Greetings Everyone,
We just bought our First House. (No more Renting, though we have to move everything from the rental house to our new house).. And thus now there is a portion of the basement to use for our creative designing & construction of a Scale layout. I have built several temporary layouts, and they have never fully gotten operational to the point of where I was happy. Now we have a clean slate to start all over with, however, I am lacking track ideas. We have ideas of features that we want to incorporate, just not sure on how to get there. Due to the configuration of the basement, there is not a perfectly dimensional area. We have 1 side of a finished wall to partially remove/ create trackage pass-throughs, add a couple walls to the unfinished part of the basement that will become part of the Empire, and re-route electrical boxes and such. Attached is a drawing I created in Photoshop CS5. I have provided the approximate dimensions for each side. The dimensions are accurate to within about 1-2 inches.
During the building of our previous layouts, I over-built the frame by using 2X4's for everything. I am good with tools, framing, and construction, but I am not good with calculating load values with regard to what wood is appropriate for a train layout.
Configuration wise, the Primary option I am considering is an around the wall with 48" of depth for the Main Decks, and then 12-24" for the Elevated Decks OR alternately something with peninsula's (shaped like an E).... If I do an around the wall, I like the idea of L Brackets coming off the studs.
Track wise, I would like to run (RCS) with a Mainline of 2 to 4 tracks. Track Diameters: Outer: O-104, Middle 1: O-96, Middle 2: O-88, and Inner: O-80.... I have also explored running a separate track about 24" off the ground for my 6 y/o. However, I'm not sure how functional that would be nor what diameter track to run. (For this, I am looking to emulate Patrick H.'s lower level)......
I would like to do Double Track Mains both Elevated & Non-Elevated. Thus, I was thinking I could do Elevated on the outer perimeter, and go with O-104 & O-96, and then run the O-88 & O-80 track on the Deck. However, I would like to have grade changes from the Elevated track to the Non-Elevated tracks. If the layout looks too crowded with 4 Mainlines, then I'll drop the smaller diameters, and just go with the O-104 & O-96. I would also like to have double reversing Mains on the Non-Elevated track if possible, so that I can keep things interesting, but then again, I do not want to make the layout feel overwhelming.
Feature wise, there are various features that we would like to incorporate into our layout. We will be purchasing a Millhouse River 34" TT, and then a corresponding RH with at least 5 stalls. For the 47" Opening, I am working with Damien at Mainline Bridges, and we are exploring the possibility of building a compressed version of the PRR Lift Bridge, that is still in use to cross the Ohio River here in Louisville. For passenger service, we are going to have multiple Union Stations. For the various freight we have, we would like to have a nice sized switch yard running down the longest side of the layout. We may even look to incorporate humps for said switch yard. For the Yard I have been looking at the RCS Four Way Eight Track Set. For the yard area, I would consider kicking out the decking to 60", so that there is ample room to have the yard and mains.
Theme wise, our layout will be based on Family Tree Concept/ where my family has either lived in the past or currently lives, thus we are modeling different geographic regions of the US, and so for each part of the United States, we are going to do a Union Station/ Depot for that area. That does not mean that the Union Station's will be Large & Dominating the layout, but I would like to make them the focal point for that region. At this point in the development of the plans, we will in some way, shape, or form, have the L&N Union Station here in Louisville and the Santa Fe Raton Station in Raton, NM. Backdropping the Raton Station will be a mixture of created/ textured Mountains and various photos of the Sangre De Cristo Mountain Range that runs between Colorado and New Mexico. Beyond that, we are still deciding on which Stations for the Midwest Region & Northeast Corridor.
Electrical wise when it comes to wiring the track/ switches/ etc..., I am completely and utterly clueless. I am currently using Fastrack, and have just connected the tracks together, and used the track as a means of completing the circuit. When it comes to Commercial/ Residential Electricity, I am fine as I can wire houses & buildings no problem at all, but with regard to tying it into Model RR Track, I am getting stumped.
Track wise, look for LOTS of Fastrack on the B/S Forum here in the not to distant future.
Hopefully this is enough information to get started.
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