Additionally, there are on line videos that show rock wall formation with foil and then applying loose plaster for even more realism.

Hope you all enjoy the various views and from above

Hopefully, what I have sent and the photos attached will be received by you and suitable for posting soon, especially as you have asked in the past for more O gauge layouts.

Again, to mention, there is still much to complete and therefor, photos will show some incompletion and detail yet to be performed.

Alastair, with thanks and appreciation for your efforts from ‘across the pond’.

Sincere regards,

Stef”

A big thanks to Stef for adding to the Lionel train layouts on the blog.

Whenever it comes to Lionel layouts, I always think of Tom’s: Lionel O scale trains.

That’s all for this time 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 More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

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

John’s been in touch with his 4×8 layout, or rather, one that started 4×8…

“Alastair:

After prodding from my dear friend George, I’m sending some pictures of my layout.

This started as a 4X8 ft N Gauge railroad but as we all know this hobby takes one on quite a journey.

Five years in on this, I began with a simple oval with two switches. This has grown, as you can see to 20. My train addiction began as a youngster with my dad building a Lionel layout some 70 years ago.

Semi retired and with a grandson we began the layout. It starts simple, first you buy trains and from there one becomes a landscape designer, half baked electrician, building kit assembler and most significant a substantial financial supporter.Being a kid again without having to ask for money having a supportive wife helps.

Your emails and the videos from Dangerous Dave fed an love of British trains as well as European trains too. So, I have accumulated quite a collection from many places in the world! Ah! The internet is wonderful.

This layout is on a grass mat, I built much of the landscape, and the European Village is from kits.

This all leads to vacations on the Orient Express, Glacier Express and in a few weeks some British rail excursions, and folks say gambling is addictive?

Everything on this layout is movable, by this I mean not glued down, except for the grass mat. I have no master plan, just add sections, with the assistance of my grand son, and enjoy every minute doing this. This way if I change my mind, a tear down is easy. Especially when you need that extra inch, which always seems to happen.

Most of my equipment is Kato and Dapol.

It will be interesting to see what our fellow adictee’s think.

John
Long Island, NY.”

A huge big thanks to John for sharing his 4×8 layout.

When it comes to 4×8 layouts, Rick’s always springs to mind: 4×8 HO layout.

That’s all for this time 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 More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

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

Andrew’s been in touch with a very useful ‘how to’ on using plaster of paris for model railroad scenery:

“Dear Al,

You have kindly posted my previous layouts as they were finished and fully operational. I am now working on my fifth layout in my shed with my 70 year old Hornby Dublo track and trains originally a gift from my father.

I am creating some of the scenery on platforms that enables me to work on the side that is close to the wall that would otherwise require double joints.

I start by making a paper template of the area I am modeling then transferring the paper template to a piece of polystyrene packaging.

At each stage I check that the template and the polystyrene base will fit the location and not catch any passing locomotive or its consist.

The polystyrene is built up in layers, carved with a sharp knife and stuck together with PVA glue.

I cover the polystyrene with Plaster of Paris then paint and decorate with coloured saw dust, grasses and Woodland Scenic bushes.

Attached are 16 photos that I hope might be of help and interest.

Yours sincerely.

Andrew”

A big thanks to Andrew for sharing his method of using plaster of paris for model railroad scenery.

Peter uses plaster cloth: model railroad scenery design.

Richard put together a fantastic step by step too (not just on the plaster cloth, the whole layout): HO layout build.

You can see Boyd builing up his layers too: Model train hobby.

That’s all for this time 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 More HO scale train layouts here if that’s your thing.

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