Who Else has built a layout on a door?

Just finishing a door layout for my 6 year old Grandson.  I used a hollow door- was amazed at the "reinforcement"- corrugated cardboard!!  Cheap!!  But at $34 I guess you can't expect much.  A solid door was 50 lbs. heavier.

Mine is 36 X 72 (3' x 6') after I cut the length to fit under his twin bed.  I bought  Lionel Pennsylvania Flyer starter set, and also O31 curves to fit the door (the set comes w/ O36 Fastrack).

I added six X 1-5/8:" casters and two handles to the bottom so he could pull it in and out.  I also jacked up the bed for clearance to allow him to put on some Plasticville buildings.  

Noise reduction:  I drilled 3/4" holes through the bottom "veneer" under where the tracks will lay, and used "Great Stuff" foam from a can into the void.  Tomorrow, I'll probably buy some foam roadbed for under the track.

My L-shaped train layout (15 x 19) rests on several hollow core doors (initially 36 inches wide) supported by SKIL plastic sawhorses. I placed quarter-round "guides" on the underside of the doors to hold the sawhorses in place -- sturdy and steady. The minimum curves and switches on my layout are 042, so I added an "extension" to the doors to increase the width to 48 inches (spliced a piece of another door to them).  I covered the doors with put green "patio carpeting" - mostly for cosmetics but the carpet does provide some sound deadening.  I added a perimeter fascia (painted Lionel orange). The fascia is mounted with a 3/4-inch rise above the platforms as a "containment barrier." All control buttons for action accessories are mounted on the fascia for convenience - a standard practice.

Since there was no room on the platforms for control gear, I installed two under-platform pull-out sliding shelves that contain:
1)  switch controllers, siding on/off control switches, and trolley DC track power controls
2)  transformers and TMCC gear.
These handy pull-out shelves are the control center for the layout. During operating sessions, they are generally "closed" and hidden from view.

All wiring is laced under the platforms, with four AC power strips that can be turn on/off by wireless remote controllers. Layout wiring is distributed to terminal panels for track power, accessory power, and JUST PLUG devices.

The hollow core doors support the weight of track, trains, buildings, and all -- but they are not strong enough to walk on them.  Photos attached.

Mike Mottler    LCCA 12394

Never used a door, did use a Ping Pong table once.

I would think trying to feed electrical lines through a hollow door would be APITA. Noise wise, it acts as a drum. My 5x8 layout is on Luan board, which is light, strong, and smooth.

I took a door out last year and decided to keep it for a small switching layout. I developed a track plan that allows for interesting action on the SCARM simulator. Sort of like an Inglenook or Time saver I guess. 

All that's left to do is build it.

I used a hollow core door for my N gauge layout back in the early 70's. It worked great for that layout. Light weight and very portable .  I did see an O gauge layout using 3 hollow core doors in one of the magazines .  It looked pretty awesome , it was even fitted with a live catenary system with a great track plan . 

Mike Wyatt posted:

Just finishing a door layout for my 6 year old Grandson.  I used a hollow door- was amazed at the "reinforcement"- corrugated cardboard!!  Cheap!!  But at $34 I guess you can't expect much.  A solid door was 50 lbs. heavier.

Mine is 36 X 72 (3' x 6') after I cut the length to fit under his twin bed.  I bought  Lionel Pennsylvania Flyer starter set, and also O31 curves to fit the door (the set comes w/ O36 Fastrack).

I added six X 1-5/8:" casters and two handles to the bottom so he could pull it in and out.  I also jacked up the bed for clearance to allow him to put on some Plasticville buildings.  

Noise reduction:  I drilled 3/4" holes through the bottom "veneer" under where the tracks will lay, and used "Great Stuff" foam from a can into the void.  Tomorrow, I'll probably buy some foam roadbed for under the track.

Might want to rethink the “great stuff” idea. As it expands, the foam will build up pressure and cause the relatively flat surfaces of the door to buckle, plus it may make the sound issue worse by tying everything together. It could even cause the door panels to open up along the edges!

