Train shelving - is this a good idea?

I would consider routing the wood shelves to simulate track and then sealing them wood urethane or varnish. Your trains will be much less likely to tip or fall than they would be if you mount gargraves track on top of the wooden shelves. I think your concept is super.

I also think it would be easier to get to the trains and place them on the layout. If I leave one shelf empty, I can take trains off the layout before putting other trains on. It can be my staging area. It will also be easier than getting trains off the higher shelves on a wall.

George

If I had room to put train shelfs on the side of my layout bench work, I would just make one,  a ramp for underneath the layout storage tracks.   I'm still thinking on this project of mine.

If you have digital controlled locomotives, consider powering some shelf tracks to charge their batteries.

Why not just connect them to the layout as a staging yard so you can drive them on to the layout when you want to run them ?

I think your idea is sound.  You could use 1x6(5 1/2) instead if 1x4(3 1/2) for a bit more money and have a little more buffer for an accidental bump.

clem k posted:

If I had room to put train shelfs on the side of my layout bench work, I would just make one,  a ramp for underneath the layout storage tracks.   I'm still thinking on this project of mine.

Richie C. posted:

Why not just connect them to the layout as a staging yard so you can drive them on to the layout when you want to run them ?

But won't it take LOTS more space to make up an elaborate grade(s) to store as many as simple one over the other shelving would provide?  By the time you allow for the grades, switches (assuming you want more than one storage spur/shelf), it takes a lot of space just to get to the different levels vs simple shelves.  And switches combined on grades is often not considered a good idea.  You start to use up huge amounts of space, and unless the layout is NJHR sized, it will be noticeable for most home layouts.

I like the side shelf idea.  Pretty sure this has been shown on many layouts in OGR or CTT over the years.  Adding grooves as John suggested to help keep them in place might be a good idea. 

Or maybe even some sort of slide on plexiglass cover to both keep them from falling out due to casual contact and maybe even limit the dust a little.  I'm thinking something like screws driven into the wood, less the thickness of the plexiglass, then holes the size of the heads of the screws in the plexi, with a slot that is narrower than the head, but the right width for the threaded part of the screw.  The plexi can then be lowered onto position, resting on the screws and lifted up for removal.  I've not actually done this yet, but have been thinking about something along these lines for a while.

-Dave

Bobby Ogage posted:

If you have digital controlled locomotives, consider powering some shelf tracks to charge their batteries.

Excellent idea!

George

Dave45681 posted:

clem k posted:

If I had room to put train shelfs on the side of my layout bench work, I would just make one,  a ramp for underneath the layout storage tracks.   I'm still thinking on this project of mine.

Richie C. posted:

Why not just connect them to the layout as a staging yard so you can drive them on to the layout when you want to run them ?

But won't it take LOTS more space to make up an elaborate grade(s) to store as many as simple one over the other shelving would provide?  By the time you allow for the grades, switches (assuming you want more than one storage spur/shelf), it takes a lot of space just to get to the different levels vs simple shelves.  And switches combined on grades is often not considered a good idea.  You start to use up huge amounts of space, and unless the layout is NJHR sized, it will be noticeable for most home layouts.

I like the side shelf idea.  Pretty sure this has been shown on many layouts in OGR or CTT over the years.  Adding grooves as John suggested to help keep them in place might be a good idea. 

Or maybe even some sort of slide on plexiglass cover to both keep them from falling out due to casual contact and maybe even limit the dust a little.  I'm thinking something like screws driven into the wood, less the thickness of the plexiglass, then holes the size of the heads of the screws in the plexi, with a slot that is narrower than the head, but the right width for the threaded part of the screw.  The plexi can then be lowered onto position, resting on the screws and lifted up for removal.  I've not actually done this yet, but have been thinking about something along these lines for a while.

-Dave

 

On my last layout I had a loop under the layout with a transition to the upper level. If you have a lot of clear space under the layout and can easily get under there, that could work. It won't work for me now. My layout is lower than countertop height, and I did not build it with lots of free span space underneath. It's a pain to get under it, and trains will have problems in the most inconvenient places. 

George

 I wouldn't recommend doing this - the single biggest advantage to keeping everything you are not using in boxes is that the clutter from all of those boxes gives your visitors the impression that your train collection is MUCH larger than it actually is - just imaging the hit your image of a train collector/hoarder will take when word gets around the neighborhood that George's collection is a lot smaller than previously believed!

