8' x 8' ideas sought

[Campaman]

I already have a smaller plastic shed that is used for garden stuff and that has never had any condensation issues, so I can see the larger ones being the same, the actual walls and roof are twin wall plastic so its like being made from double glazed plastic already so I have no plans on insulating it, I just don't go out there if its really cold as my actual modelling bench is in our garden room on the back of the house.

 

I was starting to think that layout height would be better being up, my last one was at 4'6" (1.4m) so I do not have a problem with height.

 

I am still pondering the fiddle yard or not and double or single track issues.

 

I am not looking for long express trains, just something with a bit of interest and hopefully a continuous run.

[Crewlisle]

Look at Google for the track plan & photos of my 00 Gauge DCC layout 'Crewlisle' with three interconnected levels.  Size is 8'6 x 7'6.   Do what I did many years ago when starting my layout, I listed what I wanted from my train spotting days at Market Harborough in 1954 to 1960 with regular visits to Peterborough for the ECML & Rugby or Crewe for the WCML.  That is a 4 platform terminus to take 6 coach expresses, steam shed, diesel shed, turntable, goods yard, connection to a double track roundy-roundy WCML with through station & small goods yard, portable catenary & reversing loop.  If you have a terminus, trains leave so must have to come back! 

 

When planning the layout, I used Peco paper point templates where I wanted them & tried flexible track between them to see if it could be done.  If not, I repositioned the templates until I could get a fair curve between them.  Simple but practical.

 

Before anyone rushes to condemn my layout for a multitude of reasons like being unrealistic or too crowded, the original editor of Railway Modeller & author of many track plan books Cyril Freezer stopped at my layout at the Bristol Exhibition over 20 years ago & after discussing it with me for 20 minutes said, "You have a lot of railway in a small area but it does not look out of place".  That was praise indeed from the man himself!

 

To me, fiddle yards are wasted space; use cassettes instead.  I use 12 on a rack under the baseboard each in turn used as part of the reversing loop inside the operating well.  Each is 1370mm long & hold a Class 47 + 4 coaches or 12 short wheelbase wagons.  They are replenished from the stock box as required.  The longest trains I run are 6 coach expresses, Midland Pullman, HST & APT.  Two can be held on the reversing loop or in two separate 1800mm cassettes made from plastic cable conduit.  Using cassettes you can run as much stock as you want.  I run 52 locos from Stanier Pacifics, blue & green diesels, AC electrics & finishing with the APT together with 49 passenger/parcel coaches together with 112 wagons of various sizes.

 

I am the first to admit that it is not prototypical or the most detailed but was built to entertain.  At exhibitions my operating team run a minimum of 2 & sometimes as many as 4 trains/locos simultaneously.   There are plenty of photos on line & it will be appearing at the NEC in November for its 6th appearance there & last exhibition as the baseboards seem to get heavier for each exhibition!

Description of the layout appeared in Hornby Magazine HM84 in June 2014 & catenary (all portable & pantographs in contact with overhead wires) in Model Rail 192 in February 2014 or I can send them via PM including details of how to build the cassettes & other features of the layout.

 

Peter

Edited March 11, 2020 by Crewlisle
Minor text change.

[Campaman]

I have already looked at Crewlisle on google and yes you do have a lot of railway in that space.

 

And I actually live in Market Harborough, the station is nothing to what it used to be when it was also a junction for Rugby, Northampton and Peterborough via the Welland Valley.

 

And yes I would be very pleased to receive anything you can send me via PM on your build.

 

Thanks.

Edited March 11, 2020 by Campaman