Model Railroad Layout Styles for Beginners
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- Опубліковано 27 сер 2024
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“The godly may trip seven times, but they will get up again.
But one disaster is enough to overthrow the wicked.
Don’t rejoice when your enemies fall;
don’t be happy when they stumble.
For the Lord will be displeased with you
and will turn his anger away from them.
Don’t fret because of evildoers;
don’t envy the wicked.”
Proverbs 24: 16-19 NLT
"it's your railroad, and you can do what you want" that's all I needed to get started in my small space. Thank you.
The advantage with a modular layout is you can get together with like-minded hobbyists and combine your module(s) with theirs to make for a much larger layout.
Is this a common thing to do? Is that how model train clubs work? I haven't had a chance to go to a model train club before
@@scalewrecks It depends on the club; I would imagine most clubs have some sort of a club layout that all members work on and can run either club trains or their own, other are purely modular based, and will set up at various exhibitions (look at the various Free-mo groups, or the Sipping and Switching Society). Some will do both.
@@kenr86 - Consider coming to Raleigh, NC on November 3-5 at the NC State Fairground. There will be a layout featuring Sipping and Switching Society, Speed-Mo, and Free-mo modules in an area close to 28, 000 square ft. All 3 module standards will be connected together at this event.
@@wrfreemo2006 Thanks, Tim - two years ago I did go up to Raleigh for the NVR show, and I was very impressed by the Sipping and Switching Society layout.
I live in a 1-bedroom apartment so I don't have room for a permanent layout. So I have three solutions to satiate my need for trains.
1/ I am (slowly) working on two 24x48" modules to N-Rail standards (formerly N-Track) for a large 6-platform through-running passenger station. The plan is to be able to take them to shows and clubs, and add them to other modules by other modelers. I have other modules in the planning stages too. Plus I am also considering some non-standard modules to make a temporary loop in order to run trains at home.
2/ Another project is a display case for my trains. Two of the shelves are high enough to fit a small diorama. This will help me develop my scenicing skills for when I work on my modules.
3/ I also joined a local club; but I find it very difficult to find the time and energy to go very often.
Jimmy to me the shelf layout is a better way to go even if you are lucky enough to have say a half basement or a large bedroom. I have seen modelers who think a 2 foot aisle is enough space but as we all know it is not. Mine for the most part fills a 16x26 foot area along 3 walls and has peninsula 36 inches wide which gives me about 18 inches on a side. All my aisles are 3ft wide . I also feel you should make your scenes modular like a diorama that can be exchanged and the added benny is you can build them on the work bench. Great stuff you put out, Thanks
I built a Shelf modular layout. I’m really happy with it!
There is one more option Jimmy a suspension railroad one that you can put up on the wall by the ceiling run around the room if you really have no room I know this is available in g-gauge but it's adaptable another scales point to ponder thanks buddy for all your videos enjoy them
I'm wrestling with this question right now! Just moved into a new house and have a fairly large 15*12 area to work with, but needs to have a guest bed there per the wife, so it's a BIG L shape... going back and forth with narrow shelves and two big dog bones at the end vs narrow shelfs with a hole in the middle i can crawl into and easily reach all areas... much to think about
Ungrounded Island Continuous Running, Thank You I finally have definition for my layout 👍😀OperateOnOperator
Dear Jimmy, it’s gonna a wide shelf! With shelfs all around the room, with both options for continuous running and switching. Cheerio
This is a very good follow up video to your layout for beginners video. Hey there was a shelf layout image that looks very familiar!...LOL. My shelf layout is also going to have continuous running as well since it will have reversing loops on both ends. - Jason
N scale: I started with an L-shaped shelf layout with loops at either end, but was dissatisfied because I built it too high and I couldn't reach all of it easily; it just wasn't fun to build or run. I tore it down and am currently building a small 3x6 foot island layout at desk level, and I'm having a ball with it! I'm just taking my time building and running it as I go... The shelf was just too big for me...
It's amazing what a difference that layout type, size, and height can mean to the amount of fun the hobby can deliver.
Ya didn't mention outside😅 Still watching🚂🇨🇦🇺🇲🙋
Great video. One aspect of shelf layout is that you could use ready made materials to build benchwork. I use narrow hollow core doors on shelf brackets as my benchwork. You save time building it, it holds up well and if your not happy with your efforts it can be easily replaced with a new door and start over.
