AT&N: Modern-Era Layout

My layout space is a storage room that is roughly 15.25' x 5.33'. My layout is already wall to wall on 3 sides with only room to open the door and a little storage behind the door once the 12ft layout is in place. I thought about making the aisle more narrow but I am not about to be cramped if I can help it. 24" is what I need to be comfortable. I packed up most of my structures from the 8ft layout last night and ran some trains. I may finally find time to dismantle the old 8ft layout this weekend. It's harder to let go than I thought. The users of this sight are my inspiration and my reason for getting back into the hobby a few years ago. I really appreciate all of the encouragement, help, & the wealth of knowledge.
-Brandon

 

I am re-using as much of the old layout as possible. I'm adding a little here and there but almost all of the old track, structures, and rolling stock are going into the new layout. Only the benchwork, ballast, ground cover, etc are going to be scrapped. It's just that it's bitter/sweet to have to dismantle the old layout while knowing how many hours of blood, sweat, and tears I have in it. I've dismantled layouts before, but never one with this much work in it.

In the meantime, I discovered "Atlas Track Planning Software" on their website tonight. It's better than their old "Right Track Software." I got to playing around with it and I have a shot of the 3D image. The plan is only another revision. Nothing final yet.

I moved the diamond "south" to make room for a run-around track at the wood products facility on the "north" end of Reform. On the "south" end, I plan on using 2 turnouts to represent the wye and continuation of the mainline extension to Sulligent. If all goes well, the final OS of my first/current, 8 ft, AT&N layout will take place early tomorrow evening... right before I model BN's demolishion of the AT&N. Soon afterward, I can begin working on the benchwork of the new 12 ft, "AT&N: Sulligent Extension" layout. - Brandon

 

On May 23, I demolished the old 8x5 layout and stripped the storage room down back to the condition it was in when we moved in (down to the studs) with the exception of leaving the ceiling and chandelier I installed. I had planned to turn right around and begin construction on the next layout's 12 x 5 benchwork. However, just a couple days later, we found out my wife was going to have to have back surgery. She is doing well but due to taking up the slack around the house, I have not attempted to work on the new layout... at least not yet. She is recovering nicely and I am having model RR withdrawals so I hope to get to work on the new layout soon. In the meantime, I've had more time to think about and tweak my track plan yet again. I think this one has a "cleaner" look to it. There's a run-around interchange with the BNSF mainline at Sulligent (top) and another run-around at Reform (bottom) with the right leg of the old AT&N wye back in place as the Alabama Southern RR interchange track. My Reform depot will sit along the interchange track... exactly where the actual depot still stands today. I originally planned for the interchange to be on the inside of the layout but by "flipping" Reform around north and south, it puts the interchange on the outside of the layout, up against a wall. That way, I won't have to worry about anything accidentally diving off the inside edge of the layout and falling 4 ft onto the concrete floor like the canyon trestle scene in Back to the Future. I want the run-arounds to be as long as possible to hold the longest trains possible. Each of the 4 parallel track will be on an isolated block for meets. Whether I use them simply for holding trains during meets or simply for switching local industries, I am looking forward to using them...period. While I will only be running one train at a time verses three on the last layout, at least I will only have to worry about keeping one train running at a time. Wish me luck. ---- Brandon

 

The h/w ratio on the frame blueprint below isn't correctly proportioned, but I'm planning on beginning work on the frame for my next layout within the next two days. Notice the brown boards in the rough blueprint. They will rest on 2x4 pieces nailed horizontally to 3 stud walls (top, bottom and right end on the blueprint), roughly 48" above the floor. This design will allow me to take the layout with me easier whenever the time comes that I move, since I am renting and not planning on staying forever. All I would have to do to move it out would be to pick it up on one side, turn in on it's side, and carry it out the door in one piece. With that idea in mind, I would like the frame to be as light as possible without swaying in the middle. Should I use 2x4's or 1x4's for the "brown" boards? If 1x4's can carry the weight of the layout, that would be my preference since they are obviously lighter. I already have 2x2's for the "white" boards. The 2x2's are spaced out every 20 inches along each 140" span. At the left end, they are spaced 8" apart and 24" apart at the right end. The last image more or less shows my plans for the table top panels. Again, let me know what you think... 2x4's or 1x4's. The four long ones will span 139" each.

