Lionel Dealer Display Layouts, Factory Layouts and Postwar Layouts

Guess I should have rotated it before I saved it.

Thanks for posting the D-132. I'm not sure it will work for my space, as part of whatever I build needs to sit against the wall & looks like this is more set up to walk around. Something I just thought of - How do you make the mountains ? I tend to make them look too realistic. I want as close to this look as I can get. Also, what can be used for the old school sawdust style grass? It's almost more of a challenge to build something like this than a hi rail layout

Another track plan request:

 

If anybody has the D-105 from 1953, another 5x9.  It is NOT featured in the Carp book on Dealer Displays but hoping somebody might have the plan.

 

Thanks.

link to D-105 photos

http://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/3136397#

Thanks for the link, I grabbed a photo off there while it's still available.

LIONEL D105 Factory Layout

1952/3 5 X 9' Layout, appears all original ... This O Gauge layout has two main-lines one on elevation, and a spur not connected to them, but separately powered. Plywood construction w/mesh supported mountains, most original wire and buss bars, track replaced with correct vintage, clean and ready to run.

Thanks guys! This is great.

What if you have the express written consent of Major League Baseball?

I drew this FasTrack variation of a D-27 to fit on a 4'x 8' layout.

Lionel D-27 style layout on YouTube

 

 

And another video of a D-27 type layout built by All Gauge Toy Train Association in San Diego. This one has really nice scenery.

 

http://www.agtta.com/anniversa...sary-videos-WMV.html 

(In the link above, click on the layout picture for the video)

 

 

What did you guys use for table surface?  Is that just something like vinyl rolled grass over plywood?

Mike thank you

The pics I posted are of an original. I found those on the Internet. I also have the same question - what to use for grass. Weather I build this one or an inspired version of a display layout, I want the look on the layout I posted. Not sure how to get it though

MichMikeM:

 

Lifelike grass paper, No. 1152, Meadow Mat Paper.  Same as used back in the fifties.

 

First painted the board with tan paint, covered it with the paper, and  then cut out the paper to reveal the tan colored streets and roadbed.  Spray glue was used to hold it down.

Christopher2035:

 

Since those photos were taken I have improved the layout by adding more accessories and scenic items.  I'll take some new pictures.  The set is my original Christmas present from 1957 hence the building of the display layout, originally from 1957 also.

 

 

 

 

Gotcha.  I thought the pics were yours.  My quick initial read of your post picked up "almost built" before you moved and I took it to mean you started it but didn't finish it.

 

Sounds like you and I are in a similar boat regarding ground cover.  Take a look at Woodland Scenics ReadyGrass(http://woodlandscenics.woodlan...GrassVinylMat/page/2).  It sounds like what you may be looking for and seems very close to what was in your pics.

 

I've seen the stuff in my LHS and it seems pretty good and not too expensive for a 50" x 100" roll (~$33).  Right now it's my top choice.  My biggest current question is should I put it over the plywood or put some type of foam down first.

MichMikeM:

 

Since I was trying to replicate a display layout as close as possible without the mess of using sawdust, the paper was the easiest and cheapest, the paper was laying unused at our club building. Half the layout is elevated so the noise generated is not too bad.  The buzzing of the crossing gates and all the other accessories drown it out.

 

funny you brought that up - I looked at that when I was thinking of building the original one.   I wonder how close that is to the sawdust.  On the layout I built for my Uncle, he used a different grass mat from scenic express, but I thought it was way to "bright"  -

 

This one looks REALLY nice!

If you can find a copy of the March 2010 issue of CTT you can see the D132 layout and a modernized version.

 

As posted above, it was originally designed for the track to dead-end in the tunnel, but extending the spur to connect on the other side made this a very operator friendly layout plan in a small space.

 

Charlie

 

Photos of a friends D-264 re-creation.

 

Interesting about that dead-end spur. I was noticing on another one of the layouts (the D-105 up above) that there is a spur/siding for the milk and cattle cars that is not connected to either of the loops and apparently dead-ends inside the mountain!  At least that's the way it appears.

 

The 105 is one of the layouts I'm considering so I'd have to weigh whether to go with it as is or modify the track plan.

Track plan for the D-264 Super-O layout pictured above. Thanks for those photos, Mike.

 

These were display layouts so spurs were setup to demonstrate operating cars and accessories. The cars weren't ment to be moved so the "dummy" mainline/double tracks were used for scenic interest (like to show the 450 signal bridge). Also, a lot of times the spurs that were connected to main tracks werent powered directly. The D-131 posted above used a manual switch and there was a insulated pin in the center rail preventing a direct movement into the spur. Some modifications to the plan are necessary for making these more operator-friendly.

