need to fill alot of space

well guys

i gave up my old layout for a good trade. i gave it up for a van for my dissabled son, the guy i traded it to always wanted a layout but with him in a wheelchair he couldn't do on his own we where talking and he came to see mine and we traded for his 2 year old wheelchair van for the layout (don't worrie he has a new van ) i took it down and got a uhal truck a took it to his house and set it up for him i even through in some rooling stockand a couple of locos to get him started i gave him the dcc i had for my sons layout and showed him how to work it and made sure things worked good i have to go and finsh tuch up hear and their . but with all of that out of the way i am at a lost on the new layout i love a long main line run but like to do switching i have both steam and desile i like tho have bridges and a water frontand maybe a mountian somewhere the one thing i want to avoid is reversing loops my son loves to see them run so a loop to loop is good tunnels to hide it would work ok or a mountian where the train runs like a nolix in and out of it as it makes it's way up well i know that is alot but i would take every plan till i get that one here is a mock up of the area the banch work is done
 

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MasonJar

It's not rocket surgery
Hi Scoob...

Just so I understand - the benchwork is all 27" wide, and the penninsula coming up from the "bottom" is 4 feet long, and the right side extends 5 feet "down" the wall?

Looks like lots of room. One thing I always wanted is a good sized roundhouse (6-7 stalls) with a complete steam servicing facility. That would eat a lot of the layout, although I am not too sure how much (usually being in HO!).

Here's a link to an interesting yard (division point on the CPR) in Orangeville. I used to go by it every day, but long after the steam was gone :( . http://www.mcswiz.com/MyLayout/Orangeville.htm

In HO it is about 25 feet long, but with Nscale and some selective compression, you could probably put it on the 5 foot part (?). It has a 5 stall roundhouse.

Good luck!

Andrew
 
masonjar


i looked at the link and did my math that would take up a space 13 foot long in n scale but the onething i would need is a diesel service for my orther locos i could put that on the long side and run a hidden track behind it now three sides to go
 

MasonJar

It's not rocket surgery
Hi Scoob...

The yard in the link was done full size - that is it is a 1/87 copy. If you used some selective compression, you might get it down smaller than 13 feet. Unless of course, you want it to be the focus of your layout. You can also always update the servicing area to accomodate diesels. This yard did service diesels as well, if I recall correctly.

Anyway, it's all about the ideas. I saw you are running steam, and I guess I stopped reading (I love steam... :D). With all that space, you could do all kinds of things!

Andrew
 

belg

Member
Hey don't look now but your 27" benchwork is got this really big growth on it!!!!:D I'm definately not the one to give any advice on how things work and don't but I like your plan as is.IMHO I'm sure our more experienced folks will be able to tell you wether something doesn't look like it will work. Keep us posted on the progress. Pat
 

Sir_Prize

Member
That's an aweful long tunnel in the back. The club I belonged to
had one like that. It is cool that the train is gone for a long time,
but that also means a long time to find out if something happened
to a train in the tunnel. Then there is searching the tunnel route
for that problem. Also, the searching for the car/loco that fell.:eek:

Other then that... :D :D
 
that is the one flaw is that long tunnel but it would be 4 inches below the rest of the layout their is room for me to get behind the layout and my brother said why don't you put a yard under that part where you can have full trains ready and do a lap or 2 with one and change it out with another. but i am still up to any idea's i still need three towns put in one after each of my boys
 

Bikerdad

Member
With that bump out, are you going to have adequate room for your disabled son? I assume he's in a wheelchair, will be be able to get past the bump?
 
his wheelchair is 30 inch at the widest point he would have room to get in to the layout and see everything on top of the space i also made it lower from 42 inches above the floor to only 34 inches and i am making a contorl panel that would be able to sit on his wheelchair for he can run the trains when he get older with this layout it is going to be dcc so i would have to get the train ready for him to control and i would have it at a set speed for he can't run it at full power but he would be able to stop it
 

Arlaghan

Member
Radio DCC?

It's a little more pricey than the regular DCC, but you might want to consider Radio Controlled throttles. That way he doesn't have the hassle of a tethered throttle and doesn't need line-of-sight for the infrared ones.
 

pjb

New Member
Around the Room Alternative

Given your givens, I believe that you should give some consideration to around the room shelving layouts. One can get colossal run length , have the entire center room free if you wish and allow easy access for at least three levels of track by any wheel chair bound person. You also can run a central peninsula off the lowest or two lowest shelves which allows inclusion of an engine shop , large industrial plant , etc.

Even if the room does not have central access; which it probably does not, as most of those are cellars and attics in residences, you can create doors that carry the shelving and lift vertically with counterweights or motor drives.

Since attics and cellars would be unlikely places for you to be constructing a layout for your son, it is worth considering such a layout, that incorporates a layout trackage carrying door . Steel house entrance doors, are optimal for your purposes since the frames are structural elements, and the sellers can rig them to open anyway you want. They are dimensionally stable , and strong. Probably Home Depot, and similar low price vendors, can do it as well as a contractor that specializes in steel doors and windows. However, you would have to do all the numbers yourself with them , while a contractor would do it himself and see that it worked.
If this is outside your envelope that is OK, but on the chance you haven't considered it, I thought it worth mentioning.
Good-Luck, PJB
 
C

Catt

Hey Scooby,the Holland train show is this coming Sunday 11/09 03.Are you gonna make it?

If you do come up on the stage (where the NTRAK layout is :D ) and introduce your self. Just ask for John.
 
thanks john

i'll try to get their this sunday but if i go wife wont let me buy anything. but i maybe able to get a little money off the worden for the boy she don't like going to train shows with me all she does is find a chair and sits their till i am ready to go ,well it's the same when she drags me shopping with her.

PJB

i have had a arond the room layout but it was 36 x 18 and it was two levels the lowest at 40 inches and the upper at 50 inches above the floori went to this layout due to the space got smaller with adding a playroom for the kids toys and something my son can see with out takeing him out of his chair so i droped this layout down to a min of 30 inches at it's lowest point and 34 inches at it's highest . all for when he gets older and then he could do more on the layout than just run the train i made up for him.
 
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