I’m thinking about splitting my two 4ft by 8ft tables in half and putting those up against the walls of the garage. I’m not taking advantage of the full space and there is little room for me to walk. And it would just look better than the same old traditional table with the trains running up against the walls.
Taking operator space in consideration when planning a layout is a very good idea[tup]
are you doing a point to point or a loop to loop type layout?
Around-the-walls is better by far than a freestanding table in its use of space. If that’s what you’re proposing, I think you’re on the right track.
Consider an 8’x8’ layout in a 12’x12’ room, with a 2’ aisle around it. That’s 64 square feet and a 4’ reach. Compare that to a 4’-wide layout around the walls, with a 4’x4’ space in the middle. That’s 128 square feet–twice as much–with about the same reach, considering that the curves in the corners probably keep the track about the same distance from the inside edge.
I would like to have a double loop layout with 0-42, and 0-54 curves. I need to measure the garage to see what kind of space I have to work with.
If I did build it that way, the layout would have to be a C shaped since there is a hot water heater in one corner, and I would have to leave space for the door so I can get inside the garage. Just in case the heater needs to be replaced, I would have to install a lift out bridge where the garage door is just in case it happens. I would say the garage is about 10 or 11 feet wide and about 15 feet long. I need to measure it next week to be shure. I wish I could have thought about this plan instead of my brother building two tables and then changing my mind way later down the road with this new type of table. I guess I really need this type of table because the walkway where the backwall is alittle over one and a half feet wide, so I never go back there much and that makes cleaning track a nightmare. I would also make this table alittle bit taller, at least 42 inches tall, like a workbench so I wouldn’t be crouching down all the time. Right now I sit in a chair when I run my trains now. I am not shure if 0-54 curves would work, but I like how the trains look on them.
One of the reasons I tore down my layout was that the constant running in circles of the trains became annoying… Building around the walls is the way to go; bigger radiï curves, longer distances and less ways to oversee the trackwork in one glimpse. It gives you more room.
I would suggest to work with a point to point or point to loop principal. It gives more authenticity to your layout and a way more challenging operation than the standard loops. In my case, I’m working on a point to loop principal with 072 switches, a turntable and a variety of curves down to a 031 loop bringing the trains back up the station. The station itself is situated in an 072 curve, whilst the other curves down the line are build out of 4 different radiï (072-054-042 and 031) to give a realistic trackwork.
A curve which starts with an 072, going to 042 into 031 looks much more natural then a curve going from straight into 054 at once. Transition curves are the way to go if you are aiming for better operation and a realistic layout. (as far as it´s possible with 3 rail trackwork). It’s better for your trains and for your eyes. [:D]
My opinion is to keep the trains interesting. Make a reason for trains to travel, create industries needing transport and sidings to unload into trucks or barges. Or opt for a fiddleyard, where you can alter your trains by 0-5-0 switching to match the needs of the layout (expressed in waybills etc)
My former layout was built with loops an continuous running in mind. It boored me to death (so to speak) after a while and I started in h0. With that h0 train i started a switching layout, which gave me hours and hours of pure fun. It didn’t became a dull sequence, it stayed interesting and fun to operate. My 0 gauge layout was demolished and with the switching h0 layout in mind I built my next one. With waybills, fiddleyard and point to loop (other point) operation.
That sounds like a good idea. I probably wont be able to do this until next year since I still want to get a 726 Berk. I don’t know if I want to do a loop to point since the trains I have tend to run fast and I would be running from one end of the layout to the other end, but I guess that would be the challenging part of it. I would like to have some sort of a train yard, a turntable would be cool but I couldn’t keep my engines in the garage since I can’t lock the garage door. I guess I should concentrate on finding a way to lock up the garage first.
After taking down my last layout, I came away with the realisation that a track plan that looks good on paper doesnt necessarily translate into one thats fun to operate.So…I took all the pieces of track on built several Trial Run RRs and operated them on the floor…One thing I noticed that by operating the floor version and stepping back, I modified location of sidings, eliminated some…then sometimes scrapping the whole lot in 20 minutes and trying a new configuration…thank the lord for bannana plugs…I enjoyed this so much that I have put off going through all the expense, mess etc with tables, etc. After one year I am still 'experimenting…"One advantage thats enjoyable is when an express rockets off the rails it simply lands and tips on the carpet…Around the walls is the way to go…as far as accessibility is concerned …I built one with a duck under and grew to loath it. My greatest challenge is wht do I want or more accurately, what to eliminate from the plan. I would love to have freight passenger yards etc etc…I am convinced that a large layout is a piece of cake, a smaller one is more of a challenge in design…which I enjoy as well. Keeps me busy planning, revising etc. When I grow bored I simply rearrange the whole thing…
I love redoing my layout. I try new track arrangements all the time. That’s one of the reasons I don’t permanently screw down my track. The other reason is the track ‘floats’ on foam board and artificial ‘turf’ carpet atop a rock-filled crawlspace. I am eager to hear about what you come up with …
Hi!
When I was a young teen, I built up a Lionel layout in the basement that was NOT conducive to a layout. But, I did pretty good (if I say so myself) and the end result was pretty satisfying.
Anyway, plywood was hard to get, and I confiscated what I could from construction sights, etc. I ended up with a 4x8, a 4x6 (had to paint out the “sorry for the inconvenience - Mayor Richard J. Daley”), and a number of smaller pieces.
The layout consisted of the 4x8 lenghtwise, with the 4x6 making an “L” with it, and then 18 inch wide pieces going from the end of the 4x6 down to the far end of the 4x8. Essentially, it was like a square “J”, with the ends connecting and the operator space in the center. Yup, I was king of the road down there - 12/13 years old and I had my own empire!!!
Ooops, sorry - I got carried away… Really, you will be much happier in the long run if you revise the layout to maximize operations and accessibility. I’m wrestling starting over on my room filling HO layout, which has been around for 15 years.
ENJOY,
Mobilman44