Layout Designs

© Emrys Hopkins

The idea behind this layout dates back to the start of Carl Arendt’s Micro Layout Design Gallery and his ‘Layouts with 1 turnout’ category (although this category has since been dropped from the Gallery).

I started wondering how extensive a layout could be built with just one turnout and, being fond of ’stretching the rules’, allowed myself to use a three-way turnout for a little extra possibilities.

At six feet by two feet, there’s plenty of room for imaginative scenery - disguising the simple trackplan would be a good idea! I imaging a small passenger station at the front of the layout, on the long straight, but I’d probably be wise to leave these sorts of decisions to you …

Cokerville Central RR © Carl Arendt

Carl wrote:

“The CCRR was designed for a friend who plans to build a portable layout in a very large scale — namely 7/8″ to the foot, about 1:13.7. These are BIG trains and he plans to take them to schools for kids to have fun and learn about the model railroading hobby.

“The layout is built on three 2×4 foot panels that can be connected to form a 2×12 foot layout. Two unconnected levels are both built from G-scale track (1-3/4″ gauge, representing a prototype two-foot narrow gauge line in this scale). The upper level is a back-and-forth shuttle line, under automatic control, that ducks through the Candy Factory on its way from the Lollipop Mine to the Gnomy Station (serving all of Gnome Land). Trackwork on the upper level is standard G sectional track (designed around Aristo-Craft geometry). The push-pull train will include both passenger and freight stock.

“The lower level represents a hard working industrial railroad, hauling candy-making ingredients to the Candy Factory, and bringing finished candies to the tip, where they’re poured out into a myriad of waiting hands. Hand-bent 10-inch-radius end curves (about the minimum possible for small 7/8″ scale rolling stock) form a continuous oval, joined at the back where cars are reloaded and replaced with surreptitious finesse (much to the glee of the children who figure out the trick!). Lots of different trains are seen running on the lower level, and every so often one of them backs up to the tip….

“There’s lots of fun to be had in a layout like this! Not the least of it is the fact that ALL the railroading activities — from coupling and uncoupling to throwing the switches (points) and tipping the candy cars — will be done by hand, just as it is on full-sized railroads. When the models are this big, it’s natural that the train crew does the same chores as the real-life crews. And some of those crew members could even be young (and carefully selected) members of the audience!

Carl Arendt

Although this plan was designed for 7/8 scale, it would also be ideal for a small, narrow gauge line (though its attraction to its intended audience might diminish in the size also!).

© Lennart Elg

Lennart wrote:

“This is a small spare-bedroom sized layout inspired by the Dolly Varden Mines railroad (see Darryl Muralt´s 1985 book “Steel Rails and Silver Dreams” for more info on the prototype - if you are lucky enough to have it, Caboose Hobbies sell used copies at 190 dollars). The room size is 7ft 4 inch x 11ft 8 inch.

“Given the prototype´s location on Observatory Inlet, British Columbia (not far from the Alaska border), it should make an ideal home for Boulder Valley Models enclosed cab version of the Dunkirk, or 0-4-2 Bachmann Porters dressed up in Bill Banta´s “All weather cab”. If you do not want to wait for the promised dump cars from Bachmann, Grandt Line has several suitable models, with a supporting cast of 16-20 ft flat and box cars from Chivers, Foothill Model Works, Design-Tech etc. (You can also use a broken Bachmann Mogul rusting on a siding. The company bought a Mogul which was too heavy and rigid to handle the grades and trackwork..).

“Minimum radius is 22″, I needed the spiral to gain enough elevation for the dump track leading to the ore bunker. The small sawmill making props for the mine is not prototypical, but was added to give more operation opportunities.

“Also, note that after unloading ore trains must proceed down to the yard before the locomotive can run around its train - backing the train up the hill would be cheating.”

Lennart Elg

Although this plan was designed for On30, it would also be ideal for an HO scale standard gauge line.

© Ian Holmes

This plan was devised for the first layout design competition on the small layout design forum on Yahoo! for a layout in 3′ x 1′. This is a slightly larger version, proving that you can benefit from adding a couple of inches to any plan!

The main feature of the plan is the hidden rotating turntable. This can be lined up with all exit roads and rotated through 360 degrees. This removes the need for any complicated pointwork for sidings and run round loop. In addition by having interchangeable cassettes on the traintable you remove the need for a fiddle yard too.

The traintable will take a 12″ (305mm) cassette that is long enough for a loco and 3 skip wagons in the chosen scale of Gn15.

Gn15 is LGB scale 1:22.5 using 00/H0 track and mechanisms to represent a 15″ prototype, though this plan would work in any narrow gauge combination.

Ian spent his early railway modelling years pouring over the plans of Roy Link in Railway Modeller. Years of living in small bedrooms in houses, student dorms, bedsits and flats ingrained the practice of small layout design in him.

Ian now lives in America and has a large basement, but still only designs small layouts.

© Ian Holmes

This plan was devised for the first layout design competition on the small layout design forum on Yahoo! for a layout in 3′ x 1′.

The main feature of the plan is the hidden rotating turntable. This can be lined up with all exit roads and rotated through 360 degrees. This removes the need for any complicated pointwork for sidings and run round loop. In addition by having interchangeable cassettes on the traintable you remove the need for a fiddle yard too.

The traintable will take a 12″ (305mm) cassette that is long enough for a loco and 3 skip wagons in the chosen scale of Gn15.

Gn15 is LGB scale 1:22.5 using 00/H0 track and mechanisms to represent a 15″ prototype, though this plan would work in any narrow gauge combination.

Ian spent his early railway modelling years pouring over the plans of Roy Link in Railway Modeller. Years of living in small bedrooms in houses, student dorms, bedsits and flats ingrained the practice of small layout design in him.

Ian now lives in America and has a large basement, but still only designs small layouts.