Model railroad layouts plans

Ken’s been in touch again – this time he shows us how to make a model train turntable.

And Chris has also sent in a video of his rather fun layout too.

“Hi Al,

Here is the turntable at the mine. Because of the small size I decided to make it myself.

So here you see the rough cut out and temporary turntable with track, to get proper dimensions and proof of design. The turntable is not powered at this time.

I have also started on the road, made out of drywall compound, and painted with basic grey house paint.

The tunnel portals are hand made, cut from ¾ inch plywood, coated with drywall compound, painted with the same grey house paint. Here you also see the beginning of the ballasting, following all the tried and true methods of gluing, except mine is real sand, sifted for size, cost 20 cents for a bucket. Again, I live in Mexico and here you need to be very creative.

This next picture shows the 2 crossings where the road and track cross. I had 2 bags of ties that were for the original layout years ago that never got used, so I dipped them in black paint, common house, dried and now used to fill in blank spots made at rail joints and here for wooden crossings.

Ok, progress, the turntable pit done. Took many ideas, each discarded as impractical, till I finally hit on the method I finally used. Again because of its size I figured I needed several separate components, the circular track, for show only, the bottom of the pit, the walls of the pit, the turntable, and a way to electrify it. Turning for now is manual, may or may not change, we’ll see.

The base needed to be as round as possible, so center hole and compass with blade, sanded to finish. The walls were cut from cardboard, glued and pinned in place, and layered for rigidity, not easy but far easier than the rail. The rail was cut from a piece of flex track, curved, fitted, glued and pinned to dry. Everything is coated with my favorite item, drywall compound. Here it is finally mounted in place. Also there is a notch in the wall height to allow for the rails to pass and rest on as the locomotive enters and leaves.

The turntable was far easier. Material is 3/16 inch thick, cut to shape and glued together. Power comes through the center.

Here is the underside of the turntable, the rod is the center pivot point and one side of the electrical connection, the washer is the bearing surface and the other side of the electrical connection. I found that I needed weight to insure a good connection as well as electrical conductive lube. The base of the table has a brass tube and corresponding washer.

The weights are old auto wheel weights, needed to insure good electrical contact. Also here you see the mine area is now ballasted, the road is in and scenery done. Colors are combinations of common house paint.

This picture shows how small this turntable is, it is now fully functional.

Here are the 2 loco’s that work the mine and deliver the loaded and empty cars.

You also see the “ finished” scenery, tunnel portal, road, and pad for the 2 stall engine house, and the car repair track. Both loco’s were purchased in the early 70’s, still running smooth as silk. The electrical switches are for the 2 engine tracks, and the turntable, also the approach track is likewise controlled, as is the car repair track.

Hope you enjoyed this and someone out there finds it helpful.

Ken, from Mexico”

A big thanks to Ken for sharing how to make a model train turntable.

It reminds me of Brian’s: HO turntable conversions.

“Hi Al here is the latest layout i have done:

The fun bit about it, it has a mini scalextric set in the middle.

This layout just made me think of Tony’s: HO scale race track crossing train track.

That’s all folks! As always, please do keep ’em coming – and a big thank you to everyone who has contributed so far. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I do.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if you feel like you’re missing out on 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.

And there’s the Silly Discount bundle too.

Ken’s been back in touch with his 13×14 HO scale layout.

Well, it’s a fair few months ago now, and Ken has been kind enough to post the below update on his layout.

He’s been busy – if you want to get up to speed, his first is here.

“Hi Al,

My 13×14 HO scale layout part 2.

When I last wrote I left off at this point and was preparing to move. The move happened.

First the house hold items, then locating and renting a place for the layout.

Took 2 months and then another 2 weeks of dismantling, moving and reassembling.

So from here till now I have been hard at work.

Here you see the beginning of the road at the mine, tunnel portals, and the beginning of the turntable.

The red push buttons are for controlling the turnouts.

Also learned another lesson, paint the interior of the tunnels before you finish the out side, or in my case put them together.

Also here is the plastering technique I came up with, drywall compound and clothes dryer sheets, first step.

In the next picture you see the upper level that runs completely around the layout, and the ascending and descending tracks, to and from the main lower level and the upper main line level.

The layout measures 13 feet by 14 feet , the upper tack is 8 inches above the bench, so a good climb both ways. Here still working out the rest of the layout track plan.

This is the view looking at the other corner, also showing the main 3 levels of track, the uppermost level, 8 inches above the deck, at this point double track, the next level down , 4 inches above the deck, is the track coming from the mine, through a tunnel at the mine then over a trestle and then through another tunnel, then the lower level can be seen, on the deck.

Here you see the mine track as it will cross the main line and enter the yard where the cars will be left for delivery by other crews from the interchange. Also the beginning of laying out the main yard track. The diamond crossing was tricky, especially since it is located directly over a separation line and the layout has yet to be moved to new location.

Another lesson learned, got the mine train here and then thought, how do I turn the loco around for the return trip, I thought I have all this area under the upper tracks why not do a reversing loop, sure why not. A 13×14 HO scale layout gives you the room you need.

It took many try’s to get this far, including laying it out full size on the floor.

Finally, end result, and works as planned, or thought or something.

Would have been much easier to have done the loop first, but at least I thought of it before the scenery went in.

Ken”

A big thanks to Ken! A 13×14 HO scale is quite a size – and it made me think just how long good layouts really take…

Ken’s post reminded me of Lou’s HO scale – another post which highlights the most important part of this hobby: making a start.

Here’s one of Lou’s HO layout pics – which also links to it:

You can see Lou’s post here.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming.

Don’t forget the Beginner’s Guide is here, if you want to start your own railway adventure.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

N gauge? N Scale? You decide:

“Hi Al

Though you might like a few pics of my N gauge layout that i am still building.

Best Regards.

Peter.”

A big thanks to Peter – it’s always fun to see what you are all up to whether it’s an N Gauge or any gauge and scale.

“Alistair,

I am not sure if you can get these items over there but here we have what is called pringles they are like a chip but better and they come in a round can and my young son and I came up with the idea of using the can as our tunnel they are just the perfect size for the H O scale train to fit through.

Hope you like this one.

Bill”

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“Spent winter tearing out my years old HO layout. Had found plans for one in Model Railroader and i built it 2 levels with a 6 turn helix to get up and down .

it wasnt easy to operate as I was climbing up and down on a 2 step stool to reach the top and bending over under the top when doing something on the lower level.

So last winter I tore it all out and rebuilt a better more fun layout . My advice is dont be afraid to redue what you dont like .enjoyment is the name of the game in model railroading .

Ron”

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And lastly, Dave’s been on the sherry again – and playing with his new Ipad too. But as always, I loved it!

New and updated ‘ebay cheat sheet’ is here.

Best

Al

(Really – there are hundreds and hundreds of posts to enjoy and learn from. But the only way you can see them all is to be on the newsletter)