Hi, I have a standard door layout which has nothing really permanent on it. I came across a ping pong table for free & I am going to use the track I have & get more to make a permanent 1. I have found that even in N scale the door just manages to cope with what I want. I can make room & have access to 3 sides of said p.p table. It’s new & solid. I am going to make this layout last until I have time for an Empire. Am I wasting my time. My train room is a spare bedroom .
Put the ping pong table against the wall in the bedroom. Then grab yourself a magic marker (big felt tip pen) and reach into the center of the table. Draw a line at the distance that you can comfortably reach. Allow for clearance for foreground bits that you will have to reach over (maybe put a piece of track down in the immediate foreground with roadbed and a locomotive on it). Anything outside of that line is risky business, or so say the pundits. Just make sure that whatever track runs through that hard to reach zone is bullet proof.
Many forum members stress the need to make your track easily reachable but I marvel at the number of track plans, both new and old, where this rule is tossed out the window. Like all rules, apparently it can be broken. (Now we will hear a number of dire warnings about my flippant suggestions).
Depending on how the table is actually supported, you might consider cutting a small section out so that it becomes a large upside down “U” shape. Depending on your girth you might only need to take a piece out about 2’ x 2’ (or larger to suit). That would allow you to reach all of the tabletop and still leave you with a fair amount of table space, and certainly enough for a ‘dogbone’ track plan if you want to run trains continuously.
I don’t want to rain on your ping pong table concept but one thing I suggest you take into account is the stability of the table. If it is a bit wobbly you might cause running trains to derail if you unintentionally give the table a nudge while reaching over it. Also, if you use it as is (I am assuming it is the type that folds in half) you will have to eliminate any movement between the two halves or your trackwork might suffer where it crosses from one side to the other. Perhaps the best solution would be to replace the existing legs with more solid supports. That would allow you to easily cut the suggested “U” into the benchwork.
Just to add fuel to the fire, if you are considering replacing the ping pong table supports, then that gives you a lot more freedom with the shape of the layout. There is no reason why the benchwork has to be the size of the ping pong table if all you are going to do is reuse the table top pieces. If you have the space in the room then the opportunity presents itself to add on to the basic table top pieces with perhaps a staging yard along on wall etc. etc.
Hope I haven’t confused the issue too much. All of the above can be done in the future if you simply wish to start with using the table as is.
Thanks Dave, I tried the magic marker thing & see what you mean. It’s got 8 legs & supports but a slight bump & the whole thing ( 2 halves) looks as though it would cause havoc on my trains. I will try clamping in thin cross beams in an x shape & have a shorter end firmly against a wall. At the moment, the door layout is on a plastic outdoor table & against 2 walls, so I haven’t noticed movement 2 much.
I suppose I am trying to take the easy way out, & as we all know…
Over the years spent in this hobby I’ve seen few ping pong table layouts but,the ones I seen was reachable by three sides,had sheet plywood sub roadbed and was rock study…
While I agree with the around the walls is better I also have always said go with what you got because anything beats no layout while awaiting that perfect location for that perfectly designed layout.
Why is that?
I’ve seen to many modelers leave the hobby after waiting for the perfect space for their “dream” (bah!) layout that never materialized.I am fully persuaded that had they built a layout instead of waiting some would still be in the hobby today.
I would suggest that you construct a divider down the center to give you a double sided background and hide the loop so that you have to go to both sides to see the entire railroad layout. Bob Hahn
Thanks, yeah if I waited for the time to build one? Plus I build 1-1houses for a living & when u get home the normal house hold chores won’t do themselves. Being in the construction industry I am pretty sure I’ll be able to stop the table from playing up to much. 1-1or 1-60 there’s not that much difference.
By all means go ahead with the table as is (with a bit of reinforcement as you suggested). I did not intend to hold you back. It will get you up and running sooner rather than later. If you can get a short end against a wall so much the better!
I have to confess that I still don’t have an operating layout. I cleared the space in my garage but my son asked if he could turn part of it into a weight room and I agreed to let him have use of the space until he moves out, which should be fairly soon. I will have to be patient. In the mean time his body is absolutely “ripped” and unlike me he doesn’t have an ounce of fat on him. I’ll accept that willingly while I wait to have a train room.
I remember my older brother building a temporary layout on a ping-pong table way back in the late 1940’s or early 1950’s. I think it was American Flyer track.
The big problem with a ping-pong table is that they are not very sturdy or stable, and in order to build a permanent layout on one it needs to be strengthened or it might sag in the middle and wobble.
While a ping pong table is not ideal, in life you must play the cards you are dealt.
If you are happy with your door layout except for the size you might consider getting a second door and clamping them side by side on the ping pong table. By clamping them to the table you maintain portability because they can be unclamped to move them. A mountain or other view block that doesn’t need to be reachable can be constructed in the middle before the doors are connected together.
Way back in the dark ages of the 1950’s when suburban sprawl began the 4’ x 8’ was considered a huge railroad. Along with the boom times came houses with enough basement that pool tables and ping pong tables could actually be used there. Lumber companies figured out that a 5’ x 10 sheet of plywood is just right for a ping pong table and started marketing sheets of plywood. It didn’t take the model railroad community long to realize this meant larger curves and more space. If you can find MR issues from about 1952 through 1960 there should be several railroads published for that size space that are basically plans for 4’ x 8’ with things like bigger yards and larger radii for the curves.
Thank you all for your kindness & help. Wow I sure have a decision to make, I have another door & table & am finding out the p.p table doesn’t leave much lanky leg room. The p.p table will probably go to another home for free & I’ll save up for & build a proper around the wall layout while trying to build a few of the kits I have. It’s just that I got a bit excited & thought I had stumbled across an easy option.
Rob,You do have a option with the pp table-just add bracing.
To bad you decided to play the waiting game for perfect layout.
Hear my sad tale of wait.
I been playing the waiting game on building a simple 1x10’ switching layout that has been planned for at least 18 months.I even got the structures built.
Even bought P2K SW8 and had it custom painted.
So,the waiting game is not always the best way and I’m slowly loosing interest…
