New Layout inspired by Television...

CCT70

CCT70

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Jun 25, 2003
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A good friend of mine has a hobby of designing layouts. He doesn't model anymore, but enjoys designing layouts just the same. He sent another friend and I a layout last year that I really fell in love with. I LOVE switching, and this layout was perfect for it. Of course, after tweaking it to match my needs, he changed it again, and made it even better, eliminating the complex crossings and switches, some in the middle of streets, that would have necessitated hand laying ALL of them. Not that that is a huge problem for me, I can do it, I'd just rather not. The new design allows me to use Code 70 and Code 55 Micro Engineering flex track and I am debating M.E. switches versus buying the Fast Tracks jigs and making my own, as my current layout features hand laid switches and they are nicer than commercially made ones. So.... I started tweaking this one too. I still have some more work to do in the Residential area, adding for houses and specific residential scenery. I am sure a lot of you are familiar with the scenery too. :D

I don't watch a whole lot of TV, but my favorite current show is "King of the Hill". I guess because I can identify with the animated rednecks, I just love it. Since Eugene (track plan designer), friend David and I are a little odd anyway, I decided "what the heck, let's have fun with it" when coming up with a freelanced railroad. I always liked freelancing railroad companies and this one allows me to start a brand new layout some day, after I get my current layout repaired and restored after a long storage. I also need to paint some locomotives, cabooses, passenger varnish and other rolling stock for the current layout, so this new one is a long ways off, but is designed to fit in a spare bedroom. This way, the CNE can stay in the formal living room and the new layout can go in a spare bedroom and unlike the CNE's transition era, this one allows me to run all of my modern day rolling stock after custom painting two locomotives and a caboose.

Welcome to the city of "Arlen Texas". The freelanced "Arlen Traction Company" is a roughly 50 mile short line based loosely on my favorite road, the Central California Traction here in Stockton. The AT is a former interurban running from Arlen Texas, south through Heimlich County, through McMaynerbury to it's connection with the ex- MKT or MP (haven't decided on which one yet) in fictional Durndle Texas, roughly 50 miles away. Main commodities carried include Propane, Pork Products, Grain, Cement, Scrap Metal, Beer, & Food stuffs.

I tried to capture the show's main industries/businesses as faithfully as possible and include most of them. Some, like Tom Landry Middle School are just too much, and may end up being building flats against the backdrop in Arlen.

atrr.jpg


The industry key is as follows:

A Locomotive Shop
B Railroad Service Area
C Alamo Beer
D Carnation (Closed, spur out of service)
E Sugarfoot BBQ Restaurant
F Bobby's Fruit Pies
G Arlen Traction Co. Offices
H Thatherton Fuels
I VFW Hall
J Wagner Outdoor Products
K Larson Pork Products
L Strickland Propane
M Cargill Grain
N Railroad Training Services - Railroad Training Center
O Mega-lo-Mart Distribution Center
P Heimlich Metal Recyclers
Q Knoll Gas Race Fules Refinery
R Arlen Traction Co. Team Track
S Heimlich Sand & Gravel Quarry

I still need to add "Rainey Street" in to the layout, in "Residential Arlen", so it's still a work in progress.

Lastly, here is the new Locomotive roster for the AT:

atrrgp18.gif


atrrcf7.gif


ATbox.gif


Ok, so this is probably pretty juvenile and ridiculous to most, but hey, this hobby is supposed to be fun, so why not? :D I mean, this design combines a lot of switching and really lets me get creative trying to do what may not have ever been done before, and that is to replicate a fictional place seen on television.

Wish me luck, I think my sanity is gonna need it! sign1
 
It has everything going for it that I can think of! The ideas are great, the industries ore perfect, although I did miss spotting the sporting goods store and the bowling alley! :D

The color scheme is perfect - the only other one I can possibly think of would have to be John Deere Green. You probably should consider an airhorn that plays the first few bars of Dixie...

