Layout Uniqueness

[FThunder11]

WHat is Unique about your layout. Or something you did that otheres would go "why?" I know on my layout, for the road bed I didnt follow any kind of plan. I just laid one piece and kept going till it was all down with out following any kind of lines, it was all just free hand.
The only part i follpwed a line was on the big turn at the one end.

[cbq9911a]

Unique things about my layout:

1. Mixture of HO and 3-Rail O; HO on one side of the room and 3-Rail O on the other. (Both lines go all around the walls, albeit with steep grades..)

2. Use of foamcore for a layout base on a small 3 rail layoun under the main layout. It actually provides a nice base if you support it properly and avoid solvents.

3. Modeling suburbia. The HO side is broadly based on the C&NW and BN commuter lines in Chicago.

4. Modeling a railroad museum. The latest rework of the layout has a longer museum run, with some collectible HO accessories by Lionel and Tyco.

[Jetrock]

Unique things about my layout:

1. It's a belt line, all taking place in one town rather than between different towns.

2. No through freights--all trains are broken up at the yard and carried through piecemeal by switchers.

3. Floating backwards in time. Currently I model 1954-1966, but once I get trolley poles up I will be modeling 1946-1953.

[jrbernier]

The only thing unique about my HO layout is that it is 'typical' of a mid 50's secondary main line. The comment I get is that 'I have seen that some where on the prototype'. I guess the other thing is that there are no legs on the layout! 25' down one wall and 20' down the other, with 4' to 6' lobes supported by custom built 'L' brackets. Sure makes sweeping and cleaning easy.

Jim Bernier

[Anonymous]

My last layout was unique in a number of ways:

1. Marklin locos pulling American rolling stock (P2k, Athearn, Intermountain, Red Caboose, Rio Grande Models etc) on Marklin track. Had cars with Marklin couplers on one end and kaydees on the other to connect locos to train.

2. Scratchbuilt working catenary

3. Hand carved rocks - about 60 sq. feet of them including a 5 foot deep canyon

Guy

[Fergmiester]

I would have to say it would have to be my 5-8% grades on superelevated track and the use of guard rails.

Fergie

[leighant]

I have a small portable layout called the "Lighter than Air" Railroad. That is short for "United States Naval Air Station Tidelands (Lighter than Air) Railroad". It is the supply trackage "aboard" a Naval Air Station for blimps, logical consignee for helium tank cars.
http://www.railimages.com/albums/kennethanthony/aac.jpg
Beside the blimp base being probably unique, I modeled a CONCRETE water tower of a type built during WW2 to save steel for the war effort. Also military bases seem to have a combination of neatness with functionalism, a certain "look" I tried to capture. One part of the look is the landscaping in front of the admiral's Base Administration Building, palm trees and flower beds. I think that is unique for a model of a military base but actually common on Navy prototypes, at least in the Naval Air Command.

My current main layout is centered on a courthouse square town in the piney woods of east Texas. What is probably unique, more as a matter of emphasis than of absolute uniqueness, is that I tried to concentrate on modeling the PUBLIC INFRASTRUCTURE in this town. Most layouts have a lot of railroad structures, and also a lot of industries serviced by the railroad. I figured a small courthouse town would have a larger number of government owned public service buildings than normal for an average railroad town of the same size. It has a courthouse, sheriff's office and jail building, United States Post Office, and the town high school.
http://www.railimages.com/albums/kennethanthony/aad.jpg
My wide shot is an old picture taken when I had a panoramic background. Since then, I have added the town water tower (scratchbuilt from an old Model Railroader article) and water pumping station.
http://www.railimages.com/albums/kennethanthony/aag.jpg

On the edge of town is an old garage. The roof comes off and there are 6 connecting tables set up in the barn loft with a Lionel O gauge train layout (modeled in N scale) and figures with the vests of 3 different model railroad clubs "running" the layout. No it is not actually operating and sorry, I do not have pictures. But I think it is probably a candidate for unique.

Probably some unique shipments on my railroad. Of course, it carries pulpwood to the paper mills. But there is also a regular shipment of Staley's custom-engineered starch
in a tankcar from Decatur, Iowa going to the paper mills, used to stiffen and strengthen corrugated cardboard. I learned about that use from a 1957 Staley advertisement in Business Week magazine. And there is a ProTex tankcar of lignosulfate coming back from the paper mills, a papermaking byproduct used to strengthen concrete.

I have some unique plans for a future layout, maybe I'll get get to talk about them some year.

[Anonymous]

My layout is a small Marklin Digital HO scale layout. Of coarse Marklin is 3 rail in a sense as it has a pickup shoe underneath and studs embedded in the ties. Locomotive has steam sound, whistle, smoke unit, and full lighting, all controled digitaly. Plus all the switches and signals can be controled by the same hand held digital control, and that will be my next upgrade.

[eastcoast]

A unique layout ?
Yes, my layout is unique in the way that it is all my work.
I have taken much pride in what I have done on the layout.
I find that I am constantly learning and making changes
when I need to. If a visitor is in the room, I will take their
ideas and perspective and say thank you and carry on.
I cannot pick one feature I like most yet. I do enjoy knowing
that it is operating and I can run my trains when I feel.
Everyone is unique, we bring our own ideas to the table.

[RedLeader]

My layout has something really unique (I think). I fabricated a special tool to cut cork in a 60° angle, so it had a realistic profile to use as roadbed. All the roadbed in my layout is made of sheets of cork in different gauges (6mm for mainline and 3mm for sidings and spurs) and cut with that tool. The result is very similar to the commercial roadbed. I know that to some of you it may seem stupid and a complete waste of time. But down here (Colombia) MR stuff just doesn't exist. Beleive me, if I could I'll pay for the "ready-made" like must of you, it's just to expensive to buy it there and mail it down here. I must buy everthing via internet or everytime I travel to the North.

I think every layout is unique in a sence. Unless you bought one those boxes where everything is inside. (ie. Woodland Scenics/Atlas)

[jimrice4449]

My RR is unique in being virtully all yar and huge. It developed over about a 25 year span starting in a 24X25 building on one level and matasticizing (with a 12X24 extension) into a two level (psgr above, frt below) monster running 4 ft wide and 45 ft long along the north wall and 20 ft long along the west wall. The lower level has a 12 track hump yard and twotrain yards (one 5 tracks the other 10) capable of holding 40-50 car trains. The upper level has an 8 platform psgr depot capable of holding 12 to 20 car psgr trains and having 3 psgr yards with a total of 47 tracks. All of this feeds into a "main line" on a peninsula consisting of a single track loop all of 38 ft in diameter withh a couple of staging tracks running off of it and back into the yard.