I rent because I am frequently moved in my vocation. That means I never actually get to a run a train on what I start building. Does anyone have any suggestions or warnings about putting a layout in a portable building?
The concept of actually driving a nail into a wall that is my very own wall sounds quite nice. After three years of forced inactivity, reading about model railroading without doing anything is beginning to get depressing!
O.K. if you have been reading model railroad magazines for ANY lenth of time, even if it’s only been 6 months, model railroader mag. has had numarous small layouts, table top to 4 by 6 layouts.This is not a good reason for not running trains now. (I"M being slightly sarcastic) But People of verying climats put layouts in garages, sheds, and barns oh so often. You souldn’t have any problems with were to build it. Just do it and let’s get them trains running again.
I appreciate the sentiment, James, but no room is no room. Shelf layouts take up less usable space than a four-by-six plopped in the middle of the kitchen floor. A shelf layout will require substantial work on my landlord’s walls. A portable building is the question posed, and I would still like some feedback from anyone with experience with such a project. “Walter” frcregil@sprynet.com .
I’m currently and facing similar issues. Currently I’m building a switching layout that straddles two wood bookshelves. Each bookshelf has a footprint of 18 inches by 3 feet. I then screwed in two 1x3s connecting the shelves to give me an extra five feet of running space. The base for the track is foam board, supported by the bookshelves and the 1x3s. I will need to secure the bookshelves to the wall to prevent wobble, but that can be done by small eyebolts and wire, requiring only a bit of spackle to cover up the holes when you move. Since landlords expect you to hang stuff like pictures, that should be no problem.
The track will be fairly high, which allows workspace below.
It’s not a perfect solution for me, but until I’m back in a house, it’ll do.
You might also check out construction for modular layouts, since those are meant to be portable.
Tom Chmielewski
associate editor, trains.com
Hi, I knew a guy who built his in a utility trailer (Hallmark I think was the brand). Inside measurements were 7 ft. x 14 ft. He made a u shape with one side of the u shorter to make room for his work bench. He cut a hole in the side under the benchwork and install a house window type reverse cycle air cond. and put a window in over the workbench.It rode on a dual axle. He claimed as long as he took it easy when he had to pull it down the highway he had only some minor trackwork to adjust when he got to his new digs. He had moved it 4 time in 6 years when I saw it and it was running fine one week after he had moved it. Just make sure the trailer has dual axles and a HEAVY DUTY FRAME !!! Hope this helps you. Mike
Excelent tips, there. Thank you.
I have to admit, that the seven by fourteen trailer is as appealing as the post concerning clearing a couple of shelves in the house and setting the yard there. I, too, am interested in operations, so I really need some room for the kind of yard(s) I would like to have. The one I have packed (from when I thought I would stay in the house with a garage) is eight feet long by 15 inches wide.
I should have designed it as two four-foot modules but, well, I didn’t. Then, of course, I will need a place for the train to go.
Thanks,
Crews Giles+
frcregil@sprynet.com
Sounds like you need to be in N OR Z scale, then you would have room for the yard and a place for the train to go. Mike
Yes, indeed. N-Scale. Gave away my fleet about ten years ago, and then got started in the hobby again. All I have is that 8’ yard with 90% of the roadbed and track complete; and I designed that to connect to standard N-Track modules should I decide to build one for club use.
The modules might work well in a portable building, because I can customize corners to fit a known wall size, and that is something I would have to redo should I move again.
The fact is, I know I WILL move again, I just do not know when and I do not know where.
How about some LINKS to some of the BEST layouts?
Some of us haven’t been reading RR mags for six months.
This time of the year many new candidates for RRing are looking at this site…and have a set of links would go a long ways to making them serious RR modelers versus buying a train for a day and then throwing it in the closet.
TMT
How about some LINKS to some of the BEST layouts?
Some of us haven’t been reading RR mags for six months.
This time of the year many new candidates for RRing are looking at this site…and have a set of links would go a long ways to making them serious RR modelers versus buying a train for a day and then throwing it in the closet.
TMT
How about some LINKS to some of the BEST layouts?
Some of us haven’t been reading RR mags for six months.
This time of the year many new candidates for RRing are looking at this site…and have a set of links would go a long ways to making them serious RR modelers versus buying a train for a day and then throwing it in the closet.
TMT