3D Track Plans: The 4x8 HO scale Cumberland & Ohio

Comments MRR
1

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3D Track Plans: The 4x8 HO scale Cumberland & Ohio

2

You guys read my mind cause i was just looking at this track plan last night. What a great little layout and having the track go through the back drop and how the two industries work is awesome thank you so much and keep them coming please!!! Deffinatlly more of these smaller layouts would be best.

3

This is a great video. When I saw the track plan in MR, it didn’t make sense to me. The animation and narration does a great job explaining how this railroad can be operated.

4

Thanks for the view and the options available to make this or similar 4x8’s more enjoyable and interesting to operate.

5

Absolutely STELLAR rendering of a simple 4x8, guys! Love Ben’s depiction of paired industries – not an easy thing to demonstrate on a printed page. Keep those 3D Track Plans coming!

6

I think it would be great to have a video showing how to make a basic computer track plan similar to how you publish them. It could be something simple as the one seen here (does not have to be 3D), so we can see how to make elevations, insert building, switches, and curves. I don’t have a program, and a bit intimidated by them. Or a review of different ones.

7

Hello Dustin,

You’ll need to at least do some kitbashing to make the paired industries part of the layout work. Walthers makes a coal mine you could use as a starting point, and you could probably kitbash one of the Walthers power plants too. Cody Grivno did just that in the February 2010 issue of MR, and if nothing else, Cody’s article would make a good starting place to get ideas. Your best bet would be to build the layout first, then construct the plant and the mine to fit their locations.

Best wishes on the project!

David Popp

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What power plant/ coal mine kits would work well as shared industries. Would these need to be scratch built or is there something available?

9

Thanks for the tips. I had a couple of starter ideas. I really like the B.T.S. Cabin Creek coal tipple. I also love the video plus site. It’s great to have all these videos be so mobile between different devices. Keep up the awesome site.

10

great little layout

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This video for the Cumberland & Ohio is just what I have been looking for! I will expand it to 5 x 10 for more scenic space as a peninsula and then add staging areas from the other layout areas. Bravo for an imaginative concept!

12

Great plan, I like the mix of passenger and freight. Even a small layout can have diversity!

13

I like the idea of paired industries!

14

This 3D imaging is very helpful to inspire my 4x8 layout with a 21" L arm attached to one side that is also 8ft long and a staging 4ft long piece the opposite way. Can’t wait to share mine with you all.