After having a large outdoor layout for a number of years the layout sustained a lot of damage from our dust devils here on the desert.
I decided to reduce my layout to a switching layout and move indoors.
The Dirty and Dusty Railway will need ideas since I haven’t been inside since the HO days of my youth.
What are you using to simulate ground on the flat surfaces? And what are you using for those flat surfaces? Are you using 3/4 inch plywood or something not as costly?
people have actually used sifted and sterilized earth and it looks really realistic (because it is!).
Greg
I would not go too thin with the plywood, if you do , then you will need a heck of a lot of bracing. I think you could probably use 1/2 inch, if you brace it well, but 3/4 would make it nearly built proof.
I also used sifted soil for my ground cover. I dried it well in the sun, crushed it into a powder, ran a magnet over it to make sure there weren’t any iron particles in it, then sifted it to separate the different sized particles with some fine mesh screen. As a bonus, a I also got some small stones and twigs when I sifted the soil, and I used them where appropriate. By using soil from different places, you can get some natural looking variation in colour.
Doug:
I haven’t “landscaped” yet so no experience or definitive decisions on my part as yet. I’m sill trying to make those final decisions on what I’m actually going to prototype to see what works best for me.
I used a basic L-Girder benchwork for the base. My roadbed is hardboard (Masonite) spline construction and have about 160 feet of track with six switches. I used Flexxbed as the base to attach the SVRR aluminum rail on. I am battery and R/C using RailBoss 4.
I am using Extruded Polystyrene, usually 2" thick, for the ground and hills instead of plywood. I’m planning on using a fair amount Bragdon Enterprises products to do the rocks and hills.
My bench work is 7/16ths OSB atop 1x4 frames supported by 2x4 posts. It has held my own substantial weight without issue. However, warped wood, especially the 1x4’s, were and are a problem. Then again, most of the wood is leftovers from other projects.
After a bit of thought, I went with large grit sandpaper for roadbed. Picked up a bunch of the ‘made in China’ stuff very cheap. Black poster board makes for passable paved streets.
Not much else in the way of other scenery (apart from structures), but I have experimented with the classic ‘green mats.’
Doug,
For ideas, check these out
http://www.wymann.info/ShuntingPuzzles/Timesaver/timesaver-trackplan.html
http://www.wymann.info/ShuntingPuzzles/Inglenook/inglenook-trackplan.html
You can do a search on this site for “Timesaver” and see some of the stuff done by myself and others.
Enjoy!
i
My indoor layout benchwork is just 1x4s at 24"oc with 5/8 plywood on top with vertical 1x4s every 4’. It’s been stable since installed.
Wait a minute there, Vic. I thought you’d dismantled everything except the micro’s?
Doug,
i made it as cheap as possible. (not, that i’m finished yet…)
bolted together profiles, “uprights” from 1/2" ply every 20 inch, a covering of “at hand” material (mostly leftovers from wooden ceiling).
only, where needed (for leaning upon or for landscaping reasons) some 1/2 or thicker ply.
as covering i use either styropor (to be melted in shape), sticks, window-screen mesh or chicken-wire with cloth or toiletpaper and lots of white glue.
as finish a varying mixture of sand, dirt, thick color and plaster.
i would recommend doc Grabenstein’s thread in the O scale section.
Tim said:
Wait a minute there, Vic. I thought you’d dismantled everything except the micro’s?
Nope I’m embargoed, not dismantled. The trackwork for the Gotham Harbor layout is STILL there, its just buried under boxes and other assorted crap, and the Borracho layout is still there but landlocked behind more boxes of useless stuff. My wife is slowly starting to realize I am very serious about clearing out the garage and that she will have to deal with the clutter. I am currently putting down pavers in the space behind our garage with the plan to install a line of small narrow prefab sheds to move the assorted boxes of junk out to. If I cannot get my wife to discard the stuff I can at least get it well out of the way.
(http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)Used ones are for sale…
Sean McGillicuddy said:
(http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)Used ones are for sale…
If I had room for one I’d already have it (http://www.largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-tongue-out.gif)
He He He they come in 20’ also
Sean McGillicuddy said:
(http://largescalecentral.com/externals/tinymce/plugins/emoticons/img/smiley-wink.gif)Used ones are for sale…
Gee, and they are stackable too.
I like those containers but even if you put windows in them they just get too hot here on the desert! I would have toasted trains!
Vic, can you give me the address for the pizza layout? I have never been able to get the search function to work on the Mac and have run out of ideas!
Doug Arnold said:
Vic, can you give me the address for the pizza layout? I have never been able to get the search function to work on the Mac and have run out of ideas!
There’s no website for it, I’ve never been computer savy enough to set such a thing up. I do however have most of my layout historys in one form or another on YouTube. Here’s a link to the Pizza layout just follow my user name to the other videos loaded.
Doug how big an area are you working with? I still have access to most of my old layout plans on Cad, might be easier than trying to find my old picture files.
Hi Vic
The layout is 4’ x 16’ with a 4’x4’ extension at one end. I have a turntable that I was thinking of installing at that end. I bought it at the show in Ontario several years ago and never installed on the outdoor layout.
Fyi. Upland Trains is having a holiday sale Friday and Saturday. Nice way to show off the enlarged shop.
Ric Golding said:
Doug,
For ideas, check these out
http://www.wymann.info/ShuntingPuzzles/Timesaver/timesaver-trackplan.html
http://www.wymann.info/ShuntingPuzzles/Inglenook/inglenook-trackplan.html
You can do a search on this site for “Timesaver” and see some of the stuff done by myself and others.
Enjoy!
I was looking for the TimeSaver plan! I can do a little tinkering with these!
i
