I have been pondering this question for a while.
If one wanted to create a “classic” postwar looking layout, what elements would one need to include in the layout?
Here are a few I am including:
I would include Renwal, Marx, or other toy vehicles from the period to the list. Of course it’s nice to have figures too. Too Bachmann doesn’t seem to be making its figures anymore, and I don’t know if Lionel plans to reissue the K-Line figures, which were made from old Marx molds and were very nice. Vehicles and figures add a lot of life to a layout.
As far as the scenery, while there were people making detailed layouts back then, the classical layout everyone had (or everyone’s neighbor had) in the basement often had the roads and grass painted on.
Those three elements are about as good as any - how about a few oversized working accessories - a gateman, coal loader, or rotating beacon.
There is a large assortment of K-Line figures in the latest catalog.
Chris
When I was planning my layout my goal was to have a layout that would look like a snapshot from the 50’s, using all American Flyer. The layout is even a design from a advertising flyer. See the picture below. I have stayed very close to that goal. Granted there are things that do not look “real” i.e. a cow on the track that is half as tall as a loco, but I want the nastalgia effect so I am OK with it. My personal guides have been original equipment, (many redone), plasticville buildings, and people, and structures I build. Vehicles are my departure from vintage. I use vehicles for the era made by modern manufacturers.
Simple answer, vintage accesories, equipment, track. To stay affordable, I use less than perfect and restore to original. At the same time, my layout is not a museum piece, I enjoy it with my grandkids.
Jim
Tubular track, painted roads and green saw dust for grass. Plasticville structures, die cast vehicles and figures, and working accessories. Semi-scale locos and rolling stock.
Jim
Either Lionel or Flyer tubular track and accessories, prewar or postwar trains, simple, colorful scenery, and Plastiville buildings.
Tubular track and Plasticville buildings. Multi-Colored sawdust (green for grass, brown for dirt, tan for “sand”) or the green “carpet” stuff LifeLike used to make. Bright green lichen for trees/foliage. Oversized people and light fixtures/crossing gates/signals. Mirrors for skating rings, maybe with magnets underneath to move the skaters.
I would add:
022 switches
A formal control panel with a ZW and lighted switch controllers
trackage that usually runs parallel to the table’s edges rather than softer curves and organic shapes.
unballasted / unpainted track
bright colors - nothing weathered
Hello Chris,
I fully agree with the tubular track, plasticville buildings, the bright colors, the non-scale cars and buildings, etc. I just would like to add a few operating cars to finish a “classic” lay out. You can pick from many like: the Bronx zoo car with the giraffe, milk car with platform, cattle car with platform, etc.
Perhaps also “classic” is the train composition: I believe they are called the horizontal rules. Classic is in my perception also having a engine and a caboose from one railroad company and a few cars in between from different companies. That gives it a colorful classic appearance.
Good luck with the layout and send us some pictures when you are finished!
Egbert
Well, while I’m going to go a little beyond green sawdust when I’m up to scenic work, my track plan is all postwar. It’s as stated above, tubular with more oval, geometric track shapes. Also, a fair amount of switches and a lot of track verse scenic open areas. Lots of accessories and a flagrant disregard for scale too.
Sort of like my plan based on Bantam’s & Lionel’s MOdel Railroading Postwar Book:
The 1949 showroom layout is what defines classic for me. My layout is a replica of it and for me there is no other definition. That is as classic as it gets for me. Pick up a copy of Lionel’s “Model Railroading” and you will see what I mean.
“Colorful” is often used to describe postwar trains, but the rolling stock was predominately red, black, silver, and brown. Sure, the 6464 boxcars and kin added a splash of color, and green and yellow snuck into the scheme at times, but the overall effect was really quite subdued and (dare we say it) prototypical.
Plasticville? Bah!
Skyline!
To MSACCO
The plan you showed looks very similar to the one that I am getting started on. Do you have any pictures and do you have any advice? I may have room to add another table to the right side of the layout. I would also like to have some of the outer loop elevated.It looks like I could run 3 seperate trains which would be ideal for my 3 grandkids Thanks for any help.
Jim [8]
JIm,
Email me offline for more specifics but here’s a video of two train operation on my layout. I did make a couple of mods from the original layout in MOdel Railroading. Added two spurs and shifted two switches’ positions.
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7560649863011664165&q=lionel+train+in+action&hl=en
Mike S.
trestles and bridges…Santa Fe Warbonnets, any steamer, and a Pennsy GG1
King size matchbox trucks from the 60’s goes well with a postwar layout. They are approx 1/64 scale but don’t overwhelm the scene either. They are something I would put next to an oversize Xing gate or O scale figure but they do look good on background settings.
If you scratchbuild structures, consider bright water colors and strathmore bristol board for that “Skyline” look.
Plastic trucks.
Hyuck, hyuck, hyuck, hyuck.
Thank you all for the responses.
I see a lot of elevated track sections in some of the old display adds. I haven’t had great success with elevated sections.
Another feature that stands out to me is that often time buildings seem to be placed as an accent piece for the track, rather than trying to be a realistic placement of the building as a building (such as next to a road wide enough for a car, on a slope that a car could climb, etc.)
Chris