Comments on: Ideas for Small 55 Inch x 23 Inch Layout

By: Mark Cartwright

Mark Cartwright — Fri, 07 Sep 2018 00:53:32 +0000

Matt,
Find a minimal space of 30″ X 56″ and then begin to construct an N Scale Layout with Short Steam and short to medium Diesels.
Mark

By: KR

KR — Wed, 05 Sep 2018 13:35:07 +0000

In reply to Bernard Hallas. I second this thought! A narrow gauge train (HO rolling stock and scenery with N scale track approximates 3 ft guage) in an industrial or logging setting would fit in your space, and allow continuous and switched operations.

By: Bernard Hallas

Bernard Hallas — Sun, 02 Sep 2018 23:07:25 +0000

Go narrow gauge. 009 or HOn30, the scale is big enough to see to work on.
Narrow gauge gives you the chance to have rolling stock such as HO or the UK 00, running on 9mm track which is “N-scale”, so you can do small locos & rolling stock & reasonable layout & curves in a smaller space.
I think narrow gauge is a good compromise between HO or 00 -where you can see & handle & work on the rolling stock, and N which I think is a bit small
Minitrains have a large range of RTR stock, Bachman has locos (sometimes under “N”, of some Welsh narrow gauge (N.G.) stock, as do a number of other manufacturers.Google for narrow gauge.
Check on Carl Arendt site for small layouts, Carl was a legend for small & micro layouts, his son keeps the site (& book of stuff) going. Lots of inspiration there.
I came upon a layout labelled Kembach which actually had two separate circuits in a space 40″ x 24″.
I think it was in a French Magazine “Voie Libre” (The Free Way), which has an international edition in English.

Enjoy,
Bernard

By: Ray

Ray — Fri, 31 Aug 2018 12:34:12 +0000

Don’t waste your time and energy on HO the space is so small it will look more like a toy than a model railway, only hope is N gauge …….

By: David STOKES

David STOKES — Fri, 31 Aug 2018 09:53:19 +0000

Matt, one Aussie to another – a circuit of H0 in 55″ x 23″ “In your dreams”. Sorry mate, it just won’t work. You need at least 32″ of depth. Your 55″ length could work.

Can I suggest you Google “John Allen Timesaver”, and DCC Concepts auto reverse electronics. This will give you a layout you can play with, and when all you want to do is watch a train move back and forth un attended.

By: Jim Kennedy

Jim Kennedy — Fri, 31 Aug 2018 05:31:26 +0000

I too have small space issues and plan to run N scale. I came up with the idea of a track layout based on a cabinet I saw in model railroad magazine that would fold up into a really small space for storage. Rather than using that build guide I thought of the idea of obtaining an armoire. The folding idea could still be applied but the armoire would provide storage space under the bottom of the platform. You would have to make the tracks jointed at certain points to fold the platform up. The platform could actually be built as a stacked inside the armoire. By having a folding platform the space could be doubled. The first fold could come straight from the armoire and the second fold could come from the side of the first after the original platform has been extended. Keep in mind the track would have to be specially joined and electronically set up to allow for folding. When not in use the track platform could be folded back and put inside the armoire and the doors closed on the armoire. The width of the armoire is about the same as the space you have but when unfolded would double the space. Just an idea.

By: Matt

Matt — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 23:48:36 +0000

In reply to Joe Tillman. Continuous running would be great. Probably a lot of switching would be fun.

By: Chris on behalf of Blog Moderator

Chris on behalf of Blog Moderator — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 23:46:37 +0000

In reply to Don Jennings. Don, for security and privacy reasons we do not publish email addresses. If you have ideas please forward them to the Blog Moderator who can publish them as an article for all to see.

By: Don Jennings

Don Jennings — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 23:39:21 +0000

Matt
I would like to know what type of layout you want. You can do a lot with a shelf layout by having fun switching (shunting train cars around). A layout only becomes large when you add circles at the end of the table. I believe a smaller table like 55″ by 23 ” is great for a layout. I have several ideas that may help you.

By: Don Jennings

Don Jennings — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 23:30:23 +0000

I have several ideas for a train layout using that amount of space. I need to know if you want a shelf type (mainly for switching (( shunting)) of train cars) or do you want a layout that is in a circle? Big differences here.

By: Joe Tillman

Joe Tillman — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 22:04:27 +0000

Matt: I know your predicament well. A couple of questions you would need to consider:

1. Do you want continuous run?

2. What type of equipment do you want to operate?

If you “tilt” a small loop in your 55″ x 23″ space, you can end up making 12-15″ radii curves fit, albeit a bit close to the edge due to simple geometry. The diagonal of a 23″ by 23″ square is 32.5″, not 23″! Use flex track and curved turnouts and you will be surprised what you might be able to achieve.

The late Linn Westcott claimed that 12″ was about the minimum radius for HO scale, aside from traction layouts, and he was probably close to correct. Small shunting locos will run fine on such curves so long as you maintain prototypical speeds.

If you are wanting to run US prototypes, SW7s, GE 44 & 70 tonners, and 0-4-0 and 0-6-0s will be fine. Find an old Athearn Lil’ Monster 0-4-2 on E-bay and you can have a nice stable of small locos and some find operation on a small loop.

If you want to run longer locos, a switching layout will likely be in order.

I am building a layout where I had to “tilt the loop” to get 18″ curves. While still under construction, I am very pleased with the appearance and operation of it. I tried to be content with a switching layout but at the end of the day, there is just something pleasing about watching trains go roundy-round.

By: Tim Morlok

Tim Morlok — Thu, 30 Aug 2018 20:33:19 +0000

I don’t know the floor plan of your apt, but have you considered a shelf layout that is between 8 and 20 inches wide around the walls of a room w/ removable sections or gated bridges where you need accesses. I am in the process of designing part of my HO scale layout that has a continuous run around my train room. It starts at 65″ and raises to a 72″ high bridge across the doorway. I am lucky to have a 17′ X 15.5′ room which I built into back third of our garage so that I can also have a lower level modified dog bone at about a 36″ height. There are several good CAD programs that can help you test a design for your layout before you build. Good luck with your planing.