I used Glenn Snyder shelving along one wall.  They are all coupled together so if you want a special one you can just roll them along . Never had one fall. Even with young grandsons. Tstark

tstark posted:

I used Glenn Snyder shelving along one wall.  They are all coupled together so if you want a special one you can just roll them along . Never had one fall. Even with young grandsons. Tstark

I think I would need to build a wall to accommodate those. I could do that, but then I would lose my hope of expanding into the other part of the basement. 

George

Robert S. Butler posted:

 I wouldn't recommend doing this - the single biggest advantage to keeping everything you are not using in boxes is that the clutter from all of those boxes gives your visitors the impression that your train collection is MUCH larger than it actually is - just imaging the hit your image of a train collector/hoarder will take when word gets around the neighborhood that George's collection is a lot smaller than previously believed!

Oh, but I can still stack the boxes and say they are filled with trains that didn't fit on the shelves. 

George

I used routed 1x6’s mounted on 3/8 plywood and floor supported these behind the layout for my standard gauge collection.  The gap from the back of the wall is 21”. I did screw the plywood into the wall for stability.

Jim

I too, am finishing up a layout and looking at storage/display options. I'm curious as to everyone's take on the possibility of metal or spring fatigue from long-term display of trains with roller pick-ups. I run 3-rail but was considering displaying my trains on 2-rail track, letting the pick-up roller mechanisms suspend between the rails rather than keepingp them continually compressed. Any thoughts?

I favor shelves under the front of the layout, taking the place of skirting that otherwise might be used to block the view of the underside of the layout.  1x4 boards are adequate for 0 gauge and 1x6 for standard gauge.  Both can have shallow grooves easily added by running them thru a tablesaw.  Just remember the flanges are closer together than the track gauge! The shelves can be attached to a sheet of plywood with screws from the back into the edges of the boards, and the plywood can be secured directly to the table legs if they are set back the correct distance.  Leave some "toe space" by setting the shelves back about six inches from the table edge. Add a wide finished fascia board on the edges of the layout and install strip lighting behind it to illuminate the trains on the storage shelves.  

Kirk Lindvig

www.sgma.us

I used 1X4's with grooves cut on my table saw for the flanges.  A little stain and done cheaply.  I also know several people have done like you are considering by adding shelves below the layout edges.  I think Steamer Dave has  several such shelves.  They allow you to display more trains but you would need to allow for access to any designed storage behind them.  They have been hung up in four different houses now and modified from being nine shelves tall to being five shelves tall based on my current situation.  the way they are now situated allows me to display approximately 24 sets, but that depends on the sets individual lengths!

I build the room for the shelves, the layouts were an afterthought!

NWL

NWL,

Boooinnng! *

*The sound of my eyes popping out.

Fantastic displasy and neato layout.

Have fun

My basement incorporates several of the ideas shown and described here. 4 inch wide pine made into shelf units with O27 track for the trains to rest on.  Similar units are used for skirting shelving under the layout. Paneling that matches the room's walls was used for backing so the trains don't fall back.

If you do wall shelves behind a walk-around layout be sure to leave about 20 inches of space so that you can get around the layout and to the shelves without brushing against the trains on top.

Very helpful comments throughout. The grooving of the boards and the plywood backing are things I hadn't considered.

Thanks.

George

SGMA1 posted:

I favor shelves under the front of the layout, taking the place of skirting that otherwise might be used to block the view of the underside of the layout.  1x4 boards are adequate for 0 gauge and 1x6 for standard gauge.  Both can have shallow grooves easily added by running them thru a tablesaw.  Just remember the flanges are closer together than the track gauge! The shelves can be attached to a sheet of plywood with screws from the back into the edges of the boards, and the plywood can be secured directly to the table legs if they are set back the correct distance.  Leave some "toe space" by setting the shelves back about six inches from the table edge. Add a wide finished fascia board on the edges of the layout and install strip lighting behind it to illuminate the trains on the storage shelves.  

Kirk Lindvig

www.sgma.us

 

Along this line, I've built shelf units consisting of a 1x4 frame and shelves, with a sheet of 3/8" plywood for a back.  Size depends on where it's going to fit.  By making a sturdy unit like this, it can be attached to the legs of the benchwork (just screw through the plywood wherever the support is).  And they're easily reusable if you reconfigure your layout.

