Ralph’s been in touch with his HO scale The General layout:
“Hi Al,
Following up on my email yesterday, here are three photos of my 68″X68” HO layout.
These pictures give an over view of the layout which include a country fair, a small airport, an auto racetrack and grandstand, and a tunnel with a station on the top.
I’m thinking that a monorail running over the layout would be a fun addition… but have not been able to find such a product.
I have three trains running…..
#1. A Marklin vintage model with a 3020 locomotive & passenger cars from 1947-1954
#2. A Marklin intermodal train which circles the airport.
$3. A Bachmann “The General” which runs on an elevated figure 8 track.
Ralph”
“Hi Alastair,
I just placed my order. I hope I can get some inspiration to take this to great places.
Phil”
A big thanks Ralph for sharing his HO scale The General layout.
Thanks to Phile too. I know some of you are often puzzled when I post pics of a layout that hasn’t taken shape yet.
But for me, it’s the whole point of this hobby: creating something from nothing.
Looking at one hell of a mess and then scratching your head over wiring is all part of the process.
Every layout you have ever seen, at one point, was a rat’s nest of wires, tools, track and profanities.
All you have to do is make a start because no layout happens overnight.
So thanks to Phil – who can help with his monorail idea?
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.
Need buildings for your layout? Have a look at the Silly Discount bundle.
I did a Quick search on E Bay and saw a Page of Monorail Train sets, so it’s Not tough to have a Running Monorail
Super fairground, thats part of my next project an my layout.
I have a monorail on my layout. I got it from the Disney site for $89.00. It is battery operated and is HO scale with Disney characters glued inside as passengers. It has sound announcing 5 messages and a front LED headlight. I modified the 3 passenger cars and added LED strips to light up the cars. I modified the rear car to hold a 9 volt battery to power the LED lights. It works great and is a nice addition to my 5 x 11 ft layout with 4 HO trains.
I do not like track that includes the ballast. It is a nice layout inspite of a lot of things. Its your layout do what you wish and keep up the good work.
The Disney Store at your local mall should be carrying a terrific looking HO monorail. It’s not terribly expensive and it’s decorated for the Disney monorail in California. It comes with a bunch of Disney characters you can place in the cars. Otherwise, you’ll have to look on Ebay where once in a while one of the old Disney monorail systems comes up for auction.
Thanks to those who suggested the Disney battery operated monorail. I should have mentioned that i was looking for an electric monorail. Fortunately, I was directed to investigate a Schuco electric monorail which is exactly what I was looking for. I am now awaiting for it to be delivered….and hopefully will be successful installing it on my HO layout. At that point I will share a video of my installation. While I played with electric trains 75 years ago – this layout was my first attempt, now being over 80, at making something that used my creative imagination.
Glad to hear you like to see pictures of partially completed layouts because that is where I am. If I can ever get the track work done properly, I will send you some.
Ralph,
Outstanding, It is great when I see another Marklin HO modeler. I am beginning to build my 4th Marklin layout. I have spent most of my adult life working, moving and traveling for business.
I’ll send pics when I start. Most of my collection is 50-70′ vintage.
Ken
Great minds think alike , or is it that fools seldom differ . Ironically I literally just today returned home from my local model railroad shop having purchased the Bachmann General steam locomotive. I’m planning my current project to the theme of the late 1800’s Americana mountain railway . Naturally my eagerness prompted me to get the locomotive purchased. Building platform now and applying track plan in coming weeks .
Really like your layout , very nicely done . Good scenes and scenery .
Hi PHil, the whole idea of placing your pictures here is to show that you have made a start to what could become a great layout. Alastair has always said he loves to see photos of the start of layouts. Well done.
Brian – the HOn3 guy from Knysna RSA
Love the layout but you should change the airport to a Hella-port. There’s no runway.
The Critic