Very interesting Rob. Really useful to have a walk through of your thinking and the track plan. Great tip for the rail joiners. Running smoothly and quietly with your underlay. John
Hi John, I cannot say enough good about this underlay. No wood sound, just wheels. It is turning out that I have more room than I thought so it should turn out well. Thank you, Rob
I panicked when I saw the thumbnail, thought you were ripping it all up again! The track realignment and the plans look good. I love the idea of giving visitors a list of things to look for, it encourages them to seek out the scenes and stories you've made, details that perhaps some people miss when viewing a layout for the first time.
Exactly, the list was so they would be encouraged to look closely at the details. It is easy to just glance and say, nice layout. The list entertained them too and gave them something to talk about amongst themselves. You are exactly right. Thank you, Rob
Hi Rob, well I don’t expect I will be able to make a visit to the USA anytime soon but if I did I would sure like to visit your layout, an awesome treat for those who attended. Regards, Geoff.
Hi Geoff, the open house was a lot of fun. My only real contact with other modelers is through UA-cam so it was nice to have live people in the train room looking over the layout. Thank you, Rob
Hi Michael, Next week should see some real progress. The available space is more than expected, so there might be space for an extra siding or two. Thank you, Rob
Nice changes happening there Rob. Great news with having people over and doing the ‘I spy’ game, that was a huge hit when I exhibited my layout too, everyone has heaps of fun looking for the little scenes. Glad it went well and you got some great feedback. Great tip with the sleepers too, much better than adding in the extra bits later. Cheers, Dan
Hi Dan, Everyone seemed to have a good time. A couple guys showed up that want to build a layout and it was fun answering all their questions. Hope the sleeper bit could be useful. Thank you, Rob
Got to have it right Rob. Just be careful with the knife.........I've had a few mishaps over the years. I usually cut the plastic underneath connecting the sleepers. The end sleeper(Tie) will then slide off easily. Then I cut of the rail clamps and file a shallow recess in the the sleeper to accommodate the fish plate. I connect the track and slide the extra sleeper back underneath before fixing the track down. I find this method usually results in no irregularities in the rail height......Keep up the good work......David(UK)
MrChoochoo Hi David, I have the advantage that my road bed will absorb small irregularities. Besides, by cutting under and removing the plate and the chairs, it makes room for the fishplate without adding height. I am curious about your method. Perhaps you could demonstrate one day. Yes, the wood block prevents slicing my finger. I have done that a few times and do not wish to repeat it. Granted it has been a long while. Knock on wood. Thank you, Rob
Changes in Farland. All part of the process Rob. For my track spacing I try to use the prototype spacing of 15' o/c using my HO scale rule. I think (from my personal observations) that the British tend to have their rails wider spaced than that. Cheers, David.
Hi David, If you don't want to read all this, it is okay. It is just that I have spent considerable time looking at it. I dug into track separations and found the normal separation in the UK was 6 feet from inside rail to inside rail for neighboring tracks and in the US it is 10 feet. I did not check to see what they do in Canada. However, OO track is narrower than what would be correct for scale. OO runs on Half O track, but is a bigger scale, 1:76 vs 1:84 for HO. This means that overhangs on the side are not to scale and one cannot judge side by side distances from the rail head. As a consequence, OO must be farther apart than scale. 16 scale feet on my layout. Since rails on mainlines in the US, Canada and the UK are 4 feet 8 1/2 inches apart, It is easy to calculate the distance by scaling the photograph with the gauge known. Thank you, Rob
hi Rob... it seems that no matter how nice / good our layouts are we're always looking to make improvements... looking forward to your next video... vinny
Hi Vinny, This area of the track was kind of a guesstimate and no real planning was done before the track was hastily laid down. It was enough to get trains through. Since I am starting to think about completing this area of the layout, I figured it was time to clean it up. You are right, after it is built, one can always envision a better plan. Thank you, Rob
Broughton MCR Hi, Steve, When this section was originally laid, it was a bit haphazard. Now that I am developing it, I thought cleaning up the track plan should be first. Thank you. Rob
Very much enjoyed the video of HSS track changes. Looking forward the seeing it progress. And thanks again on putting up with my many replies ref Foxeer Legend 2. Cary aka cbgadget
Hi Cary, That begs the question, though, did you get the Legend 2 sorted out? It is never a bother if I can help. Happy you enjoyed the video. Thank you, Rob
Hi Scott, Layouts are never finished. They do, as yours did, get to a point where you can run trains in a circle. Sitting back and watching them run is very enjoyable too. Thank you, Rob
Great job. So few have the guts to realize that there is a better way, literally in this case, and do something about it. I was wondering what you used, if anything, to hold down the Woodland Scenics roadbed material? What did you use under the turnouts and what was it held down with? Thanks for taking the time to share.
