2 rail car storage

It goes back in the box then put somewhere convenient. I do not have a dedicated storage area yet.

My plan is to rotate cars on and off the layout for each 24 hour period (fast clock)and hopefully not see the same car for a sessions.  Total cars on the layout at one time will be around 30 I'm thinking, with a complete total of 100

Honestly, I'm not sure if my equipment will ever see their box again unless I sell stuff off or move(!) 

Look for Christopher's and/or Ed R's layout to see some full train hidden tracks ideas. I'll do a search...

I'll keep looking!

https://ogrforum.com/...819#4104666426313819

urrggg!

https://vimeo.com/17660852

Engineer-Joe posted:

Look for Christopher's and/or Ed R's layout to see some full train hidden tracks ideas. I'll do a search...

Yo Joe,

I have a place to move trains to and from the layout....its a staging yard in sorts I guess.  I need somewhere for the cars to rest safely off the layout when not in service.  Here is my staging set up.  On the layout, I have an interchange track that travels down to the 2 tracks you see below the main elevation of the layout.   Each track can hold 16 60' cars. Simply one track for inbound traffic (to head back onto the layout), and one track for outbound traffic (cars to be taken off the layout for destinations not on the layout itself). As you can see, I have portals that are large enough to pull and place cars on and off the layout.  The storage I'm inquiring about will be directly below these portals.  I have a lead on some display cabinets I can place under the layout, but I'm leaning more toward IKEA 4 drawer dressers as they operate fine, are cheap, and actually will fit in the space required.  The bottom of the fascia is 38" above the floor.

Sorry for writing a book lol

Thanks for your time tho :-)

I've heard of many solutions over the years that I've read. Some guys like the idea of removing cars. I would always prefer not to handle them if possible. I guess it comes down to what you want, what you can afford, and how much space you have.

 I like Christopher's idea of parking trains under the layout. Ed's go above which I had never thought of.

 I have read of various types of drawers and track cassettes to solve this issue. I've even seen a type of elevator system that moves whole trains up and down. Your decision and choice of what's already been done, is totally yours. I would only suggest looking around (as if you haven't) before you settle on something that may end up taking away enjoyment of running.

 Now having stuff on display is well worth the real estate it takes up. So I would say that glass display areas is always worth the effort. That especially comes handy when the layout gets younger visitors that like to grab everything in reach.

 I have to admit that I know of some of your work, but nothing of what you are building now. So I apologize for the interruption. You are probably more into these trains than I am. I have attempted some failed layouts that I feel would have been better executed with some studying before hand.

BTW great looking work so far!!!

Proto48Patrick posted:

Engineer-Joe posted:

Look for Christopher's and/or Ed R's layout to see some full train hidden tracks ideas. I'll do a search...

Yo Joe,

I have a place to move trains to and from the layout....its a staging yard in sorts I guess.  I need somewhere for the cars to rest safely off the layout when not in service.  Here is my staging set up.  On the layout, I have an interchange track that travels down to the 2 tracks you see below the main elevation of the layout.   Each track can hold 16 60' cars. Simply one track for inbound traffic (to head back onto the layout), and one track for outbound traffic (cars to be taken off the layout for destinations not on the layout itself). As you can see, I have portals that are large enough to pull and place cars on and off the layout.  The storage I'm inquiring about will be directly below these portals.  I have a lead on some display cabinets I can place under the layout, but I'm leaning more toward IKEA 4 drawer dressers as they operate fine, are cheap, and actually will fit in the space required.  The bottom of the fascia is 38" above the floor.

Sorry for writing a book lol

Thanks for your time tho :-)

I should have said....

WOW!!!!

Hi Patrick!

Your layout is looking fantastic! I look forward to more updates as you progress.

As for storage...

I scored two of these solid wood cabinet pieces for free. Sanded them down, primed, painted, and added sliding glass doors. I found under-cabinet lights at Home Depot that work off of this neat little remote.

Just can not stand 0-5-0 car shuttling so I initially ran a dual track stub branch line into a dead end tunnel for 32' of storage.   Ever looking for more I then cut a hole in the wall of an adjacent room to run in two levels of three 15' tracks each with escape turnouts at the end on both levels for an additional 90' of storage.

At the other end of the basement there was space under a town where I snuck in four 16' pull through storage tracks.

In my last home I modified a John Armstrong idea and extended the first and third level passenger station tracks out over the back yard.  5 tracks on each  level provided and extra 10 feet, 100 total feet of storage beyond the building footprint.

Dear Pat,

Check out some early issues of O Scale Trains on Neville (ROO) article on his cassette type train storage cart which held a fair quantity of cars. I am sure Neville will chime in as he is a active forum member.

Pat, your layout also looks great- some more photos !!!

