4X8 layouts

[sailormatlac]

Never built a 4'x8' layout. Too big for our old house. I was happy for a long time with my 4' x 4' twice around. I rebuilt it a few times using the same sheet of plywood from 1989 to 2002. Just a siding, a bridge and a station, but I still have fond memories of it. Vegetation was made from cheap grass Life-Like mats, high grass with grass-imitation carpet (the one you see in front of home veranda) and street made of asphalted building paper.

From 1998 onward, I got a P2K CNR 0-8-0 and a GP18 in CPR, a few old time cars from Accurail and decided to upgrade to Code 83 and ballast it. It's a shame I don't have pictures of it. It came back to life for a short while about 4 years ago as a logging branchline, then disappeared to oblivion. It still have many scratchbuilt structures from this time including a wood truss bridge, a girder bridge still in use in the club layout and a large barn that was, for a time, part of the club layout too.

I can't count the hours I spent in the dark railfanning the train at eye-level, lighting provided with decolored christmas bulbs.

Matt