How Much Time Do You Spend on Your Layout?

[whitman500]

After seeing some of the layouts that people have built, I'm amazed at what others have accomplished. I'm curious about what it takes, timewise, to really get a good layout built. As a starting point, here's a list of questions that might be useful:

1. How large is your current layout?
2. How many months/years have you been working on it?
3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?
4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?
5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?

My answers are:

1. 48 sq. ft.
2. 4 months.
3. 15 hours.
4. 10%? Track has been laid and wired and a couple of buildings built.
5. 6 on a scale of 10 (10 being builds everything from scratch, 1 being buys everything fully assembled and places it on the table).

1. 48

[steveblackledge]

1. about 65 sq ft
2. 18 months on this one but whats a finished layout / do you ever sit back and say "Thats Finished"
3. 4 hours per week
4. 30% complete, still got some benchwork to do, and tons of scenicing
5. i would say 6-7 out of ten

[Javern]

1. about 20 x 25
2. 3
3. 5 - 15
4. 20%
5. about a 6 on the perfection scale

[Anonymous]

Question:
How Much Time Do You Spend on Your Layout?[

Answer:
Not enough.

[AggroJones]

1. about 74 sq ft. in a bedroom
2. 9 months on this one.
3. I'll say 22 hours a week
4. track is all laid. Scenery is 55% complete
5. I go all out in certain task. Others, I just say "thats good enough".

[twhite]

1:24x20 (just added an extension)
2: 3 years (this is my second)
3: Depends. Lately, about 4-5 hours a day.
4: Just finished the track on the extension, putting in the scenery. Total scenery on the road is about 65% done (until I find something else to add).
5: Hard to say. I'm no scratch-builder, but I'm an inveterate 'kit-basher'. Probably 6 out of 10.
Tom[:D]

[pedromorgan]

Question:
How Much Time Do You Spend on Your Layout?

none, but i spend loads stood buy the side!!

i dont actually have a layout at the moment and i wont have untill the weather warms up!

Peter

[vsmith]

Sheeeee-iiiiiiii-oooooooot ! This is a loaded question!

The answer is simple...
If you ask me.....Not enough
Ask my wife.....Way too much!!!!

Oh well, for the questions posed...
1. How large is your current layout?

8' x 20'

2. How many months/years have you been working on it?

2 years including 2 teardowns and rebuilds

3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?

sometimes 0 but never more than 6 to 8 hours per week

4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?

I dunno? I got the bench work, track down, wired, and operational, working on building now to get most to a basic level of completeness before I start scenery. I guess 50%

5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?

Hahahahahahaa!!!! a 0!!! Actually I can get pretty anal about something but for the most part I treat every piece like an art object, IOW if it looks good to my eye, thats all I care about and I could give 2 figs about anyone elses opinion.

[revandy]

1. How large is your current layout?
8' X 15'

2. How many months/years have you been working on it?
the original layout is approx 14 years old. HO, freelance pike, 1950's era. In the last 4 months I have ripped out 80% of it and begun re-building.

3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?
4-6 hours, a heck of a lot more when I retire!!!

4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?
10%.

5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?
5-6. I appear to be re-learning a lot of stuff!

Rev. Andy

[Pruitt]

1. How large is your current layout?

My layout will be a partially double-decked 29 X 30 feet. Right now it's more like Atg this early stage of construction, it's about 29 X 22, single-decked.

2. How many months/years have you been working on it?

This is the depressing part - about six years now. Lots of breaks in construction for house upgrades, a move, etc.

3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?

More in the last few months, as I've decided to slow the pace of home improvements somewhat. I probably spend about seven hours a week on it, and I want to increase that.

4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?

Maybe 5 percent or less. The only real major accomplishment so far is the completion of the NP staging loop except for the Minneapolis yard.

5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?

Depends on what area we're talking about. In terms of trackwork and smoothness of train operation, pretty highly. In terms of detail level of locos and rolling stock, not quite so high, as long as things aren't grossly out of plkace. In terms of scenery, again probably pretty high. For prototype fidelity of the locations I model, high enough to give the scene the right "ambiance," but not fanatical.

[Anonymous]

1. 8' x 4' (small)
2. Started January 1st, 2005 (2 months)
3. Anywhere from 5-10 hours per week
4. Completed are: Bench work, track bed, road bed, track (includes bridges and tunnels) I have started the scenery in areas not affecting wiring. I am in the process of getting my switches installed and feeders soldered to the rails.
5. I think I'm a middle of the road guy on your ranking scale. My models are all built to spec, but aren't scratch built.

Trevor

[rexhea]

1. How large is your current layout?
18x24 plus 2.5x12 extension

2. How many months/years have you been working on it?
16 months

3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?
25-30 (I'm retired [^] )

4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?
Track: 85%, Scenery 10% [:I]

5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?
Not a rivit counter, but (7) in the begining, moving toward (10) with more experience. If it doesn't look real, it ain't right!