Hi Dennis, I use Woodland Scenics Foam Tack to hold down the roadbed. I also use it to glue down the track. It stays flexible so it does not degrade the acoustic properties of the foam roadbed. It is important to use it sparingly so you can get your track and the roadbed back up in the future if you decide you need to. If you use a thin layer (squeegee it to a thin layer with a plastic square) to hold both the track and roadbed. Either will peel up easily without damage. You must cut pieces of roadbed to fit under turnouts. It takes some practice but you can get quite good at it. Your ballast can cover up all sorts of mistakes so no worries there. I hope that helps. Thank you so much, Rob
Very interesting Rob. Really useful to have a walk through of your thinking and the track plan. Great tip for the rail joiners. Running smoothly and quietly with your underlay. John
Hi John, I cannot say enough good about this underlay. No wood sound, just wheels. It is turning out that I have more room than I thought so it should turn out well. Thank you, Rob
I panicked when I saw the thumbnail, thought you were ripping it all up again! The track realignment and the plans look good. I love the idea of giving visitors a list of things to look for, it encourages them to seek out the scenes and stories you've made, details that perhaps some people miss when viewing a layout for the first time.
Exactly, the list was so they would be encouraged to look closely at the details. It is easy to just glance and say, nice layout. The list entertained them too and gave them something to talk about amongst themselves. You are exactly right. Thank you, Rob
Now that’s just what I like to see .. doing just the same .. we got to get it right .. not always easy .. onwards with the improvements Rob ... Dave
Hi Dave, Keep trying, that is my motto. Yup, I learned it all from you. Thank you, Rob
Hi Rob, well I don’t expect I will be able to make a visit to the USA anytime soon but if I did I would sure like to visit your layout, an awesome treat for those who attended. Regards, Geoff.
Hi Geoff, the open house was a lot of fun. My only real contact with other modelers is through UA-cam so it was nice to have live people in the train room looking over the layout. Thank you, Rob
Great video Rob, very much looking forward to the next one.
Michael
Hi Michael, Next week should see some real progress. The available space is more than expected, so there might be space for an extra siding or two. Thank you, Rob
Sounds good Rob, its nice to hear your ideas.
Michael
Thanks
Layout it looking good Rob, the change will be good, thanks for sharing
Hi Randy, This should improve the operational aspects of the layout. Those X crossovers were so rough and I did not expect that. Thank you, Rob
Nice changes happening there Rob. Great news with having people over and doing the ‘I spy’ game, that was a huge hit when I exhibited my layout too, everyone has heaps of fun looking for the little scenes. Glad it went well and you got some great feedback. Great tip with the sleepers too, much better than adding in the extra bits later. Cheers, Dan
Hi Dan, Everyone seemed to have a good time. A couple guys showed up that want to build a layout and it was fun answering all their questions. Hope the sleeper bit could be useful. Thank you, Rob
Got to have it right Rob. Just be careful with the knife.........I've had a few mishaps over the years. I usually cut the plastic underneath connecting the sleepers. The end sleeper(Tie) will then slide off easily. Then I cut of the rail clamps and file a shallow recess in the the sleeper to accommodate the fish plate. I connect the track and slide the extra sleeper back underneath before fixing the track down. I find this method usually results in no irregularities in the rail height......Keep up the good work......David(UK)
MrChoochoo Hi David, I have the advantage that my road bed will absorb small irregularities. Besides, by cutting under and removing the plate and the chairs, it makes room for the fishplate without adding height. I am curious about your method. Perhaps you could demonstrate one day. Yes, the wood block prevents slicing my finger. I have done that a few times and do not wish to repeat it. Granted it has been a long while. Knock on wood. Thank you, Rob
super job there Rob!! looking forward to lots more...love the layout..wish i had that much room!..we'll have to move house all the best dave
Hi Dave, My wife talks about moving ever now and then and it makes me shudder. Thank you so much, Rob
Great Tip, nice work
Hi Alistair, Thank you very much, Rob
Always good to see progress being made, I can only dream of such a layout, and the added story line is an added bonus.
