Looks like I've been bitten hard by the model train bug, as a year after I began my first attempts at a layout I've just started my third, I am calling it Thirdstone.
I have a hobby room where I keep all my 3D Printers, technically it is a 2nd bedroom but only when I come to sell the house. Two of the walls are inaccessible due to the double bed, but I think it should have a model railway in N gauge of course.
Thirdstone Section One
I have already begun building the first section of the layout using what remnants of second hand track I have left since building layout number two, the Inglenook shunting puzzle layout Worfside.
The MDF (Medium Density Fibreboard) baseboard is an off-cut from the full sheet I used for the first layout Upper Carrom and measures 30" x 48". I have already laid most of the track for section one which has dictated how the rest of the layout will look.
Basically this is a dog bone shaped layout with a circle at each end forming a loop with double track running over sections 2 & 3 connecting the two ends together.
As you can see from the plan of section 1 above, this is a self contained working model railway layout in its own right. Two loops of track are independently controlled via the PWM controllers (bottom left) and a third manages shunting operations on the goods yard with a switchbox containing all the isolation switches. This setup is a bit cobbled together and will be completely overhauled when the layout is permanently fixed to the wall.
Pictured top and bottom, exiting to the right, are the two lines which form the mainline double track connecting section 1 to section 2, 3 & 4. Isolation joiners are fitted to each pair of points allowing trains to move from the mainline outer loop to the branch line inner loop and then on to access the goods yard and what will be the turntable and roundhouse.
I am currently designing the modular roundhouse which is a 20 degree version allowing for 18 tracks to enter and exit. I don't have the space for 18 but I might manage 4 plus the double engine shed on the East side of the layout. Sadly my DF200 will not fit in any of the engine sheds so that will have to stay at Upper Carrom.
I have not decided how high up this layout will be, but I am leaning towards having it at about 4.5 feet up so that the bed can remain useable...ish. The main wall is a timber partition so will need to have some fairly substantial braces to keep the layout level. and I have yet to decide if I am going to hinge section one to allow me to access the wiring without moving the bed.
This is my first attempt at a layout of this size so there are plenty of challenges coming down the pipeline, first of which is going to be framework.
Obligatory Running Video
As is customary here is a video of trains running round the new layout. Please like, subscribe and comment.
