I am moving my layout tomorrow. It is 100% foam suspended on a glass table. What started as a winter project ended up to be two and a half years, maybe three and a half.
It is being moved to a more designated permanent location now.
Tomorrow I will build 42 inch cantilever truss support brackets to suspended it off the wall. It will have heavy duty drawer slides so It can be pulled out from the wall at any given time as I need to get behind it. 4×8 layouts need access from both sides like an island, everybody knows that.
Aerial views on a layout are nice sometimes but not all the time. A permanent eye level view of a layout should take some consideration.
When pictures are taken of railroad activity, weather modeled or prototypical, it should be the same.
To me that's what eye level viewing of a model railroad should be like.
I am 5 foot 10 inches tall.
Thanks for your help in advance.
Track Fiddler
Should the scenery height play a role? I'm thinking of the top level of the Canadian Canyons. I think I would not want the mountains towering over my head. If you are modeling Kansas, scenery height is less of a consideration.
I'd have to measure my layout, 50" and I'm 6', but it is still under construction and I have an inoperable rotator cuff tear. I wanted it higher but realized that I cannot work on scenery comfortably. You seem to beyond that stage, but I mention it for newbies who might not realize that construction is different that viewing.
Henry
COB Potomac & Northern
Shenandoah Valley
Good point Henry, well taken.
I as well, way under construction. It may be to my best interests to keep the Truss supports low for now.
It's not like it can't be moved up at a later date. My layout is foam like a feather, it can be moved easily.
PS I think you just cinched up this thread in answering my question.
Thanks Henry. TF
I went for 4 feet and I love it. Just perfect.
I'm beginning to realize that Windows 10 and sound decoders have a lot in common. There are so many things you have to change in order to get them to work the way you want.
BNSF UP and others modeler I went for 4 feet and I love it. Just perfect.
Sounds good..... respectfully how tall are you
Everybody has a different idea of what the right height should be. Until you see it yourself you won't know. Mock something up at various heights and see which one you like. Use boxes, furniture, or whatever to support something you can look at as if it were part of a layout.
My track heights range from 39" to 53". Different visitors and operators comment on how different areas of the layout work for them.
Rob Spangler
I'm 6'-0". My eye level is 65". My armpit height is 56" (more or less, kinda hard to measure). Ancient rotator cuff tear (I feel for you Brother BigDaddy) that has long-since healed with full mobility.
My layout height is 52". That is a little too high. I think 48" would be better. I made it 52" because the lower level is 34" and I wanted an unobstructed clear 18" bottom deck to allow full scenicking down there.
I have two step stool/chairs, and I like the view from the 9" footrest. I also have a 30" by 30" by 12" high platform I use while working on the upper level. Kinda like an orchestra conductor platform. It gives me a little space to move around; it is also good for general overall views. Bird's eye views from the 18" high top step/seat of the aforementioned stool/chair.
24' by 25' room with 9'-4" ceilings.
Robert
LINK to SNSR Blog
Another thing to consider is: will you always be standing while operating your layout?
My father-in-law us going to be working on my main project layout with me. We're both a bit north of 6', but he's not able to stand very long due to several medical issues.
I tinkered around with the height of a small 2x8 switching layout I'm building from leftover parts for practice, and I discovered that a 42" height works very well with an office chair. It's also still low enough to work on the layout comfortably. So one can operate from almost ground-level, or get a bird's eye view for either ops or construction work.
Just my on that.
- Adam
When all else fails, wing it!
Always standing while running trains and switching, 5' 10" tall, layout is 50" high, BUT that also works out good for the Tupperware storage container shelving under the layout, which is what mine started out to be.
I think it worked out perfect for viewing. I'm the only one, no kids, occassionally the wife, usually just me. I have a stool for reaching areas towards the back.
Mike.
My You Tube
What is the ideal height for a human to eye level? Sounds silly, but that's really the answer.
There is no one right answer. It depends on how tall the builder is, how tall the operator(s) is/are, how tall the prospective viewers are, and just what sort of operation you plan to have. What's eye level or just pleasingly below foor one person may be over the top of someone else's head. Or vice-versa, eye level for one might be barely chest high for someone else.
Right at eye level is pleasing for railfan type operation, just watching the train go by - it's like standing trackside. But what a pain to actually build, constantly standing on step laddfers to reach anything. ANd reaching in to couple and uncouple cars? Next to impossible. Lower it a bit for easy reach in construction and switching cars, and now you don't have that railfan perspective, it's more like standing in a tower or flying over in a helicopter. Or maybe standing on a nearby hillside.
