Share your dreams

[Anonymous]

I wanted this page to be used as a place where modelers could share their layout visions with us and to let positive feed back be returned.

My layout is in an 8x16 ft. space, and will depict the Norfolk and Western Railway's facilities at Roanoke,VA., and the famous Blue Ridge grade east of that city. For those who know what I'm doing and think it is impossible in that space, my track plan ends up with over 50 feet of mainline, three towns besides Roanoke, the Roanoke depot and Shaffer's crossing terminal.
I'llbe using cheap turnouts, code 100 rail, and a lot of cheap card stock for structures. I hopeto have five class Y6b's two class A's Two class J's
a K-1 a K-2 and a K-3, plus a couple of geeps and the TE-1 Jawn Henry.
All of this before I graduate high school ( five years).


Enjoy posting your dreams here, we will all listen

[j1love]

I have always wanted a Pennsy layout with a story to support it's existence. So I have developed one on http://mysite.verizon.net/vze4m38a/id11.html. My dream layout would have a long double tracked main line serving as a bridge route and termination point in Cincinnati OH. That way I could incorporate NKP, Chessie, N&W, NYC and of course the Pennsy in one layout realistically. In my version of Cincinnati, most of the premier passenger trains would either terminate or pass through my Davis & Pennsylvanian RR. Traffic would be a 50-50 mix of passenger and freight, so traffic would be of a class 1 railroad with mixed local and long distance rail traffic. I live in an apartment now, but I plan on moving to a house soon......been in negotiations with my wife for the basement or garage for a train room. I have been collecting different enginges and passenger car sets for about 7 years now, so when we finally get into a house I can start up as soon as possible. Thiese forums have been a Godsend!! the amount of information on these pages is enormous! I cannot wait to gear up and start construction! Wish me luck!

[MAbruce]

Okay, this is definitely a dream because it’s pretty far fetched.

I’d like to find a large empty retail space (think ex-super Kmart) and turn it into a visitor friendly N-scale layout empire.

From a visitor’s standpoint, it would be a labyrinth of spacious corridors & rooms with large picture windows looking into countless landscapes, industries, yards, etc. There would be plenty of seats to sit and watch trains pass through, or you could follow a train throughout the layout. One could spend hours wandering through and taking in all the sights. Sort of like a nice museum.

From an operational standpoint, the layout would be fully DCC controlled with full IR (or block?) detection that is computer controlled. Each area would be wired for surround, sound and a computer would simulate a train’s sound as it travels past any given spot. There would be hidden cameras all over the layout monitoring activity for a central control center, and/or engineers could run their trains locally via wireless controllers (or local control centers). There would be full access from behind the scenes (sort of like the vast access that Disney has for their employees), so any point of the layout can be easily reached without having to enter the visitor areas (mostly pull-away backdrops).

Operations could be complex, involving a number of people – or simple, involving a number of trains automatically running around by computer control.

The scenery possibilities are endless. Imagine a huge yard where visitors can either view from a catwalk above, or at eye level below.

Like I said, pretty far fetched…

[GDRMCo]

Mine would be pretty much like MAbruces dream. I'd like to find a large school gymnasium and put in a HOn3 layout of the Queensland Rail. It would feature the whole North Coast Line and pass through all the towns along the way and if it needs to have multiple levels in order to get scale kilometer by scale kilometer so be it. It would also have a large cane tramway (2'0" trains) section and a huge section of Mine Rail mainline.
Visitors would be given a throttle for a train which would always be a mainline freight so they will only have to sit in te hole and wait a couple of times and not have to do any switching which mightburn out the brain of those mear mortals. Once each visitor has made a run over the line they can go to their favorite location on the layout and sit and watch the trains roll past.
The opeators running the other trains and doing switchng would lye down on their tummies on small little padded carts which have rail wheels and are like a catwalk above the layout and has multiple switches for the areas where the towns are so the crews can do the required switching. On this cart is their throttle, a small laptop computer mouned on the front which has full details of the switching to be done and what stations to stop at and there would also be a switch that can cut power to whatever part of the layout or track they are working on will not get power by selecting it on the laptops map so this is used in case of a short or a head on collision can be averted. The operators will be train to handle all this and will have their reflexes tuned so that if they se a cornfeild meet about to happen they can shut off the power to the track(s) and take control of each train a put them on the right tracks.
Operations would be exactly the sameas the real QR's NCL and have full paperwork the real crews use and all the trains run will be the ones QR runs. The MR trains will operate in similar fashion while the Cane trains are run with operators on the ground who have carcards and waybills as it would be impossible to se the numbers from up above.
The rolling stock would be exactly the same as QR's fleet but all the cars will have their numbers on the roofs aswell as on their sides so that the opeerators above can switch the right cars.
My idea could work if brought to QR's attention and could possibly be a real live model train display.

