There is always room for a Layout, even in HO scale

[malletman]

For those that lament the lack of space for a layout. Here is what can be done in HO scale in a space of 33 inches by 55 inches. This is all built with Marklin European HO scale equipment. In Europe, large basements or large spare rooms dont exhist for the most part. Coupled with the higher cost of equipment from import fees, taxes and duties ect. All this combined creates the need to be able to build layouts in small and confined spaces. From the smallest 0-6-0 tank engines and 4 wheel shunting diesels, to the massive (for German Railways) Class 44 and class 50 Decapods will go around the tighest radius Marklin produces. Thier chassis has a give point between the front 3 driver axles and the rear 2, this is just like the prototype that has the same give points to allow them around tight curves in real life as all drivers are flanged. Marklin produces an easy to use overhead Catenary system, very esseintal if you want to model modern operation as most all of Europe is electrified. Most locomotives are all diecast including diesels and electric locomotives. Now I have built my layout with older vintage equipment, tinplate road bed track called "M" track and I use older non digital locomotives. I looked into N scale, but it was just to small for my eyes and what I enjoyed modeling wise. A relative brought me back a Marklin starter set from a trip to Germany and it grew to what you see here. Enjoy the pics. Mike and Michele T

 

[Selector]

Yes, and if that is Marklin, that's precisely how they were designed...to provide quality fun in a tight space, the type of conditions found in Europe where property values are so expensive and densely laid out that mortgages are handed over to successive generations.

I have a Trix (Marklin) Pennsy GG1, and it is a beauty!

Nice layout, catenary and all!

-Crandell

 

[waredbear]

Nice layout in such a small space. Good job!!

 

[Motley]

Very nice!! That is some great detail there in such a small space, wow! Excellent work.

 

[malletman]

I have some upgrades planned over the late winter months, I plan to make a cut to run the road down under the two curved tracks with stone viaducts carring the tracks over the road and small stream that will follow the road to a culvert as the road climbs up to table height. Then I will work on finishing the town square. All the buildings on the layout are lighted, 9 bulbs alone in the station with the working double lamp street lights. I use Viessmann brand street lights, the signals are all lighted and will eventualy work, they are a mix of Marklin and Fleishmann brand. All the turnouts have lighted direction lanterns. The blue passenger cars I pull with the Electric locomotive (E-Lok) are tinplate metal. The trains are 3 rail AC powered, there is an electrical stud in the middle of each crosstie that creates the hot "rail" pickup for non electric engines. Locomotives have a "ski" underneath that picks up power from these studs. The electric engines can pickup power from either the studs or the overhead. I remove the ski on my E-Loks so when I want them not to run, I just lower the pantograph. Marklin was making these trains we most of us were playing with Lionel toy trains. Vintage Marklin steam engines use a spur gear drive, much like a Lionel, so the side rods are just for show. No wearing out of the side rods driving the rest of the wheels like most other brands of steam engines. But with 90% or more of Marklin's models being European, mix of German, Austrian, Swiss, French and a smidge of other countries, you dont see much of it here in the USA. But for those that take the plunge and model European railways, it opens up a whole different world of trains. A world where trains rule, and cars are mainly used as "in town only" transportation. Just imagine what the USA would be like if, instead of the interstate highway system, we instead built medium to high speed dedicated passenger railways across this nation, all electricfied, no polution. Here are some more pics of my earlier Marklin layouts before I built this small show layout. My first layout was on a hollow core interior door. It ended up being to hard to transport to shows and we changed the layout of our living room in our mobile home were we lived at that time. The current layout was designed and built to fit that plan. Even once we moved to a house, I still lack any real extra room to expand. So the layout still works beautifully for me. The first pic is of the current layout and a box cab electric I nolonger have. The second pic of of my Christmas theme on my old layout and the evening express, I sold that engine to a buddy and now want to find another one to purchase without breaking the bank, next up is with the grass down instead of a snow scene, and the last pic is the original track plan for my current layout, I added the second curved track for the passenger train and removed the small industrial section. I may reinstall that soon, not sure though. Enjoy. Mike and Michele T

 

[UP2CSX]

Mike, you've done a nice job developing a complex layout in a small space. As you say Marklin, Fleishmann, Roco, and Trix European equipment is all made with the assumption it will run on tight layouts with sharp curves. I'm glad that's available to those who want it, but I'd sure hate to see some of those tinplate type shortcuts taken on American HO engines.

German train makers are really in trouble right now. With LGB going belly up and being absorbed by Marklin, and then Marklin being taken over by a British venture capital firm just before it went belly up, I'd be loathe to invest in much European equipment until the market settles down. The dollar is very strong against the euro right now, which will work to Marklin's advatage in exporting, but the challenges faced with the sovereign debt problems in Greece, Spain, and Portugal may put the entire EU at risk. It's a dangerous place to put money right now, whether in model trains or stocks.

I must take issue with your electic trains equals no pollution statement. Unless we have a heck of a lot more windmills and solar plants than I know of, all the electricity has to come from somewhere. That's mostly coal burning plants. The greater the demand for electricity, the greater the pollution. You just transfer the location of pollution from one place to another with electric powered trains. The net benefit to the environment is zero. Even if the electricity comes from hydro or nuclear, there are significant environmental issues with both of these power sources as well. In the world of physics, there's no way to create energy from nothing.

 

[malletman]

As to the polution, I was more thinking a totaly different path that might have been taken, with US railroads being more like European ones. More than likely, if the money thats been poured into the US interstate highway system was put into elecrified railways and the technoligy to produce the power to run them, things might be way different today. I think in time we will see much more electrification of certain railway lines. Or another clean technology will come forth that is completely different and not just a twist on a combustion engine we have now. Back to the models, I only buy older Marklin stuff, much of the new stuff has suffered quality control issues, much like what we deal with in USA prototype stuff made in China ect. The older models have proved themselves over and over again, much like pre and post war Lionel has. As long as replacement part support is there, the older models will continue to operate well. Cheers Mike

 

[Rico]

Very nice Mike! HO scale ops and running squeezed into an N scale space, cool!