The "Encourage Others Challenge": Post a picture of your layout...how many will post???

Mike CT, Looks great!  I hope to see it in person someday soon

Well some quick pictures of the last layout.

And here are a couple of the new train room after I finished hanging the drywall this week. If you squint real hard you can almost see the the future layout in that space.

@NJCJOE posted:

And here are a couple of the new train room after I finished hanging the drywall this week. If you squint real hard you can almost see the the future layout in that space.

I'm excited for you, Joe.  I can't wait to move!

@Mark Boyce posted:

Yes, Daughter number two is actually in the process of moving out.  In less than two weeks the wedding will be over and this room will be mine!

For the last few years, this along with the Ceiling Central have sufficed.

Thank you to J. Motts for 'liking' my earlier comment.  When I saw this topic come up again, I wondered what I had shared way back when.  Wow, it was 4 1/2 years ago!!  For those who have not seen my posts, I am building a layout in the room shown above.  Though I had a few false starts, Plan D of the Blackwater Canyon Line has been under construction for a little over a year now.  Here are a few recent photographs.

Here are some photos from over the years of the Great Northeastern Railway (GNR), The Standard Railroad of the Basement. Also, below the photos at the end of this post, you are invited to board the flagship passenger train of the GNR, the "Chazzanooga Choo Choo," (named for our former feline Chairman of the Bored, the late Chaz Harrison), for a ride around Terryville and the great city of Christopolis. Just click on the YouTube link, have our tickets ready and enjoy the trip.

GNR Chairman of the Bored, Chaz, on one of his many track inspection tours of the main line.

A ride on the Great Northeastern Railway: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXWcvnSzFec

NJCJOE, I always like looking at pictures of your past layout, so much to see, the wall decorations, very nice table work, beautiful finish on the edges, O gauge, Standard gauge, the accessories both O, standard gauge, a beautiful mix of ideas. Fantastic wall memorabilia, simply a great looking railroad room. Eye Candy galore. Now, your new train room looks larger and probably allows more room for larger curves to really expand operating possibilities. What is the size of your new area? Building the new layout is much of the fun.
Mark Boyce, your layout is going to be amazing, so much time has past since this thread opened again, your layout area is really coming along fine. The new lift bridge project is very interesting. Keep up the great work. It’s snowing here in Clarksville, mostly ice, so I’ll be working on my layout later.

Randy Harrison, wow, your layout is a lot of fun to review, lots of trains running, beautiful post war freight and passenger trains and some great scenery, even a junk heap, so much to see, and I bet it’s fun to run.I love the mix of ceramic buildings and plasticville and all the roads and trees. A Beautiful model Railroad. Your comments on the forum ad a lot to our learning experience in building our layouts. Oh yes, the Cat, Wow.. This is a great thread... Happy Railroading Everyone

Here is my layout before I tore it down because of work needing to be done in our basement.

Currently I just have the framework down with nothing on top. Need to get a few things before I can work again.

My around the room Christmas set up.

I do not have a layout.

@leapinlarry posted:

NJCJOE, I always like looking at pictures of your past layout, so much to see, the wall decorations, very nice table work, beautiful finish on the edges, O gauge, Standard gauge, the accessories both O, standard gauge, a beautiful mix of ideas. Fantastic wall memorabilia, simply a great looking railroad room. Eye Candy galore. Now, your new train room looks larger and probably allows more room for larger curves to really expand operating possibilities. What is the size of your new area? Building the new layout is much of the fun.

Larry,

"Eye Candy", is the way I always feel when I look at your photos as well. The overall room dimensions are approximately 49' by 27'. The layout(s) will be on one side measuring about 42' by 15'. The other side will be for the railroadiana display.

Great looking layouts everyone! Joe, that is going to be one heck of a layout room! I cant wait to see how you fill that new room!

Mark, Things are looking great in your Daughters room! LOL

Randy, you have one talented cat. You also have one very great looking layout! I think if I let our cat into the train room she would nock things over all the place!

Larry, As I have said many times in the past,  You have one of the most amazing layouts I have seen here on the forum! I have nothing near me to see in person, so I look at yours and other wonderful layouts here and just dream!

tcochran, sorry you had to take it down, you might give it some thought of finishing the basement before you get started again. That way you wont have to take it down again!

HarleyHouse, Everyone has to start somewhere!

Here is mine for now!

Here’s mine it’s a work in progress.

