Hello everyone,
here is another thought. It might be considered unusual or not normal, but I would like to know if anyone has had overhead staging or seen or operated a layout with that style of staging. The reason for this is simple, as I am about to hit the big 50 I am finding that the knees do not work like they used to 30 years ago. Also while surfing Youtube I found a German man in his 70's that build a helix from the first floor to the basement where his staging was at armpit height. This got me thinking, a helix to the floor below is out of the question, but not going up enough to walk under. I have had a layout in a apartment that was above the door frame which was a bit of a pain, but staging is different. The only time one needs to get up to that height is to re rail equipment and that seems easier then bending down in the long run. Any thoughts?
Thank you
Frank
"If you need a helping hand, you'll find one at the end of your arm."
Could be done. Afterall double and even tripple (or more) decker layouts have been built.
If the staging is directly over the any part of the sceniced layout enough clearence to allow for scenery will be needed. Can you provide the clearance (clearence you will be happy with) and still maintain reasonable grades.
I tried to sell my two cents worth, but no one would give me a plug nickel for it.
I don't have a leg to stand on.
I've incorporated staging on the wall side of the 58-60" high top deck of my layout. The staging yard is hidden 3-4 inches lower than the visible part and is open on top. For operations I use mirrors to see the stopping locations and turnouts in the staging area. For best access I built the staging yard first. Now I use a step stool if I need access to the staging area.
Grinnell
The February 2016 edition of MR featured a layout with stacked staging elevators serving two levels of a double-deck layout (three staging shelves per deck). The staging elevator uses threaded shafts spun by an electric motor to raise/lower the staging shelves to align with the layout deck. A similar setup would allow you to raise/lower the staging shelves to a comfortable working height regardless of the height(s) of the layout.
Hornblower
neat idea. The staging shelf can be as narrow as possible and a short board along the front 2 to 3 inches tall would hide the trains. Paint the shelf sky blue matching the walls and it may disappear.
But..
if you are only adding staging it does not need to be that much lower than the finshed layout. 12" below will give you good access to the staged trains.
Steve
I see no practical difference between staging 36 inches above the floor and staging 86 inches above the floor - except for the big bite the helix will take out of your main level space. If you intend to run reasonable-length trains or long cars the helix should be 30 inch or greater radius, carving a (minimum) 66-inch diameter circle out of your buildable real estate. OTOH, a train elevator will only cost about six inches of width and the length of the longest train you intend to run.
My personal solution for working at less than full standing height is to pull up a chair - literally. My own staging is 38 inches off the floor, easily accessed from a standard kitchen chair. I have several tucked under the benchwork, used any time I would have to be bent over or crouching. Without them, my glacial progress would have come to a crashing halt.
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)