[hminky]

I have started on my dream layout. My basement is 23x53 and I am filling it with an O scale narrow gauge Central California railroad loosely based on the Pacific Coast Railway. I am starting out with a 4x8 to develop techniques in scenery to apply to the larger railroad. 1/4" scale scenery is definitely different than smaller scale. The track plan has a reverse loop to be used as an out and back as I build the larger layout in segments. I am chronicling this endeavor on my website:
http://www.pacificcoastairlinerr.com
Harold

[Jetrock]

My long-term vision is to expand my layout to fit my current space (8x18 feet) with a series of shelf modules. Currently I have two 6-foot modules finished, with a third at the benchwork stage and a fourth still sitting inside a pile of lumber. Once those are done I'll have room for two and a half more (the "half" will be a lift-out section at the garage door.)

Eventually I assume I'll be able to move into a larger space, and from there be able to add more modules. In the space I have available, I really only have plans to model one particular city (Sacramento, CA) with a very small portion located across the river in West Sacramento. If I had more space I would expand the line to include other neighboring communities along the Sacramento Northern mainline, which potentially could be as far away as Oakland and Chico (about 200 miles) but will most likely be neighboring communities like Woodland, Rio Linda and Clarksburg. A lot depends on the size of the garage/basement, of course...

[Anonymous]

GDRmco, rock ON dude!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
it's nice to hear from some one as young(or younger ,in your case), as I am.
Your dream layout is far beyond MY wildest dreams,( in simpler form,DANG!)

[Anonymous]

My area is approximately 15' x 48' located over the garage. It'll basically be a large U shaped multi deck layout. I have 3 sky lights up there and can't wait to get started. First project is to fini***he room.

[FThunder11]

Cool Amtrak layout(I dont feel like typing)

[Anonymous]

ive been working on my dream loyout 5x18 soon to be stretched another 20 feet. it will constist of a city district with sky scrapers ,luminated building structures ,lighted streets,busy streets,busy sidewalks,3 level parking garage,hotels,merchantstores,train station,working crossings, and an aboveground highway and exit ramps.i also have a mountain with a working coal tower and lumber mill also a waterfall and scale 70ft gorge with scratch built wooden tressel.my future extention will be a rual sene with rolling hills and senic landscape .big auto bridge running between two mountains. entering tunnels at both ends.For me its totaly the enjoyment I get out of building things from scratch it gives me a peice of mind and keeps me out of trouble. sometimes.

[robengland]

I dream of creating a Selios/Furlow/Allen wonderland work of art. it doesn't have to be acres big but it gotta be intense: "wow" scenes; detailed scenes that tell stories; feature objects (Shays, turnatbles, trestles, odd rolling stock, special industries.... whatever); lush scenery. It will be representational rather than prototypically accurate or micro-detailed.

iwa nt it to be recognisable to New Zealanders but I'm drawn to US prototypes, so some kind of hybrid is inevitable: US equipment in LOTR scenery - what could be better?

I also want it to be fun for kids and non-MRR types as well as capable of sophisticated operations for me and my MRR friends.

It will be based on an ultra-reliable super-futuristic foundation to ensure the fun. this foundation work seems to take forever before I can get to the really fun stuff in the "top" layer. right now I am just experimenting with two learning layouts in HO and N, with DCC and JMRI, foam and Tortoises, different makes of locos, etc just getting ready.....

