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D&J RailRoad said:
How are you going to determine what to pay your workers to build your layout/empire?
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You ask a very intriguing question; one that cannot be answered in just a few words.

There are many "factors" to consider, and what may be "right" for me may not necessarily be so for someone else. Rather than staying connected here in this particular Thread to answer your question, I will type out a detailed answer to your question on my computer and save it to one of my "documents".

UPDATE: Please refer to Post #24 - which is where I answered your question.
 
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The owner of the Wyoming Division Historical Society model railroad in Cornville, AZ hired 8 men to help him start his empire back in 2011. They worked full time for the first year as the floor was poured, the ground wells established for the climate control then the building was built. After that, he cut 6 of them loose and kept two of them on to build and scenic the railroad.

Welcome To The Wyoming Division Historical Society

The Wyoming Division is a large HO gauge model railroad layout in a 3,750 square foot building in Cornville, Arizona near Sedona that faithfully models the Union Pacific from Cheyenne, Wyoming to Ogden, Utah.
www.wyomingdivision.org
 
D&J RailRoad said:
How are you going to determine what to pay your workers to build your layout/empire?
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IN REPLY TO THE FOLLOWING QUESTION:

How are you going to determine what to pay your workers to build your layout/empire?

My Reply:

The very first criterion to establish is not cost. It is rather the following:

  • What do I want my MRR Layout to represent or reflect. In other words, what is the “theme” of the layout?
  • Scale. In my case it is HO Scale.
  • Is it a “Prototype” layout or something else? In my case it will be primarily – but not limited to - the Keddie Wye section of the Feather River Route of Western Pacific Railway, the original owner; now owned by Union Pacific.
  • How much space is there to build the layout? Will it be confined to one “room” in a house? Or will it be built in a separate building? In my case, one room to itself.
  • Will the layout be built on more than one level of Benchwork? In my case, yes it will be at least two levels, perhaps a 3rd level if needed to allow for the 1% grade; Trestles (at least two); and tunnels (at least 3).
  • What system will the layout be powered by / controlled by? In my case it will be NCE Pro Cab and associated components as necessary.
  • Besides DCC Control of the layout, what other equipment / devices will there be? In my case it will be Signals from Logic Rail Technologies.
  • Track and Turnouts? What type? DCC Controlled or manual control? In my case it will be DCC Controlled; track and turnouts by Atlas; Circuitron Tortoises for turnouts; and the necessary control modules and protection circuits by NCE.
  • What type of surface material will be used, e.g., Plywood / Cork / Foam / other? In my case there will be 3/8” Plywood Grade AA for the base on all levels; Foam - (Peel – n – Stick) where the track is placed; then the Track positioned on that.

The second criterion to establish is the following:

  • By what perimeters (criterion) should be used in choosing a choice of one MRR Layout Professional / Experienced Builder over that of another?
  • For me, the following is very important:
  • Prior experience with building MRR Layouts which involve more than one level; experience with DCC Control and wiring; laying track.
  • Second most important criterion:
  • The MRR Benchwork professional should be the one person who builds the layout. NO third party “hire outs” – this is to be avoided!

  • Note 1: There may be more than one person working on the layout; however, that person must be associated with the primary builder either as his helper or assistant, having had previous experience with layout construction projects.

  • Note2: If this “rule” is not agreed to, all sorts of problems can (and probably will) surface! If the reader of this post wants to know more about what I am referring to here, please feel free to contact me by “Conversation”.

  • Is the MRR Benchwork Layout Professional experienced with the following:
  • Scenery
  • Track Laying
  • On-Site construction

  • Is the professional being hired:
  • "a" Close by – not more than a couple hundred miles distant.
  • "b" Sever hundred / thousand miles distant?
  • "c" Has previously traveled to your general area (as in your state or next to your state) on previous MRR Layout construction projects; and, he has previous experience with MRR Layouts similar to what your project is.
  • If “D” above is 3 “a”, that is a plus.
  • If “D” above is 3 “b”, is he (and any assistant or partner he may choose to work with him in building your layout) willing to take up “house-keeping”, e.g., living in an extended stay apartment or hotel IN YOUR CITY until the MRR Layout project is completed? NOTE: Of course, this is an expense I / YOU have to pay for!
  • In other words, hopefully he does not expect you (the person hiring him) to pay for materials shipped to you, then later will come to you (when he chooses, OR?) and then he will start building the layout. Such an arrangement is a “no no”! It invites too many variables of which YOU are probably not in control of!
  • If “D” above is 3 “c”, this is a definite plus!

