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So you want to build your own railway do
you?
Before you do anything you need to PLAN your layout. Time spent
now can save time and money and frustration later.
First you have to decide where you will locate your new hobby,
traditionally its either, spare room, loft, basement, garage or shed
but it could equally be on a shelf or under your bed if you are pushed for
space. There are pros and cons of each location beyond the scope of this
basic introduction.
Once you have decided where then you need to think about how much
space you can allocate to your new hobby, this will determine largely the
type and size and scale of your layout. For a beginner you are most likely
to choose OO scale or N scale. OO is the most popular in the UK and
supported by many manufacturers like Hornby and Bachmann, the scale is 4mm
to the foot or simply 4mm (also 1:76 scale). N scale everything is half
that of OO in terms of length, width and height known as 2mm which is
typically 1:150 scale although there are some varients on this between
1:144 and 1:160 depending on who you speak to and what country the item is
from. You must bear in mind that if you plan a traditional oval type
layout you need a minimum width of 1 meter (just over 3ft) to get
around, the Hornby Trackmat for example requires 4ft by 6ft. If you can't
fit it then consider either N scale or an alternative type ie end to end
which usually is formed of a terminus and the trains depart into a tunnel
which leads to a hidden area known as a fiddle yard, this type of layout
is often placed along a wall on a shelf, often in an L shape. As an
alternative its worth considering running a layout around the outside of
the room, this need be no more than a few inches width in places
although you will need to build in a lift out bridge or hinged (to fold
down) section accross the doorway.
Next the BASEBOARD needs to be built, this will
be determined by your choice and budget and weight may also have to be
taken into account. My prefered method is fibreboard (insulation board) on
a softwood frame (1x2), however this is no good if your planning on
leaning or even walking on it (as very young children do). If at all
possible you should avoid large bits of wood of more than you can reach
across unless you have access to both sides. Hardboard and plywood can
also be used on a frame or if really pushed nailed to old doors. Chipboard
and MDF can be used however they are very heavy and a real pain to shift
if you need to move them and because of their weight need support to
reduce warping- also hard to get the track pins in! It goes without saying
you should not have your trains out on the carpet, even on a hardwood
floor is no good unless you choose track that can handle being taken up
and put down regularly such as Kato Unitrack, normal Hornby track (and
others) are not up to this and poor connections will quickly
result.
Whilst planning the baseboard you also need to plan the
TRACK DESIGN. At this point you can either go for a fixed
plan from a planbook (or the Hornby Track Mat) or adapt one of these
plans or design your own. Try to avoid rushing out and buying items at
random, for example items such as the Hornby turntable can be quite
difficult to fit into a plan on a limited space layout. If your going for
your own plan try to avoid a basic oval only or fig 8 layouts as they tend
to get boring after a while, also best to avoid whats known as a common
return loop (section of track that goes out and back on itself via a
loop)- these require a bit of experiance to wire up. You may also need to
start thinking of a time period for your layout so that you can plan
features such as platform lengths etc, for example you probably won't need
a turntable if your model is only diesels, likewise you probably won't
need watering points or ash pits etc, although some of these are left over
from the early days. Having said that its your layout if you want to run
Eurostars and the Flying Scotsman together thats fine its your railway, as
it happens such a fantasy often can be true for example filming of Harry
Potter brought a GWR steam loco to Kings Cross, alongside would have been
GNER Eurostar and 225s, whats more the steam loco was painted red,
something unheard of for the type used. Space may force your passenger
trains down to 3-6 coach lengths from a more realistic 9-12 coaches but
again its your layout don't be put off by the rivot counter type of
person, in any case many places did have short trains like in parts of
Scotland for example. Planing aids can be very helpful such as the PC
based Hornby Virtual Railway 2 or the mini plastic sections also from
Hornby, Peco also do sheets with real size pointwork-ideal for planning on
the board itself, best used in conjunction with a few random bits of
track. At this point I should point out that there are 2 common track
systems in the UK. Firstly Setrack from Hornby, Peco and Bachmann, these
all use basically the same geometry in OO scale and are compatable with
each other, very easy to use for the beginner, then there is Peco
Streamline and Flexible track from all makes, these use smaller radi on
the junctions and smoother curves, however the downside is they take more
skill to set up although well worth the extra effort. Setrack and flexi
track can be mixed with care. There are more specialist tracks also
available but again beyond the scope of this introducton. For those that
have chosen N scale there is a similar setup from Peco also worth
considering is Kato track (see Kato page). Unless you have pots of cash
then plan in moderation, especially if your mainly going to be a lone
operator. A meter of flexi track costs a couple of quid and great
distances can be laid cheaply but remember the points (junctions) are far
more expensive. If you have space but no budget then get one main circuit
working and add as you can. During planning try to avoid inclines as they
need much space to be effective- if you really must incorporate that
bridge you like so much then possibly consider an independant raised
circuit. During planning don't make any inaccessible areas- you will need
to clean track and retrive derailed stock so have lift off tunnels or open
back hills.
TRACK LAYING needs to be done with care otherwise
derailments will be a problem-it is always best to use only new track.