 

Linn Wescott does a very nice job explaining how to design and build strong, light-weight benchwork in this text. It is well worth the money.
http://www.amazon.com/How-Build-Model-Railroad-Benchwork/dp/0890245428

 

I have re-painted the wall panels, mounted them about 12 inches higher than before (48" off of the floor), and extended each side 44" all the way to the door. I still have a little work to do on the seams. Nailing the 2x4 pieces to the studs first gave me something to set the panels on which made it a lot easier to nail the panels to the studs. I'm about to get started on the benchwork that will span from wall to wall and from the rear wall to the door. Roughly 11' 7" x 5' 4". - Brandon

 

I got a little further with layout progress today. While the design and construction of this benchwork may not be up to NMRA standards, it will get the job done. I built it in my carport, brought it into the storage room / train room on it's side, lifted it above the horizontal 2x4 supports I had nailed to the stud walls, and then set it down on top of the 2x4 supports. This design keeps one aspect of the old layout in that it eliminates the need for legs which makes for easier access to the storage space underneath. Also, since the benchwork merely sits on top of the horizontal 2x4 supports, this layout will be much easier to simply lift out and transport whenever the time comes and the need arises. Getting the benchwork built (to this point) and set up inside was a huge step. It means that, except for cutting out and painting the top panels, the rest of the work will be done in the room itself, with air conditioning, and without any more 96 degree, August-in-Alabama heat, with a heat index of 105. I left the widow unit air conditioner "highballing" tonight. Hopefully, it will feel like a meat locker in there tomorrow. The layout is officially 139" x 64.75"; 43" longer than the old layout Each side is 139" x 20". The far end in the center is 24.75" x 24". The near end in the center will be 24.75" x 8". The opening in the center will be 107" x 24.75". The bottom of the benchwork is 44.5" above the floor. That is about 12" higher than the previous layout's benchwork. Now, I don't have to get on my knees on the concrete floor to crawl under. All I have to do is bend over at the waist and duck under. Also, this duck under is only 8" wide where the last one was 24" inches wide. Live and learn I guess. I'm going to drill holes for wiring BEFORE I put the top on... another thing I learned the hard way. I should be laying roadbed this weekend and maybe even laying track by the end of the weekend. It would be awesome to have a train running by the end of the weekend but with two church services Sunday, that's pushing it. The benchwork is so long that I couldn't back up any further in the room to get it all in the shot. The door is to the right of where I was standing when I took this picture. - Brandon

 

To recap, my train room has no windows and no central air conditioning. I had to have a window a/c but since we rent and do not own the house, I couldn't exactly knock a hole in a brick wall. My only solution for air conditioning was to put a window unit at the door. I set a window unit air conditioner on a rolling cart and attached a sheet of foam insulation to fit the doorway. While it cooled the room nicely, moving the cart back and forth to get in and out proved to be less than ideal.
Today, I realized that by mounting a 2x4 across the upper portion of the doorway and cutting a door out of a sheet of plywood I had lying around, I could mount the a/c at the top of doorway and with a short plywood door underneath. Because the door frame is deep enough front to back, I am still able to close and lock the real door from the inside when I'm not running the a/c. Since I had been holding on to a circular piece of plexiglass for 12 years, I thought, "Why not?"



There's not much to see, but once I had the a/c problem solved, I started cutting out panels for the base of the layout. That's when I discovered that the room is NOT square and since I built my benchwork to fit the room, it is not square either. Either the room was not built square or it has settled into an un-square state over the past 35 years since it was added onto the house. I could have squared up my layout but then there would have been a 1.25" gap between the the right rear corner of the layout and the RR corner of the room. I didn't want a gap, so I custom cut each end piece of paneling at an angle to fit the room. I still have to do some custom cutting on the 2 middle sections on each side. Instead of a perfect rectangle, the layout is going to be a slight parallelogram. It will be OK when I'm done but it was a little aggravating. I am going to cut out some of the center of each end panel. Currently they are 4 feet each from front to back but when I'm done, the near panel will be only 8" front to back in the center and the rear panel will be only 24" front to back in the center. In other words, the current 48"-long access opening will be 107" long when I'm finished. I am so glad this layout is 12" higher off the floor than the last one. It makes ducking under so much easier.
Where I teach, teachers go back to work tomorrow (students come back Monday). It's looking like it will be Saturday before I get to do any more work on the layout. To be continued... - Brandon

