I am building my N Scale Layout that is around the room. It is going to be a three level mountainous layout. The first level is done. My Question is, do the next two levels that will be going through the mountains have to be connected in some way or can they be 3 seperate railroads? Any Opinions?
Well, if the first level is done and you've not planned for or built any provisions to get to Deck #2, then you're pretty much stuck with the two being unconnected.
There's no getting past the physics of rise over run. If you don't have plenty of the latter, then the former is too much of an obstacle to overcome.
Mike Lehman
Urbana, IL
joeseppe!
Welcome to the forum!!!
The only rule is that its your railroad - you can do what you want.
Your 'mountainous' plan suggests that you would rather spend most of your time running trains through scenery as opposed to switching trains, although of course the two can be combined and perhaps should be. Several people on the forum over the years have suggested that simply running trains round and round can get boring pretty quickly. Perhaps you could have one level with more switching options and the other two aimed at mostly running.
Joining the levels has the advantage that you can have a much longer single run so a specific train doesn't repeat its route so often. It has the disadvantage that it takes space to set up the track needed to get from one level to the next. There is also the possibility that you can make all three levels into one continuously elevating track.
As Mike points out however, unless you are willing to tear up your first level, you have already determined that you will have separate levels.
There are a lot of forum members with excellent layout design credentials. If you post some more details like room size and an initial layout plan if you have one you will get lots of good suggestions. Details about era, desired industries or passenger operations etc. will help.
Dave
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
Welcome to the forums.
Really it is pretty much up to you if you want to connect them or not. There are multi level layouts that are different scales on each level and not connected. There are also layouts with multiple levels that are connected. As suggested above, it takes a long run to gain enough elevation to have a reasonable space between levels.
You could use a helex to get from one level to another, but they are space eaters.
Another method of getting trains from one level to another is an elevator. This is a section of track long enough to hold your train to be raised or lowered to another level.
Yet another method is using cassettes. A section of the layout is removeable and can be connected to another level or another point on the layout. (If you have a harbor, you could have the cassette as a car float.) You can also have multiple cassettes and have a storage area for them, which acts as an off layout staging yard.
Just some ideas that come to mind.
Have fun,
Richard
RAILROAD of LION is on three levels. The "Back 40" is along tow 20'+ walls, and is three levels, the loops ramps ahdn helixes are on the wider tables that stick out into the room.
Route of LION is more than 900 feet of track, 14 scale miles, 9 scale miles on the "local Track" from 242nd Street to South Ferry and back again, taking a train 20 minutes to make the run.
Visit website of LION (below) for ideas if you are interested.
ROAR
The Route of the Broadway Lion The Largest Subway Layout in North Dakota.
Here there be cats. LIONS with CAMERAS
Me again.
If you go to User Videos, there is one called The Turtle Creek ..., Pt 2. It has an elevator. This one happens to be on a curve, but others I have seen have been straight.
Good luck,
Thanks everyone. Once I figure out how to post a picture or two I will get them on here.
Joey
Elevators can be big projects to make work. It can be done, but be prepared for a major learning curve. That said, an elevator on the straight will be challenge enough. I'd try to avoid one on a curve if it was my first elevator.
Ideally you should have room either in back or on the sides to fit a straight elevator. Also, please define "done", is it done as in the bench work, the track/wiring work, or the scenery work?
If you can not fit an elevator on the sides, or in back, then hopefully you only have the bench work complete. You have two options, A) cut a hole in the bench work for the elevator to fit into so the tracks in the elevator are level with the tracks on the benchwork or B) have a grade leading up to the level of the tracks in the elevator. You can hide the elevator be hide a piece of plywood which would act as a side wall.
Now to design the elevator, there are two philosophies, A) make the elevator some what heavy so your heaviest train would be about 10%-40% and then have a counter weight that is a bit heavier than the weight of the empty elevator (but not heavier than a the loaded weight). You then jut have a small motor driving winches attached to the elevator and counter weight. If you have DCC, you can use a motor and decoder for a locomotive to power the elevator. B) make the elevator as light as possible and just use large/strong motors,however you will most likely NOT be able to use motors and decoders from locomotives (unless you want a slow elevator). Remember gearing is important.
Now to keep the elevator aligned. I would suggest installing rails to the sides of the elevator shaft (the plywood) I would then attach trucks to the sides of the elevator, and install the plywood sides close enough together so the wheels are in contact the rails on both sides, but allow the wheels to freely roll. This is an easy way to keep the elevator aligned in the shaft using parts on hand.
Now to have a solid connection at each level. I would use metal pins on each level that insert into holes on the elevator. You could use a switch machine move the pins in or out. You can also use the pins to power the track on the elevator (instead of having a mess of wires), and that way the locomotive can't run off of the elevator when it is being raised or lowered.
Railroad in ANY scale, even 1:1 is NEVER done.
Always changes. It might *look* done to you, but you can always rip something out and replace it with something else.
LION built table too close to wall, him got 30 people and moved it away from the wall. Now had space (this was last layout, not of LION layout now.
Pull table of you away from wall, have place for ramp. : )
Ok, Dave I'll bite. I have a 13X36 area for a model RR. The problem is my staircase comes down in the middle of it. I would like a multi level layout, lots of scenes and scenery, (bridges, tunnels, visual interest) also branch line. Fairly large radii, I have 85' passenger cars. A yard and some switching. Highest level can only be 53" if RR goes under staricase. Any of you with 'excellent design creds' as Dave sugessts, I'm open. I model the transition era like many modelers. I have medium and heavy steam, F's FA's PA's E's geeps.
Can you post a simple sketch of your room? Just pencil is ok, but include shape and dimensions. Then tell us a few things like you just did with scale and mountainous- era you wish to model, what would a fun session be like for you, what do you enjoy doing etc.
A number of folks will come to life if you give some specifics.