My advice: From my personal expereince of starting over fairly late in life and now living in an apartment (with quite limited space as you might imagine), I have to be reminded by others to be good to myself during this transition time. That being said, I do have a small switching layout that is basically designed to fit into a larger “dream” layout someday.
What I’m saying is go ahead and build whatever fits your space, budget, lifestyle, etc. at the time. You can do nothing but improve your modeling skills in the meantime. just throwing in my two cents worth, for what it’s worth.
Trackwork is all done, structures (with one exception) are built and temporarily in their final positions. Layout is operational.
Scenery is about 10% done.
I’m currently in the process of scenicing the river bed, alternating that with ballasting track (which I hate) and detailing some of my bridges. I also spend some time tuning my rolling stock (mostly replacing couplers).
Not very far and not as far as I would like, but I’ve still got time to make this a New Years’s Resolution. For some reason I don’t think that will make any difference.
hey every one I did it ,oops but there is two picts I only wanted one,oh well .been playing @ this for a little over a year got a bit of a plan but coulndt visuallize ,so I built bench work ,then I built a room around the bench work ,then I tacked track down with thumb tacks,then I built a couple of structures and I call it testing … but now Im getting an idea of what I can do …any way room is 14x16 and the benchs are somewhat modular, frame,thin ply,then foam (when I have a real plan)…left side is 12" bench (just track thru the mountains) middle is a blob 54" (may be a helex to lower stage),right side is 24" to 42" angled for yard/ industry type thing … having fun and learning alot
I started the BELLECHASE & BLUE MTN. CENTRAL one year ago. To date I’ve finished the bench work, 80% of the track work, 30% of the scenery, then took a break for several months. Will start upagain next week working on phase one, the small town of “JUDY GAP”. I"m 60% done but not happy with backdrop portion so will revamp it and then work on the small details. Iplanned on taking pictures and posting them when finnished. So keep an eye out over the comming months. My railroad is a long term project 4 - 5 years most likely unless of course I hit the lottery sometime soon. By the way it’s a 15’ by 12’ layout.
I have all the track laid, wired and ballasted. Almost ALL of the scenery is done! Woo hooo! I’m currently working on the background scenery for the upper level. This scenery hides the transition track that runs from the lower to the upper level.
I started my layout back around 1986 or so and was never able to complete it. Since then life happened, career, marriage, family and so on. I was able to store the unfinished layout for all these years and recently decided to take it out of storage and set it up. I have the benchwork complete with all the roadbed in place, some electrical started, mostly the DCC bus and feeders and some switch machines, and a small area with the initial plaster ground contour in place. Most recently I have been working on building the control panel so I can make sure everything operates well before I get serious about the scenery.
I have it “temporarily” setup in the house but I am going to have to create some space in the basement to relocate it to. Everyone ends up placing stuff on top of it where its located and I can see that isn’t going to work once the rolling stock is put out and the scenery starts.
In addition to my afformentioned planning, I have also been engaged in some work on track and rolling stock. I am in process of (slowly) replacing plastic wheels with metal, I have replaced nearly all horn-hook couplers with a combination of McHenery, Intermountain, Kadee, et all Knuckle couplers, have converted some older box cars to no roofwalks, half ladders, roller bearing trucks, etc. Also, have been completing some kitbashing projects, such as bashing an FL-9 from a couple Athearn blue box F-7s )still working on the 3rd rail pick-up shoes), converting a Life-Like little Joe Dockside to a free-lance fireless steamer, upgrading/repairing some older cheap brass and steam locos (International MKT 0-8-0, 1890s 0-6-0, Atherarn B&M plastic 4-6-2), and motorizing an Athearn rotary snow plow that has also somewhat been re-detailed from steam to diesel-electricpower. Have also re-worked and cleaned some older switches, and scrapped the old Atlas fiber flex track, salvaging some of the rail. Have also been laying in supplies to build a few momentum/brake action throttles (I don’t see my budget allowing me to convert to DCC, I might be able to set up a minimum portion of my future layout for limited DCC, though. Just to use some locos that have dual-control capability)
Periodically, I lay out an oval with a couple switches of E-Z track just to test things.
On my N scale Las Vegas New Mexico switching layout, I had the benchwork, track and electricals completed by June this year. I ran a few operating sessions, and have got all bar four of my cars set up with car cards & waybills. Now that I know the layout can support my operating schema, I have started to construct building kits so as to begin laying down scenery.
Well let’s see - over a year ago I started rebuilding and modifying a layout that was moved from my old house. So far all the benchwork is done, all the track is laid, wiring was done until I decided to convert to DCC and now I am starting to work on scenery to go with the structures I had been building all along. But a few days ago I realized I had 16 feet of empty space that I could easily take over so now I am thinking about an extension which would significantly improve operation and give the trains a couple more places to go.
Well I have been thinking hard on what I want to build for quite a while now. A nice layout in the dining room area was my first idea, wife said OK what ever you want honey (read I dont want it there but do what ever) so I decided to work on something a little smaller and more portable. I just posted a track plan for critiques from those who are more experienced at this than I. So I am really still in the planning stages.
I have a 5’x13’ HO layout that I started on and got the double track mainline down. But, I am unhappy with it and want to tear it down.
I am in negotiations with the “better half” for more space in the rec room and I want to put in better lighting before hand… I have sketched up a VERY rough plan for my new idea… the only thing I am pretty set on is the mainline and the basic overall shape. I am very restricted by doors and a closet in this room…
In the mean time, I built this little 2x4 N scale table top for some friends who wanted it to give as a Christmas present. I was very constrained on the budget by them, so there are lots of details needed in the future. But I had fun doing it and it got me wanting to work on mine again…
well i am almost finished laying track on the bottom level and will then move on to the upper level. after that wiring then ballast then scenery. i have a ways to go
I began working on a 12 x18 HO layout in May and to date I have the benchwork complete, 80 % track down on lower level, wiring about the same. Enough done to run my coal drag around the mainline! This is my third attempt building a layout and with the kids mostly out of the house I was able to capture half of the basement. Taking things slow and steady to make sure each step is done best I can… learning as I go!
Took up a mainline that worked and tore down benchwork before the summer vacation - had gotten increasingly annoyed with myself for not having made benchwork sectional, so I could take it out of the house to work on things that smell or make noise (small row house, wife and one of our kids are allergic and very sensitive to paint fumes).
So I started over again in the fall. Built lightweight sections of 1/4" plywood with foam on top:
And then took a several months long break doing other things before I got started again.
Am now doing risers and inclines, road bed, testing building placement, and getting ready to finally lay some track and get trains moving again:
Can’t exactly say I am one of the people who work fast on my own layout
