help with layout please?

[Gryphon]

Hello,

 

I am looking to get the most out of the benchwork I have shown above. I am new and open to suggestions and ideas.

 The requirements for the layout are as follows from the CEO, namely my girlfriend, who has allowed me to use the dinning room area of our apartment for my benchwork.

The layout will have a coalmine and a lumber mill. I would like a service area if possible. Steam through diesel.

Planning to have mountains on the layout. Cardboard latice work, coved with paper mache.

 

Gryphon

Cedar River Railways (Pending)

[Medina1128]

Have you downloaded RTS7 from the Atlasrr.com website? Do that... draw lines in matching the space you show for your benchwork area. You can put track down, pick it up, move it around... Will you have access all the way around that benchwork. Reaching across 4 feet areas will be really tough..

 

[selector]

The area in the large square is ideal for  24" curves, but unfortunately, they would have to form a perfect circle if you want continuous running.  Othewise, you are going to have to have a point-to-point with that area and configuration.  Now, that is not necessarily bad!  If you want mountains and logging and mining, point-to-point could be achieved with switchbacks up to each location.  That way, you could have your engine servicing on the thin ledge at right, but all the rest could be on the larger square.

[Gryphon]

Have you downloaded RTS7 from the Atlasrr.com website? Do that... draw lines in matching the space you show for your benchwork area. You can put track down, pick it up, move it around... Will you have access all the way around that benchwork. Reaching across 4 feet areas will be really tough..

 

Yes I have RTS7, still have not quite figured out how to use it. As to the 4ft, issue was planning to have a couple of hidden recess to come up from underneith and grab derailed car and engines, ect...

[SpaceMouse]

What scale? You have a lot more chance of scuceeding in N scale.

What part of the country? What road name?

[Gryphon]

What scale? You have a lot more chance of scuceeding in N scale.

What part of the country? What road name?

 

HO Scale, NorthWest, DRG&W,BNSF,MRL, & GN

[ivanfurlanis]

Those roads are not compatible: MRL operates from 1987, BNSF from 1996, but the GN merged with BN in 1970 and the DRG&W merged with the SP in 1988..

[Gryphon]

Those roads are not compatible: MRL operates from 1987, BNSF from 1996, but the GN merged with BN in 1970 and the DRG&W merged with the SP in 1988..

 These are the roads that I like. I guess like marvel comics, I am doing a what if serio. As if they had merged into one.

 

Gryphon

Cedar River Railways (pending)

[Texas Zepher]

That is going to be a tough one on all counts.  Any chance it could be reconfigured into 4'8"x8' with a 6' wing on one side?   Otherwise this is bascially a 4x6 layout with a wing.

[Gryphon]

That is going to be a tough one on all counts.  Any chance it could be reconfigured into 4'8"x8' with a 6' wing on one side?   Otherwise this is bascially a 4x6 layout with a wing.

 

Nope the bench is what I have to work with.  I was hoping some if the more experience modelers on here might  see what they could do to show me possiblities of layout designs. I have track sitting on the layout but not nailed down yet, It seems to be missing some thing.

 

[Walter Clot]

I have several suggestions.

1. Build in modules so you can move the layout easily when you break up with your girl friend.

2. Marry your girl friend or move out.

I wish you well on both adventures.

 

[selector]

Well, scan in a diagram, or draw it on the computer and post it so that we can see what you have.  Maybe that will be a good start.

[Texas Zepher]

Nope the bench is what I have to work with.

Ok then, is this like a flat top table, or is it an open gridwork where it will be easy to do elevations with?  Specifically can the "wing" area have an upper and lower segment?

Currently, am seeing a thrice around, a twice around with an out-and-back yard arrangement on the wing, OR a tiny point to point.

[Gryphon]

Nope the bench is what I have to work with.

Ok then, is this like a flat top table, or is it an open gridwork where it will be easy to do elevations with?  Specifically can the "wing" area have an upper and lower segment?

Currently, am seeing a thrice around, a twice around with an out-and-back yard arrangement on the wing, OR a tiny point to point.

 

Currrently it is a flat table. Yes the wing could have an upper segment above it.

[Gryphon]

I forgot to say this earlier thanks you in advance for all the help and time you guys have taken to help me.

[Texas Zepher]

Gryphon

Texas Zepher

I am seeing a tiny point to point.

Currrently it is a flat table.

Well, here is the tiny point-to-point that I was "seeing" for a flat table.   Just because of size it is much more fitting for a 1890-1916 era - except I turned the tracks off the round table to be parallel for a diesel house instead of a steam type round house.

 

One could, of course, do anything they wanted with the various industry tracks.  The important parts are the joint use of the round house, and a run around track at each end. 

Also note that this is using #3.5 turnouts (Atlas snap-switches), 18" radius curves, and as drawn requires one 22"/18" curved turnout. 

[Texas Zepher]

And here is the tiny twice around out-and-back, with a sissors wye for the yard entrance.  Note since there is no run around in the yard it would require two locomotives to work it.  A run-around could be added at the expense of most of the storage space.  One more yard track could be added if one didn't mind solid track, and/or it could be made more like the yard in the point-to-point above. 

I still couldn't make it work without a curved turnout, but this one is with the standard Atlas custom line #4.5 turnouts instead of the snap-switches.  Industries could be squeezed in many places as desired. 

 

[Gryphon]

Okay I am back and I am still working to make my first layout I thank you all for the help so far and look forward to the continued suggestions from this great community of fellow model railroaders.

 

Gryphon

 

A one tracked mind on a collision course with destinity.

