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Yes, I am using foam. I have a bunch of 2" foam insulation boards. I took them off to do a little benchwork. They will be glued on before I start laying track, ect. I am still playing around with the idea of adding elevations and maybe a tunnel.
Looks pretty good. You're real close to having two separate mainlines, just connect that track on the lower right (going over the creek). And the small yard on the left, flip it so it angles off to the left. And have the main line run straight through.
Seeing two separate trains running at the same time in different directions is cool stuff.
I like the idea of ramping up to the bridge. Even a 1/2" would have a significant impact. I just bought a set of the woodland senics risers (about $6) for my layout. I think they'll work well. Check it out. http://woodlandscenics.woodlandscenics.com/show/Item/ST1406/page/1
I am hoping to get a day or two off work this week to go get some buildings for the layout. I need to place some structures before I start laying track so I can make whatever adjustments are needed in the track plan.
I am still looking for a good price on a DCC system. Has anyone had any luck with buying used systems off ebay? I dont want to buy one and find out it doesn't work...
I have suggestion for your foam board installation. I did this 17 years ago on my layout and it really cuts the noise down - if you have quiet locos the noise level is cut to nothing but wheels rolling and clicking over rail joints/gaps. I really enjoy this sound.
I made the lengths and widths of my styrofoam sheets (about 3 3/4" thick ones laminated/glued together) 1" shorter than the length and width of the table top, so when I installed the foam board my vertical edging around the layout exterior did not touch them.
Now here's the key: Cut some 1/2" thick carpet padding (can be used padding or even semi-soft foam stuff) into 4" or 5" squares. Mark off on your wood table top with pencil lines in a square foot grid. Wherever the lines cross (every square foot of course) glue one of the carpet pad squares to the base board. Then, lay your foam boards on the carpet pads (keeping the foam boards 1/2" from the side edging), but do not fasten or glue the foam boards down.
What you now have is a FLOATING foam board layout; none of the noise generated by moving trains will be tranferred to the wood base. [As you know wood acts as a sound board, and styrofoam board also does to a certain extent. And the padding will even absorb some of the noise.]
I have suggestion for your foam board installation. I did this 17 years ago on my layout and it really cuts the noise down - if you have quiet locos the noise level is cut to nothing but wheels rolling and clicking over rail joints/gaps. I really enjoy this sound.
I made the lengths and widths of my styrofoam sheets (about 3 3/4" thick ones laminated/glued together) 1" shorter than the length and width of the table top, so when I installed the foam board my vertical edging around the layout exterior did not touch them.
Now here's the key: Cut some 1/2" thick carpet padding (can be used padding or even semi-soft foam stuff) into 4" or 5" squares. Mark off on your wood table top with pencil lines in a square foot grid. Wherever the lines cross (every square foot of course) glue one of the carpet pad squares to the base board. Then, lay your foam boards on the carpet pads (keeping the foam boards 1/2" from the side edging), but do not fasten or glue the foam boards down.
What you now have is a FLOATING foam board layout; none of the noise generated by moving trains will be tranferred to the wood base. [As you know wood acts as a sound board, and styrofoam board also does to a certain extent. And the padding will even absorb some of the noise.]
As far as the foam shifting around, no problem. Not even when I would bump the layout. The friction between the carpet foam pads and styrofoam is pretty good, plus the following:
All the track wiring, layout lighting, and switch motor wires come up from under the layout, throught the wood, then through the styrofoam, so the styrofoam sheets are sort of "anchored" by default. From the bottom of the holes under the table the wires just hang underneath (they are NOT tight) but are then immediately run horozontally through the holes I drilled in the wood frame to feeder wires or the control board.
How do I run wires? Easy. I took a stiff wire coat hanger, cut off a piece about 6" long, and sharpened one end to a flat "chisel" point but not to a round point. I chuck it in a battery-operated drill and drill down through the styrofoam and through the table top (avoiding the framing inderneath), then push the wires down (not up) through the foam and wood paneling. (Go gently here; the styrofoam hole guides the wire through the wood hole.)
Note that my layout table top is two 4'x8" sections in an L shape, and made of 1"x2" framing with 2 1/8" thick pieces of paneling for the "table top." (It's very light, and believe it or not I've moved it twice. To keep the styrofoam from shifting when moving the layout you can shim the 1/2" space between the styrofoam boards and the layout edging with - ta da - 1/2" thick styrofoam pieces.) If your table top is thicker and/or your styrofoam board is thicker than mine you may need to buy an extra long 1/8" drill bit.
The distance from wood table top to the top of the styrofoam on my layout is 2.5".
I have been following and thought I would offer some thoughts.
First I like the simplicity of the plan. The "gap" in the benchwork will not really scenic very well anyway, even if you use a bridge. Just leave it unscenicked and it will tend to act as a scenic break between the logging area and the town buildings. Trying to scenic the gap will just serve to link the two areas, which cuts down on the perception that the two areas are geographically separate.
That little triangular piece jutting out on the right s/b part of the logging tracks (which are too short btw). What I would do, raise the logging branch so it crosses above the main line on the right side and terminates on the triangular piece. The main could be concealed in a tunnel. Risers could raise that branch line very easily. Tighten the radius of the bottom curve of the branch (or eliminate the switch there) and point the remaining track as one long straight line angling from the south side up towards and onto the triangle. Plenty of length then for a longer logging spur. Logging tracks tended to rise above the town in the real world anyway, so having the branch line rise up over the mainline w/b very realistic, not to mention giving the layout some more interest.
I would try to find a way to lengthen the spurs that form the small yard just a bit.
Operations experts might join in here to offer some thoughts, but for a starter layout I think your plan w/b a fun layout to build and run.
The best DCC system for a little layout like that is the NCE PowerCAB system that can be found for about $150. The power cab is just like a regular walkaround controller, but it is the entire DCC system. Very easy to install, very easy to expand. Other NCE throttles can also work on the same system. For instance, if you had a NCE PowerCAB system, I could bring my NCE PowerCab over and use it just like a second throttle on your system, or we both could take the PowerCabs to another layout using a NCE system and use them like regular throttles. It's easier to program locomotives on NCE than Digitrax, and the PowerCab system is still cheaper than the Digitrax DT402 throttles.
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I am still looking for a good price on a DCC system. Has anyone had any luck with buying used systems off ebay? I dont want to buy one and find out it doesn't work...
Your best bet for a DCC system is to try them all out and see which is best for you. I would also find out which one is the most popular in the area, and go with that one as you'll have a "built in" database of people who have the system and what tips they will have on the system itself. Of course the best place to find this out is at an LHS.
The one thing I noticed on your plan is that the paper mill is on a facing point siding, meaning that the cars will have to be pushed into the siding by the locomotive. They will also have to be removed by the locomotive pulling them out attached to the front of the locomotive. That's fine in and of itself, but how are you going to get the loco back in front of the car? You will need to unhook the car, run the loco all the way around the layout (in reverse) and then back it up to the car. You have a nice long stretch of track leading up to the mill, just after you exit the tunnel. If you put a pair of turnouts (one on each end ) of that stretch, you would have an area where you could park the car, unhook, back through the second turnout, run past the car on the parallel track, and then back up the car without having to run all the way around the layout. This is called a run around. You would have to straighten that section of track, but I think you would be much happier with the results.
I've been getting some things done on the layout but haven't really posted anything in a while. There are a few changes to the layout, I moved the yard to a different section and added some more benchwork. Not too much to report so far since I have been working a lot and doing a lot of stuff with the kids. I haven't really had time to do much on the layout lately.
