I’m curious as to what the cost per foot (avg) is for some of these awesome layouts posted here. I’m only talking what came out of the wallet and not the time involved. This would include everything, from the benchwork to the last pop can in the diner. (no room additions, carpet, etc). Did you purchase everything or do a lot of scratch building and obtaining readily available materials (dirt, crushed gravel, twigs)? I’m just trying to get an idea of where I stand.
On my layout is probably between 20-35 a square foot. Depending on where at and how far along it is. I have a couple areas that s just a couple tracks and some scenery(paper mach’e ontop of card board strips from a box from work) so I’m not paying that much for those ares. But my eventual 4 track yard may go up as high as like 40 a square foot(N scale C55 is expensive when you need large amounts) Keep in mind though I have not progressed very far into the Scenery yet. I have only the basic amounts of it some does have some grass but that has yet to get glued becuase I may end up putting a farm there.
I don’t think I’d put that in writing in case my wife were to see it. [:D] I’ve barely started the benchwork and I’m in almost a grand already, but I’ve torn down two layouts after moves. I’m just glad I have more room now than when I started.
Approximately $15 per square foot for me. If/When I add DCC probably another $3 or so.
Scenery - lots of natural materials, art supplies in bulk, etc. Rolling stock - train show castoffs modified with wheels, couplers, weights etc. Locos - mid priced, some P2k. didn’t go overboard on the numbers of locos, just what I needed (8, could use another switcher). Structures - mix of updated stuff from old layouts, new and scratch.
It’s kind of hard to say since I’ve only scratched the surface. I was figuring $100/sq. ft. but it looks like it’s gonna be more like $50/ft. (100 sq. ft. layout). The thing that might push that figure up is if I go overboard on lights and signals.
Well, let’s see…I have about $35,000 tied up in the layout so far and my room is 23’ X 25’ so thats 575 sq/ft. Lemme divide 575 into $35,000…ok…so far it’s $60.87 per sq/ft. The catch is, i’m far from done as of yet!..chuck
That is tough to estimate. My layout is 3 decks, occupies a basement area 35ft by 28ft. However, it is pretty much done. The basic bench work started in 1986-87, hasn’t had much change. Scenery is pretty much done, track is laid, wiring/DCC installed, so while components may be expensive, again, spread out over 20 years or so, not so bad. Probably the rolling stock and engines are the most expensive part.
Bob
Your post got me to look up my journal from when this latest layout began, it is a 4’X8’ in HO scale and too date down to the penny it only took $1,010.68 and that is because I used a lot of recycled stuff, now this is also without any trains included so I think I got away with it pretty cheap.
My layout, so far, has a little over $4000 in just the layout itself. I’m still working on how much rolling stock I have.
Kevin
This is one of those trick questions - with no correct answer. 3/4 of the stuff on my 4x8 plywood central is from the 60’s & 70’s - when Preiser figs cost about $2.95 per set!! What about rolling stock - I have a bunch of Athearn BB’s that I paid $1 to $1.50 in the '60’s as well as a couple of sound/DCC locos that cost up to $500!! How much is a car per foot - are we talking a Ferrari or a Yugo?!! Too many variables - using an old piece of ply, scrap from construction sites, and flea market/yard sale cars & locos could be as low as $10/SF - craftsman kits & brass locos could be $1000+/SF!![%-)]
The average number you seek is meaningless. It’s like asking how much per wheel does a car cost. The cost of twenty Yugo’s will be seriously skewed by including one Ferrari.
Some people have a simple layout with so many trains that they need to keep some of them on display on the wall until they want to run them. Others have a few trains and acres of room to run them.
Some people pride themselves on their ability to make anything on the layout from stuff they find around the house, others buy already built everything.
$400 in DCC stuff on a 4x8 layout vs the same stuff on a 16x20 around the room 3 level layout.
If you seek an average, you need to subdivide by many catagories.
My layout + DCC, less rolling stock, cost about $60 per square foot. The layout, with out DCC or rolling stock is about $52. Including my…umm…sizable fleet the cost balloons to more then I care to think about.
I use mostly commerical materials, but the costs come in clumps. Benchwork and wireing costs are pretty balanced across the whole layout. But, yards and urban areas are more dollar intensive the mainline running in open country.