[Texas Zepher]

Okay I am back and I am still working to make my first layout

So along what lines are you thinking now?  I'm out of ideas other than the more traditional yard or industrial area on the wing and a single or double loop on the main board.

[Midnight Railroader]

I was hoping some if the more experience modelers on here might  see what they could do to show me possiblities of layout designs.

The "more experienced modelers" are going to tell you that what you have isn't real practical due to the shape you're confined to using. The width vs. length doesn't lend itself to much more than an circle or oval. Why are you locked into this benchwork shape?

[Anonymous]

I am reluctant to get into this particular space on a small railroad.

First off, you are going to need to be mobile. This arrangement cannot be pernament because you state that you are with a Girlfriend and in a Apartment.

All things considered it is a good way to test the relationship and perhaps positively speaking result in a happy marriage where there will be trains in the home in the future.

On the other hand if things dont go well you at least need to have your Mine and Sawmill on a small base where you can put it all into a box and take with you to a new home or move into a bigger and more pernament layout.

I see the two small plans that was posted by Texas and Space and they are quite good with two different approaches to the same space.

You probably will be seeing 18-22" radius at the most 40' equiptment to maintain a balanced view of the railroad. Fortunately there are good engines and cars out in HO that will do the job well. I own a Roundhouse 4-4-0 that will be right at home on this small space but leaves my big steam out in the cold.

Control will definately be a Digitrax Zephyr or similar because you wont need very much in the beginning and still be robust enough to expand in the future.

To me apartments are not secure places to live, I lived in one for a time and did well but far better to be a homeowner if you can make that happen. I can tell you that in my apartment my trains sat in boxes and did not fare well.

[selector]

 

TZ, that is a nice design!   The only thing I would try hard to incorporate is a turning wye.

[Anonymous]

Selector, he DOES hae a wye. Take a look in the top center, drive an engine out of the yard from the right to the left side. Come back through the switch over the crossover and continue to the curved turnout. Proceed forward and voila! yer turned around.

He did forget to put a second span bridge, Im assuming Atlas Warren Truss here. he already has the one bridge, just need to extend it a few inches.. maybe a cut down plate girder or something.

I beg forgiveness but I took both Mouse's and Texas plans and saved to the local computer for future study. They are that good.

I also wanted to say that with the apartment space and clear goals in mind like a sawmill and mine, you need to put some track down and get those two industries up and running pronto. Just remember to try and keep it easily broken down for transport.

[selector]

Okay, I see the wye...thanks for pointing it out, Safety Valve.  I was looking downward toward the crossing, and didn't look beyond to the next turnout where the two lines meet.

So, I like it completely!

[SpaceMouse]

Okay, I see the wye...thanks for pointing it out, Safety Valve.  I was looking downward toward the crossing, and didn't look beyond to the next turnout where the two lines meet.

So, I like it completely!

[WC Fields] Ah yes, the ol' space-saver wye[/WC Fields]

[Texas Zepher]

He did forget to put a second span bridge, Im assuming Atlas Warren Truss here. he already has the one bridge, just need to extend it a few inches.. maybe a cut down plate girder or something.

Didn't forget just figured everyone could assume it from what was given.  Sort of like the industrial tracks that could be "squeezed in" as the owner desired.

I beg forgiveness but I took both Mouse's and Texas plans and saved to the local computer for future study.

That's why they get posted.  And that is why I still love the 101 Track Plans book that so many people are dissing these days.  It is chuck full of wonderful track constructs that can be applied in many many different situations. 

[Gryphon]

Being I am confined to such a smallspace. A 4'8" x 6' with a 2' x 4' wing.

 In building some of the the models for the layout the wing has become the outskirts of a town.

In the front is the street with a single row of buildings broke up into 3 blocks.  On the back wall is a walters background building 2" in depth with some homemade tanks as an industry. and a old wooden coal tipple inbetween the fore and aft scenery is a single line track with roon to be a double mainline.  I figure in the 4'8" X 6' area could have a line hugging the wall and running around to an engine servicing area and maybe a small switching yard. On the back wall  I plane to run the track through a couple of mountains build to hug the wall to give the appearance that the train has traveled farther that it actually has.

 

Being the area I have to work with is so small trying to figure out whqat kind of industies to consider that will not require lots of room.

 

Thanks For Your help in advance.

 

P.S. when i get home I will drawn out a sketch of what the wing looks like since I have no camera as of yet to take photos.

[SpaceMouse]

Industries can be represented without being fully modeled. A front can have just a loading dock. A coal-loading facility can be just the tipple and conveyor originating from over the hill. (Saw a great prototype for that one).

 

[Gryphon]

I have noticed than the more one spends on these forums lurking the more our engineer heads come up with a better mouse trap. Since I last wrote about my benchwork I have changed jobs, I am in construction now and the more I look at my bench work the more I want to do some sort of cookie cutter layout, in a module design to be moved when that time comes.

 Plan A

Backwall 8 feet wide

Right Wall next to Kitchen Entry 2 feet long

Left wall 6ft long

Front  4 feet wide Executive decision by GF so she can get in kitchen.

Plan B 

 

Build 3 standard 2'X4'  modules

Plan C 

Put shelves around the room and have mini scenes and long truss bridges that can be removed when not in use.

 

Plan D  

 

Sell off all my HO scale and switch to N scale, not likely I'de bbe shot after all the HO scale gifts I have recieved. 

 

 

 

 

 

[selector]

Plan B...for certain.  For one thing, once you have them built, you can start a fourth, then a fifth, and so on.  Getting tired of module #2?  First module no longer cuts the mustard for ya?  Insert numbers 4, 5, and onward.