all I know is, right now my layout top is on saw horses. IT SUCKS. You have to bend over to do everything, and its too high to sit down for.
basically.... bottom of your ribs should be the minimum
Hi!
You already got several excellent responses so there isn't much more to add........
After several layouts since the mid '50s, I've come to realize that what works best for me is "chest high" - which of course leaves several inches for "negotiation". Of course I am the primary operator, and if kids come to see the trains, I have a couple of carpet covered blocks for them to stand on.
Like other posters, I could make a case for most any height, so I believe that the "proper" height is truly something subjective and totally what pleases the owner/operator.
FWIW........
Mobilman44
ENJOY !
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
Raised on the Erie Lackawanna Mainline- Supt. of the Black River Transfer & Terminal R.R.
Mr.B. made a good point about being able to sit comfortably to work on wiring. Something to keep in mind when setting a minimum height.
I plan to have my lower level at a good height for viewing from a rolling chair, and also a good level for my kids to watch the action.
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A related question:
What's a common separation between levels, for those of us who are into double deckers?
Layout height is really a VERY personal thing. For instance, my Yuba River Sub is minimum 45" high at '0' elevation, but has an over-all rise of 18", which puts the highest portion right at my eye height (I'm 6'1"). It's what I prefer, but whenever the neighborhood kids come over to see what Mr. White's been doing, they're all standing there with their necks craned up, LOL!
So it pretty much depends on your personal preference.
Tom
Tom View my layout photos! http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/TWhite-014/Rio%20Grande%20Yuba%20River%20Sub One can NEVER have too many Articulateds!
Easy to figure out. Get an empty refrigerator box, cut off one side. Suspend it from the ceiling at various heights until you find the one that you are comfortable with. If you have them, place a building or two and a few pieces of rolling stock on it to get a good feel.
40" and 60" worked out for me with the branch lines at 24" (worked sitting).
Larry
http://www.youtube.com/user/ClinchValleySD40
http://www.flickr.com/photos/52481330@N05/
http://www.trainboard.com/railimages/showgallery.php/cat/500/page/1/ppuser/8745/sl/c
Layout height, like shoe size, is a very personal thing. One size does NOT fit all.
Try experimenting with a couple of lengths of flex track, a couple of freight cars and a bunch of cardboard boxes of various heights on the dining room table (just not during or immediately before dinner.)
Another consideration - just how much height change will there be due to grades? If I had designed my main engine change facility at the currently-popular height I would have to incorporate a periscope in my benchwork and operate my top-of-the-valley colliery complex like a U-boat skipper! As it is, I may have to ease my intended grade to keep the loadout down to a visible (without stilts or a ladder) level.
I don't mind looking down on my railroad as if I was a fair climb up the adjacent mountain. I DO mind having to look UP at it.
If, like me, you find standing up for extended periods challenging, you should design for your eye level when you're seated in a nice roll-around chair.
Chuck (modeling mountainous Central Japan in September, 1964)
4x8 are fun too!!! RussellRail
I have two scenicked levels: one at 42" and one at 57". The lower one gives more of an aerial view, while the upper gives more of a eye-level view (I am 5'-8"). Most publications say that with a double deck layout, the lower level is always too low and the upper level always too high, but I actually like having two different perspectives to work with. If I only had a single level, I would definitely go somewhere between my two levels; probably in the 48"-52" range. As another poster mentioned above, at higher levels it is easier to hide things such as tracks disapperaing behind a hill or through a wall, but you can have obscured visibility of scenic elements towards the back of the layout.
Jamie
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My layout is somewhere around 38-40 inches, as I recall. I did that so I could tuck it under the 45-degree roofline without coming out too far into the room.
I would go higher if I were to do it again, though. Just a couple more inches would make a big difference in what I see as the main problem with a low layout - getting underneath it to do wiring. Layouts involve a lot of wiring - tracks, signals, streetlights, structure lights, floodlight towers and so on. If you can't sit comfortably under your layout and work on it, wiring gets to be an uncomfortable experience pretty quickly.
I like looking down on the scene, at least a bit. Scenery is a big part of my enjoyment of the railroad, so I want to be able to see all of it.
It takes an iron man to play with a toy iron horse.
Who will want to use the layout the most? Kids, grandkids? Then make the height useful to them...and safe. If it will be you, chest high is what is often recommended by the experienced builders. I was at just above belt level on my first layout, and then went all the way up to 53" at my yard. The rest is between that height and about 9" higher after grades. At 5'7", I am a shorty, and one might think 50-plus inches a bit high to do any meaningful work on the layout. Not so...I use a three-step stool to do the tricky and farther away stuff, but my views when running trains are really very gratifying.
I went with 48" after doing some crude experiments to see how far I could reach at different benchwork heights. I would have liked to go another 6" higher but found I would have created several very hard to reach areas if I went to 54".
Mike B.
My last layout was 58". This is great for viewing (and duck unders), but trains on the front track block those on back track from view. Also, my wife and children are shorter than I am (5'11") and can't really see the 58" layout well. So my current layout, which is under construction, I'm trying 50". So far this seems better, but I don't have the trains running yet - so we'll see.
Enjoy
Paul
How big is a dog?
Layout height depends on the situation and the owner. Many of the Model Railroad publications suggest 42". My first layout was built at that height(1966) and was fine. My current layout has the track anywhere from 48" to 54" off the floor. The 'width' of the layout varies fron 24" to 30"(except for the turnback loops). I am 5'8" tall and I use a small step stool to 'reach' into some of those back areas. But 'operating' the layout is no problem. As long 'walk-around' track plans have become popular, layout height has increased as the operator can 'pace' his train and wants it at 'eye level'.
If you have a 'double deck' layout, you may have to compromise on the lower/upper level heights. A friend has 36" and 56" for the two decks. sitting on a chair is needed to switch cars in a town on the lower level.
Jim Bernier
Modeling BNSF and Milwaukee Road in SW Wisconsin
Whatever is comfortable for you.. although I think 48" is pretty much considered a minimum these days.
I set my current n-scale layout at 54" and have decided to set it at 56" base going up to 60" at the summit on the next layout.
However, I am not concerned with reach in as my planned benchwork depth is no more then 2' on any side. I am also 6'1".
With higher benchwork you can play a lot more games with hiding things behind buildings and scenery. It makes it easier to divide the layout in to scenes, and it makes it a LOT easier for me to read tiny n-scale car markings.
Regards,
Chris