Let me start by saying I have a perfectly good HO layout that is in a room 12’ by 24’ so why would I want to have a N scale layout? Well because my HO layout is designed for operating and I find that I also enjoy just watching passenger trains go around the room. It is expensive in HO to have long passenger trains, but it is relatively cheaper to have N passenger trains. So, I negotiated with my wife to build another layout in N scale designed for passenger trains. Here are HER requirements:
- As there is no room for a permanent N scale layout this one must be in sections and easily removed and stored. In other words, John can set it up in the front room, in the garage, on the deck, or even in the aster bedroom, but after a day or two Patricia does not want to see it.
- It must look like furniture, so I must stain the legs and fascia cherry wood and make it look nice.
- The sections must fit on our elevator (yes, we have an elevator in the house) so that it can be brought downstairs and stowed under the HO layout.
- As much as possible all the wiring and controls must be hidden from view.
I designed a simple double track loop layout that consists of four 2’ by 4’ sections that fit together with clamps and aligning pins. There are also three spurs for industries and two short passing sidings in case I want to do some freight switching. Since I already have seven Kato passenger trains, I decided to go with Kato Unitrack. At the track joints between the sections, I remove the wings of the joiners to make it easier to connect the tracks. I have a drawer under one section with a Kato DC power supply and turnout controls and I am using an old Digitrax Zephyr DCS50 for DCC. There is a toggle switch that allows me to go between DC and DCC. And I have a Digitrax UR93 transceiver for a remote DT602D throttle.
I purchased the benchwork from Mr. Benchwork (https://www.mrbenchwork.com), he makes a great product that I used for my HO staging yard. The legs are only 24” to make the layout coffee table height. So far, the worse part of the project was staining and lacquering the legs.
I have completed the wiring. I was using Anderson PowerPole connectors between the sections, but I have found them unreliable and switched to using European pluggable terminal blocks I have seen used by Charlie Bishop in England. For the drops I am not using suitcase connectors but GKEEMARS connectors (2 in 4 out). And I used GKEEMARS connectors for the turnout wiring (2 in 2 out). They are nice to work with and easier to work with than suitcase connectors. The fact that you can open the levers and remove a wire for troubleshooting is also nice.
Given my failing eyesight, I find it astonishing that I am trying N scale out. What was I thinking? I will update you on this project as I move along. I am including some photographs of the project, but keep in mind it is far from complete. Right now, the sections are stored under the HO layout because it is getting too cold in the garage to work on the N layout. I will do more work on it in the spring when the weather allows.
Section on sawhorses for easy wiring.
GKEEMARS connectors.
Control drawer with DC and DCC throttles.
Pluggable Terminal Blocks used between sections.
Four sections clamped together with a train running.
Four N sections stored under the HO layout.