Bonus Room Shelf Layout

[ocalicreek]

Hello All!

A new year brings new changes. Here's the latest:

We've got this bonus room. It's really an upstairs den that currently gathers clutter; a shared space for the family. Right now the computer cabinet lives there along with a tv on its stand, a love seat, and assorted pillows, side tables, etc.

In the midst of an unseasonably warm western washington winter, having covertly constructed my elder son's first train layout (see Andrew's first layout thread in this forum) in our cold garage, I began re-evaluating that space. It's cold, despite a space heater, and dusty & buggy. By buggy, I mean spiders. I hate spiders.

And as spring approaches already the kids are wanting to pull out the bikes & wagons & rolling toys of all sorts. My wife suggested finding a way to bring the trains inside, either in the spare/guest bedroom or the bonus room. After thinking over the options I decided on a shelf layout for the bonus room.

This layout will include the 14"x5' timesaver layout as the end of a branch line. Trains will run clockwise from staging, briefly through some mountainous countryside and past/beneath a mine spur, to reach the town of Murdock's Landing. Engines are serviced & turned for the return trip as a shifter goes about the work of sorting cars on the sidings (timesaver).

Here are pictures of the room, in sequence as described above:

[albumimg]1987[/albumimg]

[albumimg]1986[/albumimg]

[albumimg]1985[/albumimg]

Staging will be a narrow shelf for two tracks situated above the loveseat. The wall of pictures in the light wood frames will be shelves for rolling stock & equipment. The mine/mountainous terrain will be in the corner above the area where the plants are now. The town will be in the corner above the computer cabinet (notice the content on the screen ) and the timesaver on the wall above the tv.

Galen

[ocalicreek]

I've set the base benchwork height at 50", the minimum to clear the computer cabinet by an inch. Based on the timesaver, that puts railhead at about 55-1/2" or so.

Dilemma and Question: I don't want to use adjustable tracks and brackets to support the layout. I have used them with great success to support the layout & shelving for magazines at our previous house, but that was in the garage. Here inside I want to use something a little nicer looking, a little less 'storage closet' and a little more 'refined'.

I've been looking at floating shelves online, but these are often no deeper than 12-15". I'm thinking 18" for the timesaver/town segement, (it's currently 14", but I want to put some space between it and the backdrop...it is supposed to be a spit or peninsula into a river, afterall) and 24" for the town/mine section. Staging shelf will be 6" or so.

Ideas? Anyone built a floating shelf before? Keep in mind I want access to wiring. The only place this will be limited is above the computer cabinet, but it's on sliders.

Any help you can offer will be appreciated. Thanks.

Galen

[Sumpter250]

The idea of the floating shelf, was to reduce as much as possible, the appearance of the shelf support. I have a feeling that something as deep as 18" will be too much for the support to hold, and that's assuming that all the work on the layout will be done on a solid work bench, and there won't be any heavy structure too far from the wall.
In most cases the actual shelf is particle board, which can be purchased in various depths. One floating shelf support could be refitted with a deeper shelf, to test the strength/stability of the final shelf size.
The farther the shelf extends from the wall, the greater the leverage force exerted on the support......it's a "mechanical advantage-with a long enough lever I could move the world" thing, combined with our old friend "gravity".
You may need some form of support running from the outer edge of the deeper shelves, to a distance equal to or greater than the depth of the shelf on the wall below. Or, finding an adjustable track system that looks "more decorative". Or, suspending the outer edge of the shelf, from the ceiling.

I am, of course, assuming that a row of scantily clad statues with their arms raised to the proper height to hold the shelves where you want them, is.........uhmmm...."out of the question?"

[tetters]

That's a nice little space you have there. What about some shelves or cabinetry underneath the layout to support the structure? Something that looks nice, but gives you some additional storage options as well.

[ocalicreek]

The idea of the floating shelf, was to reduce as much as possible, the appearance of the shelf support. I have a feeling that something as deep as 18" will be too much for the support to hold, and that's assuming that all the work on the layout will be done on a solid work bench, and there won't be any heavy structure too far from the wall.
In most cases the actual shelf is particle board, which can be purchased in various depths. One floating shelf support could be refitted with a deeper shelf, to test the strength/stability of the final shelf size.
The farther the shelf extends from the wall, the greater the leverage force exerted on the support......it's a "mechanical advantage-with a long enough lever I could move the world" thing, combined with our old friend "gravity".
You may need some form of support running from the outer edge of the deeper shelves, to a distance equal to or greater than the depth of the shelf on the wall below. Or, finding an adjustable track system that looks "more decorative". Or, suspending the outer edge of the shelf, from the ceiling.

I am, of course, assuming that a row of scantily clad statues with their arms raised to the proper height to hold the shelves where you want them, is.........uhmmm...."out of the question?"

