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Practice Plank RR in MR


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In the August 2020 issue of Model Railroader magazine, Lance Mindheim created an article about knowing the basic skills in building a layout by using a single piece of lumber. Mindheim created a one-turnout layout called the Practice Plank RR in HO scale. The layout measures only 72 inches(182.88 centimeters) in length and 8 inches(20.32 centimeters) in width. The area of the Practice Plank RR is only 4 square feet/576 square inches(3,716.1216 square centimeters) and it is a true, micro layout by the late Carl Arendt standards. 

 

Wendell

Idaho, USA

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I don't get MR any more but I like the sound of it. I have in mind to do something similar but even smaller, on a balsa base, with a built-in fiddle yard, just to get the remains of my HO stock up and running again. Only I'm thinking of a whopping two turnouts.

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Dear RMWebbers and "Practise Plankers",

 

If you can't readily access the MR issue in question, you can get a sneak-peak of the first 2-pages
(inc trackplan, in case it's needed) from here

 

http://www.qgdigitalpublishing.com/publication/?i=664029&p=6
(don't freak out if it loads with a "End of Preview" banner-bar accross the page,
just click the "X" to the LEFT of th text "End of Preview", and keep rolling...
...for the astute, the icon at top right is interesting too....)

 

If I catch a hardcopy at my local newsagent, I'll be sure to pick one up for the Library...

 

Happy Modelling,
Aim to Improve,
Prof Klyzlr

 

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Lance has put forward the "one turnout layout" idea before, but on a more generous scale lengthwise, to switch trains of 6 boxcars or so.

This is the first time I've seen it shown as a "short format". 

A similar sort of idea was also published in the old 'Model Trains International' magazine by Chris Ellis, who called it a 'Tuning Fork'.

 

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By looking at the track plan in the MR magazine, it appears that you can fit only three 50-foot boxcars on the mainline track and a locomotive plus three 50-foot boxcars on the switching(shunting) lead. Lance Mindheim only made two unloading/loading spots for boxcars on the industry track. A 50-foot boxcar in HO scale is about 8 inches long. 

 

On 28/07/2020 at 07:00, F-UnitMad said:

Lance has put forward the "one turnout layout" idea before, but on a more generous scale lengthwise, to switch trains of 6 boxcars or so.

 

If I was building this type of layout, I would make the longer spur track the "industry" track with a 4-boxcar capacity. The shorter spur track would be my "sorting" track with a 3-boxcar capacity. My switching lead would be long enough for a locomotive plus six boxcars to fit on.

 

Wendell

Idaho, USA

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I have already learnt a little from my first 'practice plank' ( if using a hollow door or shelf don't put the electrics underneath and don't use double sided foam to hold foamboard in place)  pva next time. I intend to have a practice plank in HO and 0. 

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On 04/08/2020 at 13:07, DanielB said:

Practice planks are great for if you feel the urge to build something but don't have either the time,money or space for something huge. :)

There personally fixed it for me... 

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  • 2 years later...

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