CONCLUSION:
How much should I (or you) ‘pay’ the professional who builds the MRR Layout?

ANSWER: It depends of course upon the criterion set forth in “all of the above”; however especially with "a", "b" , and "c".
 
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D&J RailRoad said:
The owner of the Wyoming Division Historical Society model railroad in Cornville, AZ hired 8 men to help him start his empire back in 2011. They worked full time for the first year as the floor was poured, the ground wells established for the climate control then the building was built. After that, he cut 6 of them loose and kept two of them on to build and scenic the railroad.

Welcome To The Wyoming Division Historical Society

The Wyoming Division is a large HO gauge model railroad layout in a 3,750 square foot building in Cornville, Arizona near Sedona that faithfully models the Union Pacific from Cheyenne, Wyoming to Ogden, Utah.
www.wyomingdivision.org
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Hello!
I will read this a little later on - right now I have to go ...other things to do.
 
D&J RailRoad said:
How are you going to determine what to pay your workers to build your layout/empire?
Click to expand...
If it were me, I'd put it out for bids. Go with the "best bang for the buck", so to speak. That'll determine how much you pay them.
Which doesn't necessarily mean going with the lowest bid, or even the highest bid for that matter. 😲🤔;)

If it were me? Actually, in my case, it WON'T be me - I'm far too cheap to hire other folks to do my hobbies for me. :p
 
Mixed Freight said:
If it were me, I'd put it out for bids. Go with the "best bang for the buck", so to speak. That'll determine how much you pay them.
Which doesn't necessarily mean going with the lowest bid, or even the highest bid for that matter. 😲🤔;)

If it were me? Actually, in my case, it WON'T be me - I'm far too cheap to hire other folks to do my hobbies for me. :p
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Hello Mixed Freight ,

I've taken note of your suggestions - thanks!
The main reason why I will have to rely upon "outside help" in building my MRR Layout is very simple:
I can no longer bend down, crawl, stoop, and otherwise do those physical movements I did in building my first Model Railroad Layout.
 
FeatherRiver said:
I just joined today (8 November 2023) - tonight to be more accurate.

I am into HO Scale with DCC operation; and Bi-Level tracking.
My new railroad layout is going to focus on the Feather River Route in N. California, particularly the area known as the "Keddie Wye".

Hope to make a post or two soon, but for right now I am looking around this forum at the many interesting subjects (threads and posts).
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There are many model railroad forums, but I always end up back on this one. Lots of helpful folks and almost no one is critical of anyone else's work. And yes through the years there have been many excellent conversations and discussions. Welcome aboard.
 
FeatherRiver said:
  • Is the professional being hired:
  • "c" Has previously traveled to your general area (as in your state or next to your state) on previous MRR Layout construction projects; and, he has previous experience with MRR Layouts similar to what your project is.
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I would think that in addition to previous experience building model railroads, that you find those who love the hobby. Sure you can find people who professionally build layouts, but I have one of those layouts and it is obvious they built exactly to the spec with no further insight to the ultimate goal. gag.... On the other hand. the Greeley Museum layout was built by experienced model railroaders who do it because they love the hobby. No one was paid, it was all volunteers. They didn't just build it to the spec, but put in constant tweeks and adjustments to make it better than the spec. In my opinion it is possibly the finest large model railroad I've ever run.
 
Iron Horseman said:
I would think that in addition to previous experience building model railroads, that you find those who love the hobby. Sure you can find people who professionally build layouts, but I have one of those layouts and it is obvious they built exactly to the spec with no further insight to the ultimate goal. gag.... On the other hand. the Greeley Museum layout was built by experienced model railroaders who do it because they love the hobby. No one was paid, it was all volunteers. They didn't just build it to the spec, but put in constant tweeks and adjustments to make it better than the spec. In my opinion it is possibly the finest large model railroad I've ever run.
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Hello Iron Horseman,

There are Professional MRR Layout builders who love the hobby of model railroading and who have previous experience in fields of carpentry, benchwork / modular, electrical wiring, scenery, DCC Operation, etc.

One of those builders I have been in contact with impressed me by several things he stated, but for me the following statement was important:
" 'It is important that it [the MRR project] is built right the first time. Going back in and correcting mistakes [and he listed several particulars]
is time consuming and costly.' "

I have neither the desire, time, or money to waste on 'constant tweeks and adjustments'.
 
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