Mike(GE hogger), love the weathering on your cars- a real railroader modeling 1/4"!!!

See you in Chicago in 2018.  

John

Hey John, Mike and Tom,

Tom, that looks great!  Extending anything into the backyard is not an option in my basement layout, least not without getting a divorce first lol.  On my layout now, these 2 tracks were all I could get away with.  I have about 30lf to make the grade up to the layout which I'm thinking my loco's can handle.  Its about a 9" difference in track elevation.  Very nice benchwork also!

Mike, Glad to hear from ya!  I was worried what you might be doing when I saw your brass alco for sale!  Your setup is pretty much identical to what I will do if I decide not to use drawers.  Looks very nice and clean!

John,  I'm not looking for storage options on the layout itself, but something to contain them when they are off the layout and not in service.  While the cassette idea works in a lot of situations, it's not applicable on mine since I already have the staging. Since my layout is point to point, the staging yard will supply and receive all my freight under the guise of the interchange with Conrail setting out/picking up cars from off-layout mainline trains between Grand Rapids and Jackson Michigan.  I have several photos of my layout on "the other forum" hosted by the other o scale magazine.  I can give you a link in a PM or email if you'd like.  The NK moderators will just delete or edit it if I place it here.

Thanks all for your continued help and ideas!

Patrick,    To me, the big issue would be DUST. I can't think of anything other than cabinets that will stop dust. They could make for a nice display and way better than dusting cars!

That said, I do recall reading about someone who had a "car vacuum" building on their layout. Might have been here on OGR, but I'm not sure. Don't recall just how well it worked! If the vacuum worked OK, I would say storage tracks somewhere on the layout and run the cars through the vacuum every now and then.

Simon

PS: I did a search and found the car vacuum post:

https://ogrforum.com/...r-to-dust-off-trains

Simon Winter posted:

Patrick,    To me, the big issue would be DUST. I can't think of anything other than cabinets that will stop dust. They could make for a nice display and way better than dusting cars!

That said, I do recall reading about someone who had a "car vacuum" building on their layout. Might have been here on OGR, but I'm not sure. Don't recall just how well it worked! If the vacuum worked OK, I would say storage tracks somewhere on the layout and run the cars through the vacuum every now and then.

Simon

PS: I did a search and found the car vacuum post:

https://ogrforum.com/...r-to-dust-off-trains

 

 

 

Simon,

   Exactly!  the main reason I want them off the layout and not just on a shelf!

I am using those interlocking cardboard containers that are used for shipping various vegetables at the big box stores for storing off layout rolling stock. They are quite sturdy and deep enough for O scale. Probably stack 3 high safely. Costco is my source.  

I use a very high-tech, elegant cover for dust protection:  dry cleaner plastic!   Also, similarly I cover my inactive trains in my storage cabinets.  Dust is the enemy of model railroaders !

Storage becomes a real problem, as one gets on in years. At my death, I will have a total model railroad "house of squalor" !

It may be a bit of a task to fabricate drawers, but here's what I did.   I lined them all with red felt.  The photos were taken in the construction phase.  But not a lot has been done since... I enjoy running them too much!

Hey Jerri,

That looks great.  I've decided Im going to go the drawer route but with IKEA drawers.  They'll fit perfect under my fascia.  Ill have to make similar compartments like yours.

Thanks everyone

I use Harbor freight carts

I prefer drawers which I made myself. Roo.

Here are a couple of photos. the drawers have been in use for a number of years the top of the layout has changed but the drawers haven't except everything is now on wheels. Roo.

In the next few months, as I see used ones on craigslist or whatever, I'll grab 3 of these 4 drawer dressers.  Paint them flat black and they'll fit perfectly under the layout.  Pretty cheap too.  Each Drawer has enough height for any of my excessive height cars.  I'll line them with something, yet to be determined.  I like the red felt Jeremy used above.  I'll have to look into the cost of that. 

Patrick, 

Go to a fabric store and price the felt.  It's not very expensive.  But it's nice and soft and won't scratch your trains.  And a little goes a long way.  

A number of years ago Staples had the Carina series from Ameriwood of the "you build" furniture so I bought about 30 of these. They also made a multi drawer and file drawer version. I bought a few of those for paperwork and misc train stuff. They are all the exact same size so they mix and match as needed.  These were really deep, like 20 inches.  I bought plastic 2 rail drawer slides and had glass cut. One picture without doors is the 2 drawer file that I converted to shelving waiting for the glass.  To get additional shelving I bought nice plywood and I bought LEDs to add some lighting which have not been installed. Found some 1x2s and doors in the same color at habitat, they made great looking legs to create sections, cleared them out at a buck a piece. I think it looks better than ply and 2 by 4 legs with skirt.  Built a footer to keep them off the floor.

Oh, by the way I built the layout so 2 of these slide into each section.