Quick build to run rolling stock ideas

[btiratsoo]

Hello All

As can be seen in my other thread, I am/ have been attempting to build a railway in the garden for nearly 10 years. It has never materialised but with this latest round of ideas, I am certain we can get round to it.

As an aside to building a layout in the garden, can anyone help with ideas for a quick build - something like and inglenook layout that can be built to just be able to run my two locos - 1 live steam 0-4-0 Roundhouse Mildred and 1 battery electric Littlejohn.

The reason for this post is we have built an N gauge layout in less than an evening on a 6ft x 2.5ft baseboard at work. Now with the 16mm stuff needing a bit of thought for a garden layout I'd like something similar that can be stored in a shed and pulled out to run trains. I'll try and add a photo of the n gauge layout.

Any inspiration is very gratefully received.

Cheers
Ben

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[SimonWood]

I don't know about quick(!) but if you are looking for inspiration, I'd recommend having a look at Yr Hen Felin in gilfachphil's thread - it's a picturesque but compact inglenook.

[GTB]

The reason for this post is we have built an N gauge layout in less than an evening on a 6ft x 2.5ft baseboard at work. Now with the 16mm stuff needing a bit of thought for a garden layout I'd like something similar that can be stored in a shed and pulled out to run trains. I'll try and add a photo of the n gauge layout.

Any inspiration is very gratefully received.

The best source of minimum space layout designs that I'm aware of is the late Carl Arendt's website. It seems to have been redesigned since I last looked at it, but the info all seems to still be there.....

There are a few large scale layouts in there, but the designs in other scales can be a good starting point.

https://www.carendt.com/

Regards,
Graeme

[philipy]

I totally understand what you are wanting, but having worked in both N and 4mm before graduating to the garden, even now size still surprises me sometimes, so don't get carried away.
However a small layout that hs always appealed to me is "Flagg Fluorspar", built by a former Chairaman of this forum but who has now sadly passed on. The layout was 4'3" x 2'9" but I'm not sure that the locos you have available would both negotiate curves that tight, although there is mention of a "guest loco" being a Little John, so you might get away with it.
His website is still available and has a blow by blow of the construction over several pages: http://mdlr.co.uk/ff01.html

[btiratsoo]

Thanks all. The plan in my head is something like an inglenook on an 8x4 baseboard. That way it can live in the shed and come out on trestles/ workmates when I want to have a play.

The biggest hurdle I have found with getting started with something more permanent in the garden is not being able to run my locos at all and losing interest before groundwork’s have even started.

Building that n scale end to end has given me the inspiration to crack on but this time, build a simple baseboard layout in sm32 so that the drive to build in the garden stays.

The Mildred and Littlejohn have sat on a shelf for the best part of 4 years now.

[drewzero1]

Another resource for compact layouts a la C. Arendt is LocoRemote, who produce a remote-control device for battery electric locos. They offer free 3D printable track files which wouldn't be suited at all to running steam, though the Little John might handle the larger radius curves. For the half of my stock that won't run on that, I use some Lionel/K-Line O27 sectional track which was purchased cheaply secondhand. It ain't pretty but it gets the job done!

[3 minutes of fame]

Cards on the table, live steam and compact layouts are not a great mix. Ideally you want a reasonable length of running line, and a circuit is normally best for running in steam locos and getting good performance. Shunting with steamers is not fun, and operation can be very lumpy.

My garden layout is a compact terminus with a couple of through running lines, and a terminal platform. This is supported by a few points and then about 40m of folded loop running around the edge of the garden, to another smaller station. Trains can either continually run, or shunt around the terminus. Eventually some extra routes will be laid to increase operational interest.

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[gregh]

You might get some ideas from my tiny indoor layout.
https://gardenrails.org/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=14092