Robert Stokes

Wheels under the layout is perfectly possible but it will have to be built much more strongly and rigidly to take the necessary movement. If you are going to do this I suggest a design something like a dining table - i.e. a structure about 10' by 3' 6" underneath with the 12' by 8' board on top. I think that you will need 8 legs. Edit. I've just read your last paragraph. By all means use a published layout design if you find one that you like and it is about the right size. One important point. It is easy to take a design that is a bit too small and stretch it. However, trying to compress one which is too large can produce problems.

A hole 8' long in 12' of baseboard will still leave you 24" at each end which I think you will find is plenty. Unless you are particularly large then a 24" wide operating well should be enough and the length I suggest means that you can have two or even three people in there with room to spare (although probably not to move past one another). Personally I would try to avoid hinged sections (vertically or horizontally). Getting the tracks correctly aligned across a gap (and maintaining them that way) is not easy, especially for someone new to the hobby. One way to avoid it, is to make the layout high enough to duck under a permanently fixed structure. Your young daughter will have no problem with this but are you nimble enough? I realise that you are just starting out but do spend time thinking about the design before cutting any wood and starting to screw it together. You only need 18" of baseboard width to make a reasonable station and the other side of the loop could be narrower if it just has tracks.

Perhaps I should have said that 12' by 4' is too large for an N gauge starter layout but maybe njee20 would still disagree with that.

You wouldn't get more detail with N gauge - you get more detail with 00. I also think 00 gauge is better for a child to handle. To my eye N gauge is just too small, although others will disagree. In a way 12' by 4' is too big for N gauge. That gauge is usually employed by people who have much less space. If you could stretch the with to 4' 6" or 5' then you could have an operating well in the middle of the layout about 8' long and 18" or 24" wide. This has several advantages. Trains look better when seen from the inside of a continuous loop than if viewed from the outside. You could even get an 18" wide operating well in 4' of width. To make a track plan use an online tool called "Anyrail". It is easy to use and prevents mistakes than can occur with freehand designs. Good luck with the project whatever you decide.

As an extra to my previous post, the last layout in the first booklet I mentioned is called Upwole and happens to be 14' by 2'. It looks to be an interesting layout and I think it was featured in one of the magazines a long time ago. Robert

The Gauge O Guild has published two books that might help you. Small Layouts ISBN 0-9503217-3 and Small Layouts Vol. 2 ISBN 0-09503217-6 Robert

I also have storage loops in which trains (up to 6 coaches or 18 wagons) stop automatically and abruptly in isolated sections. I have carried out extensive trials of this arrangement, before building a station above them, and there has been no trouble. I think that a key factor preventing trouble is that the trains are travelling in a straight line before they stop. Robert

I assume that you want a layout with a full loop. With 00 gauge using set-track second radius curves (most people will advise against using first radius) it is just possible in 6ft by 3ft but the tracks along the middle of the 6ft side will be very close to the edge. 38" wide would a lot better and of course 48" wide would give you scope for sidings on the outside of the curve. Having said that, it will be difficult to make it look realistic in those sort of sizes, but it depends on how realistic you want it to be. N gauge will give you a much greater choice in the type of layout, but, if you haven't already done so, go and look at some N gauge stuff in a shop, or better still look at a few N gauge layouts. In my opinion N gauge is too small, but many modellers will disagree. Good luck with the project whatever you decide. Robert

I got some good ones called ID Backscenes. They can do taller ones than other suppliers - mine were 27 inches tall. Robert

I have bought some second-hand Hornby steam engines off Ebay and been pleased with them - but only modern ones. If the age is not given in the details you can always send a question to the seller asking about it. The higher the R number then the newer it will be. My advice is not to bother with anything old engines - Airfix, Lima, Triang or Hornby-Dublo. On the other hand some of the wagons and coaches from Airfix are surprisingly good. Robert

OK, I understand now. I had assumed that it would be a permanent fitting in a room or shed - for the sole reason that it's what I'm doing. Robert

I think that it would be much easier to have a 24" wide baseboard going all the way along the back, a 12" wide one up the left hand side joining it, and a triangular piece about 30" wide and 20" top to bottom on your diagram. The woodwork underneath would be much easier to make than for a curved baseboard. You could even have two smaller triangles if you wanted more space in the corner. Robert

You could do your own planning in 'Anyrail'. Just go to 'settings', specify units in inches, and length 72, width 36. then in 'track libraries' choose N gauge, followed by Peco (set-track or streamline according to your preference). Robert

I agree with the above comment. Try "Anyrail" which you can download. It's very easy to use. The free section allows you to use 50 pieces of track, but you only need to investigate the areas mentioned. Try to use curves of as large a radius as possible and definitely nothing less than about 18". There is another thing. I assume that at the top there are storage loops in an off-scenic area. Will you be satisfied with only one off each main line? Robert