A member of our club puts L-hooks at the top of his shelving and hangs sheets of thin plexiglas to protect against the stray elbow.

Suggest making the shelves double depth if you have the room, as they fill up fast. 

My basement is poured concrete.  Although it's dry most of the time, I get just enough moisture that I don't feel comfortable with finishing it and studding out the walls.  But I also didn't want to drill anchor holes into the concrete.  I rigged up a method of using 2x2 uprights to which the shelves are attached.  The 2x2s are attached to the wood plate at the top of the wall using small L-brackets.  At the bottom, I cut small pieces of the rubber spacing that is made for joints in concrete, and snugged them in place with wood shims. 

Plenty strong, and if there is moisture, the rubber feet keep it from seeping into the wood.  

I built stand alone shelves from MDF that just fit under the layout. This only works in the straight areas. I use the curved areas for storage.

My Dad built this shelf more me and we installed it in the wall when we finished the basement.  But it could just as easily work underneath the layout.  

If you use plexiglass, you will prevent the trains from falling or being bumped by people near the layout.  Next time you run trains, take note of where you stand and where your knees/feet are in relation to the layout.

Each shelf has two pieces of plexi that can slide back and forth with a finger hole.  This was based off of Rich Battista's version from his layout video. 

Have Fun!

Ron

Ron045 posted:

My Dad built this shelf more me and we installed it in the wall when we finished the basement.  But it could just as easily work underneath the layout.  

If you use plexiglass, you will prevent the trains from falling or being bumped by people near the layout.  Next time you run trains, take note of where you stand and where your knees/feet are in relation to the layout.

Each shelf has two pieces of plexi that can slide back and forth with a finger hole.  This was based off of Rich Battista's version from his layout video. 

Have Fun!

Ron

Awesome! I have that video and know Rich is a forum member.

George

If you are placing your storage/display shelves below the layout, I  highly recommend plexiglass doors. 2 reasons: The area just above the floor is the dirtiest in the room, which will then get all over your nice clean trains, and 2 plexi will keep errant shoes and toddlers from whacking your trains. Meanwhile, you can still see them. I'd skip the GG track and go with grooves cut with a table saw to accommodate the flanges.

My 2 cents.

Chris

LVHR

Here are pictures (I hope) of my display/storage cabinets. I used a router to make flange grooves and used bead board for the back of each case. The cost and weight of Plexiglas was, to me, too much, so I went with something simpler and cheaper. The clear plastic sheeting  is from Amazon and comes in 4' x 4' sections. That dictated the maximum size of each cabinet. I made the cases from white MDF with a white  bead board back. I made simple frames for the plastic  from wooden trim I bought at HD (my spending place) and attached the plastic to the frames with staples reinforced with duct tape. The frames are held onto the case with Velcro. I've had these in place for about 3+ years and they work great.  In between cabinets and to allow access, my wife sewed up some simple curtains hung on café rods to hide the underside of the table.

Two things to keep in mind. Do not use MDF for the shelves. It will sag under its own weight regardless if there's anything on it or not. You can kind of see it on the photos. MDF is okay for the cabinet sides and top, though. I thought I'd save myself some time by using white MDF throughout - which I did - but I would have been better off using wooden shelving. Also, the 4 x 4 size of the cabinets dictates how much can be displayed. For example, I can only show about one half of what I own, but that's okay. Just like pictures on a wall, it's nice to be able to change things out every so often.

I hope this helps a bit.

My 2 cents.  Instead of 2 grooves for the wheels, If you only cut 1 groove for the wheels on the back side, the train will angle back, lean away from the front side, display nicer, and allow different gauges to be displayed.

As far as the comment on leaving an open shelf to take a train off the layout and swap out another. Ever hear anyone say "I have to many shelves; My layout/train room/ garage is to big.  If you have empty spots....you need more.   

Dan

Jim Brenner posted:

Two things to keep in mind. Do not use MDF for the shelves. It will sag under its own weight regardless if there's anything on it or not. You can kind of see it on the photos. I hope this helps a bit.

