just getting started...

[jcdurso]

i finally have the room i need to get started. this will be a brand new project as i have no experience. what are some of the best books i can read for a step by step. i want to start with something fairly simple for a layout thinking 4X8 to 6X10 and leave myself open to expand. thanks

 

[D&J RailRoad]

You might consider an around the room layout instead of a table in the middle. It would be more stable if you build it into the wall, longer running room, better separation between industries and broader curves.

 

[TwrOpr 87]

You might consider an around the room layout instead of a table in the middle. It would be more stable if you build it into the wall, longer running room, better separation between industries and broader curves.

Hit the nail on the head^^^

As far as books go, I'm not really sure what would help. If you can find a local hobby shop, ask around there. Usually guys there will have lots of experience and knowledge to share that's free. I'm not saying become best friends with everyone but ask around. Books only tell you so much where as a person will better tell you pros and cons. I've got a book on building shelf layouts that I believe is by kalmbach publishing. They've got good books for most anything having to do with model railroading.


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- Sent from my phone

 

[kdeboy]

Actually there is nothing wrong with 4x8 layouts. Even in HO you can fit in a decent amount of scenery and track, and they give you something a lot of shelf layouts don't - continuous running. Start with something simple like the Alkali Central to get experience. You can always incorporate it into a larger layout as a peninsula if you decide to expand later. I do think 4x8 is about the upper limit I'd consider for a table layout though. Anything wider and the reach to the center is too long.

Cheers,
Ken

 

[steinjr]

Actually there is nothing wrong with 4x8 layouts. Even in HO you can fit in a decent amount of scenery and track, and they give you something a lot of shelf layouts don't - continuous running. Start with something simple like the Alkali Central to get experience. You can always incorporate it into a larger layout as a peninsula if you decide to expand later. I do think 4x8 is about the upper limit I'd consider for a table layout though. Anything wider and the reach to the center is too long.

I respectfully would suggest that there is indeed something "wrong" (or more correctly - something suboptimal) with 4x8 foot layouts.

if one wants to start with a continuous run layout on a table, a far better (in my opinion) option than a 4x8 foot H0 scale layout would be an N scale layout on a 30" x 80" hollow core door, for these reasons:

1) 30" x 80" in N scale is the equivalent of 4 1/2 x 12 feet in H0 scale - which means that you can fit more railroading and more scenery into less space, using less sharp curves and having more flexibility.

Any track plan that fits in 4 x 8, 4 x 10 or 4 x 12 feet in H0 scale can be recreated in 30" x 80" in N scale - except you probably can use wider curves - allowing you to run larger engines and longer cars.

2) You can reach across 30" from one side (especially if you stand on something), but not 48".

So an N scale HCD layout can be up against walls on three sides, and only need a 2 foot aisle along one side. Allowing you a far better layout to aisle ratio - the N scale layout takes up 55% of the total floor space, for an H0 scale 4x8 60% of your space need is for aisles, and only 40% is layout.

3) Turning a 4x8 sheet of 1/2" or 3/4" plywood into a table is quite a bit more complex than just putting supports (possibly including shelf supports) under a blank hollow core door, which has built in structural stability.

If one absolutely want H0 scale continuous run loops on a table, and the space one has available for model railroading is the kind of spot best suited for a 4x8 - i.e an area in the middle of a room where a ping-pong table previously resided, then a 5 x 9 foot layout would be a better idea.

If all one has is a small 8 x 10 foot bedroom, it would often be a smarter idea to do an around the walls type of layout - a 4 x 8 in a room that size essentially means that nothing else can be fitted into that room.

This is what I have put (in H0 scale) into a room far too small for a 4x8 foot layout:

Over the layout there is quite a bit of accessible storage, under the layout is more accessible storage and a work desk.

Mind you - I have nothing at all against the concept of continuous run loops of track on a table.

And I am not saying that you cannot make a great looking and interesting to switch 4x8 foot layout. Or that people should never make a 4x8.

But I think that claiming that "there is nothing wrong" with the H0 scale loop on 4x8 foot table format is a statement that is misleading - there are several well known challenges with that format.

For a general discussion of 4x8s vs other footprints, see Byron Henderson's illustrated discussion here: http://www.layoutvision.com/id28.html

For a step-by-step book on how to create a nice N scale layout (if N scale is an option the thread starter would like to explore), I would recommend Marty McGuirk's "N scale railroading: Getting started in the Hobby"

Smile,
Stein