I've been a member of Heywood Model Railway Group for
over twenty years and have been involved with operating layouts on
the exhibition circuit for most of that time.
One of the most frequent comments passed by the viewing public is
about the lack of space they have for a layout.
At the railway club I have a reputation for building small layouts.
You can squeeze a quart into a pint pot if you plan it right.
Over the past six months I've been building a 7mm narrow gauge
layout. The overall size is 6ft by 2ft and that includes a fiddle
yard. The principles I've used in planning the layout can be applied
to any scale and any size of layout.
One of the advantages of building a small layout is that it will
more than likely be completed. The other advantage of a small layout
is the costs are greatly reduced.
The concept behind my new layout is a follows. The overall space I
had was 6ft by 2ft. the main scenic board was 4ft by 2ft with a two
foot fiddle yard based on a sector plate. It is an industrial narrow
gauge layout utilising small locos and short wheelbase stock. The
layout is to hold at least two locos and a dozen wagons. It is to
have an engine shed, works, road, footbridge and allotments.
Once I had the basic concept about a month was spent in sketching
various track plans. The full size layout was drawn out on lining
paper and stock placed on the sketches to ensure that the siding
lengths were correct. If they weren't they could easily be altered
using an eraser. Rather than find out during the construction stage.
The other advantage of planning a layout like this is that the
baseboard cross members / legs can be drawn in their final position
and avoid such things as point motors , electro magnetic uncouplers
etc. One tip I picked up many year's ago was to make cardboard mock
up's of buildings to be used to check the visual impact. If they are
wrong a new one can be made in a matter of minutes. It's amazing to
see what can be made using a cornflake box, felt tip pen and some
staples.
The time spent at the planning stage can save many hours of wasted
effort and cost. You'll have a blue print of what goes where,
cutting plan can be marked out on the blue print, wiring diagram ,
wiring runs etc locations of buildings, ground contours etc. I find
that by doing it this way I actually visualise what the layout will
look like. I even take it one step further by identifying what
scenic dioramas I'm going to have. This means I'm also able to have
a fairly good idea how much it's going to cost to build. |
|
Sketch plan of the layout
The type of loco that could be utilised on
the layout |
