Whats your technique?

[wickman]

Hey gents
As I move forward on my new layout I was  thinking to myself how would other model rr modelers approach the layout build? To be more specific once your benchwork is up and track is layed and tested true do you  then fill in the benchwork with what may be a simple base or in my case open grid,   to build up later or do you pick an  area build  the base up for a town and just move structures around and leave the rest of the layout as a bare wood base and move to the other areas later?
Ive found in  with my last layout other  than larger diorammas that I had in place in the layout I tended to change things as I went as  new ideas evolved and these changes often had me cutting out benchwork to add a river where I really originally had no intension of  installing.
Your thoughts guys?

 

[MisterBeasley]

I have built scene by scene.  Typically, a scene is a square foot to 3 or 4 square feet.  Since I have a lot of urban scenery, that will usually involve a cluster of buildings and roads.  Or, a scene might focus on a waterway.

I sometimes cut pieces of cardstock to represent the footprint of buildings, but more recently I've been building simple paper mockups to get a 3D perspective.

This

became this

 

[davidmurray]

Wickman:

I built on table top around the walls, and smaller in total than yours.

After completing trackwork and wiring:

The first thing I did was set out building and cardboard boxes, etc to represent industries.

I had a friend help with an operating scheme, and then invited freinds in for operating sessions. This allows finding where another track would be usefull, where existing track needs tweaking, etc before doing much scenery.  No one wants to take out 4 or five hours of work to add a second track at an industry.

I then add base paint and ground foam to everything(4 square feet at a time).

Then several years can be spent adding structures,trees,rock faces,etc.,all while hosting regular operating session.

I left rail painting and ballasting for quite a while, as painted track is harder to move if necessary.

I hope this help, with your thought processes.

Dave, Oshawa,Canada.

[ARTHILL]

My simple opinion:

1. Build scene by scene. Scenery that is not part of a scene, fills space on an operations style layout, but never looks as if it belongs. Butcher paper covered with glue and gound foam fills space, if that is what you want.

2. If trees are part of your vision, learn to fill the space with pink (blue, purple) foam, carve it to fit the terraine and plant trees. I still find it much easier and better than plaster, though the plaster people do make a good case. Foam also makes a good base for future buildings and ponds (rivers) and can be changed as ideas progress. Nothing holds tress as well as foam. If you have never ventured into the world of carved foam, you may find it style changing.

[CTValleyRR]

Well, I'm the kind of guy who has a layout on the drawing board for years at a time, so my tinkering is done digitally.

My current layout (and my next one) is 3" of extruded foam board over an open grid,  water features are carved down I to that as much as 2".  Hills are layered onto that with more foamboard pieces, and all terrain is rough shaped with a rasp and / or mini hacksaw.  Then I lay my track.

After the track is in and tested, i use a thin layer of Sculptamold to "flesh out" the terrain.  I build my structures on a base of 3/32" styrene, so i cut out all the footprints and press them into the Sculptamold to ensure a good fit, then pull them out and wipe off any Sculptamold sticking to them. This leaves an impression where the structure will go.   After that is dry, I paint the whole thing brown (Glidden nutmeg brown).  Ballasting track comes next.

From here out, I will work in sections, generally as I complete the structures for it.  Obviously,  I can operate the layout pretty mich any time during this process.

[Capt. Grimek]

I mix it up some. After track work is in and tested I tend to do some scenicking or structure placements a little bit everywhere so that I can see early on if things will fit (usually I have grandiose ideas of how much space I really dont' have ;-) but also so that I can visualize what the entire layout/"world" will look like and if it will tie in together "artistically" and practically.  

I do this for two reasons: My brain is wired to improvise ideas as I go but I need a couple of layout focal points in place (roundhouse, skyscraper, whatever) so I can get the juices flowing from there.  I am poor at pre-visualizing things so work as I go.

