A New Model Railroad

I recently began construction on a new model railroad.  I will post a track plan when I start laying track, today I will talk about the benchwork and my plans for this layout.

It is a small switching layout loosely based on the Hillsboro Branch in southern New Hampshire.  The real line is owned by Pan Am Railways, but on my layout it will be operated by a semi-fictional railroad, the Boston, Concord, and Montreal.  I will go into a more detailed description of the story behind BC&M later, and include a map of where the branch line is.

I tried a few new techniques on this model railroad that I have not tried before.  First, I used plywood instead of dimensional lumber.  I found that using 3/4 inch plywood and cutting it into the various dimensions I needed would cut my lumber cost in half.  I had just enough lumber from one sheet of plywood to build what I have built, however, I still have a small staging yard to build, and I will just buy dimensional lumber for that rather than get a whole new sheet of plywood only to use a small piece.  I found that I could not use screws to hold the plywood together, as the screws would split the plywood.  I ended up using finishing nails and wood glue to hold all the boards together.

I built most of the benchwork out of 4 inch boards, however, along the fascia, I did not want to cut holes through plywood to mount toggle switches and other fascia mounted controls.  I instead used two, 2 inch boards, spaced two inches apart, and I will mount fascia controls in a recessed pocket in the 2 inch space.  This meant a couple of changes.  Since the 2 inch boards aren't very sturdy, I put a 4 inch board 6 inches behind them to be the main support at that side of the benchwork.  It also made the whole front of the structure 6 inches wide, and I had to use 6 inch boards at either end of the fascia side to support the 2 inch boards.  If you are confused now, it will make sense when you see the photos.  The downside to this method, which I did not foresee, was that it is difficult to squeeze tools into the 6 inch space between the fascia and the support beam, but I managed to make do.

The main part of the layout is 8 feet by 6 feet, and it is L shaped.  I say the main part, because there are two extensions.  One extends behind the door to the room, giving me more space for a passing siding while not eating any otherwise usable room space.  The other extension, which I have not built yet, will be a 5 foot 3 track staging yard.  I do not have space to make it longer than that, so it will be a stub end fiddle yard.  The door extension is 6 inches wide, and the staging yard will be 8 inches wide.  The rest of the benchwork is 18 inches wide.

As you can see in the photos, there is no surface to the benchwork yet, and I have started wiring.  I will explain the details of the wiring in a later post, when it is finished.  I wanted to get as much wiring done before putting down a plywood surface, to minimize crawling underneath the layout as much as possible.  Of course, some wiring, like track feeders, will have to wait, but I am installing all bus wires and toggle switches while I have access to them from above.

Track on this layout will most likely be handlaid.  I have never handlaid track before, but I have always wanted to give it a try.  This is a small enough layout that I feel comfortable trying it out.  However, if I choose not to handlay the track, I will probably splurge and use all Peco track.

All turnouts will be powered with Tortoise slow-moving switch machines.  While this sounds like overkill for a branch line that has no signalling and all hand throw turnouts, I have been to many operating sessions where people damage hand throws and other parts of the layout when reaching across the layout.  I want to reduce the reaching across the layout as much as possible, and all turnouts will be powered to prevent this.  They will all have dummy ground throws so they look right, but the actual turnout controls will be on the fascia.

Well, without any further ado, here are some photos of the layout:

A general view of the layout, from the staging yard end (staging yard not built yet).

Another general view of the layout, seen from the door to the room.

The extension behind the door to allow a longer passing siding.

The main power outlets for the layout, where the DCC system and accessory power will all plug in.

These photos, along with all future photos of the layout, can be seen in the photo album on our Facebook page.  If you haven't liked us on Facebook yet, you are missing out!  We have all kinds of photos and extra information on there.