Looks like I'll have a 7'x18' space, though trackage rights negotiations are ongoing for other areas

[Anonymous]

For mine, it would probably be Colorado rails. It would be the whole Denver yard, the moffat line to Salt lake; through Helper, the line from Denver to Longmont, Colorado, and the line from Denver to Walsenburg(?) Colorado; through Pueblo. The Moffat Tunnel would be in 6.2 scale miles. That's lllllooooonnnnnggggg!!!!!!!!!! It would all be in DCC with sound. The motive power would be from the 1980's to present with D&RGW, UP, SP, BNSF ATSF and all the proceeding roads along those lines. I haven't started it yet, so I have to stick with the one I will make. http://www.geocities.com/trainman220002000/drgw5505.html It's just a dedication page though, because the new computer won't take Yahoo's font. Oh Well. Bye!
GO BUSH, JESUS IS KING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! [:D]

[leighant]

Somebody asked what could be done with his space. Here is a large portion of my dream layout (in a space I don't have)
Santa Fe from island seaport like Galveston through large city with secondary line to east Texas piney woods on upper level.
http://www.railimages.com/albums/kennethanthony/abq.jpg
http://www.railimages.com/albums/kennethanthony/abr.jpg

[ckape]

What I'd like is a nice single-level around-the-walls layout in the basement or an upper story with the stairs in the middle. Some city and rural switching, but also a lot of midwestern prairie mainline so that I can do switching or just sit back and watch long mixed freights go by on a continuous run.

[ClinchValleySD40]

I'm building my dream of 35 years. Benchwork is done, mainline is in. Once I fini***he yards, industries and branch lines, it will be time for ops.

[Javern]

a 500' x 1000' layout, be wealthy enuff to just work on it full time. A golf cart to get around it all, and a walk in beer cooler.

[CBQ_Guy]

WARNING -- THIS IS LONG!

Greetings all!

I am in the process of room prep in my basement for the purpose of building a fictional HO layout which will be called the Illiniwek River Branch of the CB&Q RR in late summer/early fall of 1969. The locale is rural north-central Illinois and the branch is situated off the busy double-track main of the 'Q "somewhere" between Chicago and Galesburg.

The original IR Branch was in an approximately 17 by 13 foot room in the basement of my old house. The current incarnation will fill most of my 24 by 38 foot basement in my new home. I liked the original concept so well before that I decided to do the same, but as a greatly expanded version, in the new house. To many, a sleepy rural branchline may sound dull and so to them enlarging it would really scream BORING! I don't believe this will be the case, though -- Read on.

For one thing, my free-lanced towns "conveniently" will have plenty of switching. At the end of the branch is the main reason for the branch's existence -- the coal mine of the Blackhawk Mining Co. in the town of Carbon Hill. The mine is jointly owned by the CB&Q and IC railroads, not unlike another joint mine ownership the prototype roads mentioned engaged in down south (Beardstown area?). Trios of SD-7/9's in both the Burlington's Black Bird and Chinese Red paint schemes will transport the black diamonds out of the branch to the rest of the world. Likewise for the IC units coming in from interchange trackage near Carbon Hill.

The original version of the Illiniwek River Branch only had a short track leading off the layout to hint at the connection with the CB&Q's double-track mainline as there simply wasn't any room to model even a portion of it. I dreamed of the day I could "work something out" with the wife which might allow me to expand a bit into other areas of the basement. All the politics aside, I have managed to negotiate a sweetheart deal with my better half and that is why I now have an entire basement to model in. Around three walls of the basement will be the double-track main; The fourth wall will be staging for the layout which is located in the workshop area. A good sampling of Burlington trains will traverse that trackage in both directions during an operating session, including the famed California Zephyr.

At the still un-named city area will exist Westcott Yard where trains for the branch will be made up as well as any needed switching of head end cars from the passenger trains. Overhead will be the Farmers & Miners Memorial Station with stairs leading down to the platforms below for the passengers to board the trains. Some MT cars for the branch will be stored in the yard as well as blocks of cars to/from through freights and hoppers which have been dropped off for the SD's to haul back to the mine for refilling. A short commuter train will eventually be run to transport miners, as well as any so inclined local residents, to and from towns on the branch which still have open stations. An RDC will also come in off the interchange track with the Rock to drop or pick up any passengers who want to make a connection at the large city station. There are some industries for a local switcher to work near the yards, including a local post office building, slaughter house, grocery distribution warehouse, REA building, and the Burlington Freight facility. Additionally, there are minimal diesel facilities here and the last vestiges of the steam era are discernible by such items as the filled in turntable pit, water tower, and most prominently, the small roundhouse at the back of the yard.