NJCJOE, when your finished with your basement, referring to painting, floor, decorations, and begin your next model railroading table or tables, do like some of the other folks here, Gunrunner Johns, Mark Boyce, “Black Water Canyon” and “Continuing Saga”, etc. it’s going to be fun watching your progress, and thanks for the compliment. Mike g. your layout is looking good, your new roads are nice, the city area is creative, the parking area and the automobiles with lights, very unique scene. I like your BNSF diesels, and the double decker passenger train. Thank you for all of the compliments to. Tcochran, it will be nice to see pictures of your layout as you make progress, you have some beautiful trains and a large basement. (I added a little Sunshine on a cloudy day, a bit of Florida) Happy Railroading Everyone

My contribution, third attempt in 15' by 13' room, did not want to use the entire room.

This version is working out, the yard adds operating fun while the oval with reversing loop lets
me run a train and return to the yard head first or backing up.  The track in the center of oval
is experimental incline to upper level.  Have not decided to connect upper level to bottom yet,
sometimes less is more - it's temping to lay track everywhere...

If we're just posting encouragement to others, here's my current contribution:

I won't stop improving the layout until my photos get confused with prototype shots!

@leapinlarry posted:

Randy Harrison, wow, your layout is a lot of fun to review, lots of trains running, beautiful post war freight and passenger trains and some great scenery, even a junk heap, so much to see, and I bet it’s fun to run.I love the mix of ceramic buildings and plasticville and all the roads and trees. A Beautiful model Railroad. Your comments on the forum ad a lot to our learning experience in building our layouts. Oh yes, the Cat, Wow.. This is a great thread... Happy Railroading Everyone

@leapinlarry

Larry:

Thank you for your kind words. I am quite humbled to hear such praise from a master modeler as you. I always enjoy and admire your layout photos showing your superb scenery. Bravo to you Larry and thank you!!!!!!

@leapinlarry posted:

NJCJOE, when your finished with your basement, referring to painting, floor, decorations, and begin your next model railroading table or tables, do like some of the other folks here, Gunrunner Johns, Mark Boyce, “Black Water Canyon” and “Continuing Saga”, etc. it’s going to be fun watching your progress, and thanks for the compliment. Mike g. your layout is looking good, your new roads are nice, the city area is creative, the parking area and the automobiles with lights, very unique scene. I like your BNSF diesels, and the double decker passenger train. Thank you for all of the compliments to. Tcochran, it will be nice to see pictures of your layout as you make progress, you have some beautiful trains and a large basement. (I added a little Sunshine on a cloudy day, a bit of Florida) Happy Railroading Everyone

Thank you, Larry!  You are always an encouragement!  Your wonderful layout is an inspiration to all!

@NJCJOE posted:

Well some quick pictures of the last layout.

And here are a couple of the new train room after I finished hanging the drywall this week. If you squint real hard you can almost see the the future layout in that space.

Are YOU SURE its the layout or the railroad parafanalia that will be dotted around the room? I see the Railroad Parafanalia.

@prrhorseshoecurve posted:

Are YOU SURE its the layout or the railroad parafanalia that will be dotted around the room? I see the Railroad Parafanalia.

Lol if that's the case, he is going to need a whole lot more!

I got way more to do .

The view in my evidence room.

Here are some pics from the archives, my layout from the 70’s during my teenage years. At the time I had left the aquarium stage and moved onto my train stage. So I had utilized a lot of the aquarium gravel for ballast, filter charcoal for hopper load and underwater foliage for trees and landscaping. The layouts were built in stages over a few years. I sure miss not having a basement anymore!

Rich

Great traditional layout, with shades of the 40s and 50s layout.  Thanks for posting.

Charlie

@Choo Choo Charlie posted:

Rich

Great traditional layout, with shades of the 40s and 50s layout.  Thanks for posting.

Charlie

Thanks Charlie for your words, it was really enjoyed and used.

Here a couple of pictures of my 40+ year old 1950s period operating and switching layout.  It was portable and moved to 5 houses and put up in Dec thru Feb, on the floor of family or living rooms.  It has been up permanently for 10 or so years, in a train, vintage audio, and all purpose room.

