Hey guys, Been MIA for the last few weeks as I have been quite busy with work and some things that have caused me to totally re-think the layout plans the fiance and I had in mind. I was acceped at a few law schools and now that I know which one I am going to in the fall it means that we must move from the home where we had a nice sized basement to build in. Unfortunately it means apartment living for the next three years and smaller space availability.
Here is what I have to work with… A 13 by 9 room which will serve as the train room and my office… this means that there will a 13 by 4 “half” available for trains and a 13 x 5 half for my office… Since we have quite a bit of stuff we want to fit in… we were thinking what we could do is three 12ft x 2ft shelves at three different heights (ho scale, btw)… while this limits operation it would allow us to model three separate scenes which we can work together once we get a basement back! this will still be the pittsburgh and lake erie railroad and will still be centered on pittsburgh and the monongahela river valley… i have drafted the three shelve units and would GREATLY appreciate any comments or evenif you could share your experience if you have done something like this before
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represents a section of track in pittsburgh where a scrap yard and one of its customers a can company (it takes in scrap and recycles it into cans) are situated off a piece of mainline as it runs into the city… it would allow empty gondolas into and loaded gondolas out of the scrap yard and would allow empty boxcars and loaded gondolas into and loaded boxcars and empty gondolas out of the can company… space is tight for the run around so i set it at an angle to get some extra length out of it… should allow up to 6 cars to be run around easily, broken down and sorted as necessary…
If you are limited on space and think that you may be moving around some, conceder this: Don’t build anything too big right now, but build smaller dioramas (maybe just a scrap yard and nothing else realated to it) that will fit into a “dream pike” for sometime down the road.
Yes, you still have to have some sort of a major plan, but the flexibility is there and a little at a time now can really pay off latter. You have some ideas, all of which seem really good, but may be a bit too big for the present! If you do the smaller sections / dioramas for now, they will be easier to build, move, store, fit into the larger layout later on and give great satisfaction now! They can also be a lot of fun because you can “go nuts” detailing!
I’m surprised no one has asked what your layout height will be. Having a 13 x 9 room for a layout AND office doesn’t mean that you have to split the room in half. A lot may depend on your layout height. Don’t think in terms of dividing the room in half vertically; think in terms of HORIZONTAL.
What do you need for a home office? A desk and chair, a computer system, a file cabinet or two. How tall is the tallest piece? A desk with computer might be 48" tall. That means that a layout built at 50" or 52" will pass OVER the computer! Even a 4-drawer filing cabinet can have a layout supported on top! With a layout built higher, LOTS of things can fit UNDER the layout: a sofa and chair, television on a stand, hobby workbench.
With a higher layout, more of the room is available for the railroad without compromising your other needs.
I know this may not be what you want to hear, but…
You are about to make a major lifestyle change. You need to put total effort into your studies. If you put layout in your study, it will call you to it constantly while you are doing the reading, research, and studying, especially if what you are doing is boring or difficult to understand.
Likewise, when you are working on your layout, you will feel guilty that you are not studying.
This is a lose-lose situation.
Figure a way to put a layout in a different room. A slide-out under the bed. An N-scale in a coffee table. Join a train club. Just don’t force a conflict between your career and your leisure.
Colvin, Thanks for your feedback. I definitely agree that flexibility is key. Its almost 100 percent certain that we will be in the apartment we are moving to for at least 4 years so we arent really too concerned with moving around. But just in case we were thinking about building each shelf as a 2’x4’ module, that way when it is time to move they can just be un hitched and only have minimal scenery damage… This should help keep these shelves from becoming too “big” to continue to use once we move again. Thanks again!
We are definitely aware that the top unit lacks in a lot of functioning when it is so short and you cant really use the double track main as a run around. Still can use it to switch though and maybe run two engines push pull back and forth from the double main (as a yard) to the mine… also as a note this is prototypical for how fayette city was on the p&le … think it would work for the time being? thanks!
Darrell, definitely an interesting idea… Unfortunately my desk and my bookcases (floor to ceiling) are rather massive and would make any kind of continous running impossible (i think). I guess Id have to actually get them in the room to really know if it could work…
Good advice, Chip, but not universally applicable.
If you’re a decent student you can manage both. Besides, if you do nothing but study, you’ll go nuts. This layout is also your fiancee’s, right? Don’t too hastily abandon this joint project that you two have been working on.
I built my current N scale layout in a matter of months while working on my PhD in meteorology (dynamics), all the while keeping an overall 4.0 GPA and doing plenty of research including conference preprints and lab reports. I don’t say this to brag, but simply to show that it can be done. Oh, by the way, I also have a wife and two small kids. IF you budget your time properly, and plan your studies in advance, you can do it! The key is time management. I have the benefit of formal training in time management as an Air Force officer; maybe you can take a quick course or pick up a book on it.
IF, however, your studies begin to slip, the choice of what goes away first is obvious.
Do you have your layout in the same room you study? If so, then what I said doesn’t apply to you. You have more mental will power than most. Most people need to limit their distractions when they have a major long-term commitment.
I did not say to give up the layout. I just strongly suggested he put it in another room.
What about a helix connecting the three levels? you said you had 13x4’ to work with. 4’ will allow 22" radius cruves. You could build a helix that connects them all.
Darrell, definitely an interesting idea… Unfortunately my desk and my bookcases (floor to ceiling) are rather massive and would make any kind of continous running impossible (i think). I guess Id have to actually get them in the room to really know if it could work…
Ah, but bookcases have shelves. Cut a hole in one shelf and run the train through that to continue around the wall. Same thing for the desk. If the height of the shelves are not with layout height, build a grade.