Jim, 

Can you place some screws from the back into the shelves to prevent sagging?  We did that.  My sisters and I liked to say that Dad built things hurricane proof.  The house will be gone, but by golly that train shelf isn't going anywhere.

Ron

made from skids from where I used to work. just had to buy the screws and stain.

Ron,

I did not try screws, but I did try finishing nails. They worked okay on the shelves with freight/passenger cars, but not so well for locomotives. In a few places, I used blocks of wood (scrap MDF, really) in between  the shelves to support them and that worked out okay. I just had to be careful where I placed cars, etc. on the lower shelves.

Does that make sense?

Jim

I see that the picture showing the curtains did not show up. This will give a better idea of what I mean.

Jim

All the posts and information were great! I realized that I was over simplifying things and it was going to be more work than I thought. This is what I have done in the meantime. I can add the custom shelving project later. I have a lot on my plate right now.

George

I have always used shelving.  These are a salvage find from a drugstore in Dayton, Ohio from when we lived there 70's-80's. Picked up for free for the haul off as they were re-decorating (My wife an RN with a local doctor at the time cut the deal!) .  Because they were only for drugs / vitamins etc they are thin compared to those made for ordinary books.  My spacing to the layout is 24" from the outer edge of the shelves to the inner edge of the layout (its too close, if I had it to do over again I would add 6").  I keep both O and Std gauge on the shelves, the O gauge can be two lines wide (I support / raise the rear line on clear plastic cups under the trucks). The Standard Gauge (I don't have too much) is nearly the full width of the shelving.   We have lived with these shelves in 3 or 4 different houses at this point and I cannot remember anything ever falling off.  I recently got some Glen Snyder display shelves like TSTARK mentioned and I am putting them on the wall opposite the one with the book cases.

My biggest disappointment with shelving like this vice long shelves as shown by NWL is that they cannot display the sets or outfits lined up together, the width of each unit is not long enough, so I end up displaying a consist in 2 parts, usually one in front of the other.  Not in the grand scheme of things a disaster, but its a limitation to most shelving units.

By the way, NWL your display and layout are really eye watering, perhaps you would consider posting some more pictures.  I note that it is mostly pre-way (those trains that I can recognize) which is also my interest.  Thanks

Don

Here are a couple examples of shelving I recently made for small, specific, areas.

George S posted:

All the posts and information were great! I realized that I was over simplifying things and it was going to be more work than I thought. This is what I have done in the meantime. I can add the custom shelving project later. I have a lot on my plate right now.

George

If you find you run out of shelf space George...I can make room for those ones on the second shelf up........

The use of Glen Snyder shelving has worked well for me, along with I have made some with cutting the spaced groves in 1 x 4 boards.  Still have too much to do on the layout for underside perimeter shelves.  But, they are planned and they also add more stability to the layout legs on any layout.

Jesse   TCA

We had a whole wall that we installed book shelves on. The wall was the support for the book shelves. The wall started to move. Make sure your wall can support the weight you are hanging on it.

gftiv posted:

We had a whole wall that we installed book shelves on. The wall was the support for the book shelves. The wall started to move. Make sure your wall can support the weight you are hanging on it.

Sounds like your carpenter took some shortcuts.  I can’t imagine that happening with most walls. 

George

We bought  a used house and the basement was drywalled. This was on a outside wall of poured concrete. Firring strips were put on the concrete and the drywall next. some of the firring strips started to pull away from the wall. Firring strips and drywall were never meant to support that kind of load. 2x4 stud might have done much better.

gftiv posted:

We bought  a used house and the basement was drywalled. This was on a outside wall of poured concrete. Firring strips were put on the concrete and the drywall next. some of the firring strips started to pull away from the wall. Firring strips and drywall were never meant to support that kind of load. 2x4 stud might have done much better.

That’s not the proper way to remodel a basement. I wonder if it’s code? I assume they were glued to the wall, not shot. When I did remodeling as a contractor, we built a stud wall and nailed it to a treated wood base plate that was shot into the floor. We nailed the top plate to the floor joists. Behind the wall was foil faced ridged insulation. The wall would have standard electrical in conduit. Those walls aren’t coming down easy. 

George

I noticed that the trains block the circuit breaker box in one photo. This is a NEC violation. its unsafe.  You need access to the box esp if something goes wrong.  min distance in front of box should be 30" clear.   A transformer starts to burn and you need to shut off the circuit you got a big problem. I suggest you think about installing the box on the outside of the building in a NEMA 3 or better box.  