Thank you.
Alistair Aldridge I am very lucky, my wife is also generous to give me such a great space to build in. Thank you so much, Rob
Changes in Farland. All part of the process Rob. For my track spacing I try to use the prototype spacing of 15' o/c using my HO scale rule. I think (from my personal observations) that the British tend to have their rails wider spaced than that. Cheers, David.
Hi David, If you don't want to read all this, it is okay.
It is just that I have spent considerable time looking at it. I dug into track separations and found the normal separation in the UK was 6 feet from inside rail to inside rail for neighboring tracks and in the US it is 10 feet. I did not check to see what they do in Canada. However, OO track is narrower than what would be correct for scale. OO runs on Half O track, but is a bigger scale, 1:76 vs 1:84 for HO. This means that overhangs on the side are not to scale and one cannot judge side by side distances from the rail head. As a consequence, OO must be farther apart than scale. 16 scale feet on my layout. Since rails on mainlines in the US, Canada and the UK are 4 feet 8 1/2 inches apart, It is easy to calculate the distance by scaling the photograph with the gauge known.
Thank you, Rob
hi Rob... it seems that no matter how nice / good our layouts are we're always looking to make improvements... looking forward to your next video... vinny
Hi Vinny, This area of the track was kind of a guesstimate and no real planning was done before the track was hastily laid down. It was enough to get trains through. Since I am starting to think about completing this area of the layout, I figured it was time to clean it up. You are right, after it is built, one can always envision a better plan. Thank you, Rob
looking forward to the video next week. always something to do and change on one's layout..
Hi Sparky, So true, it can always be better. Thank you, Rob
All change Rob. There are always improvements to make ... Steve
Broughton MCR Hi, Steve, When this section was originally laid, it was a bit haphazard. Now that I am developing it, I thought cleaning up the track plan should be first. Thank you. Rob
Very much enjoyed the video of HSS track changes. Looking forward the seeing it progress. And thanks again on putting up with my many replies ref Foxeer Legend 2.
Cary aka cbgadget
Hi Cary, That begs the question, though, did you get the Legend 2 sorted out? It is never a bother if I can help. Happy you enjoyed the video. Thank you, Rob
Thanks Rob, got it working good couple days ago and am very pleased. Will get a video to UA-cam of "engineers" view in next couple days. Regards, Cary
cbgadget Good news. Thanks for the feedback.
I guess there is one constant in this hobby, changes. I would like to make changes but if I do the layout will never come close to being finished.
Hi Scott, Layouts are never finished. They do, as yours did, get to a point where you can run trains in a circle. Sitting back and watching them run is very enjoyable too. Thank you, Rob
Great job. So few have the guts to realize that there is a better way, literally in this case, and do something about it. I was wondering what you used, if anything, to hold down the Woodland Scenics roadbed material? What did you use under the turnouts and what was it held down with? Thanks for taking the time to share.
Hi Dennis, I use Woodland Scenics Foam Tack to hold down the roadbed. I also use it to glue down the track. It stays flexible so it does not degrade the acoustic properties of the foam roadbed. It is important to use it sparingly so you can get your track and the roadbed back up in the future if you decide you need to. If you use a thin layer (squeegee it to a thin layer with a plastic square) to hold both the track and roadbed. Either will peel up easily without damage. You must cut pieces of roadbed to fit under turnouts. It takes some practice but you can get quite good at it. Your ballast can cover up all sorts of mistakes so no worries there. I hope that helps. Thank you so much, Rob