Jump to content
 

First idea in n gauge


Recommended Posts

Hi,

having browsed on here for a while I am taking my first tentative step into a layout. Lack of space has made me think of an inglenook, as that will teach me how to lay track, wire the layout for dcc and how to shunt. 

I have probably overkilled the baseboard as it is 5mm ply on 2x1 battens. 

 

7A519EE4-1BC9-4687-A93C-0E3B2BDD0E2C.jpeg

A55A1FC8-6D83-4DA9-AD62-C1AB144CFD18.jpeg

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

Due to the file size restrictions I couldn’t post this one which is a pinned down early track plan. A main line running right to left has a branch line joining (the one with my castle class on it for scale) and sidings which will work as an inglenook. Track will, of course, be slightly curved and cut to the correct lengths when I lay it properly!

My scenic idea is to have  a road running over a bridge at either end with an embankment at the front and a wall at the back, behind which will be a grassy bank leading up to some terraces. Around the sidings will be the usual buildings of course. 

What do people think of my basic idea?

6CFD14D0-6B03-408B-BAB6-BD2A32007F3D.jpeg

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Imustbemadatmyage,

I see you are in West Yorks... so am I. Perhaps you would like to come and see my N layout, if there's a mistake to be made I've probably made it.... you can check my model  by clicking this link

Have you a plan or are you 'winging it?' I suggest you start with a plan and to help avoid a toy train set image just ask this simple question, 'Ify model were real and it rained where would the water go?' If you have a flat baseboard and you lay the track directly upon it, the answer to the question must be 'nowhere' and your model would immediately flood. Lifting the track from the base by just 10mm will take away the table top look, you can build scenery and ground level up to track level where appropriate but you can also allow the track to be on a shallow embankment and the realism will increase straight away...

Regards

Duncan

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

Hi Duncan,

many thanks for replying. Yes, it certainly is a good idea to have drainage on the layout, and I was thinking that the track would effectively be in a cutting, although one side would be a retaining wall and the other an embankment. Water would certainly drain onto the operating part of the layout! 

I hadn’t got round to thinking about any of the details around track height and ballasting as yet - it’s taken me 5 months to consider starting this and it is really just a way of learning skills. I am certainly not modelling any sort of real location. There’s too much chance of someone saying the signals are wrong or that my engine never came north of Watford! Better for me to make mistakes on a small imaginary layout and then, if I can do it well enough, I will tackle a “proper “ layout where things are correct. 

Many thanks for your kind offer of visiting your layout. I would love to see it. Let me have some contact details please 

 

Regards,

 

John

Link to post
Share on other sites

Looks like a great plan. Inglenooks have so much operational potential, i built on a couple years ago and never got bored of operating it. Personally I’ve never laid anything beneath my track and I’ve never had any problems with baseboards warping as long as they’re braced correctly, which looking at yours seems to be the case. I think with starting a first layout it’s key not to over complicate anything and take your time with it. 

  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, hartleymartin said:

Both, but it is generally a bad idea to lay track directly to wood. For one thing the ballasting will put a lot of moisture into the board and will eventually cause warping.

As this is a try out for learning (an apprentice piece of you like) I am not too bothered about longevity. I take your point about sound deadening though and also Duncan's point about drainage. 10mm of raise does, however, seem a lot. That's 4ft 8 inches in scale which, to my memory, is a little high. 

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

Proposed layout with Peco code 55 flex track and Unifrog points. The right hand side of the layout is a 5:3:3 suitable for an inglenook. The lower lines will provide space for sheds, coaling etc. 

I couldn’t resist these coal wagons as they are all from collieries near me. Old Roundwood was about a mile away. 

 

786D6DF7-5527-4724-AACA-83BC1416096E.jpeg

CCB038B4-7F14-402B-A2AA-4E4674E3D7E0.jpeg

  • Like 4
Link to post
Share on other sites

I find this type of visual planning really useful. Worth mocking up landscapes and buildings with cereal packets, tape and basically anything else lying around you can use to get the rough shape and size of what you intend to build. Helps a lot when thinking about how you look at the layout and what perspectives you naturally take. 

  • Agree 3
  • Thanks 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

I have taken my first steps to building this layout now! My progress was delayed because SWMBO has had a new knee and has needed a lot of TLC. 

I transferred my track plan to lining paper, leaving a generous margin for slight adjustment and then cut it out. Again leaving a generous margin, I transferred it to a sheet of 2.5mm cork sheet and cut that out also. 

As the cork sheet was tightly rolled, I am now going to leave it a few days to flatten out before fixing it to the baseboard. 

FCE668D1-D2B2-482A-BC47-269EDB09FB70.jpeg

E93903BC-4BC3-4460-88E2-08CA00D0BE07.jpeg

F5D6B427-404B-4C62-82EE-AD5C897A05D4.jpeg

  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

After a while where I was helping my wife after her knee replacement, I have restarted work. I have got the cork down and the track laid. The droppers are in place and terminated in small choc blocks. I still have the main bus to install, but it’s too hot to do anything more today!

 

3C4B6159-E39B-4B95-B50A-05B839B85092.jpeg

84467463-A1FA-4985-8F22-E75E1AF48B8A.jpeg

  • Like 3
Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...