Where do you park 'em?

I will run trains for several months usually, so I park them on the back of the layout.

I have two isolated spurs that I park trains on.    And leave two on each of the main lines on the front of my layout, where I have two long straight areas to park them.

That's all the engines I have to run : )

Jim

They all park on the layout, I don't yet have any shelves. I have 4 spurs, 2 loops of track and one siding. There are trains on all of those tracks and that is where they park when I shut down the layout. 

Hopefully, I will be adding on to the layout and a yard will be created at the time of expansion. I also hope to have some shelves put up one of these days so I can have all my trains out in view. As things here are now, well over half of them are in their boxes and I don't really like it that way. I would like to be able to see everything out all at one time.

I usually run trains at the club.  Most of them are stored in boxes in the garage.

NH Joe

My layout is too small to park unused equipment.  i have shelves mounted on the wall to keep my locomotives and other specialty equipment.  I keep my rolling stock in a cabinet underneath the layout.

Tom

I leave long consists usually hidden in a tunnel and to the rear of the layout.That way when I come back a few days or a week latter I don't remember anything... build a new train and  High Ball into it.Nick

Tom Densel posted:

My layout is too small to park unused equipment.  i have shelves mounted on the wall to keep my locomotives and other specialty equipment.  I keep my rolling stock in a cabinet underneath the layout.

Tom

LOVE the drawer Idea.Must have  taken a great deal of time to build, Nice.Nick

On layout, on shelves built for trains, on kitchen table, on kitchen island, on shelf under kitchen window, in closets throughout the house, on book shelves, under sinks - trains are everywhere - and rightly so!

That drawer unit looks great. I use some of those plastic drawer cabinets like are found at Walmart. Not so great, but works.

'Usually' (clever word ehh!) I put engines in the diesel house or roundhouse BUT I always leave a 'visitor' train made up at the station or on a siding.  A 'visitor' train is so when I have a visitor I can flip a switch and run a train.  Russ

I recently designed a new home layout without storage sidings, and then abandoned that impractical version in favor of "Plan B" with four sidings. Sidings are useful for "show & tell" to visitors as well as storage.  I intend to create some wall shelves too, but that display space will be reserved for my best trains.  Like others in this thread, I have placed some roll-around plastic cabinets with drawers underneath the layout and filled them with small tools, track cleaning supplies, soldering gun & related stuff, odds & ends, etc.

For me, the challenge is where to store empty train boxes; especially large operating accessory boxes.  I don't have a basement at this house, the attic is too hot, an off-site rental storage room is too expensive ... 

Mike
(ritrainguy)

I just pull them up to the passenger or freight stations and tuck them in for the night.

Trains stay on the layout until I decide it's time for something different and then they get stored on the shelves under the layout or back in their boxes.  

We park them in our tunnel, it acts as our over night garage....

Paul

No trains ever leave my layout. For now, trains are parked in one of two hidden yards, with a total capacity of 32 trains. When more scenery is done, trains will also be parked in surface yards.

Here are some pictures of the "big" hidden yard. There are five tracks. Each track is 120' long, and holds up to 5 trains. Doing the math, that's 25 train capacity.

This is one of the first digital photos ever taken of the layout, and is the best overview of the big hidden yard, circa 2003.

This is a shot taken this week from almost the same spot.

Another early picture.

This one is from 2012.

This is the small hidden yard, capacity 7 trains.

Then there are the surface yards, where trains are built up and broken apart. Capacity unknown at this time.

The scary part is, I may have too many cars still packed away.

Big Boy 4005...there are many impressive layouts on this forum...but, yours is one of the most impressive.  I admire your work.

SD60M posted:

Big Boy 4005...there are many impressive layouts on this forum...but, yours is one of the most impressive.  I admire your work.

 

Thank you, I really appreciate that. Dealing with a layout as large as this isn't easy, but it is a fun challenge.

Here's the current Razorback Traction Co. storage facility:

Note Fortescue J. Gi-raffe sitting next to the Chicago PCC car, second shelf down, lefthand shelving unit...

This is about 2/3 the fleet; the rest is in cases and gym bags in the garage, waiting for the next train show. 

Mitch

No display shelves for me. If I can't have all my trains on the layout, ready to run, I just make the layout bigger.

I keep 2 trains on the den layout (6' X 8' w long side passing siding).

Currently in need of change up, Polar Express, Christmas train and all my Christmas buildings are due a rest.

Normally I'm running D&RG Steam.