DougB posted:

I noticed that the trains block the circuit breaker box in one photo. This is a NEC violation. its unsafe.  You need access to the box esp if something goes wrong.  min distance in front of box should be 30" clear.   A transformer starts to burn and you need to shut off the circuit you got a big problem. I suggest you think about installing the box on the outside of the building in a NEMA 3 or better box.  

LOL!  I don't believe I have ever seen a breaker box with 30 feet clear in front of the box in any building that I have ever been in, including 50 story office buildings that I have inspected for work.

Nation Wide Lines posted:

DougB posted:

I noticed that the trains block the circuit breaker box in one photo. This is a NEC violation. its unsafe.  You need access to the box esp if something goes wrong.  min distance in front of box should be 30" clear.   A transformer starts to burn and you need to shut off the circuit you got a big problem. I suggest you think about installing the box on the outside of the building in a NEMA 3 or better box.  

LOL!  I don't believe I have ever seen a breaker box with 30 feet clear in front of the box in any building that I have ever been in, including 50 story office buildings that I have inspected for work.

30 " = 30 inches. 30' = 30 feet.

Pretty much every manufacturing/factory building I've worked in has some sort of tape on the floor in front of any large electrical panels stating not to put anything there.  Now, do people sometimes put things there when they shouldn't, possibly.  But they have always been marked.

-Dave

George S posted:

gftiv posted:

We bought  a used house and the basement was drywalled. This was on a outside wall of poured concrete. Firring strips were put on the concrete and the drywall next. some of the firring strips started to pull away from the wall. Firring strips and drywall were never meant to support that kind of load. 2x4 stud might have done much better.

That’s not the proper way to remodel a basement. I wonder if it’s code? I assume they were glued to the wall, not shot. When I did remodeling as a contractor, we built a stud wall and nailed it to a treated wood base plate that was shot into the floor. We nailed the top plate to the floor joists. Behind the wall was foil faced ridged insulation. The wall would have standard electrical in conduit. Those walls aren’t coming down easy. 

George

I'm sure codes vary.  Here's a video of Tom Silva doing the firring strip method.  I did this on one wall in my old basement because it gained me a couple inches in the finished space.  I needed every available inch for a 4.5 x 9 pool table.

gftiv posted:

We bought  a used house and the basement was drywalled. This was on a outside wall of poured concrete. Firring strips were put on the concrete and the drywall next. some of the firring strips started to pull away from the wall. Firring strips and drywall were never meant to support that kind of load. 2x4 stud might have done much better.

You can stud out a wall over this using 2x3's. With drywall you would only loose a little over 3 inches of basement space.

This happened 30 years ago in Iowa. Many people did their own basement renovations however they felt like. You assume your drywall basement is done properly. Properly is expensive. Take an electrical outlet cover off and check out your drywall to see what you have.

gftiv posted:

This happened 30 years ago in Iowa. Many people did their own basement renovations however they felt like. You assume your drywall basement is done properly. Properly is expensive. Take an electrical outlet cover off and check out your drywall to see what you have.

I always assume it was done by a total hack.  Never been disappointed!

"Train shelving - is this a good idea?" 

Yes!  I used shelving in our basement den to display my Milwaukee Road trains and also added color coordinated furniture in burnt orange.  IMHO it looked fantastic!

Bob Nelson

DougB posted:

I noticed that the trains block the circuit breaker box in one photo. This is a NEC violation. its unsafe.  You need access to the box esp if something goes wrong.  min distance in front of box should be 30" clear.   A transformer starts to burn and you need to shut off the circuit you got a big problem. I suggest you think about installing the box on the outside of the building in a NEMA 3 or better box.  

I put a bamboo screen room divider in front of mine to hide it from the room. There is plenty of clearance and you can just push the room divider aside. I don't have any transformers in my panel though. I never heard of that in residential applications. The meter is outside, and I believe that is where the 3 phase is split to 2 phase. 

George

MikeH posted:

George S posted:

gftiv posted:

We bought  a used house and the basement was drywalled. This was on a outside wall of poured concrete. Firring strips were put on the concrete and the drywall next. some of the firring strips started to pull away from the wall. Firring strips and drywall were never meant to support that kind of load. 2x4 stud might have done much better.