REX

[whitman500]

As I read these replies, I'm beginning to wonder whether my rate of progress is more a function of inefficiency than lack of time devoted. Anyway, I suppose I will get faster at doing things as I get more practice.I'm definitely faster at laying track now then when I first started.

[Anonymous]

Well I have a great layout and as of about a few weeks ago I was working much on my layout, but I have taken sime time away just to do what I like to do around my home. Basically redoing the walls.

1. How large is your current layout?
20x15

2. How many months/years have you been working on it?
9 months total time

3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?
recently only 5 hours max, but prior I was spending about 15-20

4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?
I have all track laid trains running, I am on the final lap of BASIC scenerywork.

5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?
I am not a perfectionist but I am surely a very good 27 year old modeler. I give myself a high rating of skill in wiring, scenery, and track layout, oh and benchwork.

[jdolan]

My 7th layout is 12' x14' in size.
Have been working on it for 2 years, did a complete tear out and restart in october of 2004 because didn't like what I started.
It is about 20% done now.
I spend about 20 hours a week on it.I'm retired so it is my entertainment.
I rate myself at 6 or 7 as a perfectionist.

[Anonymous]

1. 11' by 22'
2. 4 years
3. about 22 hours per week
4. about 80 % done. I have the track laid and ballasted. I only have about 35% of scenery to complete.
5. I don't scratchbuild but I kitbash. I'd say about a 4-5.[:D]

[bikerraypa]

1. 8'x8' (HO), 3.5'x5' (N)
2. about three years
3. probably 10-12 in winter, less in summer
4. Neither is "complete," but the N layout is more complete than the HO.
5. about a 6-8


Ray

[claycts]

Planning 2.5 years contruction time in that period "0". HOPE to spend 20 hours per week! What was that, YES HONEY I will fini***he kitchen remodel. Revised time about 10 min a week!!

[egmurphy]

I spent most of my life either as an armchair model railroader or totally inactive. Now that I'm retired I'm finally building a small layout. So a lot of what I'm doing is stuff I'm doing for the first time, or at least new in technique.


1. How large is your current layout?

About 20 square feet, 3' x 6'-8". Built on a hollow core wood door.


2. How many months/years have you been working on it?

If I don't count the time it was boxed up in the move? We unpacked it in September last year (at that time it had just the first layer of foam and a very small amount of cork roadbed placed). So let's say six months.


3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?

Wow, like others this varies all over the place. A number of weeks I did absolutely nothing. When I am active in construction I probably spend maybe as much as 8-12 hours per week. Some times just a couple of hours.


4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?

All track layed and all wiring done. Simple DC cab control with just a few blocks. Scenery is foam based, and contours are probably 90% complete, with 75% having received a coat of tan paint (to disguise the blue foam). Just now starting the first ground foam application. No structures (other than a couple of temporary mockups).


5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?

Not really sure how to answer. I don't consider myself to be a good modeler, and so my expectations are probably only middle of the road. I'm in N scale, my eyesight isn't perfect, and I don't look at my trains with a magnifying glass when I'm operating. I would like to wind up with an overall look that is pleasing.



Regards

Ed

[Anonymous]

1. How large is your current layout?

13' x 22' double decked

2. How many months/years have you been working on it?

Almost 2 years including contstruction of the layout room.

3. How many hours, on average, do you spend a week?

10-12 hours, I don't watch much TV at night

4. What percent complete are you (or, what major tasks have been accomplished)?

5% have laid 300' of flex in staging, built double track helix and lower deck benchwork. Am ready to start laying track in the yard.

5. How would you rate yourself in terms of being a perfectionist?

Most items I care about a 9..... The layout will take years

Goal for this year is to complete the main line up and around the top deck.

[Anonymous]

1. approx 250 sq feet
2. 3 years...every week it gets too much time
3. at least 10 hours a week, but in reality a lot more (thinking time!)
4. are they ever finished...I hope not
5. 10/10 in my head, but probably 7/10 actual

[ksax73]

It all depends on what train I'm modeling. I operate my passenger trains according to real time.

I typically like to operate Regionals and Acela Express trains (8 and 6 hours respectively). I only get to do this on weekends like on a Sunday. I can squeeze in an Acela Express run during the week every now and then.

Some say that may be way too much time but I figure after all the money I put into the hobby, I'm not going to have my equipment just sit there and collect dust if I can help it.

[Anonymous]

1. 30 square feet, 5x6

2. 2 years

3. Most of the time one hour a week. As I find it harder and harder to get enough money to buy supplies. (T_T ) <-- crying JCtrain (^_^)

4. 2% complete, Ive finished building all the kits I bought (6) and am starting to lay track

5. So far on this layout an 8. No RTR items at all and I will always do something over if its possible.