My dilemma is that I like to a have a variety of trains ready to run, but there is not enough sidings on my railroad to keep all of my trains on the layout. There are 27 locomotives on the layout, and these stay there because they are too delicate for regular manhandling.

There are two freight trains making regular runs, a N&W coal drag and an Long Island local peddler. These stay on the layout.

There are eight passenger trains on the layout including the Blue Comet, the Crescent Limited, the Pocahontas, the 20th Century Limited, the Flying Yankee, the Hiawatha, the Chessie and the Representative. Of these, two trains are on an unpowered storage track.

The Board of Directors have approved two additions to the railroad which besides adding three new mainline destinations, the additions will provide more storage tracks for passenger trains. Once the additions are complete, another version of the 20th Century, the Ski Train, the Broadway Limited and the Sunrise Special will have places to stay on the layout.

I run all my stuff at clubs so they are in their plastic Tubs, Tool Boxes or O scale Haulers. Stuff that don't fit in these boxes because of crowding go to boxes that other cars came in from Menards. 

Boby Ogauge..  So that is why I was having problems finding Lionel station platforms lol  

Jim

In the train yard or on the shelf.

carsntrains posted:

Boby Ogauge..  So that is why I was having problems finding Lionel station platforms lol 

I still got him beat on gi-raffes. 

Mitch

M. Mitchell Marmel posted:

Here's the current Razorback Traction Co. storage facility:

Note Fortescue J. Gi-raffe sitting next to the Chicago PCC car, second shelf down, lefthand shelving unit...

This is about 2/3 the fleet; the rest is in cases and gym bags in the garage, waiting for the next train show. 

Mitch

Instead of playing "Where's Waldo" Let's play "Where's Fortescue"

My trains are all on the layout which is an issue on a small layout. I buy trains like I have Elliot's layout.

RSJB18 posted:

M. Mitchell Marmel posted:

Here's the current Razorback Traction Co. storage facility:

Note Fortescue J. Gi-raffe sitting next to the Chicago PCC car, second shelf down, lefthand shelving unit...

This is about 2/3 the fleet; the rest is in cases and gym bags in the garage, waiting for the next train show. 

Mitch

Instead of playing "Where's Waldo" Let's play "Where's Fortescue"

My trains are all on the layout which is an issue on a small layout. I buy trains like I have Elliot's layout.

 

I see him!  I would like to have trains all parked on a layout, but no room.  There are two on the Ceiling Central RR, two on the Christmas layout that is still up in one daughter's former bedroom, One train and a few odds and ends are parked on shelves the other daughter left behind in the future train room (they will come down to paint over the Barbie Pink) The two nicest trains are packed in Laidoffsick O Gauge Hauler Boxes awaiting their turn on the Ceiling Central once the new layout gets underway, which looks like later than sooner.    The plan is to leave trains on the new layout and CCRR, and some extra rolling stock in drawers under two spots on the new layout in the 130 sq ft train room.

M. Mitchell Marmel posted:

carsntrains posted:

Boby Ogauge..  So that is why I was having problems finding Lionel station platforms lol 

I still got him beat on gi-raffes. 

Mitch

Fortescue might enjoy watching the live Giraffe cam of April & Oliver. April is having a baby sometime soon, I think. Oliver is the smaller one, April is taller. Second video down is the live feed.

We have been watching them for a while too.

Mike H Mottler posted:

For me, the challenge is where to store empty train boxes; especially large operating accessory boxes.  I don't have a basement at this house, the attic is too hot, an off-site rental storage room is too expensive ... 

Mike
(ritrainguy)

 

With my new layout(about a year & a half old) in southeast Florida near West Palm Beach(zip code 33467) I store most of my usable trains on the layout. Other storage is underneath the layout tables, also built some shelves for storage on the side of my layout and in the hallway to my layout room. My current layout is around 8 feet wide by 11 feet long[5 feet wide] in most areas(some of the layout is 8 feet wide by 8 feet 4 inches long due to room size). So the minimum size of my O gauge layout is 8 feet wide by 8 feet 4 inches long. I have built a small airport area in the extension area and have a Plasticville Airport Hanger(not the airport).

The bedroom that I am using for my trains is ten feet wide by 12 feet long with a closet of 2 and a half feet wide by about 6 feet long. I removed the closet doors and am storing them on the back porch area. The total area I have is around 14 and a half feet long by 10 feet wide. The room is serviced by one 15 amp circuit breaker originally but I have brought in another 15 amp 120 volt service from the kitchen area. So I have a usable total of 30 amps at 120 volts, maybe a little less because of of the bedroom service sharing the electric service with the hallway bathroom.