Leaving the yards you will be entering the old industrial district with many warehouses, a chemical facility, and some small manufacturing concerns. These will be switched by a free-lanced industrial RR I have yet to name (any suggestions?). From there, you will cross some other yet undetermined RR's tracks (MILW?, and roll onto the Burlington's eastbound main (only after receiving permission from the DS, of course!).

After crossing the bascule bridge over the S&M Canal, your train will pass some inner-city residences and businesses. You'll then encounter some petroleum storage tanks near the Rock Island interchange entering the layout under the I-34 overpass, and proceed into the town of Riverdale. It is in this area that the branch breaks off of the main to service the town while the double-track continues off on an embankment past the Riverdale station and into the distance towards Chicago (aka staging).

Riverdale is the home of a large Whirpool appliance facility; Many of the town's citizenry is employed there as Whirpool is by far that area's largest employer. Support industries for the appliance manufacturer have also located in Riverdale including Perfection Injection Molding Co. A couple smaller industries will also be calling Riverdale their home but have as yet to be determined. I have not decided yet where I will be siting the large grain elevator I want on the layout but it will definitely be in the city or near the river in Riverdale. I have also not decided at this time if there will be a switcher or GP assigned to Whirpool and/or Riverdale in general.

Transfer runs of cars for the branch will be taken to Riverdale where they will be picked up by the branch assigned locos -- CB&Q Blackbird GP 7/9's. The older EMD's will work all the branch towns exclusively. The branch curves away from Riverdale at the east end of town and passes some homes, a cemetery, the ATSF/TP&W interchange, and encounters the large electric generating utility for the Illiniwek Valley area (flat) where many hoppers of coal, and possibly tank cars of fuel oil for backup capability, will be spotted by both the 'Q and the "Tip Up". The power plant is yet to be named but under consideration are Illiniwek Valley Power & Light, People's Power, or Blaque Power.

Continuing on we meander through some tree topped bluffs at the Pine Hill area, and then cross over the branch's namesake, The Illiniwek River, on a long bridge which is four and a half actual feet in length. Coming off the bridge we round a curve and enter into a small, as yet unnamed town (though I am considering an Indian name to fit in with the flavor of this area). This is a typical, small rural town with plenty of switching serving the ubiquitous grain elevator as well as a fuel dealer, junk yard, lumber shed, etc.

On the east end of town is a corn field and past that we encounter a small lake which is really a large run off area from the fields but the locals have always called it a lake. They even named it: E. Louis Lake (which coincidentally happens to be the name of my long deceased grandfather who loved to fish). The grassy area surrounding E. Louis Lake is used by a local dairy farmer to graze his cows but he had to fence the edge of the field, of course, so they don't wander off into the adjoining woods.

Crossing a short, but sturdy bridge over Skeeter Creek, which basically is a run off ditch which feeds the lake, and then another bridge over a rural black top, we pass more wooded area, corn fields, a crossing with another undetermined RR (SOO?), another rural road at grade, and virtually disappear into a small wooded area.

Exiting the woods brings us to the outskirts of another rural town with the usual Midwest rural industries. I will probably call this town Crawford but am tempted to name it Sudz. I have noticed since moving to this area that some towns are not pronounced the way they are spelled. An outsider can be spotted by his lack of proper pronunciation of a town's name immediately by the locals and old timers. Therefore, this town won't be pronounced "SUDS" as the spelling suggests, but rather the proper pronunciation will be "SOODZ" - get it?

A large area, but operationally unreachable area at the rear of the town, should allow me the opportunity to indulge in some extensive building modeling with streets, sidewalks, and all the attendant details of streets in small town America. Might even try some forced perspective experimentation here. Another railroad, the Northwestern probably, will cross the branch at grade here and interchange with us as well.