It's also important to me to have my non railroady friends and aquantances see where I'm headed with this thing and that it'll look more realistic than toy like. (Most people only know about Christmas tree layouts ;-)

Inbetween placing important elements (building my entire mt. range) I then get a desire to start finishing one scene completely before the improv. bug bites again.  

It's sometimes harder to fully finish and detail one scene at a time due to disposable income streams (trickles). It's not always the convenient time to order a bunch of vehicles, figures, etc. financially when I can put the dough towards finishing the "world" lst. 

I don't think either method alone is less efficient or takes more time, etc. Blending them is working for me.

Jim

[wickman]

I'm really impressed with the great responses and how they are for the most part similar but also vary to a certain degree, if that makes scence. I'm glad that many of the responses fall in line with how I  handled my last layout. Fortunatealy enough for me I have a large variety of structures along with some diorammas to move  around  even though  my track  plan shows or is a good suggestion for where structures go. I also have a good dozen or so of structures to build that will fit in to theme areas.  I  do hope this helps others.

Lynn

[glutrain]

While I have no desire to be selfishly contrarian, I tend to use whatever technique or philosophy that improves my railroad. Yes, I started with a chosen track plan added track,wiring etc.; but I have also not been afraid to pull up all or most of my previous work as skills and ideas improve. On average, this has happened about every ten years-each time keeping the best of what was done.I view the hobby as a constant learning process. Experienced modelers will see bits and pieces of many techniques-tabletop with cookie cutter, L-girder, foam protected with plaster and sculptamold, even paper mache(which has been decades out of the modeling press). Non-modelers just see a suburban town pressed up against the mountains-all serviced by a miserly run shortline/bridge line of a railroad. The important thing is not whether to use my approach or someone else's ideas, but to be bold enough to build something by plan and intention, with out being afraid to improvise or adapt to create a happier layout. Those who are professional modelers enjoy their work, and I see no reason for those of use mere amateurs not to enjoy our efforts and progress as well. Don H.

[wickman]

Well said Don.

[rrebell]

I worked out a system that is very quick, gives you a finished look and you detail as you go along. My layout is modules  covered with foam. I then lay the cork and track and then plaster cloth the rest. If have hills planed, they have been put in I might add but it is easy to add them later if needed. I then zip texture and when dry, do basic scater of foam grasses and such, just to give a general finished look but by no means finished. You can then go back and add roads, other hills, valleys etc. at your convenience but the layout has a finished look except where you are working at the moment. 

[BroadwayLion]

LION builds station by station...

 

But as you can see, there is so much more to do...

Give the LION plenty to do for the foreseeable lifetime...

 

ROAR

 

[Hobbez]

I approach layout building with the "chicken with it's head cut off" method.  I have always done my benchwork to completion, but once that done, all bets are off.  Little track over here, little over there, work on this river scene, build that building, etc, etc.  I start my time in the layout room by looking around and whatever project catches my eye is what I work on. 

[CTValleyRR]

glutrain

While I have no desire to be selfishly contrarian, I tend to use whatever technique or philosophy that improves my railroad. Yes, I started with a chosen track plan added track,wiring etc.; but I have also not been afraid to pull up all or most of my previous work as skills and ideas improve. On average, this has happened about every ten years-each time keeping the best of what was done.I view the hobby as a constant learning process. Experienced modelers will see bits and pieces of many techniques-tabletop with cookie cutter, L-girder, foam protected with plaster and sculptamold, even paper mache(which has been decades out of the modeling press). Non-modelers just see a suburban town pressed up against the mountains-all serviced by a miserly run shortline/bridge line of a railroad. The important thing is not whether to use my approach or someone else's ideas, but to be bold enough to build something by plan and intention, with out being afraid to improvise or adapt to create a happier layout. Those who are professional modelers enjoy their work, and I see no reason for those of use mere amateurs not to enjoy our efforts and progress as well. Don H.

 

This isn't contrarian by any means.  My technique has evolved over 3 layouts now, and I'm never afraid to rip out and redo.

