Model railroad layouts plans

Rob’s been back in touch, this time he’s been busy adding model railroad electric utility details:

“Hi Al,

This video strictly runs trains and with a quick look around a few newer things.

I got the high-voltage power cable pylons completed. There are 4 fully formed ones and I hung a single-sided one on the wall.

I tried a four-sided pylon on the wall but the shadows cast by it made it look confusing. A one-sided pylon seems to look better.

I was hoping the wall-hung effort would suggest the pylons continued off into the distance. I probably should have made it about 3/4 size so it would suggest it was farther away. Hindsight is 20/20. It still looks good.

The class 67 is my bargain find. I was able to buy it used for about 1/2 price.

While installing a DCC decoder I noticed that one of the headlight/tailight shrouds was missing. I was able to fabricate one out of styrene plastic, paint it black, and then used cyanoacrylate glue to hold it in place. It definitely seems to be working.

The light shroud is shown before painting.

I thought it would be fun to add a crane to my harbor scene. The story goes that the old dilapidated crane was about to be scrapped but the local people who lived around there wanted it preserved.

The battle over keeping and restoring the crane raged on but in the end, it was preserved as a historic artifact and there it is. It was an easy and fun kit to build.

The series of photos as I rotate the pylon around illustrates a painting technique.

If you look closely looking down from the top the color is quite light, but as I turn it in my hand you start to see darker areas and when it is upside down it is very dark. This creates the illusion of shadows. These shadows, however, are painted on.

It is achieved by spraying black from the bottom up and then the light color from the top down. This technique can be used on just about any model.

Thank you Al, your efforts to keep your blog afloat are appreciated by all in the worldwide modeling community, in particular me.

Rob”

A big thanks to Hall of Fame member, Rob, for sharing his model railroad electric utility details.

And now on to George.

Not only is he taking the time and trouble to plan his layout, he’s making sure it’s his layout, with his rules. Quite right too!

“Dear Al

The following CAD drawing is of the S scale ON30 layout I have just begun to assemble.

It is a little different to decipher and I hope all can read it.

Basically it is two mountains on the left side which will feature the ON30 operation and the right side a flat S scale layout and trainyard.

The buildings closest to Follywood station are all 3D puzzles that are closer to O scale but I wont tell anybody. I like them.

I truly love my brothers on your blog and so respect the incredible work they do but I believe that every group needs a clown and I’ve elected myself to be just that. You see what I lack in building talents can escape scrutiny when observers eyes are blurred because of laughter.

If I am in fantasy land, making models from real things, then MY way is with humor. I had a blast giving names to the buildings and areas. BTW that’s ITZNOT MINE in the lower left corner.

There is a long story behind this layout and I will send that soon. My granddad’s farm was in the town of Neversink, NY where the Neversink river and reservoir are so the Yursunk river, harbor et al was thus created.

The barn is an exact 3/16” scale model of the cowbarn and the house also.

I just hope I can build this reasonably OK. Pics to follow very soon if I can rearrange the mess.

George”

A big thanks to George and Rob.

That’s all for today folks.

Please do keep ’em coming – it’s still jolly quiet this end.

And if today is the day you get started on your layout just like George, 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.

Boyd’s been back in touch with his HO scale logging camp.

What an addition! Have a look at what he’s done:

“Hello Al,

In my last post I mentioned I was starting the logging camp area.

Still have many details to add, but thought I would send in progress so far as I will not be getting much more done until late fall due to outdoor activities, summertime hobbies and travel.

I am having great difficulty finding HO scale chain saw operators, so manual labour with axes will have to do for now.

Also have a skidder and loader kit to build and add, along with a cookhouse/storage building.

I made the bunkhouses from scratch, and as before, all landscape materials are homemade or yard pickings.

As always, thanks for all you do to support the hobby.

Boyd”

A HUGE big thanks to Boyd for sharing the latest on his HO scale logging camp.

If you missed his last post it’s here: HO scale DCC

In Boyd’s first post, he went from this empty room:

To this ‘finished’ scene:

In fact, here’s the link to his first post if you missed that too: Model train hobby.