 

Also, one note on the D-27 Fastrack plan. The down grade is very steep and i recall from the CTT article that the track on the start of the grade had to be physically bent downward to have a smooth transition. Care would have to be taken that a smooth transition can be made because you can't bend Fastrack like that. Use of transition tracks and a piece of tubular may be necessary in that location.

 

Peter

Thanks Peter, interesting points there. I don't completely understand which layouts were made only for dealer displays and which were specifically for retail sale. The Lionel layouts typically allow unattended operation of two or more trains, and accessories for operating cars. It's curious that they made some tracks dead-ending in tunnels for scenic effect rather than for train operation.

 

The D-27 layout has a downgrade of about 6% and short upgrade of 10%, apparently intended for operation in one direction. I saw an instruction sheet online (not very clear) which appears to maybe have different voltages applied to different sections of the track for speed management. The downgrade section helps push a longer train through the steep upgrade, possibly a good trick to use on other layouts.

One item I did notice building the display, all the accessories are arranged so there is a clear viewpath if you are standing in front of the layout, one accessory does not block out another.  I believe this is the case for all the display layouts.

 

Clever marketing concept by Lionel's display layout designers.

What have you guys been using/ what would you use for the postwar style grass?

I have used a couple different methods for the grass.

 

1) I put sawdust in plastic zip-lock bags, then mixed some Rit dye and poured it in the bags. I sealed the bags and then kind of tipped them around until all the saw dust was dyed. I then spread it out on a plastic sheet and dried it under a heat lamp. It worked, but was time consuming and messy.

 

2) The next time, I just painted the plywood and sprinkled on sawdust while the paint was wet. This was much easier and came out reasonably well.

do you think something like this would work - http://woodlandscenics.woodlan...GrassVinylMat/page/2). 

I'm pretty sure that Kevin Coyle (whose layout we were all admiring in another thread) used method #1 to do his grass. Also recall him saying that it was, indeed, time consuming and messy.

Christopher - I used the WS vinyl mat on my current layout. It has some advantages in that you can mark-off where the roadbed and roads would go, and then take a putty knife and scrape off the ground cover. You can then paint the vinyl mat where the ground cover was removed. Having said that, the WS vinyl mat has the same appearance as their ground foam.

someone needs to make a retro ground foam

 

I can't imagine doing it  w. the zip-loc bag way  on my whole layout.  That would take forever.    The WS mat may be the best way to go

I used Lifelike grass paper, No. 1152, Meadow Mat Paper.  Same as used back in the fifties.

Saw this on an auction site:

Lionel factory layout elevation 

 

And a prewar factory layout:

 

Scarce LIONEL Factory Layout 1066E:

Circa 1935, debuting the 1700 Streamliner.  44 X 30" Table Top Layout including 913 Landscaped Bungalow, missing 2 trees, hedges worn; Scarce 4 separate-sale trees; Tunnel shrunk a bit with age, 48W Whistling Station(instead of Transformer station); Track; 1700 Diesel; 1701 Coach & 1702 Obsv., Has original vintage hand painted background panel, all show playwear, but scarce early display!

 

The grass on your layout looks slightly darker than the ones on the Lionel Display layouts.  Could just be the flash on the camera though.   Your post reminded me of something - the 4x8 layout I had as a kid w/ my Dad's postwar trains used a grass mat - pretty sure it was Life Like.   I guess they still make it?

 

Side note - I noticed you go to OCSMR - Do you know Kevin Burkitt?

which version of this did you use - http://www.walthers.com/exec/productinfo/433-1007

Christopher2035:

 

Yes, I do know Kevin, a good guy.

 

The Lionel display units used sawdust, not grass paper.  I was too lazy to mess around with the loose sawdust and glue/paint.

 

The reason the paper looks darker is that all the pictures of display layouts are at least 50 years old and the "grass" has faded

 

 

Kevin is a good friend of mine - gone on many railfan trips together   He's even brought me down to the club a few times when I live in NJ.

 

I don't think I could mess w/ the sawdust/paint thing either -  that's why I was thinking about the grass mat.    I never thought about the fact that the ones we are looking at now are faded

I always thought the D-63 display was  really cool, with the operating elevated highway through the city-scape to the mountain, and the two train operation with relays.

 

 

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That might violate copyright laws

I checked the Roger Carp book out of the Indianapolis Public Library. You might want to check your local library to see if they have it.

 

Steve