for those of you who think that you don't have enough room (we never do, do we?) to build a layout, this is my solution.
I've been planning this for awhile, but hadn't gotten around to it because of being lazy. Well, sorta. I just never did it because I knew it would be a pain in the butt, but I did and I just acquired an extra 4ft of mainline and 4ft of branchline, so it was worth it.
my layout is a 1ft wide shelf in the shape of an L. It's essentially a switching layout and I tried to make it interesting, but I was stuck with the fact that my trains could never go anywhere. So, one night while racking my head about what to do, the answer came to me. It was so simple an answer and it created not only one but two places for my trains to go.
The origianl terminus of my layout at the "foot" end of the "L" ended right to the side of my dresser (the layout is in my bedroom). Due to a electrical recepticle behind the dresser, the whole thing sits away from the wall about 2-1/2". This gap is perfect for a hidden track, but not much more.
So, instead of a hidden yard, I settled with an over and under scheme. The top track will be my mainline to points elsewhere and the lower track would be a branch line to industries just outside of the immediate viewing area. This way i could have my local frieght come in to the industrial area and drop off and pick up cars(either from my visible industries or the hidden branch track)then turn around and head on out back down the mainline.
The main disadvantage is the steep grade from the low line to the high line. It won't be seen and I won't be pulling more than a couple of cars at a time due to the lead track at the other end of the layout, but it is heavier than I prefer (5.5%). We will see.
The last couple of pics show the "benchwork" I built out of 2x2x1/8" alum angle with 1/2' plywood mounted on top and how the two levels of track appear after installation. This project was the biggest hold-up for me to continue because the two track heights set the benchmark for the rest of the layout.
I've been planning this for awhile, but hadn't gotten around to it because of being lazy. Well, sorta. I just never did it because I knew it would be a pain in the butt, but I did and I just acquired an extra 4ft of mainline and 4ft of branchline, so it was worth it.
my layout is a 1ft wide shelf in the shape of an L. It's essentially a switching layout and I tried to make it interesting, but I was stuck with the fact that my trains could never go anywhere. So, one night while racking my head about what to do, the answer came to me. It was so simple an answer and it created not only one but two places for my trains to go.
The origianl terminus of my layout at the "foot" end of the "L" ended right to the side of my dresser (the layout is in my bedroom). Due to a electrical recepticle behind the dresser, the whole thing sits away from the wall about 2-1/2". This gap is perfect for a hidden track, but not much more.
So, instead of a hidden yard, I settled with an over and under scheme. The top track will be my mainline to points elsewhere and the lower track would be a branch line to industries just outside of the immediate viewing area. This way i could have my local frieght come in to the industrial area and drop off and pick up cars(either from my visible industries or the hidden branch track)then turn around and head on out back down the mainline.
The main disadvantage is the steep grade from the low line to the high line. It won't be seen and I won't be pulling more than a couple of cars at a time due to the lead track at the other end of the layout, but it is heavier than I prefer (5.5%). We will see.
The last couple of pics show the "benchwork" I built out of 2x2x1/8" alum angle with 1/2' plywood mounted on top and how the two levels of track appear after installation. This project was the biggest hold-up for me to continue because the two track heights set the benchmark for the rest of the layout.
