Many newcomers to model railways are possessed to build a miniature railway empire, in an urge to get something running, with little thought on how to achieve their railway dream. These dreams are often thwarted due to something not working out as anticipated and leaves a very sour taste in the mouth. This is where most newcomers simply 'give up'. As with any worthwhile pursuit in life, a model railway will pay dividends to consideration, thoughts and advice from fellow modellers. So lets start from the very beginning. You have been given or have purchased a train set, or a few components to get started. Now what do you do ?? The first question you must ask your self is, 'What do I want from my railway ?' This is entirely up to you, the modeller. Now is the time to write your self a list of what you want from your layout and also what you want on your layout. Some of the considerations for a layout are : 1. Available space. 2. Size and shape of layout. 3. Type of layout. 4. Scale. 5. Control (dc or dcc) All the above need consideration before any planning gets underway. With all this in mind and armed with your notes, it is time to plan your layout. If you have had a look through Model Railway Layouts http://www.platform1mrc.com/view_category.php?id=2 , you may get a feel for a particular design or a good idea for a track plan. There are different layout designs to suit each persons individual need. You may want to expand the basic 'train set' oval to include a passing loop and a few sidings, or even duplicate the line to dual mainline running. Then again, you may be interested in shunting and would prefer an end to end layout or a simple shunting layout. Available space to build a layout is no.1 to consider for a reason. You may have a spare bedroom or you may be restricted to a narrow area along a wall. Space will always determine what can be built. This comes down to size and shape. Can you afford to have a 6' x 10' layout with access from all around ? Or is it as simple as having a narrow shelf type of layout, that provides easy access to the whole layout ? Of course this then stems into the type of layout. Both a dual mainline or single branchline type of layouts can be suited to either a central baseboard or a shelf type. A simple shunting layout can be built as a shelf or 'plank'. Choosing the right scale for your needs will always will determine the size of a layout. There are some quite large O gauge layouts and then there are relatively small O gauge layouts. The most common scale would be HO and OO gauge. This would be closely followed by N gauge. There are other scales available, but for this thread we will be concentrating on OO gauge. Now you need to decide on control (power to track and accessories) for the layout. DC is the tried and tested way of controlling a layout. Whereas DCC is no more complicated but it does offer a few benefits like sound and doing away with complex control panels full of switches. The reason on choosing your preferred control type is due to how you will wire the layout in the long run. Having given thought to all the above, a track plan needs to be decided upon. You may have a great plan stashed away in the grey matter (in your head), but until you put it down on paper, you are still unaware whether it will work. Drawing a few lines on a piece of paper as a concept is great, but don't take this for granted. You cannot be guaranteed that it will work, after all, the radii on the curves could be far too tight for a train to run smoothly on. You can avoid such mishaps by downloading one of the many 'free' track planning software packages, or you may wish to purchase a program. Recommended programs are : Anyrail : https://www.anyrail.com/index_en.html (caters for all gauges and brands) Scarm : http://www.scarm.info/index.php Xtrak Cad : http://www.xtrkcad.org/Wikka/HomePage Atlas : http://www.atlasrr.com/software.htm (American track) Hornby : http://www.hornby.com/uk-en/shop/power-control/software.html (Hornby track only) Peco : http://www.peco-uk.com/page.asp?id=pointplans (downloadable Peco track templates only) Before we go any further, when it comes to designing your track plan for your very first layout, my advice for new modellers is the KISS principle, which is Keep It Simple Stup....! Now, with any track plan, you need to decide on what track you wish to use. There is a plethora of track available and the most commonly used track in the UK and Australia would be either Hornby (set track only) or Peco. In the US, it would possibly be Atlas. Europe offers other track brands, such as Fleischmann. Bachmann US and Bachmann Europe offer their own track which is 'set track', in their train sets and as extra pieces or track packs. Hornby offers the same in respect of set track, in their train sets and as additional pieces or track packs. Set track is what comes in a train set and it generally has a fixed radii, but it also is available in different radii. Even the set track points come in a common radii which makes it very easy to put simple layouts together as the track is geometrically is the same. More experienced modellers tend to use Peco Streamlined track, which is a lot closer to the prototype in comparison, compared to set track. The other option is to building your own track, that is points (turn-outs), crossings and straight rail, which is truly prototypical. For this thread, we will stick with the 'off the shelf' Peco Streamlined track (code 100). Code 100 refers to the height of the rail. In Ho and OO gauge there are three main 'codes' available. These are Code 75, Code 83 and Code 100. For example, Code 100 is .100" high, whereas code 75 is .075" high. Code 75 is a much finer looking rail than Code 100 and much more natural looking. So, now it is up to you to take all the above information on board and come up with a plan of attack. If you are having trouble designing a track plan, ask any one of the members here to give you a hand. Track planning can be the hardest part of designing your railway. The next step once you have decided on a track plan, is to build your baseboard. Each modeller will have his or her preferred method of construction. You need to remember that the baseboard is the most important part of a layout. It will survive the entire life of the layout if built soundly. Baseboards don't have to be made industrially strong, as they can also be built lightweight and strong. More on baseboard design will follow soon. Cheers, Gary.
Baseboard Construction. There are many ways to build baseboard. Probably the easiest is board (MDF or Ply) on a timber frame. This is possibly the easiest method for shelf or plank type layouts. This diagram explains the simple method. Something to consider when using the above method with bracing through out the underside, is where these cross bracing timbers sit. These will cause problems if using point motors. In my experience, I have been caught out with the brace right where I wish to position a point motor/solenoid. It is a good idea to print out your track plan and glue/secure to top of baseboard, before installing these centre braces. The diagram above shows a simple track plan on a 72"x 12" baseboard. The outer red rectangle is the baseboard framing. The small green marks are where point motors would be located and the orange bars lined in red are the centre baseboard braces. Clever track design and baseboard construction goes hand in hand to complement each other. A method I have used for light weight base board is 18mm x 11mm pine frame, sandwiched between two sheets of 3 ply. This is used on my Industry Lane plank. Similar to what I have done above, Kimbo of this parish uses a similar method to construct his baseboard framing material. See here : http://www.platform1mrc.com/view_post.php?post_id=14746 Once the baseboard has been constructed, legs or supports need to be constructed. If the layout is to be permanent, sturdy legs can be secured directly to the baseboard frame. If the layout is movable, a different approach needs to be considered. The simplest method will be timber legs with diagonal bracing. For a portable layout, the legs can be hinged where they meet the baseboard framing and adjustable struts can be used to lock the legs in vertically. This is reasonably steady, but due to the width of the layout (not length) there is a slight wobble. Smaller shelf or plank style of layouts don't necessarily need legs as they are often small enough to set up on a table, or even adjustable saw horses. Or, if the layout is permanently stored at home, why not use shelving brackets. These come in a variety of sizes from general hardware stores, B&Q (UK), Bunnings (Australia) and The Home Depot (US). These brackets can be mounted on a wall with screw fixings and will support a reasonable weight. More to follow soon. Cheers, Gary.