Great points made. Micro layouts are also a good option for small spaces or to try/learn new skills being typically within 4 square feet.
I'm on my 7th layout if you count my garden railroad, started with ovals then the bent dog bone and modified versions of that. Now I'm building a shelf and peninsula layout. It's a out and back track plan with no continuous running loop, just a Turntable on the shelf portion where I can flip the trains back to the outbound track. This is a recycled layout from my last Island style, modular benchwork really helped in the redesign.
one big thing you can do - with any of the layouts, but works especially well with the shelf and modular - is to add a "staging cassette". This can be as simple as a 2-3 track basic yard that represents "off-layout" trains that are staged for operations to bring onto your layout. This staging cassette is very easy to make temporary and can be connected only when needed, lowering space requirements for tight spaces.
For me (as a new model railroader) using a staging cassette has really opened up the possibilities for my layout in that I can focus what is 'permanent' to be modeled more after what I want, and I can use the staging for bringing on trains for operations. it also becomes the 'destination' for trains to go after you've completed switching etc.
I have worked on all three types of layouts. They all have pro's and con's. Just need to figure out what works best for you. Thanks for sharing.
Hey Jimmy great advice! For the longest time I loved continuous running but thought I'd like switching instead of watching my trains run around in circles. Apparently I actually just realized I get more enjoyment from railfaning my layout than switching.
Modular shelf. I am having problems visualizing the interchange with an adjoining rail road. Great video zJimmy.
I like t-trak modules for the reasons you describe. I would add to your points that I can show my modules in public.
Show some nice shelf track plans please.
I'm doing a modular layout for my first one ever, I have an apartment with a 25ft hallway leading in so 20ft of that by 17in wide and in 3 foot sections. Its super helpful when you also can afford everything at once and can slowly build up the layout as you go! I know doing it this way ive gotten some very very good deals on track, turnouts (up to 10 turnouts for $20 sometimes) rolling stock and scenery. Live trains so much I want my own little train world
Ah, design constraints, my favourite. My wife allows me one room as a "man cave", but this room needs to fulfill a storage function. It is also my work room / office, i.e. my desk, my computer, keyboard and screens etc need to fit with reasonable ergonomics. So I'm basically left with a u-shaped shelf layout in one half of the room. In an Ikea "Ivar" shelf. As we are renting, the layout also needs to be modular. It needs to have at least two levels, because of common model railroader megalomania (can't fit all the scenes that I want into one level.) Wife then introduced another constraint: she demanded a lift-out bridge. Because how else could trains run continously? So there you have it: a modular multi-level shelf layout for continous running.
Currently in the experimentation phase, trying to figure out how to build module heads that work with and around the shelf supports. From time to time I throw some track onto the bookshelf to itinerate my way to a working track plan (and allow the rolling stock some movement), and I play with mock-ups to figure out how to position the helix and how to integrate the helix access track into the rest.
That's another awesome benefit of the hobby: it can keep you occupied for years even before you actually start to build something.
@DIYDigitalRailroad , if you want to see the wildest shelf layout ever, look at the youtube channel "Held vom Erdbeerfeld". A shelf layout for continous running through the stunning scenery of the Austrian alps, featuring mountain passes, a scale mountain top reaching the ceiling of the room, a modern city center with passenger station and trams, some switching opportunities, two staging yards - all crammed into a tiny storage closet that is barely big enough to fit a single person! The very inspiring work of a mad genius.
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Definitely a great video Jimmy, I had been struggling for years to finally have my very first layout built but wasn’t sure where to start, a friend of mine introduced me to the modular type layout and was very glad that he did, while yes it’s a small layout right now, when I can, it’ll have a small two track yard, a small locomotive facility, and some small spaces for other switching ops once I can get more track. One thing that would be nice to talk about and you kinda did in this video is go with what makes you happy, when I was really finally able to run trains again, a local hobby shop had quite a selection of Bachmann EZ track to use, and while most people have sworn to never use it, I plan to make 90% of my layout out of it, only industries and the yards will have flex track to optimize the space and to give realism of the tracks lower then the mainline. You are always so helpful and knowledgeable for everyone especially the new comers. Would love to be able to share my layout someday when things get more busy here! Thanks for sharing!
I am a micro layout person, and multiple micro layouts can be joined to create a modular system. My current layout is 3' x 1', but I have decided to remodel it as two, 2'X1' micro layouts or modules.
