$100 O Gauge Layout???

OK, I know you can't build an entire layout for $100 unless you're crazy lucky or have super generous friends or relatives. But what about $100 a month for 12 months? I know $1200 is a lot of money for a lot of people (me included) but split up over 12 months maybe it's not so bad. What got me thinking about it was reading the comments about the new Lionel catalog on the O Gauge forum. Lots of comments on the new Lionel catalog specifically and the cost of the hobby in general, but the comments that most caught my attention fell into two categories. On one hand, some people love expensive trains (and they like flaunting the fact they can afford them). OTOH some (lots) of people have either lost their jobs or are working for less pay, fewer hours, etc.

I'm not into class warfare or envy so I'll leave the politics to others (just please not here) but I got to thinking... are toy trains affordable? If you can't afford the "latest and greatest" can you still get quality or do you have to settle for junk? I want to explore this...

So my goal for the next 8 months is to see if I can build a nice model toy railroad on $100 per month. I bought a really nice K-Line locomotive with 4 freight cars and a caboose for less than $100 last month, so I think it's probably doable. It will cost me about $100 to build a 4x8 table and probably $300 for track and transformer. That leaves me with $700 for buildings, scenery, and maybe a second train.

Think I can do it?

Anatomy of a Layout - St. Louis Central

There are probably as many criticisms of 4x8 layouts as there are self-proclaimed "experts" who've decided that since they don't like 4x8 layouts, no one should. Well, actually there aren't because most of the "experts" just repeat the same few criticisms over and over. I can imagine all of them sitting around a pub or coffee house congradulating each other on how "advanced" or "enlightened" they are:) So let's look at a well designed 4x8 track plan and see how it breaks the stereotypes...

4x8 layouts take up too much space. Probably the most common complaint about 4x8 layouts is that they take up too much space. It's kind of funny, because many of these "experts" have large, basement or garage filling layouts with peninsulas larger than 4x8 feet and yet they never complain about those space requirements... Nevertheless, a 4x8 does really take up 8x10 feet when you allow for access on 3 sides (this is offset by the fact that it's easily portable), which for some people is quite a bit of space for a stand-alone railroad. The St. Louis Central overcomes this "limitation" by providing spur tracks that exit the table in three locations. In other words, it would be very easy to make this a part of a larger model railroad as you aquire more skills, time, money, space, etc.

An oval of track is unrealistic. With some noteable exceptions, that's true. However, the St. Louis central does a great job of disuising the oval with a series of tall buildings down the cenet of the layout. This is even better than using a center divider (which I don't like) or hiding part of the track in tunnels. With this design, the train seems to move from one industrial area to another as you follow it around the table.

4x8 layouts lack operating potential. Well, I beg to differ. This track plan has plenty of industrial spurs for switching and two tracks that could be used to simulate interchanges with other railroads. The small passing siding can be used to conduct meets between trains or as a small staging yard. Sure, it's not modern "Class 1" operations, but to say operations are "limited" only shows a "limited" imagination:)

4x8 layouts drive beginners away from the hobby. The "logic" behind this statement seems to be that if a beginner starts out with a 4x8 layout, they'll eventually become frustrated when they reach the limits of the 4x8 platform and then quit the hobby. That's stupid. It's kind of like saying that cars with automatic transmissions and 4 cylinder engines cause people to quit driving when the get frustrated with the limitations of the car, so everyone should learn to drive with a manually shifted V8. But back to the layout... I count at least 20 buildings to be built, rebuilt, super detailed, etc. There's scenery and a road to build (and rebuild as your skills grow) and since this is an urban setting you could go nuts with lighting, automobiles, power and phone lines, pedestrians, etc. No shortage of challenges for quite some time.

Now, I'm not saying that 4x8 layouts are the best choice for everyone, or even the best choice for "most" people. They are a great choice for a lot of people though (hmmm... maybe that's why they're so popular) and this layout is a good example of why they are.

Related links:
St. Louis Central model railroad
Harlem Transfer Company (RR)

2x4 - The N Scale 4x8?

I've started messing around with N Scale lately and it seems that lots of guys like to scale down a 4x8 HO track plan to 2x4 for their N Scale layout. It sounds like a great idea - N Scale is about half the size of HO, so just make the table half size and go for it, right? The only problem is 2x4 is just a bit too cramped. The N Scale equivalent to 18" radius track isn't 9", it's about 9-3/4". That means the curves will push your track closer to the edges (relatively) than the "equivalent" 4x8 HO layout, and your straight sections will be shorter since the curves take up more space. Instead of scaling down to 2x4, you should scale down to 27" x 54" if you're using the Code 80 9" radius curved sections. An even better idea is to make the layout 30" x 60" and use their Code 55 track with 11.25" curves. The broader curves will look a lot better (they're the equivalent of 21" radius in HO scale), the Code 55 rail is a lot closer to scale than Code 80, and you'll still end up with a nice, compact layout. Of course the best idea would be to make the N Scale layout 4x8 and just adjust the track spacing...