Nick
What he said! There is an awful lot of variables. By “square foot” do you mean total floor space, or just the actual footprint of the layout? If the first, I can account for around $50 per SF if the second then raise that to about $90 per SF. That is with all the benchwork done, 95% of the trackwork completed but only around 30% of the scenery finished. And I scratchbuild a lot of items… On the other hand, my sister’s hobby is traveling all over the world to see artists and craftspeople from remote villages. She spends over $8,000 a year on that. I have a friend who is big into fishing. Let’s see $25,000 for the boat…
I figure that I will spend well over $125 per foot by the time I am finished, which will be when they pry the DT400R out of my cold hands!
Keeping track takes the fun out of it for me.
Nuff said!
Do you care if it is my left foot or right foot? [:D] Seriously I do keep track of what I have spent so far on my benchwork (that is the current construction phase I am on). I have an 18x9’ 3-level layout, and anything that gets permanently attached to it goes on my expense sheet:
http://csxdixieline.blogspot.com/2008/07/expenses.html
Eventually, I will add all of the track, wiring, DCC, scenery materials, rolling stock, locomotives, etc. but will not add things such as tools (for example, I had to buy a table saw to rip plywood but that is not included). But as others have noted, what I spend may or may not be close to what someone else would spend to do the same space, depending on track plan, scale, era and other factors. Jamie
If I don’t include locos and rolling stock, I’ve got about a grand invested in 48 square feet ($21/sqft). I buy almost everything second hand. Often, refurbishment is required, but I feel good about where I end up for the money. Our local club has an auction every September; lot of the time there is only one bidder on really good stuff. eBay is a great source for used train stuff, too. It can be a pretty economical hobby when new in box is not a criterion for purchase.
I’d like to see pictures of the various layouts along with their cost per square foot. Here’s mine:
A wide shot that shows the whole thing (including the furnace in the middle):
The track runs both in front of and behind the furnace. This winter I’ll be doing scenery on that section to the left in the photo.
Here’s the track plan:
Three young ladies went to the ball in almost-identical gowns:
- Miss Richstorm(1) wore her original (insert hyperexpensive custom designer name) gown.
- Miss Wageearner bought her gown at Clothes r’ Us, accessorized at Wal-Mart.
- Miss Economy (a professional seamstress) assembled her gown from parts of a couple of Goodwill purchases.
Three modelers built identical layouts:
- Bigdaddy Megabucks had his layout custom-built by (insert professional firm) and his expensive, top line RTR rolling stock custom-finished.
- Joe Ordinaire bought materials at his LHS, his BigBox home improvement store and off the internet, accessorized from the Walthers sale fliers.
- Senor El Cheapo scrounged scrap materials at construction sites. His rolling stock was bought off the returns shelf at the LHS and from junk boxes at train shows.
I have nothing but respect for the #1 modeler, but my own work falls somewhere between #2 and #3. My layout contains much recycled material (including multiconductor communications cable acquired in the 1970s. some wood products from 1980s construction sites and pink foam leftovers from a 1998 re-siding project.) I can’t even guess a per-square-foot cost, but it has never been more than I could afford - and I am NOT wealthy.
(1) Storm was my favorite canine critter - a Shepherd-Husky mix with the appearance and attitude of a timber wolf. One guess as to sex.
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Interesting question and one I’ve never really thought about before. And I’m discounting my rolling stock and motive power. The lumber and foam was pretty cheap (Home Depot), the WS risers and roadbed wasn’t so pretty cheap (my two local LHS’), and the track was relatively inexpensive (though the turnouts sure weren’t!). Hm, saved a bit on the foliage with bamboo skewers and a HUGE flat of furnace filters. WS ground cover, ballast and some custom deciduous trees DEFINITELY weren 't cheap.
Dang, I’d get too confused trying to figure it out by the foot. Despite being a musician, I never WAS good at math (that’s an old Urban Legend, anyway–musicians are good at FRACTIONS and that’s about it!).
Now I suppose I’ll be up all night figuring it out. Gee, thanks! [:-^]
Tom [:D]
Most of us can only count to 4…[:-^]