Island layouts

[nachoman]

I considered pulleys, movable sections, modules and other creative ways of getting the layout out of the way. Sure some of those ideas could have allowed me to make a larger layout, and possibly even swap my guest room for my layout room. But, I decided those creative approaches infringed upon what was most important to me - dramatic vertical scenery. The reality is, I don't have a huge hobby budget, and the closest I have ever come to a "finished" layout was a 3x6 that I worked on for 5 years. I would much rather have a small layout that I can reasonably and affordably make it look complete than have a larger layout that is mostly bare plywood.

What sense would there be in making the largest layout you can fit into a rental room, and only just get past the track laying stage, only to find you have to move and tear it all down? It sounds to me like you have some pretty creative ideas that won't be realized until you get into the scenery stage. Perhaps you are a fast worker and get to that point quickly. I wouldn't feel so much like I am "wasting space" if i knew that I had prioritized my goals and I made the decisions appropriate to accomplishing those goals. Remember, you can always add on to a layout.

Now, as for the your "conservative crowd" comment - I understand. Unfortunately, that theme is true for many hobbies or groups. My experience has been this forum in particular is one of the least conservative around, and that is why I participate here the most. Most serious model railroaders would tell you to start with a particular time and place, and to use that as your inspiration. Anything beyond that four dimensional origin becomes difficult for most people to conceptualize. Your list of inspiration sounds to me like you want to add in and emphasize a fifth dimension - a philosophy. While it may seem like people are less receptive - it is because they don't fully understand, not because they necessarily disagree. If John Allen told people what his plans were, they probably would have been confused and had to restrain themselves from calling him crazy. But, once they saw what he built, it suddenly all made sense and John Allen was considered brilliant and innovative.