My General Advice for Model Railroad Construction:
- If you are reproducing a prototype or a specific location and / or point in time, take lots of photographs and study them often. Search the internet and books for historical photographs. Do your research. Go back to these photos often. You’ll be surprised at how many details will pop out at you over time, especially as you move from project to project for your layout.
- Buy yourself a track planning software program and play lots of “what if” games. The program will cost less than $100 but making these plans will save you lots of time and money. I have made hundreds of variations of my track plan and go back to them periodically (more when actual track construction was taking place).
- Make sure your track plan identifies every switch, insulated rail, signal point, and other important points. Decide on a direction of travel. Will your layout be signaled in both directions?
- Create a wiring plan that includes color-coding, identification of every wire, labeling, and notes about types of connectors. Make sure save notes about everything you did to wire the layout.
- Take lots of photos during construction and keep notes. You may want to go back to these once the scenery is in place or if you have to expand.
- Think about what trains (and their composition) will run on the layout. Are there industries or cities served by the railroad? How? How will you represent these cities or industries? What is "good enough"?
- Have fun and build a layout you will like to run. Be ready to compromise and sacrifice historical accuracy for fun and “play value”. Don’t be afraid to tear down a mistake and start over.
- Invite other people to come over and run the layout periodically, even if it’s not 100% done. You will learn a lot from how they react and the questions they ask. Take notes and make improvements.
Have fun. Keep us in the loop on your progress. Consider setting up a running documentary / commentary in the Photo Forum like my own. It will help you learn as you go. https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/t...r-panhandle-division
Best,
George