2x4 N Scale Layout

A Brass Locomotive For My 4x8 Layout

One of the nice things about a 4x8 layout is you only need a few locomotives. With few exceptions, most 4x8 layouts don't have room for more than 1 or 2. Since you only need to buy a couple, you might as well spurge and get a nice brass locomotive or 2. I just picked up a really nice little AT&SF 2-6-2 Prairie that should be perfect for my layout. It's a brass locomotive from Key Imports that's been custom painted and weathered. The best thing is I got it for only $250 including shipping. That's not much more than a Bachmann Spectrum 4-4-0 RTR locomotive. If you've ever wanted a brass locomotive for your layout but thought they were too expensive, think again. If you keep your eyes open and stay patient, you can find some really good deals on eBay. This was the 3rd brass engine I tried to get for less than $200 (bidding on the other 2 went over $300 so I dropped out) and my patience paid off. This is really a nice little engine. (Follow this link for more thoughts on brass model trains)

S Scale in 4 x 8

I've kind of put modeling in HO scale on hold for awhile. There is just too much Southern Pacific equipment available in S Scale for me to resist, so I finally made the switch. I have a couple of Southern Pacific 2-8-2 Mikados from River Raisin and I just picked up a Southwind Models SP 4-4-2 from EBay for a really good price. The only problem is it's impossible to fit an S Scale layout onto a 4 x 8 foot table. Well, at least in standard gauge...
Narrow gauge is a different story. It turns out that HO scale track works out to 42" gauge in S Scale which is close enough for me to 3' gauge. So I've decided to build an Sn42 layout. My track plan will be based on the Gorre & Daphetid. The original Gorre & Daphetid was only 3'7" x 6'8" - I'll be scaling mine up by 12% to spread things out a little more. Even in HO Scale things wer a little crowded; even more so in S Scale.
For now, my locomotive roster will consist of a couple of diesel critters built from HO scale industrial switch engines. I hope to ad a 2-8-0 kitbashed from a Roundhouse Old Time Consolidation kit some time in the future. I have some Tichy Train HO scale ore cars I'm converting, and I'll run a few Southern Pacific box cars from P-B-L and an SP narrow gauge caboose from Wiseman Model Services. Stuctures will be a mix of Banta Modelworks kits and scratch built.
When I first made the switch to S Scale I thought I'd have to give up on 4 x 8 model railroads. A slight change in focus and a little thinking made me realize I can have a 4 x 8 model train layout in S Scale, just S Scale narrow gauge.

Finally, Room for a Layout

My Barracuda is in the shop getting a new engine and transmission, so I'm finally getting my garage cleaned out. When I'm done, I'll have room left over for a 4x8 table. Even better, my wife is going to be out of town for 2 weeks in November so I'll be able to build it without interruption. I'm going to use the table design from "HO Railroad That Grows" but I haven't decided on a track plan yet. For my first one I should probably keep it kind of simple.

The Beer Line

The January 2009 issue of Model Railroader has an article on building the Milwaukee Road Beer Line as a sectional layout. This got me thinking, for several reasons. First, I like the idea of a sectional layout that can be taken apart for easier storage or transportation. Second, the paint scheme of late 1940's - early 1950's locomotives is very attractive (to me at least). Third, while my railroading interests lie primarily in California's deserts and Central Valley, I've always wanted to model an urban scene. Finally, I love to drink beer, so the theme of this railroad is just about perfect for me. The only problem is the finished layout is 4 x 12, not 4 x 8.
But wait... maybe it could be reduced by 4' in length. This is worth looking into, but another alternative would be to use the track plan that MR published in More Railroads You Can Model, which is a 4 x 8 layout. The book is out of print, but should be easy to find on Amazon resellers or EBay. Whichever route you decide, the Beer Line would make an excellent subject for a 4 x 8 layout.
Just to add a sweetness, Walthers recently did a run of H10-44 switchers in Milwaukee Road's paint scheme. Walthers is sold out of them, but they're still easy to find at resellers. I got one in standard DC and it's gorgeous. They're also available with DCC and sound. I think DCC is unnecesary on a small layout running just 1 or 2 engines, though.

Cheers,
Ken