Picture of overall Layout Main Train Board

Active Touch Track Diagram Control Panel showing Track Plan of Main Train Board

Photo showing both Train Boards in 2016

I have posted a OGR forum topic to encourage others to get started in model trains and how I built this layout:  link below.  Page 1 has a table of contents.

https://ogrforum.com/...ra-027-layout?page=1

The layout has 33 Marx 1590 switches, 3 Lionel LW transformers allowing three train operation and five train operation with two loops with relay blocked track sections, 2 active touch track diagram control panels, homemade $10 turntable and $10 round house, and a Wye.  Details are provided how I built the layout whole layout and turntable and other accessories, cars and train shelves so other can get started on their layout.  Also included details of homemade operating Coal Mine, log dumper, reversing trolley, Gantry crane base, ice skating rink, train water tower, industrial water tower and over a dozen homemade cars including Vanderbilt coal tenders, Life Saver tank car, Missile capsule car, copies of gold bullion and aquarium car and many more.

Charlie

Tatra T3 test running on my Sierra  Street Railway  in 1965.  (They liked the car, but considering shipping, cold war restrictions and  PCC cars available cheap on the used market, management decided to go the PCC route).  I've been told that Vancouver, B.C. did consider such a test, but it never happened.

                                                                                                                                                              Logan   

Before I dismantle the Christmas 2020 layout I took a few photos.  Still a work in progress.

John

Here's my little piece of RR property, it's a 10x12 basement bedroom, has 2 loops that continue about 12 more feet suspended into the crawlspace that is under our front doors. Like a lot of us wishing for more space, but utilizing what I have. Layout perimeter has 2x6's screwed to wall studs.  It's strong enough to hold my weight, the right height for the grandkids & I can still lay under it to do wiring. It's a mess right now due to deciding placement and rearrangement of buildings. Currently starting to wire controls for accessories that I have put off for to long. Storage under the layout, crawl space and closet. There is also a hall closet that is full of trains. There may be a few under my bed upstairs too. 12 gauge and a couple of AR15's in the closet to protect the trains.  8-)

Jeff

Plasticville/Postwar layout

@mike g. posted:

Here is mine for now!

Mike,

I'm so happy to see your progress. Seems like last week you were still putting the walls on your layout room!

Postwarman: That cartoon you posted is hilarious! Wow. These are some amazing layouts. Eventually, I'd like to build a new layout.

@Mark Boyce posted:

Thank you to J. Motts for 'liking' my earlier comment.  When I saw this topic come up again, I wondered what I had shared way back when.  Wow, it was 4 1/2 years ago!!  For those who have not seen my posts, I am building a layout in the room shown above.  Though I had a few false starts, Plan D of the Blackwater Canyon Line has been under construction for a little over a year now.  Here are a few recent photographs.

Mark, Thanks for the share.... Ever the supporter for others, you too have done quite well. Love the bridges, looking awesome sir

Cool thread.

I couldn't fit Warrenville in one photo, so I took two to share the overview.

Still, it does not include The Alcove and Subway portions, nor does it include most of my display shelves.

Can't wait to see the future in that room Joe - fun, fun, fun!

It's interesting to see this thread is still alive and well.  I posted my original little clockwork layout back on the first page in 2016, but that layout was replaced by a new, larger layout over the last couple of years.  The new layout is still focused on O gauge windup trains (with the occasional battery powered train running) and as such has all 2-rail tinplate track with no track power.  The emphasis is on running the clockwork trains as well as displaying trains and vintage accessories, so there is minimal scenery.  The "grass" is green indoor/outdoor product called EcoRug that Lowe's sells.  The roadbed is 1/2" MDF that is cut to shape and painted with Rust-Oleum stone texture spray paint.  The track plan is a folded dogbone that uses a set of switches to utilize one end as a return loop, and has another return loop inside the industrial area.  Trains can run around the dogbone mainline and be reversed as desired.  There is always more to do!

Here's the only model railroad I've built in the recent past, along with the company officers.

From 2010:

On the left is grandson and Vice President of Operations Nathaniel Drovdlic, who is now a Junior in High School.

On the right is grandson and President of the Roll Away Central Railroad, Matthew Drovdlic, who is now a freshman in college.

Time flies...

@Miggy posted:

Mark, Thanks for the share.... Ever the supporter for others, you too have done quite well. Love the bridges, looking awesome sir

Thank you very much, Scott!!!

These pictures were taken about a year and a half ago. I have changed several things since these pictures were taken. I have repositioned several small track side buildings and figures. And a added a diesel fueling station off of the refinery siding.

@Lionelski posted:

Can't wait to see the future in that room Joe - fun, fun, fun!

Oh My, "Trains and Bridges and Transformers," (if this the curve, way behind I AM)

salute, beautiful

Scenes along the Mountain Division of the Free State Junction Railway.