Boyd’s post also reminded me of Gary’s:

HO logging equipment.

That’s all for today, folks – leave a comment below to let us know your thoughts.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you turn your empty room into a palace of fun, just like Boyd, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Remember, it’s the start that stops most people.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.

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

Jerry’s been back in touch already – he’s a serial model train track planner, taking an impressive four years over his plans.

(Oh, if you’re looking for someone to plan your layout, please just mail me.)

I’m always saying a little planning goes a long way, and Jerry certainly pushes that point.

He’s put together the below to answer your questions on his first post: Jerry plans his model railroad.

“Al,

Thanks for posting my plans. There were some questions that folks asked that I thought I should respond to.

Greg Marples – Yes, it was sad to let the Caddy go but we know it went to a good home – a Cadillac collector that we know who will give it a good home.

We’d had it for about 30 years and it won several awards in local car shows.

It was just time to move on from that part of our lives. I also appreciate the insight about architectural engineering tables. I’ll look them up!

Rob McCrain – Thanks! Your YouTube channel is VERY helpful!

I’ve been working on the track plan for about 4 years now. It evolved based on your and other members’ posts that made me think about what I was trying to do with the railyard, the idea of point to point passenger and freight service, etc.

As for access to the back, I purchased a vertical creeper such as truck enthusiasts use to get into the engine well. That part of the layout has puzzled me for some time.

I think the solution is to build a hatch:

Access Problem #1 – 7 foot span from edge of table to back wall. Vertical creeper won’t allow deep enough access. This area is supposed to be very flat or gentle slope with cattle grazing pastures.

Access Solution #1 – Hatch outlined in green, approximately 4 feet x 4 feet. The hinge placement allows it to lift out of the page and arc toward the bottom of the picture. Disguising the transition might get tricky, especially around the Kriesviadukt embankment, I suppose.

I realized some time ago that there would be difficulty accessing the furthest reaches of the Roundhouse and adjacent diesel fueling station. I’d planned to build an access window into the new wall. It might be a double sliding plexiglass window or I might just start with a hinged panel that swings up outside the new train room.

The trick will be making the scenery / backdrop integrate seamlessly, so I guess I’ve just talked myself out of the plexiglass window.

A horizontal board that can be supported by chains around the opening will allow me deeper access to the railyard, similar to the vertical creeper, because there is a stairway right outside the access hatch / window where the creeper can’t go.

I should still be able to reach deeply enough into the roundhouse area with the vertical creeper.

George Zaky – I had difficulty using the AnyRail spiral feature, so I resorted to using a combination of short straight tracks with decreasing radius curves to represent the spirals.

I also tried to make sure that the “X-Crossover” switch beneath “Filisur” has a flat 1-foot approach on the same plane as the crossover switch at each of its four entrances. I did the same with all of the other turnouts on the layout.

I was trying to keep the grades at 2% but found that difficult to accomplish with my desired 24” height differential within the confines of the 18’x24’ room. My research revealed that Marklin HO locomotives can handle up to a 4% grade because they’re equipped with rubber tyres on each side of the driving wheels.

I’m certain I’ll need to make height adjustments to accommodate the catenary on the spirals. Thank you for the input!

I’d intended for my original post to include an image of the entire planned layout in 3D. I either forgot to send it to Al or perhaps he couldn’t make it fit as he put together the webpage. In any event, here’s another try. If anyone has ideas or suggestions on how to redesign for these obstacles, please just mail Al!

Thanks for everyone’s kind comments. With luck, I’ll be able to post another update before the end of the year!

Jerry”

A big thanks to Jerry the model train track planner for answering your questions.

I thought I’d post now while it’s still fresh in our minds.

I have no idea why, but Jerry’s post reminded of Bill’s:

Lance Mindheim track plan.

That’s all for now.

Please do keep ’em coming.

And if today is the day you get going on your layout, the Beginner’s Guide is here.

Best

Al

PS Latest ebay cheat sheet is here.