I am in the midst of planning a new HO scale layout. I have seen the cookie cutter method for making grades on model railroads and was wondering how difficult it was to figure the grades. I have previously used woodland scenics Foam risers and incline sections on an O guage layout and was wondering if anyone has used them with HO? How hard is it to get the transition from level to incline made so that cars do not uncouple. I O gauge I had no problems but I suspect that HO scale will be a bit different.
Hi,
I’m old school (and old), and consider “risers” to be applicable to use when building a Lionel or Flyer layout. Cookie cutter or similar wood work is the way to go. As far as measuring your grade, use 100 inches of length going up 1 inch equals a 1 percent grade. You can go from there - i.e. 1 inch rise in 50 inches equals 2 percent, etc., etc.
In building my very long 2 percent rise from lower to upper level of my HO layout, I measured the distance from the floor to the benchwork and worked from there. It takes time and some precision, but is well worth it in the end.
BTW, in my opinion, 2 percent is about max for a mainline HO layout.
Hi again,
To answer your questions of vertical transition… A true cookie cutter method will automatically geve you the gradual transition if you give the track foundation (strip of plywood) some extra distance to come to the percentage grade you wish to maintain.
For instance, if you are doing a 2 percent grade, you would go from zero to two inches in height in 50 inches of length. Well, for that initial rise (transition), tack another 10-12 inches to that 50 inch length to rise to the two inches. That should work just fine (it has for me) with KD or other similar couplers.
Do the foam but when it comes to the transitions, transition more with the roadbed than with the risers, much easier. On mine I put extra caulk under the roadbed at the bottom and stretched the cork roadbed for a smooth transition, for the top I sanded down the cork but could have carver the foam a little bit at the top so I would have to sand less which I did at another spot.
Cookie cutter is great. easy to build and easy to drop feeders. Cheaper, too.
A third option is spline. It flows beautifully up, down, left and right. And it is cheap, about 64’ for $8.00. At least have a Google to see what it is all about.
Interesting these splines. Looks sort of labor intensive way to go, but would appear to be less expensive and possible adjustable if an error was made.
Cookie cutter sub-roadbed will make its own transition from level to incline and then back to level, provided that the grade is long enough and the material used is flexible enough. I used 3/4 plywood, and secured the risers at both ends to the benchwork first. The riser at the mid-point of the grade was then lifted until it was at the proper height, then attached to the benchwork. This forms the transition areas, and all of the remaining risers can be attached to the benchwork at the height at which they are then located.
However, if your sub-roadbed is very flexible, you may wish to first further subdivide the grade into quarters, raising the risers at the 1/4 and 3/4 point to the proper height, then attach the balance.
If you use open grid or L-girder benchwork, superelevation is easy to add, including the vertical easements into and out of the curve.
I use 3/4" plywood as a sub-roadbed, but any similar-type material, or even spline roadbed should also work. Install the straight roadbed on either side of the curve by fastening the risers to the joists - leave the last riser beyond both ends of the curve unfastened. Install risers to the underside of the curved roadbed, but don’t fasten them to the benchwork just yet. If your curve is on a grade, as most of mine are, raise the roadbed through the curve to the proper height, then mark a pencil line on each riser which corresponds to the top of the benchwork to which it will eventually be fastened. If the track through the curve is to be level, adjust the risers accordingly, then make the lines. Next, choose the riser closest to the mid-point of the curve, raise it to the proper height, then push the bottom end of the riser towards the outside of the curve. Re-align the height line on the riser so that its inner end corresponds to the top of its benchwork member (the height line will be tilted, with the end on the outside of the curve somewhat above the benchwork). I’ve
Woodland Scenics incline sets or incline starters come in 24 in long segments. The nominal 2% rises 1/2 inches and the 3% 3/4 inches in that distance. If you mount a 2% starter segment upside down on a 3% segment you end up with 1%. However the resulting incline segment starts 1/2 in above the base, ends at 3/4 in.
I haven’t used the foam risers, because I do not care for the extra work making transitions. I’m using the cookie cutter method with 1/2" plywood. A fairly easy way to figure a grade is to get a 25" piece of (STRAIGHT!) wood and fasten a small level to it. Use a 1/4" shim under one end for a 1% grade, a 1/2" shim for 2%, and so on. One could use a 24" level if you don’t mind a little bit of fudge factor.
In conjunction with this, I also use my layout planning software to calculate grade and elevations, so I establish height at various key points, to make sure I don’t end up too low at the end of my grade. So I may end up with a grade of 2.05% (or whatever) instead of a precise 2.00%
If I can do it, so can you.
Brad
BMMECNYC
I am in the midst of planning a new HO scale layout. I have seen the cookie cutter method for making grades on model railroads and was wondering how difficult it was to figure the grades.
HI
One can use a 50" board and use half the measurement as posted.
I prefer 1/2" birch plywood ( no large voids) ripped to sub road width. As stated the transitions work out great by spacing risers before and after the actual grade start.
Good luck [8D]
Lee