Good day
I have two track plans that I would to use the Clark fork and the cat mountain layout in model railroading 1996 planning issue and I am planning on adding the quarry section from the January 2013 layout. My problem is space I will have on wall in in two car garage I can use. Until we finalized our plans for the house. (Been on active duty for 30 years) last few we rented out the house. Now have to remodel. So my plan is to make some boxes containing the parts of the layout till my room is completed. Remember past articles on this method but has anyone used this method?
conrailranBeen on active duty for 30 years
Thank you!
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Yes 13 years navy 17 years army medical..just got my notice of mandatory retirement Sept 01 2017. Never planned on this but it was privilege to train medics and provide care for service men& woman.. Now I have to show my wife progress on the projects I have been planning for last few years.. she's tougher than any general I had to brief.
Or are you referring to how they build many model railroads in sections, like in the UK, so that they can be moved ? Sorta like this:
https://www.google.com/search?q=small+modular+train+layout&biw=1221&bih=754&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiH5dKUor3QAhWsx4MKHZLwDNsQ_AUIBigB#tbm=isch&q=british+model+train+exhibition+layout&imgrc=ukrzwqmaOavYuM%3A
Even though yours will eventually be permanent.
Jim
Youtube MR reviewer James Wright is active duty. He built a modular layout several years ago as a video series. In later videos he suggested it did not travel well. It might we worth a look to see what to do and not to do. He used too small gauge wire in my opinion.
I am hoping to move so I have started a modular build using this benchwork, but with 2' wide with 2" thick foam instead of plywood top
http://mrr.trains.com/how-to/get-started/2011/11/benchwork-for-your-model-railroad
Mountains and trees are going to have to wait until it finds a permanent home. That doesn't have to be the case, but I hope to move far enough away that sticking it in the back of a SUV is not an option. I plan on making plywood sides and maybe a cardboard top/bottom.
If it doesn't have to fit in my car, it doesn't have to be only 4' long, which is a big advantage when it comes to lots of turnouts.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Thanks for all the feedback. I need to clarify the space a little more. Right now I will have one wall of the garage. my best guess is about 10-11 feet of space. The plans I am using have basically little elevation or are flat. So I think I can get this done with basic open grid boxes with 2 inch foam or just a with 1/4 plywood top. My house is GA so I am not sure if I need to use anything different. The other question is can DCC be used on a module because these layouts have minimum switching.
conrailranThe other question is can DCC be used on a module because these layouts have minimum switching.
FREEMO uses DCC, and it is modular, so you can do it also.
You seem to be speaking of building pieces of your layout in the garage, storing them until the house plans are completed and work done, and then moving into the layout room and filling in between the pieces.
This sounds very do-able, with a little help carrying eight foot long pieces.
I'll leave the garage advice to those who have done it. Georgia = humidity and temperature swings in a garage.
Think of DC as controlling trains via the track and DCC as controlling the engines directly. Controlling turnouts via DCC is several rungs up the ladder and not something you need to do, nor a major advantage over DC. A basic DCC system from NCE or Digitrax should be fine. Stay away from DCS.
conrailran Right now I will have one wall of the garage. my best guess is about 10-11 feet of space. The plans I am using have basically little elevation or are flat. So I think I can get this done with basic open grid boxes with 2 inch foam or just a with 1/4 plywood top. My house is GA so I am not sure if I need to use anything different.
Right now I will have one wall of the garage. my best guess is about 10-11 feet of space. The plans I am using have basically little elevation or are flat. So I think I can get this done with basic open grid boxes with 2 inch foam or just a with 1/4 plywood top. My house is GA so I am not sure if I need to use anything different.
Quickly on DCC: Just about all modular systems use DCC. The use of DCC allows putting the modules into different configurations at each setup without rewiring. A DCC track bus is run through each module and wired to the track. The track bus is attached to the DCC booster track outputs.
The reconfiguration aspect is the difference between a modular and a sectional layout.
Modular systems specify the track interface at the module ends, allowing any given module to connect to any other module using the same interface. Popular modular standards include Free-mo, S&SS, and some table top standards that I am not familiar with.
Sectional layouts divide the layout into manageable sections for movement, storage, etc. Generally, the sections must always be connected in the same configuration.
I assume you are talking a sectional layout. A section size of 6ft long, and up to 30" wide, goes through any standard doorway pretty easily. Longer or wider tends to be more difficult to handle in stairwells and through doorways. In our modular group, we have found 42" long modules are about the longest that can be easily handled by one person (we have handholds in the ends).
A very light, very strong module (or section) can be built using the S&SS grid system of 5-6mm plywood. It is more labor intensive to build than a framed foam box. The framed foam box is popular and easy to build. If you go the framed foam route, allow the foam to go unused for about 6 months. We and others have found that foam off-gases (think the plastic off-gassing in a new car) and shrinks over time, with most of the change coming in the first 6 months. The shrinkage of the foam is the issue for model railroad use. Others have built very nice, very light modules using paper or veener-covered foam core exclusively.
One of the trickiest parts of modular or sectional layouts is getting that near perfect alignment of module ends in all 3 dimensions when the layout is re-assembled. Our group uses top-adjustable legs at all 4 corners to match the rails at the module ends on uneven floors, and then clamping the end plates together. Others use tight-fitting pins or bolts to bring the module ends together correctly. For a sectional layout, the sections should be fitted together before laying any track across the joint.
Fred W
Thanks.. I was looking at using open grid . Also looking at maybe buying two modules from severs modules. But still trying to see if legs vs shelf type modules will give me the most area. It appears I have 6 inch ledge that have overcome before I access to the wall surface.