Due to my space limits (in apartment currently) I’m building a 7’ x 11’ shelf but in modules than I can expand later into a 10’ x 16’ garage island. Two of my primary modules are my😊 engine facilities. Roundhouse, turntable and fueling tracks.
My mess of a railroad is an island with I think a bit of modular. It's a 4x8 piece of lumber placed on top of a table.
LOL Love this video, but I realized quickly that my own design is utterly non-standard. :-) This is because I wanted two things: a continuous run loop AND operations. I also decided to stick with HO scale, so getting this into a compact L-shape like your layout wasn't happening. What I ended up with is a hollow-core "Island" that is 4 shelves laid out in a rectangle. The base started as two 4' x8' sheets cut long-ways into 2' x 8' sections. These are laid into a rectangle with an outer diameter of 12' x 8' with each "face" having a 2' depth. Each face also has a "theme". One is a yard, one has a 'main street' small-town with a small industry, one is a major industry (ethanol plant) as well as a mainline connection , and the fourth is scenic with a small industry tucked in for additional switching options. Its going to take me years to build it out and I am looking forward to it. Currently it only lives in SCARM (the lumber is stacked in the garage) waiting for construction to start. I have another promise to fulfill before I can begin, but when that day comes I will document and maybe get it into your online train shows. :-) Until then, I greatly enjoy your channel and hope I can build something that is half as good looking!
I heard one thing in this video, “in my next project I’m modeling a section of the YVRR”, I CAN NOT WAIT TO SEE THIS!
You are right, 'it's your railroad and you can do what you want', that's why the Adams family always crashes and blows up their trains. Ha ha ha!
wow. after watching this i thought you had me in mind due to my previous comment about my railroad design. im thinking of making mine a bit modular due to uncertain future. will i move or even will i need to move my railroad? im not planning any moving but many times people dont plan to move and then they do. so my design will be portable in that not permanently affixed to a wall or to the whole layout, mostly because my design is different at every section. ill have a 3 X 5 ft section connected to narrow strips (double track) that connect to a smaller 2.5 x 5 ft section.
Is it possible to estimate the budget to build a railroad in these styles you are talking about? Maybe, what we can expect to spend, high/low. to put together a shelf layout and so on. I'm just getting the bug in my retirement years so need all the info I can get.
great vlog pal I am looking at doing a shelf layout on ho scale is there anywhere I can go to to see some shelf plans cheers Alan from Australia
I've been in model railroading for thirty years now (wow!). I've got a few things to add. I've belonged to three clubs, two fixed, one modular.
First, club railroading is really another type. Here the design needs to be an act of collaboration, where alt least some goals must bee shared and negotiated. One's layout was an island, albeit a stretched one that went up and down the room several times The other is a folded island where there was two and in some place three levels stacked. The lowest level was a pair of return/staging loops so that the railroad could be operated as a point to point - one loop to the other, out and back, one to the other and back, or continuous running.
Second, for a small home layout avoid islands. They make the poorest use of the space, and end up being the least satisfying. I've started three small N scale islands, and finished none. The closest to completion is actually a Timesaver that has been wrapped to eat its own tail. Putting a couple of pegs in it to cut off the loop turns it into the Timesaver.
Third, modular standards can make a satisfying home layout. Stringing together modules can be great way to build a model railroad that grows. I've done two. One started as a six foot T-Trak yard scene, added a pair of return loops, making an 11' x 4' 'L', and evolved (with new loops and some staging) to a 13' x 5' 'C' . The other is also to T-Trak standards and string together a couple of towns that stand on their own a switching scenes.
Are you using a standard for Your modules?
Hello
Yes i really like the idea. I'd really would like to build something like this except I cannot find the type of knife hinges this person is using:
ua-cam.com/video/m07jGXt3fwU/v-deo.htmlfeature=shared
Any idea what type hinges?
Hi Jimmy. I am a newbie mature female building my first ever modular traintrack ho scale. But Mr Jimmy i haven't got a train yet. I am not sure what to buy. All I am sure of is I dig HO & That's what my first no#1. Module is built with HO accessories. My first module is the up north in the red dust of Central Australia little greenery & lotz of red earth / dust etc. BUT STILL NEED A TRAIN. BUT WHAT ???
HELP.. CHEERZ JIMMY.