12 tracks in 24" is definitely possible because I have 6 tracks set at 47mm centres making a total width of only 282mm which is a bit less than 12". You can only do this if the parts of the storage sidings where trains move past one another are perfectly straight. You don't need to worry about the curves at the end providing only one train will pass through them at a time. This means that the curves for up and down main lines need to be further apart if you intend to bring out a train on both lines at the same time. Robert

I have built storage loops in this way, although my up and down main lines only split into three loops each. I have express trains running into them at speed with no problems. You do need to ensure that the points are definitely fixed down flat and that the curves before and after them are not too sharp. Robert

Thank you for the comment. The gradient on the curved ends is about 1 in 100 and on the straight parts is about 1 in 75. I would be surprised if a steam engine can't cope with that. It's a good idea about testing first (although I don't know what I would do if there is a problem). I suppose that I could temporarily lay about 4m up one of the straights and see whether a train can get up it. Robert

I for got to include pictures of the inclines. I suppose that one rising from left to right close to another rising from right to left is a bit odd but it had to be to give me the length of scenic run that I wanted.

Well I've finally got around to taking pictures of progress so far on building the layout. First the storage sidings. You will see that there are three up loops and three down loops. Each loop holds two complete trains. You may also see that there are two vacancies for goods trains that I need to acquire. I have also made the lower semi-circles and the inclines to the upper level. The next stage is the upper semi-circles which lead into the station. Robert

Thank you for the replies. They have been helpful. I'm not necessarily going to stick rigidly to traffic on the S&C but by and large I will. Robert

The layout I am building has storage loops which can hold 12 complete trains. Four of these will be up and down express passenger and local stopping passenger trains. There is room for eight goods trains. I already have - (1) train of box vans, (2) coal train, (3) train of china clay wagons, (4) train of tarmac tanks, (5) cattle van train, 6) train of cement wagons. This gives a variety of wagon types to watch as the trains go by. This leaves two vacancies. What other trains would be suitable for a layout set in the late 1950s (and possibly early 1960s) and depicting a station on the Settle and Carlisle line? I have wondered about a pick-up goods, but what would it typically include? I have also thought bout a train of milk tanks. Any other ideas? Thank you for any help. Robert

Three young red-indian women went to the tribe's witch doctor. They said, "Oh wise one, we have all been married for a year but there is no sign of a baby on the way. What should we do?" He said to the first one, "Get your husband to kill a mountain lion and put its skin on the floor of your tepee. Within a year you will have a baby" To the second he said, "Get your husband to kill a bison and put its skin on the floor of your tepee. Within a year you will have a baby." To the third he said, "Get your husband to kill a hippopotamus and put its skin on the floor of your tepee. Within a year you will have a baby." (All right there are no hippos in America but go with it.) A year later all three returned to the witch doctor. The first showed him a baby boy, the send a baby girl, and the third showed him twins, a boy and a girl. The third woman then says to him, "Oh wise one, we are all grateful for what has happened but why have I got twins. He replied, "Ah, big chief Pythagoras, him say ,'the squaw on the hyppapotamuse is the sum of the squaws on the other two hides.' "

Hello. I am new to this forum having registered earlier today. I have had a lifelong interest in model railways. I am currently building a layout in a shed next to our bungalow. It is in a space on the north side of it which hardly ever gets the sun (only late evenings in mid-summer) so is not much use for garden. The shed is 24 feet long by 6 feet wide but a portion at one end is partitioned off for my wife's gardening stuff. With the shed insulated and lined this leaves me a space about 5.7m by 1.7m for the railway. That's obviously a good length but I'm a bit restricted for width. I very nearly finished a plain roundy-roundy layout but eventually decided that there were several things about it that I didn't like so I took it all apart and started again. The plan for the new layout is a double roundy-roundy which will give a much longer run on the scenic part even though it keeps to my 24" minimum radius. I recently finished the storage loops which will be at a lower level with a station above. I am now making the inclines which will lead to the station. Is it possible to post photographs directly from my laptop onto this forum? If so then I will show you what I have done so far. Robert

I would like to buy either 3 x Bachmann porthole crimson and cream TK coaches product number 390-450 + 1 x FK product number 39-455 or 2 x TK product number 39-450 + 2 x CK product number 39-465. I am willing to pay a good price plus postage for coaches in excellent condition in their original boxes, particularly if someone can supply two or more of them. However, I would still be interested in unboxed ones providing they were sent well packed to prevent damage in the post. If you can let me have any of the above please email me robertstokes4@googlemail.com Thank you, Robert