Building a layout in a Manhattan apartment

Nice job on the bridge.

MELGAR

Making some tunnel portals out of pink foam

Tunnel portals added, along with the tunnel itself and some ballast (didn't photograph this for some reason!) - also revised the layout design to add a yard area instead of the reversing loop - this adds some interest over trains running in circles, plus I can now add buildings and more logical scenery!

Building #1 - a downtown deco dual stall engine shed I found on ebay. This started out as white hydrocal - unfortunately I didn't start snapping pics til I'd assembled and painted it

It didn't have a floor, so I slid in some fastrack and scribed some flooring to go over it

Added lighting

Final paint

Added building to layout, plus supports to allow scenery over tunnel

Added plaster cloth over tunnel

Added second engine shed (not painted yet)

Detailing inside tunnels

Part 3

Painting the top of the hillside

Adding Bragdon rock molds

Another view with some anemic looking trees in the foreground that I later moved

Painting rock faces

Adding static grass to hilltop

Fully 'grassed' hilltop plus now painted single engine shed added

Using sculptamold to build out the verges next to the tracks

Using magic water to install some water under the bridge

Added a backdrop and rocks/grass to the verges next to the rail lines

Yard area ballasted with Brennan's cinder ballast

Added Brennan's fencing next to mainline plus a switch tower that I built from a kit I found on ebay

Made some trees from sagebrush with scenic express super trees glued to them - this is a modular piece that can be removed when I need to step towards the back of the layout

Layout with modular piece installed

mikeowen17 posted:

 

                                                     Very nice !!

It's  pretty cool to watch this layout take shape. Nice job.

alan graziano

A few vids for fun!

If you don't mind me asking, where did you get a 3 rail duchess class?? 

your layout looks fantastic.  You really have made the most of your available space. I too will be interested to watch your progress.  Ted 

The layout looks great!!  That is a good job of using the space you have.  I also like the bridge and portals you made.

Bandomnjr posted:

If you don't mind me asking, where did you get a 3 rail duchess class?? 

 

Do you mean the green loco or the red one?

The green one is this one https://mthtrains.com/20-3367-1

The red one in the video is a Hall class and is actually the Harry Potter Hogwarts Express but converted to Proto 3.0 by JLS

mikeowen17 posted:

Bandomnjr posted:

If you don't mind me asking, where did you get a 3 rail duchess class?? 

 

Do you mean the green loco or the red one?

The green one is this one https://mthtrains.com/20-3367-1

The red one in the video is a Hall class and is actually the Harry Potter Hogwarts Express but converted to Proto 3.0 by JLS

Love those British prototypes, I was referring to the green loco. All my Brit locos are OO, wish I could afford O gauge offerings. Either way, beautiful layout, and stunning engine!

Thanks - I am from the UK so I’ve tried to pick up as much british stuff as I can - id love to find some old british diesels in O Scale 

Yikes - classy pictures there. Way outa my league. Impressive.

Very well done, and doubly so given your space constraints.

How do you reach the far end of the layout without stepping on finished scenery?

Hi Mike: Excellent layout, enjoyed all three videos. Like all the smoke action from the loco.

Gary

Mallard4468 posted:

... How do you reach the far end of the layout without stepping on finished scenery?

Also, when operating, where are you?   Are you standing on a ladder to the loft, can more than 1 person at a time enjoy your (impressive) layout?

How did you score the foam for the stone portals and the brick wall?

I have tried using a knife and it makes to thin of a line.

He might have used that metal ruler; I used the back of a hacksaw blade for rows. Just pressing, not slicing.    Verticals I used a exacto, chisel shaped, two pokes per gap. Another time I sharpened a popsicle stick on the porch's cement for verticals.  I had sandpaper, but it was nice out

   Had I not seen this with my own eyes, I may have accused you of having rather lofty goals.

Bravo 

    How does the landlord feel about ceiling mirrors

That is excellent!!!! Scenery, everything!!

BWRR posted:

How did you score the foam for the stone portals and the brick wall?

I have tried using a knife and it makes to thin of a line.

The tools in a manicure set are ideal for this. We won't tell DW...

Adriatic posted:

 

He might have used that metal ruler; I used the back of a hacksaw blade for rows. Just pressing, not slicing.    Verticals I used a exacto, chisel shaped, two pokes per gap. Another time I sharpened a popsicle stick on the porch's cement for verticals.  I had sandpaper, but it was nice out

   Had I not seen this with my own eyes, I may have accused you of having rather lofty goals.

Bravo 

    How does the landlord feel about ceiling mirrors

I remember sanding down wood on the concrete steps when I was a boy; still do on occasion.  It works great.

Lofty goals!!  I love it!

Very nice!

Originally posted by Mikeowen17:

Thanks - I am from the UK so I’ve tried to pick up as much british stuff as I can - id love to find some
old british diesels in O Scale

For 3 Rail your best bet is Lima O scale and convert with Williams/WBB truck blocks and motors. Frame could be cut from metal B unit [Since many european locos are squareish] and somehow use the Lima truck sides to adapt to the Williams WBB trucks.

I'd take a bunch of nice pics when finished and submit to OGR for an article as an excellent example of an "O-Gauge in a small space" layout.

Seriously, you did a great job on the layout!

-Greg

Mallard4468 posted:

Very well done, and doubly so given your space constraints.