 

After finally concluding yesterday that a "kit bashed power pack" idea I was trying won't work, I refocused my attention on benchwork tonight, making a little bit of progress despite several interruptions along the way to help with homework. Here's a before and after. I'm exited about having a 7.5 ft run-around on each side. That's almost as long as my last layout was from end to end. I still wonder why I didn't build the last layout this long. This will be a freelanced extension of the AT&N from Reform, AL, northward to an interchange with BNSF at Sulligent, AL - in the modern era. Reform, AL, with it's run-around and interchange with the ABS (former GM&O) will be on the left, while Sulligent, AL and it's run-around type interchange with BNSF's B'ham sub will be on the right. You are looking at Reform from the south while looking at Sulligent from the E/NE. The duck under is so much better on this layout than on the last one. Don't worry, I plan on having a plexiglass guard rail on this end of the layout and more of them at a couple of places where the track will go "off layout." I don't need any scenes from Back to the Future III in HO scale. - Brandon

 

Tonight's before and after...

Tonight I sanded down the seams that I caulked last night, then dusted every thing with a damp towel before painting a base color to help out the ground cover I'll add later. I hope to outline the track plan tomorrow night and lay roadbed this weekend. If all goes well, I may have time to go ahead and lay the roadbed tomorrow night and lay track this weekend.
What material is best for modeling pavement on roads, particularly asphalt? I have some charcoal colored modeling clay that I picked up some months ago with asphalt in mind, but I want to know what others use before I try it. I have no intentions of every using plaster again. Installation is messy and the plaster grade crossings I made on my last layout cracked open when it dried, not to mention they made salvaging track extremely difficult - Brandon

 

Brandon, I have used various colors and grit of sandpaper to represent asphalt or concrete roads and rooftops on my N scale layouts. Various shades of thin paint was then applied to weather the road and a sharpie to show tar seams. It works great for N scale. Maybe a slightly heavier grit would work for HO.

Joe

 

Oh I forgot, to attach the sandpaper I have used a thin layer of RTV caulking on each surface or two face adhesive tape, better known as "supervisor tape" at my work.

Joe

 

The AT&N mainline now has roadbed.



Here's the first look into Reform, AL from the south looking north. Notice the old AT&N depot near where the right leg of the wye used to be. The right leg will serve as the AT&N/ABS(former GM&O) interchange track. The left leg will soon cross the ABS rather than merge into it. In between the two legs, the mainline will continue past the ABS northward to the BNSF interchange at Sulligent, AL.



Here's a look from the end of the AT&N at the east end of Sulligent looking west. The BNSF B'ham Sub is to the right in this pick. I haven't glued down the BNSF roadbed yet.



And finally, a look at the old Sulligent Cotton Oil building with BNSF nearest the building and the AT&N farthest from the building.

 

I got the mainline track installed today!!! The track laying went so much faster than track laying on the old layout. Experience is a great teacher. A few days ago, I used the formula for circumference and realized that 2 sections of flex track will make half of a 22" radius circle. Because of that, I started laying track from the center of each semi-circle out to each side. I soldered two sections of flex track together and trimmed off the excess inner rail on each end. Then I soldered them to the first section of straight track on each side which happen to be turnouts. I used a few small nails to hold the track in place until the DAP dries.

My initial impression of this gray, foam roadbed I found on ebay is nothing short of awesome so far. It's very early in the game, but I think it is so much better and easier to apply than cork. I actually bought it simply because it's gray instead of brown like cork. So far, I really like it. http://www.ebay.com/itm/190871065031#ht_86wt_1153

You can see the roadbed of the right leg of the wye (now my interchange track) at Reform, AL in place with a depot there to represent the old AT&N depot on the other side of the roadbed. Beyond that, you can see the roadbed of the Alabama Southern (former GM&O) just to the east of the diamond.


Here's some modeling clay I picked up a while back somewhere... maybe at Joann's. When I saw it, I read that it air dries and hardens so I immediately thought it may make a good asphalt for my layout. It's vacuumed sealed so it still feels very pliable, even after several months since I purchased it. I'll post the results once I see how it turns out later.