Completion of Yard Module Benchwork

So I got down to work this Easter weekend and have managed to get both the background boards and base boards into position. I've also filled the joints and given the whole thing a sanding, ready for some paint in the next couple of weeks.

I went with fairly lightweight MDF, 4.5mm for the backboard and 6mm for the base. It's a bit too heavy for the backboard, but I need the extra stability that it gives. That's going to cause some issues in the corners, since I want the backdrop to be curved, so I think I will end up using some card stock to provide the curve or find some other way of disguising the harsh edge, if I bother to curve it at all, seen some really effective backboards online that aren't curved, just well disguised, so I'm not 100% sure yet. I will experiment with some different materials and methods. The base is made from a heavier, 6mm MDF, although on reflection I could probably have easily gotten away with using the lighter 4.5mm stuff for that too.

Completed module.

I also made sure that I drilled some decent sized holes through the underneath beams on each deck, wide enough to hold the bus wires for track power and any other accessory power I am going to need. I haven't really planned that very well, other than knowing I am going to go Digital Command Control, track wiring is very much up in the air, so best thing is to plan for the unknown. Overall I am pretty happy with my efforts, considering my rather amateur woodworking skills!

hmmmm...I'm thinking I might make the second module, before the weather packs it in and it gets too cold for me to want to work in the unlighted, unheated garage, plus it will be a heck of a lot easier to ensure perfect alignment while they can be moved around easily. My next post probably won't be until next month, and hopefully it will be to display a painted (including backdrop....eeek) module.

Southern And Central Module One

I began the bench work for this module a couple of weeks ago, which I knew from the outset was going to involve a lot of trial and error, which was okay for the first module as it really was going to serve as a template for the next ones.

I wasn't sure what it was going to look like, other than some really rough sketches, or how it would behave structurally, since I am certainly no engineer. All I know is it has to be lightweight and look relatively professional. My carpentry skills are fairly weak, I know my way around a cordless drill and a spirit level, but when it comes to putting it all together it can be a bit hit and miss. My advice to anyone doing this, is not to get to bothered and just give it a go! Buy the cheapest lumber you can to start with, and be prepared to throw some of it away. Making mistakes is the best way to learn, and I'm damn good at learning!

This module will cover both levels for expediency, though only the bottom level will actually be modeled..I am going to use the top level for other "toys" in meantime. As an aside, the top level will have a harbor scene, hence the cutout in the front, this will be the quayside.

The lower level will contain the majority of the yard, there won't be much operational use to start with but it will be great for displaying the rolling stock I have and as a test bed for my modelling skills. I am looking forward to unpacking all of my equipment!

There are no names for yard or town yet, so I do need to start having a creative think about that. In the meantime my railroad is known as the Southern and Central, just because I liked the name and it's ambiguous! I don't want to get tied down to any particular geographical region.

The picture I have posted shows the module along with the size of the lumber...so I don't forget when it comes time to build the next module! What I have discovered is that at 1.3 m wide (which is how wide it needed to be to fit over my desk) is really inconvenient when it comes to buying pre-cut lumber!!!!

Layout Planning

When it comes to layout design, I work on the principle that plans are meant to flexible and changing, I don't like to be tied to them too much and after awhile I get bored senseless with the process anyway. As far as a layout plan giving me a sense of scope, and more importantly, an end goal, they are invaluable.

Knowing what I wanted and where I wanted it to go meant I would have to deviate from the layouts I had made in the past; no more square layouts, no more trains running in circles. I decided that a shelf layout would be perfect; it would minimize the amount of room I consumed and make portability less of an issue. Having said that I still needed it to be freestanding, and easily dismantled when the inevitable time comes for us to move house.

With my requirements in mind, I sat down with Atlas's model railroad planning software, Right Track and started playing with different layout configurations. I rapidly came to the conclusion that my shelf layout was not going to satisfy my sense of empire, sure there would be a nice main line run, and some switching action, but no real sense of trains traveling anywhere, and not much chance for long trains to run. I also wanted a number of different scenes:

1. A city or town scene
2. An industrial scene
3. A harbor scene
4. A yard scene
5. A viaduct scene.

All that over 2 walls of a spare bedroom, not much more than 12 inches wide...I don't think so!  I was going to need a least twice the space, at least.

The words "multi", "level", "shelf" sprang to mind, as did "terrified" and so I that was where my planning ended up, a two level layout, connected with a helix of some kind. The plan below is a pretty rough early draft of what I wanted to achieve. It's safe to say, since that draft the plan has changed a bit, and I will endeavor to get a shot of the newer plan up in my next post. I haven't done any planning of substance for the second level, since I figure that's quite awhile away, all I have is a rough idea.

What this does give me is plenty of main line running for nice long trains, some interesting switching and yard action, a turntable (which I've always wanted), a small branch line and scope for some scenic areas such as a viaduct i'm planning on building on the left hand side. With the second deck added i'll get some nice distance for my trains to run!

... so that's pretty much it as far as planning goes. In my next post i'll catch up to where I currently am, which is building the first modules (the yard area in the top right) bench work.

The Southern And Central: An Introduction

After many years of procrastinating, designing and redesigning I have finally taken the plunge and begun to build my N scale model railroad.

This blog will be my record of the process, stages and steps that I go through and with luck (and my motivation to write the posts) will go on for many, many years!

To start with I am going to briefly document the planning process. I say briefly because I don't recall a lot of it, it has taken so long! Once that's done my posts will reflect my current stages of work, so since I have a bit of catching up to do, I had better get on with it!

The planning stage really was broken down into a couple of different stages. I needed to work out where the railroad was going to go and therefore how much space I had and what and when I was going to model and then finally some rough (and I mean very rough track plans).

WHERE

This is not my first layout, and in the past I have been tied to my garage, which was always fine during the summer months, but not so good in the winter, also being so far away from the rest of the house, meant I didn't venture out to operate my trains nearly as much as I should have. So this time I decided I wanted to be indoors in the warmth and comfort. Surprisingly it didn't take as much convincing of my partner as I thought it was, and so with promises of keeping it small (yeah right) I pinched the spare bedroom.

There are downsides to this though.

1. It's a shared room and when we have guests they need to be able to sleep in it without banging their heads, electrocuting themselves or tripping over in the middle of the night and breaking a train..erm...their legs. Keeping the layout small and relocatable will prevent any major injuries.
2. Space is limited and needs to be flexible, so any layout will need to be relatively portable.
3. I have to keep the room in relatively the same condition I found it in, not only because it's a shared room, but because we rent the property and I don't think the landlord would be impressed if he was to find walls with huge holes in them and carpet with paint stains everywhere. Again making the layout portable so messy work can be done elsewhere seems like a good plan.

WHAT AND WHEN

As mentioned above, I am not entirely new to Model Railroading, my obsession having started when I was a boy and my father began the hobby. Over the years I have dabbled, having built a couple of not so successful layouts. I gave up on the whole thing a few years ago and am now coming back to it, a little older and hopefully a little wise. The one lesson I have most definitely learned from my experiences is that the most important ingredient to enjoying the hobby is to have patience. These are not train sets to be set up and run within 5 minutes of opening the box!

My past endeavors have always revolved around American equipment and scenery, mainly because here in New Zealand US equipment is readily available and relatively inexpensive, also its not that expensive to buy directly from the US and have it shipped here. I also lived in Northern California for a short period about 10 years ago, so I have an affinity for that part of the world.

As for when, well I don't want to get too tied down to any particular time period, but the obvious route is to keep it within the 1950's to 1970's, which I think is far more interesting that a more modern period.

What I aspire to create....

...my next post will cover off the decisions I have made about the layout plan.