I'm Driving Myself Nuts


brubakes

brubakes

Member
I can't seem to settle on a minumum radius for my layout. I know I have to do at least a 24" radius for my heavyweight cards. I could do the 24" and just make a curve on a 4'x8' but its too close to the edges for my comfort. Okay, so I'll go 5' wide, then I'm thinking well then go with a 26"+ radius... then I'm like well 5' isn't enough go 6' wide and so on. Well 4' is really do much to reach if the layout ends up against a wall so 5, 6, ect is way to much. Ugh, I just want it all. :D Wouldn't be a problem if I went N over HO, but then I would have to stat all over. :) whew, end rant!
 
brubakes, LOL keep a cool head, take a deep breath, it'll come out OK. :) I was lucky enough to get an HO set and an O set at the same time as a young boy. It didn't take me long to decide on HO. O does have it space limitation, but it also has great possibilities as far as scenery and detailing. You'll work it out in the end I'm sure. :)
 
If you need to start somewhere, then just do the 4x8 & work w/the radius you have. just keep the track about 2" from the edge of the plywood & lay the track. Put up a fence nailed or glued to the plywood edge to keep the trains in & go to work. You will drive yourself nuts if you don't start somewhere. You can't reach across a 4ft table or a 42" or a 36" wide space. You either have to have a hole in the middle or move it away from the wall.
Just my 2 cents worth.

Larry
 
Ya gotta start somewhere. Just put down a sheet of plywood and start learning about what you really want. You can always pull the nails up and relay the track.
 
Thanks for the suggestions guys. I think I am trying to do way to much to fast. I am only reentering the hobby at this point. I looked at the space I have to use for the railroad and I wayed the space I could use vs the space I "should" use. I have other plans I want to do in the basement in addition to the layout.

I'm now locking down and going to start a 5' x 8' layout. It should let me have a 24 or 26" radius and still give me lots of space to model and hone my skills.
 
I'm now locking down and going to start a 5' x 8' layout.
Click to expand...
Jeez I hate to do this to you, :rolleyes: but why not a 5 by 10 instead. A figure 8 with spurs or a bit of raised trackage is more of a possibility

Click-->
th_GGN.jpg


Not that I'd recommend all that trackage, but it'll give you an idea of the possibilities of a 5 by 10 :D

Cheers
Willis
 
Have you looked at possibility of an around the wall layout with either a four or five foot blob at each end? You don't take up as much of the middle of the basement, you get a much longer mainline run, many more switching and scenic opportunities, and the blobs still allow you to have a loop with 22" - 26" curves, depending on the blob size. You can reach everything easily and the whole concept just looks a lot better than a big table top layout.
 
brubrakes,

I am mired in the identical dilemma. I want to go with 24" radii, but I'll have to extend the dimensions of my layout to accommodate them. I have at least one fairly large locomotive, a 4-8-4, that I want to run on my layout. I am thinking it'll require a minimum 24" radius for efficient operation. but that will put me at the edge of my layout. I guess I could add 2" at the edges of my curvatures, but that's something I do not desire.

I envy model railroaders who have ability to use large radii. I attempted to set up my layout is such a manner. While it did provoke intense thought, the reality is spacial limitations prevent them.

As I get get more into HO model trains, I am beginning to wonder if my old American Flyer set makes more sense. I believe it operates on 22" radius track.


Good luck,

Tom
 
UP2CSX said:
Have you looked at possibility of an around the wall layout with either a four or five foot blob at each end? You don't take up as much of the middle of the basement, you get a much longer mainline run, many more switching and scenic opportunities, and the blobs still allow you to have a loop with 22" - 26" curves, depending on the blob size. You can reach everything easily and the whole concept just looks a lot better than a big table top layout.
Click to expand...

Yes and up till yesterday thats the way I was going to go. Just like you said, wall and then blobs on the end. However, I think for my current basement it would take up too much space where I want to put other things. TV, couch, bar, pool table, ect.
 
I think for my current basement it would take up too much space where I want to put other things. TV, couch, bar, pool table, ect.
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Well yes those things are nice to have but you have to think of the important things first. :D
Now to set your mind at ease, think of nothing else but the layout and after you build that think about fitting what you can comfortably in the space that's left. :)

Cheers
Willis
 
I've got a pool table, couch, TV, execise equipment...all kinds of junk in the basement. That's why I went in a small dogbone around the wall, because it gave me the largest space without disturbing the other things that were already there. Now I've got a big basement -800 square feet- so that may be a limiting factor for you. However, I've got about the square footage of a 5x8, it's just stretched along the back wall to the four foot blobs on the side wall. You can still take a shot on the pool table closest to the layout and not hit anythng because the narrowest part of the layout is behind the pool table. The only downside is the four foot blobs, which give me a maximum curve radius of 22". If I went with five foot blobs, the layout would have been too close to the pool table.
 
I have often thought that if I redid my layout, I would do the "dog bone" idea with the 4 foot "blobs" at the ends, but make them helix's instead. It would either be a 2 shelf layout, or maybe the return trip would be "in the mountain" where the other trip was "down in the valleys". The second option would provide plenty of opportunites for over and under crossings, some tunnels etc... The first option would just allow twice the trackage and scenery, but still allow enough room for a 2 main layout on a fairly narrow shelf. Plus, building the helix would be cool to me.
 
UP2CSX,

How do larger locomotives perform on 22" radii layout? I am thinking of 24" radii as minimum because I want to run Hudson, Pacific, and a Northern on my layout. How would a especially a 4-8-4 run on a 22" radius?

I put my 4-8-4 on 28" radius E-Z Track yesterday, and it ran beautifully.


Thanks,
Tom
 
hamltnblue,

Thanks so much for sharing your expertise. Because of your info I am going to rethink plans for my layout. 22" radii will make make layout a lot easier.


Thanks so much,

Tom
 
Tom, my 2-8-4 also runs fine on my 22" radius curves. I sometimes think there is too much emphasis placed on the curve radius and not enough on tracklaying. A perfectly laid, leveled, and aligned 22" curve will handle all but the largest rigid frame locomotives. A poorly laid 26" curve will give you trouble with an SD-40. The overhang on a 22" curve doesn't look as good as a 26" or 28" curve but the engine will still run fine. Just watch your trackside clearances on smaller curves with big locomotives.
 
Thanks to everyone for your input. I started the bench work for a 5'x10' layout build in two movable 5'x5' tables.
 
CBCNSfan said:
Well yes those things are nice to have but you have to think of the important things first. :D
Now to set your mind at ease, think of nothing else but the layout and after you build that think about fitting what you can comfortably in the space that's left. :)

Cheers
Willis
Click to expand...

Good to see someone with thier priorities set correctly!! :p:D
 
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