markpierce Hey Tom. The fellow already said he wasn't modeling the Donner Pass route. So, rest easy. Mark
Hey Tom. The fellow already said he wasn't modeling the Donner Pass route. So, rest easy.
Mark
Mark:
OOPS! You're right. I skipped over that sentence.
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!
It looks to me that whoever designed this "Donner Pass" layout never got closer to the actual location than, say, perhaps Omaha, NE.
If you're thinking of modeling the actual Donner Pass, I'd suggest some good books on the subject, such as Signor's DONNER PASS. A terrific book with lots and LOTS of modeling ideas.
But certainly NOT this track plan.
cuyama John Armstrong's Track Planning for Realistic Operation is the best overall guide to layout design, IMHO.
John Armstrong's Track Planning for Realistic Operation is the best overall guide to layout design, IMHO.
A good supplement, especially when one is designing based on specific prototype locations, is Kalmbach's Realistic Model Railroad Building Blocks, an introduction to layout design elements by Tony Koester.
If you plan to make all those changes and expect to fit this into an eventual larger layout that's based on a real locale, this plan has little to offer you, in my humble opinion. You'd probably be better off designing from scratch if you are willing to put in the background study beforehand.
Best of luck.
Layout Design GalleryLayout Design Special Interest Group
Don't like the track plan at all but if you do that is fine. Go with the foam and the WS inclines, I would never go back to the other. Just mounted my ground throws to shims of wood caulked to the foam to line up with the roadbed, seen other mount their switch machine under the layout the same way.
The only thing this trackplan suggests about the Donner Pass route is the misplaced place names. The NCNG interchanged with the SP at Colfax, not Roseville, and there was no direct connection between the two railroads. Freight and passengers had to be transferred between standard gauge and narrow gauge equipment. The yard is virtually unworkable for clockwise departures and and counter-clockwise arrivals.
This layout puzzled me when I saw it in the magazine: a large yard that basically dominates the overall layout, but not enough staging or industrial trackage to really make use of it. Some folks might want to park mulitple complete trains in the visible yard and run them out one after another.
Depends on where your interests lie, but it seems like there would be better choices in this much space for many folks.
As far as benchwork, "girder" and "cookie-cutter" are not either/or choices. If by "girder" you mean L-Girder, it can be used with a cookie-cutter style surface. But cookie-cutter can also be used with a grid style framework beneath (often called "open grid").
An excellent resource for benchwork is How to Build Model Railroad Benchwork, 2nd edition, by Linn Westcott and Rick Selby. If you know of any other model railroaders near you with layouts or a nearby club, looking at how people built their benchwork can be very helpful. Best of luck.
ByronModel RR Blog
I have a printout of the Donner Pass Divison N-Scale layout printed out. http://www.trains.com/mrr/default.aspx?c=a&id=1488
I am looking for some advive on the benchwork. I have never done anything more than tabletop layouts and used foam and woodland scenics incline kits for grades. I am figuring on building this layout with very few modifications and was wondering if anyone could give me some advice. Should I use a "cookie cutter method" or some form of a girder style. I think for how tight things are compacted, and all of the turnouts would make the foam base tough to make it work. Along with that, I would like to use tortise switch machines on the main lines and sub lines. I will probably just use ground throws in the yard. Please give some ideas. I have been racking my brain for nights on end on this one.