Everyone needs to experiment and see what works for them.  I've tried 3 or 4 different methods, finally deciding on the one I like.  I think the OP is just looking for ideas on how to proceed, not a precriptive process.

[wickman]

Thanks guys, some more good  input. Basicly wasnt look how to do it but  more  along the line of how you guys approach a  large layout and got some  good input.

[AltoonaRailroader]

I agree with Hobbez. It's whatever I'm in the mood for at the time.

[wickman]

AltoonaRailroader

I agree with Hobbez. It's whatever I'm in the mood for at the time.

 

Yes indeed. I find I tend to get so far on something then move on to a different sub subject of the layout. Today I finished off some buss feeders, then worked on getting jmri to communicate with the layout and with that success I found that two of my ds64's had the same address so got that issue sorted out. Nice to have a variety.

[Marc_Magnus]

Sharing some techniques help everyday, so I will share how I have build my railroad.

As a Belgian I started whith a European layout but switched soon to american train and layout.

My late father introduced me to model railroading and to american trains.

Early as in the beginning of the 70's he build for me and whith me a layout using open grid benchwork, a never seen in Europe.

He also push me to build diorama on the workbench because he feels it was easier to decorated this tiny models, tiny models because I am modeling in Nscale.

He give me the proposal to build these dioramaa and join them whith scenery on the layout; this was 40 years ago!

So my layout is open grid benchwork whith elevated plywood roadbed attached whith riser on the open grid; I use a medium distance of 15 cm mininmum to make negative and positive scenery around the track.

I first used compass and geometry to trace the track but now I use the yardstick method which give excellent flowing track design whith natural easement.

As mentionned, the diorama are attached also whith risers on the benchwork. In the past I build them on plywood, but now they are build on a gator foam base.

Landscape was formed whith small mesh wire, attached to plywood contours; but now I use gator foam and styrofoam contours and a lattice of cardstock they are easy to cut and modify. I glue them whith hot glue, this give a fast result

The hardshell was first paper towels dipped in plaster, after I have used plaster gauze and now have vanished plaster, because of dust and the mess it give when you use it especially around existing scenery and I didn't speak about the comments of my wife when she see plaster spot in the house.....

Rocks molds are also plaster including some form used in the scenery, these give good result but to much mess!

Now my hardshell is Red Rosin Paper covered whith full strenght white glue, no more mess and dust; even I still use rock plaster molds, they are made at the workbench and glued on the Red Rosin paper; I use this metnod after I read the book of Howard Zane about his Piermont division RR. www.zanestrains.com

Red Rosin Paper give a strong hardshell and support easily any scenery product. Even not often mentionned, some layout description in MR, GMR, and MRP prove his use and the owner are very happy whith it.

I don't now why MR had never published an article about his use 

Gator foam is a medium you can use to build village base, riverbed, mountains base contours and even roadbed; You cut it whith a cutter and glue it whith hot glue;also, no mess, no dust.

Red Rosin Paper is inexpensive and when the mountains countours are done, you cover acre of landscape in minutes, drying time is no more than an hour, I use an "express white glue" whith a very short drying time.

Red Rosin Paper hardshell is easy to do and could be modified very easily whithout many mess.

Eleminating as much dust as possible in the train room was a real concern for me and the result are winning points

 

 

[NP2626]

I tend to build things scene by scene, finishing an area before moving on to the next.  However, I feel it is desirable to fill in between the tracks with some general Lay-of-the-Land terrain as soon as I can, to keep trains from falling to the basement floor.  I still have a one loop helix where this has not been completed, yet.   My scenic method is open grid work, ½ inch plywood cookie cutter road bed and cardboard lattes work filled in with either paper towel dipped in plaster; or, Woodland Scenic’s plaster impregnated cloth.   However, there is every conceivable method of doing this; so, find try a few methods and go with the way you like best.

 

[wickman]

Thanks Guys for all the great input. I will just try to move forward.