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Philosophy Friday -- I Hate Your Layout...
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<p> John,</p><p>I am in the process of starting my 7th layout within 46 years of model railroading. In my previous layout, I must have made about every mistake there is and I will most likely continue to do so. Not the "old ones", but new ones.</p><p>I started my layout planning with a vision of what I would like to have. I want to capture the flavor of a small, urban terminus, set somewhere in the north of Great Britain. Long before I had a track plan, I had a clear picture of the scenery that I want to have. I drew a side view of it, enabling me to visualize my dream. I then added the tracks to it, only to find out, that the looks are OK, but operation is too limited. I redrew my track plan a number of times, until I thought it to be fit - only to find out, that it was not, as I started to jot down a plan, or schedule, of my train moves. So it meant "back to the drawing board". </p><p>Now, my layout is a very small one, actually, close to being a micro layout. This makes careful planning even more important, as there is little room to correct any mistake - in terms of actual space and money, as I will have to build this layout at close to no cost. I am right now sourcing the materials I need to build the layout, and I am surprised to see, how much is actually available for free. A lot of the textures I need to scratch build all the buildings on my layout are available in the web for free or a marginal fee! A visit to a local carpenter´s resulted in a used hollow core door, which will act as my benchwork. Cuttings from plywood - for free! It is actually little more than the track I will have to buy.</p><p>There is a lot to learn from other model railroading practices. The British show us, that small, but focused layouts are as much fun as those basement filling empires. They show us, how to develop "real" scenes and how to take care of that so important detail, without overdoing it. Carl Arendt´s famous web site is also a fountain of information, when it comes to detail!</p><p>It all boils down to creating a vision for your layout, not only a track plan.</p><p>Here is my plan:</p><p><img src="http://i682.photobucket.com/albums/vv185/SirMadig/ARGYLEROADVERSION4.jpg?t=1273303641" mce_src="http://i682.photobucket.com/albums/vv185/SirMadig/ARGYLEROADVERSION4.jpg?t=1273303641" width="782" height="470"></p><p> As you can see, all my tracks are parallel to the edge of the layout [:D] - Does not hurt at all, as it ties in with the overall concept.<br></p>
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