A Hearty THANK YOU to Forum members

Hi Sam,nice looking club. Yea and the layout will be cool too once you get a little scenery on it. But all of that will come together before you know it.

The LCCA is talking about a new Fast Track modular club. Have you guys thought about hooking up with them? When I saw the thread on it about a week or so ago my first instinct was to go for it. But my work schedule is a sad reality check, so I had to back away from it.

In any case, I'm glad your club is getting off the ground and hope to see many more post from you as things develop.

Envy you guys. NO club around here...

Nice Sam! Those tables are not hard to carry around and at a decent height for viewing.

Did you notice any warping with the tables? I have one that I had an old computer on that became warped, but it could have been a result of the weight of the old monitor (no flat screen), the computer, and the printer sitting on top. It's currently in the garage, I think I'll take a look to see if it's gone back to it's original shape!

I'm glad I could help, and it looks good! (So do you guys, too!)

The tables seem very well suited for this as they are quite rigid when assembled. We can actually stand on them if necessary.
The dioramas from our existing modular layout fit nicely on the tables and the neutral color blends in well with the Fastrack ballast. We're striving for simplicity this time!
This one will be broken down and stored against the wall unless in use. The current layout (24 tables) will be around the perimeter of the room and screwed together most of the time. Used only for a train show or perhaps a county fair. We plan to add more scenery and structures to give it the appearance of a 'permanent' layout.
I'll post photos of the Fastrack one in action in a couple of weeks.

Dale (pictured above) is new to the club and happened upon a great find a few months ago at a local flea market near his house. An elderly gentleman was selling two large tubs of PW Lionel items including this No 2356 ABA from 1954's "The Swift, the Mighty Southern" set. Also a No 675 PRR 2-6-4 with the larger 2046T, four of the 2400 passenger cars (pictured here with all lights working), some assorted freight cars, 3 cabooses, a ZW, a station, revolving beacon, and a bunch of track. The owner told him it was worth about $1000 but said he'd take less. He offered all of it (with no haggling) to Dale and his 13 yr old son for $275...

Hi Sam, sorry that I was not able to contribute to your cause but mucho kudo's to Lee Willis and Cary for seeing it through. This is what the forum is all about. Great ideas using the folding leg tables. Are you going to cover table tops with indoor/outdoor carpet to prevent slippage and deaden sound? I have seen this done before and it makes a big difference. Anyway, congratulations....looks super.

TEX
Steve

Thanks Steve but the Lord provided just enough of the actual track we needed. For now, we have attached 12" leads to one 30" section per line, per table and dropped them through the table underneath for future use if necessary. We've secured the track with screws directly to the table and the noise when operating doesn't seem excessive.
As most of us are getting older, minimum weight is a big consideration. We debated about setting out the track each time as some clubs do but the general consensus was to screw it down using 10" & 5" jumper tracks for assembly.

I'm curious how loud noise (sound you don't want) is using those tables. Do they reverberate a lot?

Hi Lee. Lats night we ran a Lionel 0-8-0 starter set and the 2356 Southerns. While the diesels were quite loud as expected, the little steamer was surprisingly low in sound. The tables didn't particularly 'drum' or 'thunder' that we could tell. This is my first experience with Fastrack so I don't have a good reference point.

quote:

Originally posted by c.sam:
Hi Lee. Lats night we ran a Lionel 0-8-0 starter set and the 2356 Southerns. While the diesels were quite loud as expected, the little steamer was surprisingly low in sound. The tables didn't particularly 'drum' or 'thunder' that we could tell. This is my first experience with Fastrack so I don't have a good reference point.

Sam,

Don't know how much it would help but you could attach some 1/4 foam to the bottom of the tables so I'd be out of sight.You'd probably what to cover the foam with cardboard to make it durable for transport.
Just an idea.

Your doing a good thing .Older folks (Like me) Appreciate the trains and the folks at the various retirement homes often feel forgotten .
The trains will bring some excitement into their lives.

David

Hi Sam, I too have been using folding tables for the last several years. I have a set of 6 large ones (30inch by 6 ft) along with several 2ft by 4ft tables that I put along side the large ones to facilitate turn around loops and such. It is important to buy all of the same brand as actual height can vary by manufacturer.

What I use to deaden the sound of fastrack is the moduler children's play mat available at of all places, Sam's: http://www.samsclub.com/sams/s...od3310384&navAction=

A set of two or three will easily cover 6 tables. IT works better if the tables are side by side, as they are only 24 inches square, but with the way you run your track it should still work well with just 3 inches gap on any one side. I've done something similar to yours with tables around a perimeter of a room.

Its a little tricky to get the edges (the interlocking sides also have straight edge pieces) all coordinated as they vary by square and its orientation, but once you have it figured out it tears down and sets up easily. The colors are kinda fun, but I usually cover with tableclothes. There is a dark grey side that is a little bumpy (kinda like expanded metal) but its OK to use to.

Been thinking that someone should make covers or adhesive sheets for these to create a real ground appearance, complete with streets, rivers, etc. That would make the moduler concept work even better.

I think its great what you are doing. Perhaps you can show us your work in a train show or two as well.

BTW, I used to live in Cary (its a place not a person)... The locals in the Raleigh area say its actually an acronym... Containment Area for Relocated Yankees. I resemble that remark.

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quote:

Originally posted by Tommys_Trains:
BTW, I used to live in Cary (its a place not a person)... The locals in the Raleigh area say its actually an acronym... Containment Area for Relocated Yankees . . .

Very true, actually. No one around here is from here (we came from Pittsburgh). My wife also complains that Cary is the least demographically diverse city she has ever seen: "Every parent in our neighborhood has two degrees, every household has two incomes, and every family has two two-year olds."