Our club layout is not super low like many are to allow small kids to see, but it's not all that high, either. High enough that the smallest sticky fingered kids need to be lifted by a parent, but the older ones can easily see without help. Not so low that it's a back breaker to work on. But we're different than a lot of publicly viewed layouts - we as a gorup HATE the 'moat' concept where there is a line of ropes strung a couple feet out from the layout to keep people more than an arm's length away. We have plixglas panels along the edge so you cna step right up to the layout and look. Smaller kids look through the plexiglas and can't reach over, taller kids and adults (you know, the ones who should know better) can see directly on to the layout without the plexiglas in the way. We don't need space along the outside to operate, we run the trains from inside the giant donut hole (the layout is somewhere along the lines of 28x150 these days, with most of the benchwork 2 feet wide, so the 'donut hole' is on the order of 24x146 with some intrusion by wider sections). We have tables and chairs in there and still plenty of room to walk around following your train.
So there really is no answer to give - this is probably the most subjective thing in model railroading. The ideal height is all about your preferences and needs. There's no one technical answer to the question.
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Track fiddlerTomorrow I will build 42 inch cantilever truss support brackets to suspended it off the wall. It will have heavy duty drawer slides so It can be pulled out from the wall at any given time as I need to get behind it.
Or you could use wheels.
I built one layout at "eye level", never again. Actually it was the upper deck of a multi level layout, built at about 58".
The new upcoming layout, base track elevation will be 38" or 40", max track elevation about 46". No more double deck layouts for me.
Eye level viewing......sit in a chair, I will be keeping my aisles wide for that reason, most will be 5'.
Just my thoughts.
My new layout will have deep scenery, 3 to 4 feet most everywhere. After building a few "shelf layouts", I have decided I prefer a more old school approach.
Sheldon
I find it difficult to think anyone on this forum can say what is right for you. The only way you will really know is to experiment, perhaps setting a module on different heights and eye balling it for awhile.
To paraphase a local mattress maker here........."what's right for me is not right for you", "we are all different".
ENJOY !
Mobilman44
Living in southeast Texas, formerly modeling the "postwar" Santa Fe and Illinois Central
I am 6' 6 1/2" (and I was 6'8" when I started the layout!) so my notions of layout height are unlikely to be shared by many. Height, age, mobility, eyesight, size of stomach (yes!), depth of benchwork, the lighting and physical situation in the layout room, all factor in. And if you operate with friends, the issues multiply.
One thing is clear, or at least is becoming ever more clear to me: the "ideal" height for the layout just based on viewing/"railfanning" and layout photography -- which is in that armpit to eyeball range -- is NOT the same height as for track laying, scenicking and creating roads and structures, and most critically, layout wiring.
David Barrow would do as much wiring as possible of his benchwork "dominos" on his workbench rather than wiring them in place, but not all are in a position to follow his lead.
Dave Nelson
It's really a matter of preference. A true eye level layout would put you at ground level. There are pros and cons to that approach. I stand 6 feet and I've found 4 feet to be the minimum height I want my track to be. With grades, there are places where it rises to almost 5 feet. That is the highest I would want my track to be.
I am six feet tall. The rail height on my eye level layout is between 60 to 66 inches. Most of it is at the 61 inch elevation for part of it climbs up into the mountains. With the elevation just over a foot below my height I get a view which is like standing in the middle of a street looking at the trains and buildings. The roofs of two or three story buildings are just above eye level. I prefer this kind of in your face layout compared to the overhead helicopter view. It makes the distances seem farther and you can see the details much better. Some people might think that this is too high but I built it for me not them. Kids grow up and they grow to be your same height or taller. I have a couple of stepstools for when I need to be up higher for decorating or maintenance. If short people want a better view they can stand on a stepstool. The best way to decide which height is best for you is to use adjustable shelves as a test. Set some of your locomotives and cars on the shelf, also some buildings. Test all of the levels and see which level you prefer.
Track Fiddler:
I am 5' 6" give or take
Thanks for all the replies. Your comments definitely gave me more to think about. Sometimes Common Sense isn't exactly my strong suit.
Had I put my layout at an ideal finished height before the work is done wouldn't have been a good idea. I'm sure this would be hard on my rotary cuff as I have a kink in one from working construction all my life.
As it turns out there was too many errands to run on my day off yesterday so maybe I'll get to it this weekend. I think I will put the height at 34 inches so things are easy to work on. I can always move the layout up someday when I am finished.
