05-11-2009, 10:17 AM
Givens
Room area - 19' x 19'
Area available for layout - 19' x 6', with an additional 2' x 2' along the N wall.
To the North and West are walls, 8' and 19' respectively, unobstructed. To the South is the Garage door, and only 6' into the room is available here, and for 17' or so of the East boundary. The East boundary is 19' from the garage door to the N wall (or 17' if an additional 2' is allowed on the N wall, that 2' by 2' bump. The rest of the garage will be relatively open most of the year, so consider the 6' width for the layout, not including an aisle along the E boundary.
Other obstructions - I have a 2' x 4' workbench. Bench height, 36". Back panel above the work surface, about 12" (let's call it 48" from the floor). In addition I have several modular metal shelving units, broken down into 4, 3' high units and 4, 4' high units OR 8 units similar to the workbench, 36" at the front, 48" at the back. These are 18" deep by 48" wide. Ideally they will live under the layout...there's really no other good place for them in the garage (or house, for that matter). They have been trusty and useful shelves and I'd really like to utilize them - but NOT for benchwork. Too much trouble leveling them all together on the sloping garage floor.
Ideally I do not want any duckunders, unless the plan is just too good to pass up and worth the trouble.
Ruling Rolling Stock - I have an N&W Class J 4-8-4 with 70' passenger cars, roughly an 8' train altogether that I'd like to run from time to time. It does not have to fit into any operating scheme, but that'd be nice if it did. Likewise I want to run my 6-axle trainmasters with 10-12 car hopper trains, and a couple other freights with a variety of rolling stock that may not ever serve any industry on the layout (or even fit the era), I'd just like to see them run. This is primarily a hang-up from my modular days, when I collected all sorts of equipment because I had a little disposable income from time to time and no home layout. Train length mattered little, along with era, locale, etc.
That leads to some druthers. Most of the time I'd like to run locals out of a small yard, up a branch line to serve a few little communities or industries along the way. Locale, Appalachia. Era, steam with perhaps an early diesel occasionally. Suffice it to say I'd rather have steam engine facilities than diesel fuel racks if the choice must be forced.
Trains don't need to be that long as grades can be steep. Small steam and short equipment would be the norm on the branch.
I'd like a provision for continuous running. Staging isn't a necessity. Minimize hidden track, please.
I'm sure I've left something out but it's late. A sketch of the space will follow.
Galen
Room area - 19' x 19'
Area available for layout - 19' x 6', with an additional 2' x 2' along the N wall.
To the North and West are walls, 8' and 19' respectively, unobstructed. To the South is the Garage door, and only 6' into the room is available here, and for 17' or so of the East boundary. The East boundary is 19' from the garage door to the N wall (or 17' if an additional 2' is allowed on the N wall, that 2' by 2' bump. The rest of the garage will be relatively open most of the year, so consider the 6' width for the layout, not including an aisle along the E boundary.
Other obstructions - I have a 2' x 4' workbench. Bench height, 36". Back panel above the work surface, about 12" (let's call it 48" from the floor). In addition I have several modular metal shelving units, broken down into 4, 3' high units and 4, 4' high units OR 8 units similar to the workbench, 36" at the front, 48" at the back. These are 18" deep by 48" wide. Ideally they will live under the layout...there's really no other good place for them in the garage (or house, for that matter). They have been trusty and useful shelves and I'd really like to utilize them - but NOT for benchwork. Too much trouble leveling them all together on the sloping garage floor.
Ideally I do not want any duckunders, unless the plan is just too good to pass up and worth the trouble.
Ruling Rolling Stock - I have an N&W Class J 4-8-4 with 70' passenger cars, roughly an 8' train altogether that I'd like to run from time to time. It does not have to fit into any operating scheme, but that'd be nice if it did. Likewise I want to run my 6-axle trainmasters with 10-12 car hopper trains, and a couple other freights with a variety of rolling stock that may not ever serve any industry on the layout (or even fit the era), I'd just like to see them run. This is primarily a hang-up from my modular days, when I collected all sorts of equipment because I had a little disposable income from time to time and no home layout. Train length mattered little, along with era, locale, etc.
That leads to some druthers. Most of the time I'd like to run locals out of a small yard, up a branch line to serve a few little communities or industries along the way. Locale, Appalachia. Era, steam with perhaps an early diesel occasionally. Suffice it to say I'd rather have steam engine facilities than diesel fuel racks if the choice must be forced.
Trains don't need to be that long as grades can be steep. Small steam and short equipment would be the norm on the branch.
I'd like a provision for continuous running. Staging isn't a necessity. Minimize hidden track, please.
I'm sure I've left something out but it's late. A sketch of the space will follow.
Galen
I may not be a rivet counter, but I sure do like rivets!