My first Layout - a 5' x 9' Modern BNSF Freelance


ledzeppelinfan1 said:
Which kinda leads to another question...where you nervous about digging into the foam without a plywood base underneath? I would love to avoid the plywood under the foam, but I'm scared to dig out my river and go through the bottom of the foam board. For a 5x9, how often did you place your feeders?
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Don't forget that, if you're putting a frame around it like flyingtiger's you've got that depth to glue extra pieces of foam underneath to allow you to dig deeper. In fact it would be a good idea to add at least another layer even if you don't.
 
led, I would ditch the plywood. It adds unnecessary weight. The 2" foam is all you need. If adhered well to the frame, it's not going anywhere, even if you cut into it. If you cut all the way through, no worries. Glue on some more foam from underneath. The nice thing about the foam is the ease you can punch holes through for feeders and such. With the plywood, you have an extra layer to go through.
I added feeders every 5' or so in general, but then added more on spurs. I need to add more though, as I had some issues at the show.
 
Glued it right to the foam for the sidings and spurs, and glued foam roadbed from Woodland Scenics to the foam and mainline track glued to that. Easy as pie. No nails. No cork. And it stays put!
 
Thanks for the answer. I'm debating between a form core or ply wood top. Since I have never worked with form core how easy is it to cut in half? Did you use a knife or a special type of saw? I'm also planning on a 5x9 modular more for storage than for portability.
 
Just used a hand saw, worked slowly, and put the rough edge that I sawed at the back of the layout. But it's not a big deal, as I had the fascia go to the top of the foam anyway, and you can fill in any imperfections with putty, plaster, what have you.
 
Hey FT, what radius curves did you use on your concentric curves? If I go five feet wide I'd like to use 26 degree, but I'm not sure what my inner curve would have to be to keep it concentric...I'm guess something like 23.5, but I dunno. Still debating going 4 or 5 feet wide. Its a space issue (that one foot makes a huge difference in my situation) + budget issue (I have a set number to work with that's not very high). I'm trying to save as much money as possible to buy more locos and rolling stock. I'm greedy for trains...lol
 
Expansion started! This part however will not be made for taking on the road. 23' long by (primarily) 18" wide. The main reason is to add a yard. I REALLY need a yard. Also, my son loves steel mills, and has been buying freight cars in hopes of having one some day. Now he will. I will also have a couple of additional industries to serve, and a bridge over a city stree - something else I always wanted to have. This expansion should complete our combined wish lists. It will connect to the original 5X9 with a single track duckunder, coming off the already in place sneak off track on the 5X9. I will update with more pics as I proceed.
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flyingtiger said:
Expansion started! This part however will not be made for taking on the road. 23' long by (primarily) 18" wide. The main reason is to add a yard. I REALLY need a yard. Also, my son loves steel mills, and has been buying freight cars in hopes of having one some day. Now he will. I will also have a couple of additional industries to serve, and a bridge over a city stree - something else I always wanted to have. This expansion should complete our combined wish lists. It will connect to the original 5X9 with a single track duckunder, coming off the already in place sneak off track on the 5X9. I will update with more pics as I proceed.
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Awesome man!!! Lookin forward to the expansion of your already awesome layout!!! Ive expanded my horizons to 5x10 with four dividers and will be starting in February. Looking forward to it!!!
 
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