Only my diesels are displayed currently, along with some passenger cars. Still deciding how I want to place the steamers. Beautiful set ups everyone, really shows the pride in your collections.
2 by 4 shelves;
Home Depot molding shelves.
Scott Smith
I too have been contemplating a proper shelving system, and you guys have given me some great ideas.
But since I live in earthquake country, have any of you come up with attractive ways to secure the cars from falling?
- timbo
The passenger sets are my own shelves that I made from 1 x 6's and o gauge track. The shelves are 10 feet long and they hold an entire passenger set complete with A-B-A units. The other shelves are from Glenn Snyder.
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Here's a few.
Posted a few times previously.
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Wow! that's a eye catcher to say the least. Very nice display of trains.
Larry, thanks. There's actually a few more pictures that I didn't post.
I truely am a PRR by Lionel collector, then operator. An oddity I guess, for this Forum.
You need a few more trains, John. I spotted a bit of empty shelf space at the lower right corner of that first photo! 
Seriously, a very impressive display!
Based on what I've seen on this thread, plus some formal training in design, here are a couple of suggestions, especially for those who are using wooden shelves.
1. Thick shelves look klunky. You can minimize the heavy appearance by chamfering the lower edge of the shelf at 45 or even 60 degrees. If your shelf is 3/4" thick, I'd start the chamfer a quarter inch down. A router or table saw is the tool of choice. Or, you could round off the lower edge, or bullnose the shelf, or round the top and chamfer the bottom - just a matter of taste. You could also take that quarter-inch and stain or paint it a contrasting color for an accent - perhaps a color associated with your favorite railroad.
2. Dark colors for the shelves and background absorb light and do not reflect light onto the trains, making colors look muddy and details less visible. If you like a natural wood finish, a light wood like maple, pine, or birch is best. If you're painting, white, off-white, or a very light pearl gray is probably the best. A strong color on the shelves will impart a color bias to the items being displayed. I am using metal myself; I selected RailRax (I think that's what it was called) over the otherwise identical Glenn Snyder product because the RailRax had a polished finish while the Glenn Snyder is matte. The shiny finish reflects a bit more light onto the trains. Unfortunately, the product I used is no longer available since the owner of the company that made it died a couple of years ago.
3. This is more a personal preference than a design principle, but I don't care for bookcase type shelving where there are uprights at the front and rear of the trains. It seems to close in the trains in an unnatural fashion. I much prefer an arrangement that is open at the ends, with the uprights behind the trains. Obviously, whether this is practical or not depends on how you are displaying the trains - if you have a free-standing unit where you can see the trains from both sides, you are most likely going to have structure at the ends. On the other hand, a display case setup looks fine with vehicles, when they are angle parked with the front facing the viewer.
Originally Posted by Johnsgg1:
Larry, thanks. There's actually a few more pictures that I didn't post.
I truely am a PRR by Lionel collector, then operator. An oddity I guess, for this Forum.
Don't worry John - you're fellow Pennsylvanians have have your back!
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Great pictures Scott. Are these old pic's or did the Mrs OK setting them up again?
FWIW, you're not alone. My wife was not at all impressed with one of my York purchases this year. I did have two 6' sections of Glenn Snyder rails... before they went out to the curb with the rest of the trash.... 
Gilly
Originally Posted by scott.smith:
2 by 4 shelves;
Scott Smith
my glenn snyder shelves, i just put and order in for twice as many. i have a loop around the ceiling to run them
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Originally Posted by kj356:
Nice displays guys.
Just added another shelf yesterday to get trains out of boxes and where I could see them.
My problem is storage for the set boxes that come with the trains. And I wanted to keep it as cheap as possible and have the trains within easy reach over the layout.
So I built up over the layout a stand about 2 feet out from the wall with L brackets. The base is plywood old bits left over from projects covered in Tin Foil to reflect the light underneath and give more light to trains above. On this I put the really large set boxes so that I do not have to throw them out and so I can see the nice box art on the mostly Lionel set boxes.
