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"INSTALLING MY WALTHERS CARSHOP"

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  • Member since
    January 2004
  • From: Canada, eh?
  • 13,375 posts
Posted by doctorwayne on Monday, July 11, 2016 1:48 PM

I can't see any reason to cut into the layout surface, and especially so if it's plywood, as it's likely part of the structure of your benchwork.  The floor of most structures that have floors usually aren't all that thick, so you can lay track right into them, either shimming the track as required or simply letting it form its own slight grade up to floor level, then filling in using ballast and/or ground cover.
My main shop building at Lowbanks started life as a Vollmer three stall roundhouse.  Because I had only limited space, I took it apart and rebuilt it in the form shown below.  Here are a couple of overviews from the front...

...and back...

I recently rebuilt the annex, shown in the background of the photo below, to change the front and rear walls from wood (as shown) to brick, in order to match the rest of the main building.  There is a wood addition onto the annex, too, but it was left as is:

These under-reconstruction photos show the floor of the rebuilt roundhouse, which originally had no floor.  The one shown was made from sheet balsa wood, with the main floor covered with brick paper, while that in the annex used Holgate & Reynolds plastic brick sheet over the balsa.
From the back...

...and front...

Some under construction scenes...

...and back in service...

There's also a carshop of sorts in the same complex.  It was built, if I recall correctly, from a Kibri kit for a single stall enginehouse.  I used most of the kit's two long walls on the side facing the aisle, and added a scratchbuilt annex on the side which faces the layout.
Here's a couple of shots showing the building's location...

...and a view, at left, of the annex side, taken with the camera on the layout.  The walls are Evergreen board & batten siding, with sheet styrene roofs, on both the annex and main building, covered with Campbell's corrugated aluminum sheets:

Here's a freshly painted RPO being pulled from the front door...

Because it's right on the edge of the layout, it's difficult to get a photo without including the fascia, too:

...and a view at the rear door, with a loco inside for a little paint work:

You did, after all, ask for photos. WhistlingStick out tongue

Wayne

  • Member since
    April 2008
  • From: Columbia, Pa.
  • 1,592 posts
Posted by Grampys Trains on Monday, July 11, 2016 12:16 PM

My car shop had provision for the rails to be inserted, so no cutting needed.

  • Member since
    July 2006
  • From: west coast
  • 7,667 posts
Posted by rrebell on Monday, July 11, 2016 10:41 AM

Since you have not posted a picture, it is hard to be exact but I installed a roundhouse that had issues with the doors expecting one to use built up roadbed leading into the roundhouse, mine was on flat ply, so I built down the doors some.

  • Member since
    September 2004
  • From: Dearborn Station
  • 24,281 posts
Posted by richhotrain on Monday, July 11, 2016 4:58 AM

I have installed a Car Shop and two of the Back Shop on my layout and I did not cut out any area below the floors of the shops. I saw no reason to do so. The instructions don't call for it, and the interior of the Shop is not all that visible anyhow. But, if you do choose to cut out a portion of the plywood under the floor, I see no reason why it wouldn't work.

Rich

Alton Junction

  • Member since
    December 2005
  • From: west of Portland Oreg.( the city of Roses
  • 599 posts
Posted by TrainsRMe1 on Monday, July 11, 2016 1:43 AM

Oh yes, could I see pictures of youe car and Engine shops???Big Smile

  • Member since
    December 2005
  • From: west of Portland Oreg.( the city of Roses
  • 599 posts
"INSTALLING MY WALTHERS CARSHOP"
Posted by TrainsRMe1 on Monday, July 11, 2016 1:38 AM

Hi Everybody, 

   I hope you all are having a great summer so far, and an enjoyable 4th, i have a carshop that I'm installing on my layout, I know that it's best to cut a hole through your subfloor bed to make the building and track flush, if it's foam, how about if your using just plywood, could the same method work?

Thanks All, and please have a safe Summer,

                           Trainsrme1Cool 

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