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NEED HELP ON LAYOUT PLANS FOR HO TRAIN
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Well, I'll be that bad guy here although I don't reli***he role. The space you have can house a wonderful layout, but not 4 by 8's together in a giant "U". Now before you jump off the bridge, that plywood will still come in handy. But if you proceed as you have, I promise you "reach" is going to be a real problem and as your tastes become more "sophisticated" you'll regret your decision. I know you say you have a 12 by 16 area, but it is hard for me to recommend something to you with out knowing more about the space. <br /> <br />For one thing, interestingly, the way you have your layout is a very tough size to design for - there's a reason you won't find designs for your 4 pieces of plywood, because those in the know wouldn't want your configuration - its actually a tough space to design a layout in. <br /> <br />Before you go any further, stop by your local hobby shop (LHS) and pick up a book by John Armstrong called "Track Planning for Realistic Operations." If they don't have it, you can buy over the internet or send your request into Kalmbach, they have copies of it. The good news is this book is only around $22 or something like that, not a high priced jobby. But the book I am recommending is THE BIBLE of layout planning. <br /> <br />I have two editions, and as Murphy's law would have it, I can only find the older edition, but the new edition has all the chapter's I'm going to recommend to you. When you are done reading this, do a copy and paste to MS word or notepad and print it out. <br /> <br />Chapters to pay attention: <br /> <br />Operating reliably through standards <br />Pike locations and shapes <br />schematics for satisfying operations <br /> <br />Speed read these chapters first, then you can go back and leisurely read the book another ten times if you're like the rest of us. <br /> <br />There are many styles of benchwork, you can use the plywood flat as your original intention was, but if you discover you'd like to do something else, one of the best woods to use is plywood ripped to length; so one 4 by 8 will give you "4" inch wide by 8 feet long lumber, ripped to length. You would get twelve 4 inches by 8 feet pieces, for example. <br /> <br />Right now you are really building the layout for you - nothing wrong with that- its how I got started, my son was young and I was building it for "him" but really a two year old can't really run a layout anyway. The benchwork will be to high for him. And don't build low benchwork as many dad's do then regret it latter when their 2 year old is 13 and surprisingly high. <br /> <br />Plan on the layout you are building taking at least two to four years to build. This amount of time may sound long to you, but anyone who has built a layout in the size of room you have will consider two years not realistic - too short. <br /> <br />What I suggest is tell your son you are building a layout for him and you, but it will take a "really really long time." In the interim, Brio or Thomas the Tank wooden trains and track, etc will satisfy him. This buys you time so that he can get taller and you gain more knowledge and skill. Because layouts are so demanding of skills, electrical, woodworking, artistry through scenery and backdrop, electronics, and layout planning and track work planning; you'll discover you "hit the wall" at the one skill you aren't that great at - it happens to all of us. There are lots of resources to help you out from books, video's, forum's like here, forum chats - like at www.the-gauge.com and other resources. <br /> <br />There are more than one forums to go to in helping you design your project - they are called layout design forums. I'm a moderator in at one at www.trainboard.com but to fair there are other excellent sources for you as well. For example, the Layout Design Special Interest Group has a good forum, but read Armstong's book before you go there, or you'll feel like a fish out of water with some of their response's and their reasons for it. <br /> <br />So hang tough, be prepared to make some mistakes, you'll meet new friends and you have a hobby that will take the stress off you in other areas of your life. Working with my son in the hobby was a special treat, it brought us closer together; I know I've had a relationship that has been special that other's fathers have never experienced because of this hobby. <br /> <br />So if you're going to build a layout, build a good one; we'll help you to get there.
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