I have finally started a small portable layout that I would like to one day bring to shows. I will post some photos later of some progress have not had much time to work on it do to being busy at work. Lets see some other layouts.
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Our modular group has access to 4:
1. The Main Layout.....not something you'd want to do for a day.....needs 8-10 people to transport with a trailer....
Because it is so big, we decided to build something small and portable....
2. This is a replica of John Allen's Timesaver. It's fun, but kids really want to see trains constantly moving....
3. Because we wanted to have a small layout that featured trains running and could be managed by 2 (preferably 3 or more)...we built a small layout that we extended to 6x11 this past summer from 6x7.
4. Lastly, I own a 3x6.5 single loop layout that 2 of us can manage.
Peter
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I've posted these pictures in the past, but here's a layout I have taken to a small show here in Eau Claire the last several years. It's not complete yet, but it's gotten good reactions. There are several doorbell buttons on the front that activate accessories. The kids (and their parents) love this.
The lower level is made of 2' x 5 1/2' and 2' x 4 1/2' sections that bolt together. I have found that these are about the upper limit of what I can manage on my own, in terms of getting them out of the vehicle and set up. At home these two sections are combined with several additional modules to make a larger layout. The upper part with the 'Streets line is made of two sections connected by a bridge.
Good luck with your layout. Sharing my trains with the public (particularly kids) has been a lot of fun.
Derek
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I built a few modular layouts that our club takes on the road. Here's a few pics....
One piece portable: 42" x 72"
Two piece modular: 65" x 72"
Eight piece modular: 5' x 15' all-sided configuration Senior Living Home
Outside setup: 5' x 15' Stratford CT Town Festival
8 piece modular: 5' x 25' long configuration Boy Scout Jamboree
Ed
Oh, and my mini-not-quite-modular-but-portable! 36" diameter
OGR magazine, Aug/Sept 2013
ps. all the pieces fit in my mid sized suv!
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The Empire and Eastern Division TTOS layout that we bring to shows and other venues.
Jim
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Ocean County Society of Model Railroaders at the Ocean County Historical Society open house
My portable layout is a little different from most here. It consists of a set of modular tables with no fixed track plan. Each event was different, and the layout was designed to fit the space.
The rectangular modules are 2' x 4' and have 20 lines of basic pass through wiring, plus 10 lines that just bridge the table joint for short distance runs. The Jones connectors speed the wiring process.
There are also 2' triangles used to complete corners. No wiring on those.
The green surface is indoor / outdoor loop carpet, and the black strips on the bottom of the ties is Velcro hook. Just press and stick the track.
Over the years I did many shows with my portable. This one predates digital cameras so it's a picture of a photo circa 1989. As you can see, I'm not into scenery with the portable. Marx telephone poles are usually the extent of it, though on a couple occasions a few structures were used.
This layout featured a pair of intertwined figure 8's with relay controlled anti collision and a loop with a 4 track yard with a relay controlled sequencer, allowing the 4 trains to take turns doing laps one after the next. That gizmo on the table in front of me is the sequencer AKA "The Brain". It consisted of 8 relays with time delay circuits. Four to decide which train went next and the other four to control the track and trains themselves.
That was such a fun layout, I set it up the same way at another show.
Here's a different show. The figure 8's are back, but the outer loop was simplified to a single siding with two trains alternating. The layout was shrunken to fit the space.
Here I am starting the set up. The table with the red corner on the left is where the control panel connects up. The track is stored on the table tops for transport.
The Milwaukee waits at the junction for the ore train to clear. When the two trains are in sync, they pass parallel to each other without stopping. See video one below.
This layout was very different, as I was given a space on a corner, and came up with this unusual design to wrap around it. Video two goes with this setup.
This one featured a loop to loop circuit with a passing siding in the middle and a second normal loop with two passing sidings. There were also two 45° crossings where the systems crossed, again with relay controlled protection.
Here I am laying out the track.
This was the last show I did, and maybe the best one ever. This one had a loop on the inside with a single passing siding to alternate the two trains. BTW everything up until this point was conventional. Then there was a second loop with TMCC. I built a "time saver" switching layout, and let the kids try their hands at it.
This layout goes with the third video.
That's me, but those aren't my kids. "Snoopy" there was one of my best students, had a real knack for the cab-1, the control panel and the whole switching concept.
The show's promoter came up to me and said my layout was the hit of the show, because it was "hands on".
Sorry about the video quality. My first camera, and I'm lucky to have these.
If you listen closely, you can hear a conversation between me and the lady promoting the next show in Menomenie, WI. That was the show with the TMCC time saver. This video shows the relay systems in action.
This is from the big L shaped corner layout.
The TMCC time saver.
If I hadn't gotten sick, I might still be doing shows. However, there aren't that many around to do anymore, at least not around here. They were a lot of work for a 2 day run, but they were a lot of fun too.
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Great to see all the layouts!
