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Probably too tedious for overall grass, but doable for small areas is the use of cattails. You can take a pinch right off the pod (or whatever it's called) and apply it to a puddle of glue. It will literally expand when you release it to a nice full clump. After drying, it can be trimed as...

I am a life member but to be honest, if I weren't, I probably would not continue my membership. Too many squables and delays in setting standarts (esp DCC) often causing manufacturers to hold off production, then not everyone follows them anyway or just enough to afix the "eye" (NMRA approved...

I agree with Andrew about planning for industries. Too many layouts feature what I consider too small of industries to even justify rail service. Less but larger (and more impressive) industries will look better and justify the traffic - in fact, volume may actually be greater. But you must plan...

It depends if you want those back tracks as part of the scene. The backdrop you see behind my pic of the warehouse is a false one with 4 tracks behind. In our case, the tracks behind were mostly for staging and a "cutoff" so a train could "bypass" the town.

Depending on the scale, the sandpaper method might work. In HO I prefer to use artist acrylics out of a tube and "stipple" it on. I also use this method for tarred roofing.

I don't how big your layout is, but if you are going to have fairly lengthy wire runs (30' or more) do yourself a favor and twist the buss wires 3 or 4 turns/ft now to avoid potential problems when converting to DCC.

I don't know if you plan on going wireless, but NCE will allow you to acquire engines and vary lashups while wireless. From what I understand, you must plug in with Digitrax to do the same.

I've never seen a good solution to using more than 2 cabs on a DC layout. I never liked rotary switches (and you have to put an SPST in series to avoid problems). My friend had a pushbutton setup like a car radio giving 5 cabs but it was a surplus item and not generally available. DCC allows you...

We used a lot of buildings against the backdrop esp the Walthers Cornerstone kits on my friend's layout. Most of them we were able to stretch in length using parts that would have been the backside wall. I used DPM parts to complete the backside of a Magnason kit to create 1 building and the...

It's a personal thing with me, but it looks like trains run around (and thru each area) twice which destroys some of the going somewhere atmosphere. With this much room esp in N-scale I would think that could be eliminated keeping the layout "scenically pure" and not creating a round and round...

Thanks but it's just a shop with only 1 item and not even a pic.

Oftentimes plants utilized multiple tracks and loaded (or unloaded) cars on the outer track thru the cars on the nearby track. I guess it was a case of limited real estate or volume of goods moved from a given loading dock.

There are so many little niche manufacturers these days this one escaped me. I tried to look it up on the internet and came up blank. Are they still around? Do they have a site?

The only DCC controlled turnouts I have are on the lower level staging/reverse loops that I have programed macros to select which route I want set up. To activate it on my NCE system, I just hit the macro button then the # corresponding to the route (distination track) desired - all while my...

Sounds like the German or Swiss corless motors. Try checking with Grandt Line or the Whistle Stop in Pasadena CA. or check http://www.micromo.com/

To me the advantage of DCC control of turnouts is in the ability to set up routes thru the use of macro commands. I'm not sold on it's use for individual turnouts, thus my layout will use DCC control for my lower staging/reverse loops and conventional pushbuttons for the upper visible level...

It's the beginning of a yard ladder :D

Their web site has PDF files for both the instructions and a template (I assume for the pit). instructions: http://www.walthers.com/instructions/0933/09330000002829.pdf template: http://www.walthers.com/instructions/0933/09330000002829.pdf

Do mean MACROs so you can throw all turnouts for a selected route? I have done so for my lower staging loops and it works great. What DDC system are you using? There may be differences in how you actually set them up. On NCE you select macros macro number, program (or review if desired), then...

When I was in the AF in Missouri I had a dirt bike and followed or crossed many a RR track. Funny thing is, although the MP was the major local RR, I didn't start modeling it until getting transferred to California. Still modeling it here in Florida now.