Before you lay one piece you need to have your plan and have chosen your
baseboard and location. As trains run they make quite a lot of noise for
this reason there are several methods to reduce the noise, however you may
like the noise but not that nice for others who listen in
neighbouring rooms. If you have chosen fibreboard as you base this itself
should be fine, for all other scenarios cork tiles can be laid either
across the whole board or just cut to where the track will be laid. There
are also other model rail specific underlays, the most common being foam,
this is specially shaped to lay the track in and made to look like a
poor quality ballast. Whist better than laying straight to plain board it
must be laid evenly and personally I'm not a fan, many problems can arise
if the track pins go in too far, it is also expensive and the special
point sections have been discontinued by Hornby, the plain replacements
are real naff. Point foam is available from Peco but needs modifying with
a sharp knife to make them fit Hornby points. It is usually best to paint
the board grey where track will be athough for best effect loose stone
ballast can be laid-this is time consuming but looks the business when
done properly with care. When it comes to pinning the track take care, if
your using setrack in N or OO its pre drilled and fairly easy. I usually
advise not pinning the points as they are expensive if you damage them,
also remember to allow for point motor fitting under the point -maybe
at a later stage if budget is an issue. The curve sections are 1st, 2nd
and 3rd radius, although obvious to those who have been modelling a while
it is not immediately obvious to the beginner, these should not be mixed
(unless you know what your doing) 1st is the shorter and innermost, for
many modern locos 2nd is the minimum you should use. If working in N then
be aware there are a lot of Radi curve for Kato brand- N1 and K1 sets give
a nice parrallel circuits. OO setrack runs a fixed distance apart for
parrallel running which allow the trains to pass on curves
without hitting. Streamline points (when used as a crossover
pair) use a much closer arrangement and great care needs to be
taken on the curves-it may be necessary to widen the gap as you travel the
bend using flexi track. Flexitrack from Hornby and Dapol uses pre drilled
pin holes whereas Peco you make the hole with their very fine pins
that push through the sleepers. The flexi track needs rail joiners fitted
separately, sometimes the track requires you to cut the chair (the bit of
platic holdind the rail to the sleeper) off on the first sleeper to fit
the rail joiner (fishplate). The tricky thing about flexi track is it
unflexes itself as you try to lay it and the rail on the inner side of the
curve extends as you bend it. There are tools (possibly essential) to
help, firstly the Xuron track cutter is a great tool I would not be
without- you can of course use a mini drill (goggles reccomended at
all times!) with a metal fine saw attachment. The next useful tool is
tracksetta, pre set curves placed between the rails to aid track laying-
personally I don't use them but they look very good. I use the Peco
Perminanent Way Gauge (or rather multiples of), this when used with loosly
placed drawing pins can also be good but great care must be taken. Dapol
and Peco seem to be less bendy and easier to lay than the Hornby but
Hornby have different idea of how to lay flexi track the prefered method
being down to you to a certain extent.
This guide is meant as a very basic starter tips, feel free to
contact me for advice. Scenary and other details make the layout and can
always be improved. There are many good books on planning and building
model railways but whilst your on the net the IRAIL link below has an even
more comprehensive guide in their new to railway modeling
section.
Included here are a few of my customers layouts as well as my
large Glasgow layout I'm curently building, if you go to exibitions or
read mags don't be ashamed with what you have achieved compared to
clubs some who have many many members working on different aspects at
once. In the main a layout is never finished-there is alway that little
extra detail that can be added. Its your layout-it doesn't matter what
others think of it as long as its fun for you.
Are
You Interested in joining a Local Rail Club in North London? Then click nlmclub.htm for
more details
RAILWAY LINKS
LAYOUTS
This section is
dedicated to customers and friends layouts. If you would like to have your
layout featured or you have a website to link to please let us know
(complete beginners welcome)
My Own
Layout (Under Construction)
My layout is very
loosely based on the area around Glasgow Central extending to Polmadie in
the east and Crossmyloof and Cardonald to the west. Obviously with such a
vast area modelers license is necessary. The time period is mid-late
seventies. The locos collected so far include classes2x 06, 5x08, 5x20,
2x25, 2x26, 27, 5x37, 3x40 , 3x47, 50, 81, 83, 3x86 & 87, 101, 117 (for
coversion to Scotish type) 2x303 to be built and an APT early
livery. All locos in blue or green livery most with TOPS code with a
sprinkling of pre TOPS.
To see more click mylayout.htm
Del's Industrial Layout
Del's layout is his
first attempt at railway modeling, the layout is loosely centered aground
the Birmingham area. The rolling stock is mainly late steam and early
diesel with a few notable exceptions. (Slug 6!). There are some excellent
detail features my favorite being a row of metcalfe terrace backs (now
replaced as below) with many extra details fitted. Mainly freight
trains run on this twin oval based layout giving rise to excellent
industrial lineside features such as a coal mine and lineside cranes. The
track as since been relayed and the second version of the layout is now
under construction making use of Scenix buildings. To see the pics click
on this link CLICK
HERE FOR THE LATEST
Thanks to Del for this preview picture of this constantly
developing layout.
Glovejo3's
Layout
Jo's Layout is crammed
to bursting with 80s locos, looks great
To see more pics click
(NOT YET WORKING)
Thanks to Jo for pictures of
his layout |