Peter
great layouts guys!
This is what we used to campaign in the 1980's:
Took two galoots 45 minutes to set up and get running, 30 minutes to take down and load into the truck.
And we changed trains every half hour.
Rusty
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Here's Lionel Railroad Club of Milwaukee's kids layout, with three tracks and several accessories that children can operate. The club also has a large portable layout for Trainfest and, of course, the permanent club layout (actually 11 operating loops on four levels.
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Jim Policastro posted:The Empire and Eastern Division TTOS layout that we bring to shows and other venues.
Jim
Jim,
Fantastic photos and layout! What are the dimensions?
This is (2) of the three modules for the Fort Pitt High Railer Roundhouse and Turntable.
The box under the two larger modules is the TT bridge.
With the "Y" Module. The display will be at the Pittsburgh Home and Garden Show next month.
This is the 3 ft by 5 ft N-gauge layout that I take to Carnegie Science Center for Locomotion Weekend. Two Diesel Kato trains running with a consist 
behind them and an inter urban on the lower level. A whopping 12 pound layout...hold it in one hand. Ran for two days with no real issues...a few derailments when little hands interfered. While I prefer O Gauge trains, this is an easy layout to transport and does create interest in the hobby...no excuses about lack of space!
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Big_Boy_4005 posted:
I am trying to remember that name of mall as I seen that before and didn't realize that is you. Northtown Mall? or other mall?
Patrick, I thought it was Har Mar, but now that you ask, it could be Northtown. Whichever one it was, it's been at least 25 years.
Big_Boy_4005 posted:Patrick, I thought it was Har Mar, but now that you ask, it could be Northtown. Whichever one it was, it's been at least 25 years.
Looks like Har Mar, based on the width of the entryway. But I haven't been to Har Mar since before Woodcraft Hobby closed. Decades.
Looks like Har Mar to me, also. Used to go to Har Mar and Northtown shows, They were pretty good shows. Times change. (sigh)
Big_Boy_4005 posted:Patrick, I thought it was Har Mar, but now that you ask, it could be Northtown. Whichever one it was, it's been at least 25 years.
Elliot, Yes! Har Mar! it has been so long time but I do NOT forget the area. Really small world that you and your layout were there that I saw then years later meet you again!
Jim R. posted:Big_Boy_4005 posted:Patrick, I thought it was Har Mar, but now that you ask, it could be Northtown. Whichever one it was, it's been at least 25 years.
Looks like Har Mar, based on the width of the entryway. But I haven't been to Har Mar since before Woodcraft Hobby closed. Decades.
Yes, Forget about Woodcraft Hobby. Went there before it closed.
Thanks guys, nice to know I still have some memory left. 
I think I did at least one Northtown too, no pics of that.
You know, it was the portable layout that lead up to enterTRAINment. By 1991 the portable was on the shelf, and didn't come back til like 2004.
Mike Donahue posted:Looks like Har Mar to me, also. Used to go to Har Mar and Northtown shows, They were pretty good shows. Times change. (sigh)
Mike, I was just talking with an NMRA buddy last night, and the demise of local shows came up in our reminiscing. I've been a part of the Twin Cities train scene for a long time, except for the seven years spent in Denver.
Lionel Grandpa posted:Jim Policastro posted:The Empire and Eastern Division TTOS layout that we bring to shows and other venues.
Jim
Jim,
Fantastic photos and layout! What are the dimensions?
Thanks. The layout is about 6'6" x 11'.
It replaced a larger, more unwieldy modular layout that we always had trouble transporting.
Jim
rattler21 posted:Rusty, What goes on the very short spur? John
John, the very short spur allowed us to set up the yard lengthwise, instead of an "L" configuration if needed. Never had to use it.
Rusty
A few years ago, five of us decided to make portable layouts to take to various schools and other venues. We created a standard plan for 4 by 8 foot tables, so that they could fit in a van or pickup. Each member of the group then would do a layout plan and decoration for themselves. After a couple of years "on the road" an opportunity opened up at our local mall to have a preeminent location in an empty store, so we've now moved in there permanently.
We have all five layouts (actually six as I also have an older portable layout there, too) on display. As each layout is a basic table top, we do vary the decorations during the year. For example you can see on mine with a Forth of July and then Halloween themes. We can bring new consists to run during our open days to keep us happy as well as for repeat visitors to the store.
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Here's a "hands-on" type layout I constructed for a national S gauge convention a few years ago that will also be at the one coming up in Novi, MI in a few months. It began as my son's layout (he's now 33) and was modified with more working accessories. There are buttons on the side fascia and a transformer for kids to run a train and play with the accessories. Right now, my grandson is playing with it, and loves the barrel loader, log loader and sawmill. There's lots of flashing lights at the crossings, and one even has a bell.
And a kid playing with it in 2010 at an S event my club sponsored:
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Great idea for a thread!! Cool to see all of the layouts in one place.