Thanks again Track Fiddler
PS. Again the layout is very light being that it is made of foam. The nice thing is I can flip it up on its side to make wiring easy when I get to that part.
I am 5'11". My layout is a three level mushroom design. The lower level is mostly at 42" with one section (Ogden) at 46". The middle level is mostly 62", and the upper level is mostly 52" with one area at 58". So it has heights of 42, 46, 52, 58, and 62. Hopefully everyone can find a height they like. :)
Modeling an HO gauge freelance version of the Union Pacific Oregon Short Line and the Utah Railway around 1957 in a world where Pirates from the Great Salt Lake founded Ogden, UT.
- Photo album of layout construction -
I'm 5'8" and have a 2" foam layout on top of a 48" table. That height works for me. Looking at a layout at eye level is ideal. Having it at waist or chest level doesn't appear suitable for me.
I am 6 foot 7 inches. Nothing in the world is "eye-level" for me.
.
RR_MelIf this will be your last layout think about your future.
This is the best advice. My layout is going to be at wheelchair height and wheelchair access. Just in case. I have had several friends through the years become bound to wheelchairs, and lose their layouts.
Also, build your front benchwork strong enough to install a bathroom style support bar when that becomes necessary, it will.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
No doubt that "eye level" gives you the feeling of the real thing, but what eye level really means, is an equasion of quite a few factors, like
The smaller the scale, the closer to your real eye level the layout should be.
I think the best approach is to experiment with different heights, to find out what meets your expectations and is still comfrtable to work with and operate.
My personal "data" is real eye level minus 6" for HO scale and minus 3" for N scale, the overall height depending whether I will be standing or sitting while operating the layout.
Happy times!
Ulrich (aka The Tin Man)
"You´re never too old for a happy childhood!"
SeeYou190 I am 6 foot 7 inches. Nothing in the world is "eye-level" for me.
I know a guy who's 6'-8". He has an unnatural (but understandable) fear of umbrellas.
ROBERT PETRICKHe has an unnatural (but understandable) fear of umbrellas.
My three biggest fears:
1) Automatic door closers
2) Ceiling fans on 12" down rods
3) Magnetic door lock brackets
While eye level is probably most ideal for watching trains, there are other considerations like access for building and scenicing, as well as operations etc. so a compromise is probably the best solution; ulimately it's a personal choice which is partly based on your height.
Rio Grande. The Action Road - Focus 1977-1983
Having done it once, and decided I did not like it, I'm not so sure the eye level thing really holds up as being more a "realistic" view in the smaller scales.
At three actual feet, you are 261 scale feet away in HO. Even at 1 foot, 87 feet is a considerable distance.
When I stand in an open area in real life, or look down the highway in front of me, I can see a great distance, hundreds, even thousands of feet.
But if I am eye level looking at a model layout in a small scale it seems hard to see more than 100 scale feet or so into the scene?
Here where we live, we have a highway, US 40, and on one side it is paralleled by the old B&O mainline, on the other side by the old PRR mainline. As you drive along the road there are places where both are in view only a few hundred feet off the road, but as a panoramic view, you could never recreate that with eye level viewing.
Just my opinion.
Building my new layout between 40" and 46" track elevation, eye level in a chair, panoramic on a stool or standing........
Scenes are mostly 4' deep, benchwork strong enough to walk on....
Going totaly old school and really excited about it.
Lots of opinions, all with careful consideration. I have found that I enjoy the view, and enjoy the ease of access and reach, when the layout's tracks and most structures are near the level of my navel, which is really just above my 'pivot point' when I bend.
You DO NOT want anything you'd hate to part with, replace, or repair near your elbows. So I would advise against having a layout's operating surfaces higher than about 44", give or take, depending one one's stature.
SeeYou190 Also, build your front benchwork strong enough to install a bathroom style support bar when that becomes necessary, it will. . -Kevin .
When I was a kid I built my first layout. It was table height. That was fine at first but then I out grew it. I liked the view I had when I first built it but later it was too much looking down at it from above for my likes. When I decided to raise it I found that it was not an easy thing to do and ended up pretty much rebuilding the whole thing. Some people want a lower layout because they think that it is easier to work on. I have no problem working on a high layout. When I did construction I was an electrician so I spent have of the time working while standing on a ladder, so standing on a stepstool to work on my layout is no big deal to me. And the higher layout means that it is easy to work on the wiring hidden underneath. To me crawling around on my knees or laying on my back is not ok. I’d rather climb a ladder than be down on the floor. It’s all personal preference so you need to decide for yourself. I think that the perfect eye level is about one foot below your height.