Lee Fritz

In every possible space we can find. Hallway walls

Engines go in the roundhouse

Parked on the main and in the sidings

In the diesel shed

Under the layout

Above the layout

rtr12 posted:

Fortescue might enjoy watching the live Giraffe cam of April & Oliver. April is having a baby sometime soon, I think. Oliver is the smaller one, April is taller. Second video down is the live feed.

We have been watching them for a while too.

This does, of course, raise the question of whence one parks a baby gi-raffe...  ;-)

Mitch

One of the nice things about trolley modeling is that one can wedge the little indefinites into any available nook or cranny, thus:

Mitch

Big_Boy_4005 posted:

No trains ever leave my layout. For now, trains are parked in one of two hidden yards, with a total capacity of 32 trains. When more scenery is done, trains will also be parked in surface yards.

Here are some pictures of the "big" hidden yard. There are five tracks. Each track is 120' long, and holds up to 5 trains. Doing the math, that's 25 train capacity.

 

Big Boy,

Five 120 foot long storage tracks with enough storage for 25 trains is fabulous.  My train room is only 20 feet long.  You are giving me a bad case of space envy.  My total collection would not fill that many tracks.

Thanks for sharing photos of your awesome layout.

NH Joe

I only have 5 engines and about 65 cars, so I can keep everything on the layout so far. The second level helps keep extras out of sight. 

Tom Densel posted:

My layout is too small to park unused equipment.  i have shelves mounted on the wall to keep my locomotives and other specialty equipment.  I keep my rolling stock in a cabinet underneath the layout.

Tom

Tom,

Where did you get that cabinet or did you make???   That is a great way to store trains..!!

I placed several sections of track and re-railers onto a piece of plywood with spacers underneath, which sits atop a dresser underneath the layout (and hidden by the curtains under the fascia. It’s unpowered and holds almost exclusively freight cars and one passenger coach. There’s a 4^th ten-wheeler that I don’t use in op sessions (as it’s painted in the pre-war green-gold paint and not weathered yet) that sits down there. I guess I should take it up to stretch its legs every now and then, though.

I do park one locomotive on a siding near the center point on my point-to-point layout, as a switcher to take the cars from the train off the interchange. A third locomotive is sitting at a spur next to the depot at the end of the line, though it’s not always there (it’s still there from the photo shoot I did for the On30 Annual a while back). The locomotive that will take the train off the interchange at the start of any op sessions sits on the main ready to go. It’s the one I’ll usually run around the layout at night when I feel like running something for a few minutes. Otherwise, the main is free and open at all times.

Small room and a small layout. Made good use of leftover space. 

Presently there are eight below deck storage tracks totaling approx. 150 linear feet with three more coming soon bring the total off stage sidings to around 200 linear feet. 

New Haven Joe posted:

Big_Boy_4005 posted:

No trains ever leave my layout. For now, trains are parked in one of two hidden yards, with a total capacity of 32 trains. When more scenery is done, trains will also be parked in surface yards.

Here are some pictures of the "big" hidden yard. There are five tracks. Each track is 120' long, and holds up to 5 trains. Doing the math, that's 25 train capacity.

 

Big Boy,

Five 120 foot long storage tracks with enough storage for 25 trains is fabulous.  My train room is only 20 feet long.  You are giving me a bad case of space envy.  My total collection would not fill that many tracks.

Thanks for sharing photos of your awesome layout.

NH Joe

Thanks Joe, as I mentioned earlier, it's not all fun and games having a layout this large. Right now it's just the volume of work to get it running. Sorry about the envy, I do worry about the optics when I post to topics like this. I think the secret out that my layout is large.

I chose the large space as a replacement for my previous layout at Mall of America, where I had 2000 square feet. I started the concept at my previous house, but didn't get very far before we moved to the current house. Chunks of the hidden yard made the move directly to the new  house. The previous space was about 1000' square feet, so half the size.

This layout is a real departure from the one at the mall, because it's prototype based, and lots of staging space is necessary. In a typical operating session, it is possible that the big yard may have trains that don't make it out.

The main part of my train room is 46', but as you can see from the photos, the yard is wrapped around the post, and doubles back on itself in order to gain length.

Laidoffsick posted:

In every possible space we can find. Hallway walls

Engines go in the roundhouse

Parked on the main and in the sidings

In the diesel shed

Under the layout

Above the layout

WOW!!!!