Then I mounted to the house beams long brackets that stick out in front of the set boxes, these are bolted to 1x3 and 2 inch L brackets screwed to board to hold the shelves. Bolted to this are strips of pine board, the type you use for panneling comes in 8 foot lengths nice looking board. On this I placed really old and rusted junk Lionel 0-27 straights. You can get boxes of the stuff for really cheap at train shows.
Got a roll of silver foil tape and cut into thin strips wrapped this around the rails to make shinny, keep rust off wheels and keep the tracks together. Most track short of pins so cut bits of coat hanger wire to stick between the tracks.
So I am able to store large train boxes and still see some of the nice box art and Lionel logos as a back drop to the trains and make use of the space otherwise un used above the layout. Also places the shelves a bit closer so can reach over the train layout.
(the first photo the stacks of model kits is supported by 2x4's to the floor)
Click on photos for larger views.
Some day I expect I will be able to show you a photo of what the place looks like after a major earth quake, they say we will get a big one some day.
Have always been trying to figure how to secure it all so it does not all fall off.
Try to keep the heavy stuff down low and angle the brackets in a little to the wall so it leans into the wall.
I like the car model kits in the first photo,I collect 70s Monogram model kits.
Dan
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Most of these are not fully enclosed (plastic in front). So, what about dust? How do you handle the inevitable dust that accumulates on the trains?
It is astounding, the amount of trains in many of the collections. I too wondered who dusts all these? Fred
Originally Posted by audi:
It is astounding, the amount of trains in many of the collections. I too wondered who dusts all these? Fred
That was always my concern, and probably the main reason only a fraction of my trains are (unfortunately) on display or on the layout. All of my display cases are enclosed so none of the 70 or so locomotives currently on display ever have to be cleaned or dusted.
Originally Posted by Allan Miller:
Originally Posted by audi:
It is astounding, the amount of trains in many of the collections. I too wondered who dusts all these? Fred
That was always my concern, and probably the main reason only a fraction of my trains are (unfortunately) on display or on the layout. All of my display cases are enclosed so none of the 70 or so locomotives currently on display ever have to be cleaned or dusted.
gee, Allan, for me, dusting would require a full time person! Besides that, I look at my dusty trains as weathered.
Originally Posted by audi:
It is astounding, the amount of trains in many of the collections. I too wondered who dusts all these? Fred
I've only got 13 locomotives, 11 passenger cars and 20 freight cars, so the task is not too onerous as of yet. (But I've got a lot pending on pre-order, including 14 more passenger cars.)
Hello guys and gals,nicole
I only have 1 sunset 3rd engine and 1 railking aquarium car,1 williams caboose up graded with better railking caboose trucks and finally 1 railking smoking tank car with bad board so its non-operating (Laughing). I been looking for a set of scale Santa Fe heavyweight madison cars oh well.
the woman who loves the S.F. 5011
Tiffany
oh my!!!! thats alot of trains. ya sure can collect alot! that must have been years of accumulating!
Here's mine.....I'm waiting till after I paint the room to put up more.
Peter
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Wow some great collections and interesting shelf designs.
(on comment on the models have a lot more stacked up in other areas makes me want to build some)
For dust the finer car and truck models that I have on display and do not have to access; I used thin hard plastic that I screwed into the edges of the shelfs. Also to protect in an earthquake.
It really concerns me what my rooms will look like when a big earthquake hits. If there was some good way to tie the trains down so they will not go flying off the shelves great but how when I want to rotate them on the layout or run them for a show??
Have always wondered about a way to have stacks of shelves and have them on a geared rotation system so could drop a row to rail height and run trains off onto the layout without having to handle them all the time.
Originally Posted by Johnsgg1:
Here's a few.
Posted a few times previously.
NO PRR Q2? Oh I see..All your train are lionels...
