Step 1 in creating 2017 Christmas Layout Memories - Planning

Very nice, Walt!  Great preparation will surely lead to a wonderful layout and experience for everyone enjoying it. 

Have you saved your plans of prior year layouts?  Care to share them as well? 

Where do you display the layout in the house? 

Do you reuse your platforms each year?  Where do you store it in the offseason?  Just curious as I'm in the process of building a layout that will certainly see more use during the Christmas season, but would like the option of storing it, but also getting it out on a whim in July as well.  

Thanks for sharing!

JD

good to see your getting ready to create this years Christmas layout always enjoy seeing your layout. seems yourself and red theater only ones posting on these type layouts so far hope to see more of your progress soon 

Ah, it's that time of year again.  I always enjoy your annual Christmas layout threads!

-Greg

Thank you Walt, for sharing your plans and designs. I love seeing what you do every year. Your layouts, are always very good old Christmas time layouts. I love them. 

Walt, I look forward to when you start planning your Christmas layout. The time you take to hit on the right idea shows in the finished layout.............Paul

I always love your Christmas Layout thread Walt, Please don't ever stop!

Nice work, Walt!  I like it.  You make it look easy.  I'm looking forward to the updates throughout the season!

I love seeing how this comes together!

Peter

Walt you are an inspiration to many! Can't wait to see this one.

JD2035RR posted:

Very nice, Walt!  Great preparation will surely lead to a wonderful layout and experience for everyone enjoying it. 

Have you saved your plans of prior year layouts?  Care to share them as well? 

Where do you display the layout in the house? 

Do you reuse your platforms each year?  Where do you store it in the offseason?  Just curious as I'm in the process of building a layout that will certainly see more use during the Christmas season, but would like the option of storing it, but also getting it out on a whim in July as well.  

Thanks for sharing!

JD

answers:

1. yes, I save my plans every year.  I'll see if I have digital images to share.

2. the layout (11'x14') occupies my entire living room.  Furniture is removed and there's only a 2 1/2' walkway to get from one part of the house to the other parts.

3. My layout is a floor layout.  It's on blue board with Homasote on top of that, so i only have the blue board and Homasote to store.  I keep it against the wall in my garage.

ALL: thanks for showing interest!  It's encouraging in times when I don't feel like working on it.

- walt

Brilliant!  Might need to try putting things on paper.

A Christmas layout too? I barely have time to work on my permanent layout!

Looks good Walt.

Walt, I'm sure you realize there are people - myself included - who do not have a year 'round layout as big as your seasonal Christmas layout. I'm kind of reminded of Tim Allen's TV show, "Tool Time" where he had a constant dream of 'more power.'

Whereas probably many people have an oval going around the Christmas tree, your layout design definitely brings back that phrase 'more power.' Or the Crocodile Dundee character when he says, "Oh mate, that's not a knife. THIS is a knife!"

I think the same could be said for your layout design here. Have fun and good luck with it!

Here are my sophisticated "tools"

The grid is 1" by 1" blocks, representing 2'x2' actual.

This first one is for when I have 2 levels.  it represents the top plateau and the various shaped ramps going up to it.  I don't use these any longer since they use 27" curves which my tin-plate trains can't handle.

these shapes help my determine angles coming out of curves. 

I use washers in the correct diameters to represent the 27", 31" (O), 42", and more recently but not shown, 54" and 72" curves.

The white cardboard piece is lined off where each segment is one O27 regular track.  The string is marked in 1" (2' actual) lengths to help me determine lengths of sidings and such.  the blue rectangle represents a 4'x8' piece that I use when determining placement of the plateau.  Since I now have bigger plateaus, I use more up-to-date pieces now.  I guess I should have included a picture of a ruler too since it's my main tool now.

The grid matches the size of my living room with air vents, outlets, doors, windows, etc noted.

Pretty advanced stuff, huh?

I should really take new pictures to show my current set of 'tools'.  Those above are for when I still did 27" curves which I can no longer do with my tin-plate.  But I guess the idea gets across

- walt

Where were your posts 25 years ago when I was trying to draw my first layout!. 

Your tools may not be the most pretty or fancy, but I'm pretty sure that they can be afforded by just about everyone who has model trains.  Great ingenuity!

Walt,

All I can say is amazing.