Seen before?

Welcome to the forum!

Some mine scenes (I think some of these might be what your wife meant by crazy!!!):



















A simpler, "non-crazy" version:




But, good luck with that push to squeeze out more room - always a good thing!


By the way, as a fellow 1953 Santa Fe fan, here's the set you need to get to and from your mine:



Jim

WOW!!!!!! That's a layout!!!!!! "Your Silver Star" is within the boarders of "nothing-crazy" That I should have no problem getting her to sign off on. At first my size was going to be 4X8 but then she told me this;if you can break it down then "I guess you can make it bigger." Two pieces of 4X8, heck there already broke down.
I like your Texas Special. Gives more reality. I have the original 2207W setup from 1953 which was the freight cars. AT&SF Orange Box car, Sunoco Triple dome car, Gondola Car with three barrels,2343C, the Caboose Pennsylvania New york zone, And the main Engine. I'm missing the Dummy Unit with the horn and no one in the family knows where it is at. My Grandparents gave it to some people who they gave it to some people, who then was given to some other people, I spent a week calling people, then finally received a phone call from a lady who said I have your train. She said should of stayed in the family. The weird thing was that the train ended up only two miles from where I currently live.
No one was able to get the train to work. Over 15 years ago I watched my dad try to set it up. Threw sparks then shot off the track. He said it was broke and put it in the box and that was where it stayed. I finally got it and spent two days cleaning and lubing. Put it on the track and it growled to life. Had my dad come over and see it. His reaction was like being a kid all over again. But after investigating into the history I found out that I was missing part of the train. So now I have been busy trying to find the match. Found one on Ebay so now its a waiting game.
Sorry for the long story but me finding this train and setting it up has ignited something in me that is new. Plus with my job I found this to be a great stress reliever.
I didn't realize who you were. I seen your designs on the internet before I even found my train. Your website is really neat. How did you make your water look like it was pouring out? So many questions I have for you..... But Ill keep it short. Thanks Again!!!!

Good to hear that you re-discovered trains and even got your original train set back and operating. My original trains were also passed around when it was decided that I was "too old for trains anymore". If they only knew! Unfortunately, my search didn't end successfully - but I've more than made up for those missing trains over the years!

Hope you have fun building your layout. It's fun to start small and just see where the hobby takes you. You're right that it is very relaxing.

Thank you for the kind words about the layout and website. Your questions are always welcome here. There are many here who can help you out with just about any aspect of layout building.

By the way, those waterfalls are just clear acrylic latex caulking compound with a few wisps of cotton added.

Happy railroading
Jim

You have the dream setup!!!! My first indoor layout I seen was when I was a kid at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh PA. Always wanted to experience the thrill of model railroading from watching Thomas the train as a kid. Really what did it for me was my wife. After having a first Christmas together as a couple we were setting up the tree. She said she needed to get her train out to put under the tree. I told her about the Santa Fe I remember and two weeks later its back in the family and operational. I see this hobby and stress reducer as something that can be passed down the family for many generations. Im slowly transforming her into a train enthusiast even catch her sometimes looking on ebay for my matching train or a auction on 0 gauge track. I have a feeling that this could possibly turn into a family hobby.