Hi all…been several weeks since I’ve posted…but I’ve moved…started training in the yard here in Dupo…and am about to mark up for training runs on the road…
So, I’ve acquired a bunch of Lionel items to decorate my large game area. I want to put the O guage items around the perimeter of the room. I’m looking at suggestions on how to accompli***his. I want it wide enough to hold two tracks if possible…or perhaps one with sidings interspersed…
I’m going to buy a bunch of the 2" pink foam insulation for the roadbed base. How best to cover that?
I am looking to hear more about what you want to do with your game room. We built a small family room and as part of the make up of the room we put a track around the perimeter. We also used shelving for the walls that best shows the trains, is stable, and not very expensive. The shelves are easy to put up and we are very happy with them. They come in 6’ lengths and in one area I put 2 sections together to create some 12’ lengths.
The room is 18x18 and the track runs around the perimeter. On 3 walls the shelf is 6" wide and on the fourth wall it is about 30" wide. Underneath that part of the track we have bookshelves and cupboards. That is where the track is as many as 4 wide. There is one area where the track goes through a stairway and and another where it crosses a doorway. I used Gargraves track and Ross switches. i run everything though TMCC and all the power and controls are hidden in the cupboards. I can throw all my switches using the CAB 1 also.
Here are some pictures to show you how it looks.
This next pic is of the bridge that goes across the doorway. It folds up against the far wall of the picture.
This next one is an upclose picture of the shelving.
(You can get the shelving here - http://www.gsds.com/index.html
This is where the track comes out of the stairs.
These are some photos of the construct
Tschmidt,
My wife’s biggest fear is that I will someday run my trains around the walls of our house. Various Friends have razed her each time I build something inside and she usually goes off on them.In her defense she has no problem with one room full of trains and one with over 3000 models in it,so I don’t mean to imply she has a problem with the trains.She took one look at your pic’s and said “that would be nice”.
Thanks.
Ed
i am glad she liked the room. i knew I wanted to do something with trains and we wanted to finish a room into a family room and this is how we compromised the thing. It was really fairly simple to do. My wife is very happy with how it turned out and she really enjoyed being part of decorating the room. If you want more pictures from other angles let me know.
Yes Tom! That is exactly what I’m wanting to do. However, I’ve been told that the foam insulation works good for sound deadening…which is why I wanted to use it. I also want to build a bridge as well…and a tunnel to go into the storage area of the basement to have a storage yard. However, I do want to do sceneary with mine along the perimeter…and in the corners. If I can get my camera working (I dropped it and have to mess with the lens to come out) I’ll snap some pics of the room.
The shelving…it’s premade? How do you get it into the corners?
What you are doing looks good. I used a foam roadbed under the track and it’s very quiet. I was really surprised how quiet it was. I look forward to seeing more of your pictures as you get more completed.
You are right about the foam. I purchased it at my local dealer. It splits down the middle so you can go around corners very easily. It goes down easily too.
The shelving is not premade. The brackets are from Home Depot. They cost about 98 cents each. They are made for 6" shelves. Before I put them up I cut a little of the 90 degree corner off so I could run all my wiring under the shelving. There is enough room to also run the speaker wire for the surround sound. The shelving itself is 6"x3/4"x8’ and it sits on those brackets. The brackets are on 24" centers anchored to the firring strips on the walls. The corners are 3/4 inch plywood cut for the 054 track corners. Along the outside of the shelves is 1/4"x 1 1/2" strips of wood used to fini***he edges and put a little lip on the shelves.
The bridge always falls right into place because of the pegs and notches force it to always line up. I just opened up the Gargraves track a little and the track overhangs the bridge a little so it falls just around the connecting pins. You can see that in one of the photos above.
Tom, the corner might not be the best place to cut a notch in the brackets, since that’s where the bending moment is greatest. I assume that it must be strong enough for your situation; but I would suggest for those who haven’t built yet to leave a little gap instead between the back of the shelf and the wall to hide the wires.
I’m not sure what you mean by bending motion. The notch I cut is only a half inch. It is very solid and hides the wires well. I think it is more solid putting the track board up against the wall. I was looking to see if I had a picture of the bottom of the track but I don’t. If I get one I will post it.
I had never heard of the ceiling tile thing before. That sounds like a good idea. Do you have to do anything to the cut edges so they don’t give off a lot of dust? I thought you might have to seal them in some way.
There is a grander plan, as this is only the top level. I will have a full main level ten inches below this shelf area., you can get a glimpse of it here:
As far as sealing the ceiling tiles, the edges will eventually be covered with plaster cloth as part of the scenery, but I am making no special consideration for it.
Also, as shown in teh photo above, I have begun building a cliffisde highlighted by the rough ceiling tile edges. A very inexpensive and easy way to add a rock face cliff.
The whole idea sounds great. I saw a TV show about model trains that built a cliff out of ceiling tiles like you are doing. Keep us posted as you make future progress.
Tom, it’s bending “moment” not “motion”. It’s the rotational force or torque that tries to bend the bracket. It is greatest at the corner, which is why the corner is usually the deepest part of the bracket. The amount of bending moment that a beam can stand is proportional to the square of its depth, all else being equal. So cutting .5 inch out of, say, a 2.5-inch deep bracket reduces its strength not by 20 percent as one might guess, but by 36 percent. If the cut has any sharp corners, they cause local stress concentrations and make the loss of strength worse.
If the brackets are stronger enough than needed to start with, then cutting notches may not be a problem. As I said, that is probably the case with yours.
