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Problems Dismantling and Moving HO Layout
It is a shame William didn’t build his HO layout in modules as he has struck a common problem. Click the link to add your comments to this posting if you can offer some suggestions for William:
“I started with a basic figure 8. But we put our home on the market, and will be moving soon. So I stopped adding to my layout. My problem now is what or is the best way to take it down for the move??”
There are lots of excellent tips in the ebook for building modular layouts at http://www.modeltrainclub.org/club.html
2 Responses to Problems Dismantling and Moving HO Layout
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You do not indicate how big the layout is or how complex. If it is very large you may need to cut it down. Cutting at areas that are expendable. You can also cut out special areas that you would want to save and discard the rest.
It is difficult to answer without knowing how large (4′ x 8′ ?), or how secure the scenery/buildings were set down. Also, how far away from your current location you are moving. I built a train table some years back that I ultimately gave to my grandson. The 3″ x 3″ legs were screwed/bolted to the top, from underneath, and thus were easy to remove (similar to furniture you have to put together). I removed the trains/cars, of course, and any lightly set-in scenery. The buildings were secured only by railroad spikes around the bottom edges, so they were easy to remove.
We then loaded the table on a trailer, covered it securely with a tarp, and traveled 45 minutes on side roads to deliver it, keeping speeds under 50 mph. It made the trip just fine.
I have since built a large U-shaped layout, using 4′ x 8′ tables I built in the same way. They are bolted to each other for stability. When I’m ready to move, I’ll just remove the bolts and legs and haul them out thru the large window in the bedroom. It’s best to think “moveable train table” when building one. You never know when you’ll need to!