After leaving this town, again eastbound, we pass the cement plant and then cross a road and a ravine, go under the arched wood road bridge carrying the dirt lane to the distant farm (N-scale?) and it's fields, and encounter a long siding which snakes off to the limestone quarry . A rock train will be brought down to CB&Q trackage from this quarry on a regular basis by the company power which may be of aged Alco vintage. At this point the track splits into a long passing siding as we are nearing the outskirts of Carbon Hill and it's mine, The Blackhawk (No. 2). The actual mine is somewhere back past the tree line with the coal being conveyed to the prep plant at the edge of town , but the towns folks have always just called the entire operation "the mine" - and so shall we

The area between the quarry spur and Carbon Hill may also have a fertilizer plant and an abandoned, boarded up station as sort of a ghost town - some do exist in Illinois. This will also probably be the area where the IC enters the branch, possibly on the "un-abandoned" leg of a long unused wye. The final scenario in this area is still to be determined, er, proto-freelanced.

Lastly, we come into the town of Carbon Hill proper. There is a small mine yard here as well as a couple local industries needing switching. I have no clue yet what will be in town except for the mine and where the branch track will go. The line will curve near the mine passing a row of company-type houses and enter a small two or three track yard to work cars picked up in town and along the branch to block for a return trip westbound to destinations along the branch, and for delivery to the transfer run at Riverdale to bring them back to Westcott yard for pick up by the next through freight on the way to Chicago or Galesburg yards. There is also an overgrown siding heading off to "nowhere" which used to be a continuation of the branch, or leading to a long gone industrial customer - I haven't decided yet. Anyway, all that abandoned track will serve now is storage of excess grain cars waiting for the annual rush at harvest time.

And finally, the abandoned short turntable and the two stall brick engine house track marks the end of line for the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy's Illiniwek River Branch in 1969. Soon it will also be the end of the 'Q as the merger which will swallow up the road, with others, to become Burlington Northern, is only months away from reality. But for the time being, as it has proudly done for the past 65 years, the branch will continue to serve the towns of the Illiniwek River valley via the CB&Q and ship there products to Chicago, Galesburg, and Everywhere West!

[stokesda]

I have 2 things I'd like to do on a dream layout - so different they'd have to probably be done on 2 separate layouts.

The first thing I always wanted to do is to model my hometown (Plant City, FL) circa 1970's and 1980's (when I was a kid). The RR's would be SCL, CSX, and some Chessie stuff sprinkled in for flavor.

The second one is a basement empire-type based on Colorado scenery. It would have to have a long stretch of mainline through Glenwood Canyon. There'd be lots of mountains and trees and whatnot. I'd also like to do different sections in different seasons to show how the scenery changes. Motive power would be mostly UP, BNSF, and their predecessors.

Cheers,

[jkeaton]

The Dominion Atlantic Railway in Nova Scotia, circa 1928 - overnight sleeper trains (on a 300 mile long railway!), three different ferry connections and a major ship terminal (with connecting boat trains) , two subsidiary railways with mixed trains, four interchange connections, no engines bigger than a 4-6-2, school trains, apple specials, connections to logging railways, railway-owned hotels.....

All this ideally in a space accessible to the public - perhaps a medium-sized store in a mall, or a converted fast food restaurant - one side with windows to draw people in. I'd do school tours, historical visits, and have both 'running' and 'prototypical operating' sessions, one for the public (especially children), one for me and a group of friends to operate once a week. One part of the railway would be set up so a child could be handed a throttle and 'run a train' all by themselves.

Now, I just need to win the lottery....

[Bikerdad]

Dream layout?

Think Discworld or Xanth, with Coruscant tossed in for good measure. N scale maglevs (real maglevs) flashing past so fast the eye can barely track them, while a Teapot slogs across rickety track through a swamp below. Scale mountains that are 10+ feet high, lighting that goes from day to night and back again, with moving "sun" so that the shadows change.

On a smaller, historical note, I think it might be really, really cool to do the railroad that the British (or was it the Germans? can't remember off the top of my head) built across Africa to Lake Victoria just so they could transport in parts to build ships to fight for control of the lake during WW1.