If you've ever seen the art deco style statues at Hoover Dam, then you may be on to something... 8-) :o

But seriously, thanks for the reply. The benchwork will be, most likely, basic 1x3 butt-joint grid (not L girder). You are spot-on with the floating shelf concept. The layout would appear to just extend from the wall. One section would extend out to 24", so conventional diy floating shelf techniques are out of play. But I may be able to find a more decorative, nicer-looking, (e.g. family approved) track system or something similar. It could be as simple as painting whatever supports to match the current wall color.

Thanks for the good thoughts.

Galen

[ocalicreek]

That's a nice little space you have there. What about some shelves or cabinetry underneath the layout to support the structure? Something that looks nice, but gives you some additional storage options as well.

Thanks. On the wall with the TV, that may be a good solution. That leaves the wall beneath the high window, where the computer cabinet is currently. It can be shifted somewhat (or replaced by some good looking Ikea furniture). The best position for a couch is under the staging 'yard', since it'll only be 6"-8" deep.

If we replace the current computer cabinet with some nice corner desk & bookshelf furniture to run beneath the scenicked portion of the layout (perhaps Ikea?) then maybe it could even serve as layout base. But even then I'd rather find some way to keep the layout anchored to the wall, not furniture.

Galen

[MasonJar]

If you are able to get into the wall to strengthen the joint, then you *may* be able to get away with the floating shelf approach. But anything face mounted, even into the studs, on top of the drywall will likely not be strong enough. However, you can also reduce the weight of the benchwork by using (for example) steel studs and foam decking. While this would not be strong enough to support a lot of weight, at 50"+ off the floor, I am assuming that no one is going to have to walk on it.

Andrew

[Russ Bellinis]

Galen, I'm going to use Ikea Ivar unfinished pine bookshelves to support my LAJ switching layout. The Ivar supports are available in 48 inch heights with adjustable shelves allowing you to lower the shelves to whatever level is convenient for clearance for wiring or other under layout "stuff." If you want to support your layout with the wall rather than the furniture, you could install a 1 x 4 furring strip along the wall at the layout height and screw the layout to the wall. Just let it sit on the shelf units by gravity and then run the screws into the furring strips. The furniture keeps the layout from sagging or putting too much load on the wall mounts, but the screws into the furring strips keep the layout located positively so it can't shift and fall off the shelves.

[ocalicreek]

Andrew - While I won't be up walking around on the layout, we have two curious cats that will probably make an attempt. They are just sneaky enough to do it after we're all in bed, too, so it'd be hard to catch them in the act (and squirt them with a spray bottle of water!). So it should, sadly, be strong enough, whatever I do, to support the weight of two medium sized cats.

Russ - glad you chimed in. The shelving idea is a good one, and part of my rationale for attaching to the wall is to keep it from sliding off or coming out of line (at joints, etc.) when bumping into it. Hopefully that won't happen but you just have to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

Track plans are forthcoming in a few days at least. Two sections are pretty well established in my head...the other is still confounding me. I'll be at a clergy retreat Tuesday and Wednesday so perhaps in a few moments of free time I can clear my head and sketch something viable.

Anyone ever see a turntable on a pier? Just wondering if there's a prototype for such a thing.

Galen

[Gary S]

I'm really liking this, and am looking forward to the build. I don't have any suggestions for the supports other than fabricating some nice brackets out of oak with some fancy trimwork routed in it or such.

How tall is the fascia going to be? If you used that "double track" shelf rail and brackets, I think you could get by with as little as a 6" tall rail to support a 24" shelf bracket, as long as the rail was on a stud.

[doctorwayne]

Geez, Galen, I think that the cats are an even bigger problem than how to support the layout. I'd offer my solution to both problems, but since it involves Sonotubes, concrete, and a couple of furry things, you'd probably not be too interested.

Wayne

[Russ Bellinis]

Galen, I've never heard of a turn table on a pier. In most cases, the question was whether the pier would be strong enough to support a locomotive, let alon a locomotive and turntable, plus I suspect that the pit would be problematic. Even a turn table with a deck like Atlas, still needs a pit underneath for the turning mechanism. It probably has no prototype, but a turntable on the lead to the pier would probably be more practical. How big do you need the turntable to be? If you are talking about something no bigger than an Atlas turntable, a wye with one leg short enough to just fit the locomotive and tender, if steam, would probably suffice. Of course, a pier might be a great excuse to have a docksider.

[Triplex]

How about this one?

<!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://www.girr.org/vacation_diaries/mexico_panama_2006/turntable.jpg">http://www.girr.org/vacation_diaries/me ... ntable.jpg</a><!-- m -->

One of the weirdest things I've ever seen.

[tetters]

How about this one?
One of the weirdest things I've ever seen.

Agreed. How in the bejeebus does that work?!?

[nolatron]

Dilemma and Question: I don't want to use adjustable tracks and brackets to support the layout. I have used them with great success to support the layout & shelving for magazines at our previous house, but that was in the garage. Here inside I want to use something a little nicer looking, a little less 'storage closet' and a little more 'refined'

What if you did like I did and use the the shelf standards to support a backdrop. You don't the see the brackets on the wall at all and the support brackets can be hidden by the fascia. You end up with a shadow looking box "floating" along the wall.