How do you reach the far end of the layout without stepping on finished scenery?

There is really no good way to do it - I sometimes have to step on the track, and have various other points where I know I can put a foot - it is however one of the major downsides of this layout!

stan2004 posted:

Mallard4468 posted:

... How do you reach the far end of the layout without stepping on finished scenery?

Also, when operating, where are you?   Are you standing on a ladder to the loft, can more than 1 person at a time enjoy your (impressive) layout?

The layout does not take up the whole loft - I left sufficient space for an air mattress up there (as if we have guests, we sometimes have to use  that space to accommodate  them) - but  that means there is plenty of space up there for several folks to watch

BWRR posted:

How did you score the foam for the stone portals and the brick wall?

I have tried using a knife and it makes to thin of a line.

I used an xacto knife initially, then a wooden tool that I believe is used for molding clay. You can see it in the pic below - I followed  the knife line and this tool widened the lines and softened the brick edges

Greg Houser posted:

I'd take a bunch of nice pics when finished and submit to OGR for an article as an excellent example of an "O-Gauge in a small space" layout.

Seriously, you did a great job on the layout!

-Greg

Thanks! I was actually thinking of doing that - I will see how the rest of the layout turns out!

    Your chances of being published are far greater if you don't post on a project until well after you have submitted it. Magazine "standard" is usually previously unpublished info. You'll need something "big"; exciting; new, to draw full interest if you let the world see it ahead of time. It's not just OGR, that applies to nearly every mag. There are exceptions though, I don't want to discourage trying so much as just throw that FYI advice out there for those who want to try.

I was caught in the "Posting trap", but I find that print publishers might be missing the boat here. The audiences for print are bigger than on-line, and may or may not be the same person. My 5-year-long posting on the railroad is probably viewed regularly by 150 people, whereas magazine circulation is in the thousands. I don't take my laptop to the john with me, but I take my magazines. I'm on-line all the time and still subscribe to five model magazines. To learn how to build something a magazine article is more efficient. Need I go on? They're different mediums with different goals and different audiences. I did publish something that was posted in great detail and it reached a totally different audience. Magazines should lighten up... they need to do whatever they can to build and keep readership. 

Additionally, posting serves the modeler differently. The interactivity and feedback, besides being fun to get kudos, directly affects the quality of the build. I was able to glean very valuable information and ideas from people with much greater experience in the real world that I was trying to model. In one case, when building a detailed model of the USS Missouri, I was getting detailed information directly from the man who supervised the refitting of the Iowa-class Battleships in the 1980s. in another, I had two fellows who worked in the power utilities industry guiding me on construction of a detailed substation. How could I get that from writing a magazine article in a vacuum?

Myles' advice makes good sense to me.  We discussed this online versus magazine topic a while back on his build extravaganza "Continuing Saga..."  The advice one gets in return while giving in the online forum is invaluable!!

Nicely done

Very good job, great scenery, the layout looks great! What are the actual dimensions of the space you used?

Bill in FtL

Great layout! 

MIKEOWEN17, Geez, that is some nice looking stone work on that viaduct and the tunnel portal.

A+! 

Tom 

Very nice work!

I am also one of the few Manhattan O scalers very slowly building a layout. My "layout" is also elevated above my bookshelves. It is interesting to see how others deal with the tight constraints of city life. More and more I find myself looking at British model magazines because they often are dealing in similar constraints. I had to find a club outside of the city that was easily commutable to really get a good train run in. I would love to compare notes.

Mike your vision and handiwork have combined to create a truly unbelievable layout regardless of size.  Apartment living at it's best.

Nice job on that layout.  Looks amazing.

Ps..  Is that steam engine an MTH by any chance?  The smoke on that thing looks amazing.

 

Silver Lake posted:

Very nice work!

I am also one of the few Manhattan O scalers very slowly building a layout. My "layout" is also elevated above my bookshelves. It is interesting to see how others deal with the tight constraints of city life. More and more I find myself looking at British model magazines because they often are dealing in similar constraints. I had to find a club outside of the city that was easily commutable to really get a good train run in. I would love to compare notes.

Glad to hear there are more of us! Where is the club you belong to? Would be interested to compare notes also! 

TrainGuyMcGee posted:

Nice job on that layout.  Looks amazing.

Ps..  Is that steam engine an MTH by any chance?  The smoke on that thing looks amazing.

Yes and no! It is a Lionel Hogwarts Express converted to MTH’s PS3 by JDS Ltd

An amazing job you have done.  It's a great layout for sure.

Mike:

Several thoughts:

1. You've done a fantastic job.  I and I'm sure many others will enjoy following your progress.
   
   
2. I used to live in Manhattan and, when I saw the headline "Building a layout in a Manhattan apartment", I thought for a moment that it belonged in the "Jokes only people in our hobby would get" thread.    As in:
   
   Step 1: Search for an apartment in Manhattan with sufficient space for a 3-rail O layout.
   
   Step 2: Find $300,000,000 on the sidewalk.
   
   Step 3: Use the money to rent the apartment.
   
   Step 4: Use the change left over from renting the apartment to purchase a sandwich.
   
   etc.

In all seriousness, that's a great job.  You've got a nice layout in a great city.  Win-win!

Steven J. Serenska

Wonderful modeling ....in all aspects!