A friend had a layout built with conventional benchwork that he added a large expansion to using two inch thick extruded styrofoam sheets, thinking it would reduce noise. The new section with the foam was actually a lot louder than the original conventional wood benchwork.

Bill in FtL 

Have built layouts with semihollow doors that are 36 inches wide by 80 inch long. 

Arranged in a specific  pattern they have homosote on the tops. The tables are latched together with drawer catches. When the doors are latched together they are very stable particularly with the homosote tops.  I placed the doors on metal saw horses with leg extensions to bring up the height.  I can lean on the table and they do Not budge. They are sufficiently strong enough to hold my Postwar equipment, accessories and loops of tubular track.  The layout is three loops connected with return loops to reverse direction of travel. It is full of action For one loco. I originally built this layout with n over head catenary system to run one electric via pantograph and one diesel via track. I will revisit this idea in practice.

In order to facilitate through the table  wire passage I did the following.

i used an extra long drill bit wood bit a couple of inches longer than the thickness of the table and homosote. using the appropriate diameter bit, drilled through the table.  Detatch the drill from the bit keeping drill bit in place. I cut the straw to just beyond he thickness of the door and the homosote.  I placed the close to the same diameter straw over the now vertical drill bit and introduced the straw to the space, by sliding it over the drill bit.  [This is kind of like replacement of an endotracheal tube in an already designated place in the trachea, like an introducer or bougie !] Back to the layout, the straw stays vertically set in the table, once stabilized remove the drill bit . One has a clear path insertion to engage the  wire without cumbersome resistance, slides right through the straw.  Note: the semi hollow doors have stuffing in them that will be a real challenge to pass wires through, ask me how I know! This technique is fast and you can run multiple accessory wires  or feeders to the great beneath bus wires if you like.

enclosed are pictures of my original plan on semihollow doors. I sold this layout years ago and missed it so much that I have made a smaller version of it with far less operating accessories. 

Semi holow Doors do work.

Btw: the curves used were 031 on 3 foot wide doors. The 022 Switches were custom cut by me to fit the plan. 

The last table to the right (see last photo sent) had an additional 1 foot wide extension to support more accessories activities and unaltered 022's. 

I have not added the fourth table to my current rebuild.

Check out this one--https://www.youtube.com/channe...LahyHRNaKr6cf44S04fw

We have built 15 door layouts for kids and friends in nursing homes in the last 3 years. Normally it is 031 3 rail or 027 stretched to fit the door, currently we do figure eights, but have done passing sidings, multiple sidings and one loop/figure eight with 027. The door is perfect for sliding under a bed when not in use.

Actually, I started my last layout by using a folding ping pong table. When I decided to expand and add on...I ended up using three (3) hollow core doors as shown in the photos. It was constructed using all 027 track and switches...so pretty tight for operating, but still fun! 

Love your layout, looks like a lot of fun to operate (and just watch and listen to) the trains.

Some of the neatest layouts I've seen have been on a ping pong table. I still know one were hollow doors were added  when moved to basement to extend trackage.

PDDI,

I absolutely love your layout. It shows what can be done in a small space with simple materials like hollow core doors. Thanks you for sharing.

I have this layout built many years ago on two 36" doors.  It has been all over Arizona to various shows, but is now permanently at our local mall display.  The two sections are bolted together with a nut and bolt and wire plugs underneath connect the wiring.  The first photo shows it with the original O gauge track and the second since I changed the track to Fastrack.  You can see the seam between the two doors in the lower left on the second photo.

I got the idea from a friend in Tucson who built his entire HO layout on hollow core doors.

I have to agree, I really like LEROOF's and PDDMI's layouts! Thank you both for posting photos! I'm leaning more towards building this style of a postwar layout! I plan on having scenery, but, operating accessories are a must have. I want my trains to have a purpose for being there, and have fun with the accessories while the trains are running!

Rusty