Go for it! :thumb:

BTW - that's a beautiful layout. Whatever you made it with, it surely wasn't XTrkCad!
 
I love looking at good track plans, and that one is a beaut. What scale are you planning to build it in, and what are the dimensions?
 
I don’t know this TV show, but if it is only half as good as this trackplan, it must be fabulous. This plan is among the best I’ve ever seen. I like your paintscheme and the idea behind it all. Go ahead and build it – and show us a lot of pics :D :D .
 
be careful of that wye over the bridge...
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It has been so long ago, that I can't remember which magazine ran the feature, but there used to be a "It's not prototype" feature, that showed pictures of prototypes of things that were considered "not". One that I remember is the turnout on the bridge. If that river is navigable, you are going to have an interesting "engineering problem", designing a lift bridge/s somewhere in that wye. :D Looks like you've got all the major details covered, go for it!
 
The dimensions are 15' wide x 12' long in HO scale. I tried N Scale once and found it too small for me, though I loved the fact that I could build a very large layout in the garage that I had. This is to be built in a spare bedroom.

I'm not sure what Eugene used to draw this with, I used Paint Shop Pro to make the changes to it that I did. The switch on the wye will be trouble if I'm not careful, no kicking cars over THAT switch, lol. I think it'll work out allright though.

I did have to make a concession in a few of the key landmark structures, like "Goobersmooches Restaurant", "Hotel Arlen", "Channel 84" (Though I may represent Nancy Gribble's employer with either a hanging news helicopter over the layout OR an "Action 84 news van somewhere". I also need to add in John Redcorn's trailer down by the river. Nu-Line makes some great looking trailer houses that will work fine for that, anyone know of a Jeep Wrangler in HO? I already have Cotton Hill's "Cadillac car" convertible, Peggy's late 70's gold Chevy Malibu, I need to pickup an Atlas Ford F-150 for Hanks red Ford F-150, and I need to pickup a pair of vans, one to represent Kahn Souphanousinphone's van in blue (need a modern Japanese Mini Van for this) and a white one to represent Dale Gribble's "Dale's Dead Bug" van, (or the "Buggabago" as he calls it). Thanks to Fresh Cherries line of vehicles at Wal-Mart, I can get Bill Dauterive's Ford Escort, and I have a Charger I think, that could pass for Boomhauers ride. I just now need to scratchbuild each of their residences in Residential Arlen. I also need to figure out where and how I can add staging, so that after coming out of the shop, the engine and caboose back across the river, assemble their outbound train, and head for Durndle which is in staging. Then come back out of Durndle with their train for McMaynerbury yard, switch the yard, and then continue to Arlen and work that. It's a ton of switching, but then again, that is what I enjoy doing.

A huge thanks is owed to Eugene Vicknair for designing this and sharing it with David and I. This guy designs some amazing layouts. David and I have most of his models right now, hopefully, once this thing is built, it'll get him back into modeling some more, he does good work. I can see the three of us having some fun ops sessions on this thing though. Alicia is looking forward to building it, but thinks making a layout based on an animated TV show is nutty. Oh well, it'll be a lot of fun. :thumb:
 
A King of the Hill based layout. What's next, someone bringing back the CNW?

Seriously, I like the idea!:D :thumb: Dale's exterminating van shouldn't be too hard if you simply take a plastic cockroach, re-paint it, and glue it in the "dead" position:thumb:
 
Actually, the "bug" atop Dale Gribble's "Buggabago" is a dead "Queen" ant. It actually came alive and called to him in a previous episode. I figure I can either use a plastic bug if I can find one, or mold one from Plastiscene. I just need to find a suitable HO Scale van that resembles his.
 
I've sen a few econoline vans in an ad once,sorry i cant remember the mag. or the ad.but there out there you just gotta look.you've also got a great layout too work with,very well designed and good locale.--josh

P.S i sill like the creators of "king of the hills" original show BEAVIS AND BUTTHEAD!!
hey,hey beavis.guess what...what...i need teepee for my bunghole he he he!
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