Building My First Layout


Is this what you had in mind?

PXL_20240216_172208124.jpg


It might offset my new benchwork a little to the right of the main benchwork, (maybe 6") but I think I can make that work.
 
ctclibby said:
Ya, see the difference in the room for cars? And some of those 'S' curves went away. There are still some but better.

Later
Click to expand...

Thank you for pointing out what I couldn't "see". My first track plan for that yard didn't look right to me, but I couldn't figure it out until you gave your suggestion. I wish I could make that new yard bench 6ft long instead of 4ft long so I could work out the S curves, but I don't have enough space available for it in my attic.
 
I have 3 of my 4 passenger trains on my layout, my Amtrak passenger station, my Santa Fe passenger station, plus a sneak peek at my new yard bench. My Alco PA1 is running great, and it's an old blue box Athearn. The Tyco F9 doesn't run good at all. Thankfully, the Spectrum F40PH runs real good.

 
I decided against adding a lift section to the layout. I also decided that the railyard in post #229 above is too small. Which also means the 2ft x 4ft addition is too small.

The new yard allows me to extend my #1 mainline by quite a bit, and adds roughly 50ft of track to my layout. The 2ft x 4ft addition will be 4ft x 5ft, and the new yard will look like this

PXL_20240224_205250041.jpg


The entire track layout will look like this
PXL_20240224_205219836.jpg


I still have to add a 1ft x 4ft section to the right of this 4ft x 4ft section
PXL_20240226_032516253.jpg


But, I have to work a 12 hour shift today, so that will happen tomorrow. In the near left corner where the unpainted plywood meets the painted plywood, I'll have to add a 12" x 9" piece of plywood to support the new section of track, circled below

PXL_20240224_205250041~2.jpg


The rest of this addition is 4ft wide and 5ft long, as you are looking at it.

The last addition will be 6ft long x 8" wide, where the purple highlight is below. It will be for some cliffs and scenery, and will tie in with the 5ft x 4ft section

PXL_20240227_120000042~2.jpg


PXL_20240226_032535861.jpg


The turnouts in the new yard are all manual Atlas turnouts. Lots of work ahead before I post another update...
 
Marlin338MX said:
This is a work in progress, so please be patient.

I'll start with a little backstory... My dad died in 2002. I inherited roughly half of my dad's model railroad stuff, to include track, locomotives from many different eras, rolling stock and landscaping supplies. I believe he bought this stuff in the 1990's, but I had no idea he was buying all this stuff. I was in the Army at the time of his untimely death (I served 20 years). I've had 12 cardboard boxes of his model railroad stuff for about 20 years, and I finally opened those boxes back in September. My last layout was a simple HO oval in 1977, I was 10 years old.

My biggest dilemma was where to build a layout that would allow me to use all the stuff in these boxes, which included more than 100 straight track and more than 100 curved tracks (all 18" radius), plus 13 turnouts, more than 60 plastic buildings and nearly 100 railcars, and 4 complete passenger trains (2 are Santa Fe and 2 are Amtrak). I have roughly 22 locomotives ranging from the 1800's steamers to modern diesels. This is in HO scale.

I settled on a layout that is 14ft long, 8ft x 6ft on one end and 4ft x 6ft on the other end. I built the benchwork with 2 and 1/4 sheets of plywood, 1x4" boards, 1x2" boards and 2x4" boards (for the legs). I bought 13 more turnouts, to give me a total of 26. I used the Atlas track planning software. This is in my semi-finished attic.

I'm putting the track on cork roadbed. I ran a a train around the two mainlines last night. I'll finish laying the track tomorrow after I add the last 3 turnouts.

View attachment 176730

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What is the easiest or best way to pull the track up to put the cork roadbed down? I'm open to any and all suggestions. This is all DC stuff, and I believe all of the locomotives and rolling stock are new and unused.

None of the turnouts are wired yet, but they are all Atlas #4 remote snap switches.

Thanks, and stay tuned...
Click to expand...
You should get a track cleaner block so you can scrub some of the dirt off your track; the dirt can be found even on unused pieces
 
AstroKnight187 said:
You should get a track cleaner block so you can scrub some of the dirt off your track; the dirt can be found even on unused pieces
Click to expand...

I bought an Atlas track cleaning block, but I haven't used it yet. I'm not running my trains now that I've tested all of my locos. I'll do a thorough track cleaning before I run my trains again, besides the limited running of locos to test my track and wiring that isn't finished yet.

What are some of the best track cleaning blocks to consider?
 
Marlin338MX said:
I bought an Atlas track cleaning block, but I haven't used it yet. I'm not running my trains now that I've tested all of my locos. I'll do a thorough track cleaning before I run my trains again, besides the limited running of locos to test my track and wiring that isn't finished yet.

What are some of the best track cleaning blocks to consider?
Click to expand...

Marlin338MX said:
I bought an Atlas track cleaning block, but I haven't used it yet. I'm not running my trains now that I've tested all of my locos. I'll do a thorough track cleaning before I run my trains again, besides the limited running of locos to test my track and wiring that isn't finished yet.

What are some of the best track cleaning blocks to consider?
Click to expand...
Go ahead and run trains, that’s one of the best ways to keep dirt off. I’d say any abrasive pad will do well, but if you need an option, a walthers bright boy will do. You will see little scratches on the tracks, don’t worry those are normal. Just make sure to rub the way the tracks go and don’t press to hard
 
Marlin338MX said:
I bought an Atlas track cleaning block, but I haven't used it yet. I'm not running my trains now that I've tested all of my locos. I'll do a thorough track cleaning before I run my trains again, besides the limited running of locos to test my track and wiring that isn't finished yet.

What are some of the best track cleaning blocks to consider?
Click to expand...
Cannot believe this is the first time I am seeing this thread. Very impressive. Was all of this equipment in the stuff from your father?

Since you have it, try the Atlas Track Eraser first. If it scratches the rails too much, I would recommend going to a heavier linen cloth (no lint) and rubbing alcohol (the 90% kind). Blocks that scratch the rails work great but those scratches then accumulate dirt that much faster, hence more cleaning, and it is a vicious cycle. Anyway once it gets clean, get a quarter and slide it along the top of the rails to smooth the scratches out.

Despite all the science, rail cleaning is still part art. The deeper one gets the more complicated it gets. For example the alcohol I recommended above leaves the rail too dry and the loco's wheels will arc and pit which is eventually almost as bad as the scratches. Therefore some folks after the alcohol cleaning will put on a light (emphasis on the light) coat of electrically conductive oil. An old favorite is Wahl clipper oil, but both Bachmann and Atlas make some, many other brands too. Atlas #192 Conducta Lube, Bachmann EZlube. And there I go babbling, probably way more information than you need at this point in your model rail journey.
 
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