That’s not the proper way to remodel a basement. I wonder if it’s code? I assume they were glued to the wall, not shot. When I did remodeling as a contractor, we built a stud wall and nailed it to a treated wood base plate that was shot into the floor. We nailed the top plate to the floor joists. Behind the wall was foil faced ridged insulation. The wall would have standard electrical in conduit. Those walls aren’t coming down easy. 

George

I'm sure codes vary.  Here's a video of Tom Silva doing the firring strip method.  I did this on one wall in my old basement because it gained me a couple inches in the finished space.  I needed every available inch for a 4.5 x 9 pool table.

Looks like Tom used 4" long concrete spikes to anchor the initial firing strips. Those wouldn't pull out from the wall. That looks like a suitable method. You should be able to hang loaded shelves on a wall like that. I suspect the do-it-yourself prior Iowa homeowner glued the firing strips to the concrete. Construction glue doesn't have a high sheer rating, at least in a concrete to wood application. We used to use it to mount spikes on the concrete and the spikes would hold the rigid foam insulation. We weren't trying to hang drywall on them.

George

Hi folks,

Bringing this to the forefront again. As I have just acquired a good sized basement and workroom, I am looking at storage options for the workroom. I just bought four metal units, 12 inches deep, from Lowes but am now looking at some 18 and 24 inch deep shelves and wonder if shelving from Uline might be better? Open to any and all suggestions, thanks, Miketg

I am with JimmyZ, and floor support my train shelves.

Three wall, easy to build, economically, wall friendly and moveable train shelves were made in the 1980's and were installed in a hall ways and/or a spare bedrooms of three prior houses and the current house.  Each shelve is made in two sections each to allow moving thru doors and up stairs.  They also stand on the floor and are held to the wall by two 1" x 1" angles screwed into a wall stud per section, meaning only two small holes in the wall are required. The shelves are backed with 1/8" Masonite, with some strips of white felt glued to the back, to protect the wall.  The shelves have router grooved surfaces to hold the train wheels and keep the cars and engines from rolling off.  The design has one wider 1" x 6" wide shelve, one half way up and one wider 1" X 8" top shelf to allow display of wider accessories or other items in addition to the typical train cars and engines.  Construction is 1" x 4" straight pine #2 lumber with grooves routed in for train wheels.  It is usually less expensive to buy 1x 4 x 8 ft long #2 common pine boards at Home Depot and pick through them to find straight boards.  Knots are not that important to me as they can be filled in and painted over.  I use 5 min epoxy glue to coat the knots to keep them from bleeding through the white paint which I chose to make the trains show out better.  A few of my shelves have sections of track and power to light some trains.

Complete building details at OGR link below

https://ogrforum.ogaugerr.com/...ra-027-layout?page=4

Charlie

Here's the shelving I put in my office / work area.  I routed the grooves to simulate track and added "ties" to add some character.  I used metal brackets to support the shelves for strength and covered them up with wood for aesthetics.  I also added a shelf with track and power to show off lighted cars.  The bottom shelf is HO and N track with power for testing, etc.. 

I have a great many shelves for trains - under the layout, behind the layout, in my workshop. I've learned two things:

The best display and storage for the trains is shelving with clear plastic or glass sliding doors. I have both covered and open shelves; dusting trains on the open shelves is a big nuisance...

For open shelving, the aluminum rail racks are the easiest and most efficient use of space possible, IMHO.

Jan

@Miketg posted:

Hi folks,

Bringing this to the forefront again. As I have just acquired a good sized basement and workroom, I am looking at storage options for the workroom. I just bought four metal units, 12 inches deep, from Lowes but am now looking at some 18 and 24 inch deep shelves and wonder if shelving from Uline might be better? Open to any and all suggestions, thanks, Miketg

Metal units aren't pretty, but they're solid, easy to move, and the 12" depth will allow for more display space on each shelf.  Perhaps it would be useful to buy or build extra shelves, since most commercial shelf units allow more vertical space between shelves than is needed for most trains.

I'm not familiar with the Uline units, so can't comment.  The primary concern with any commercially available unit is making sure that the shelf material is adequate to support the weight of the trains - particle board (laminated or not) and MDF can sag if spanning too much of a distance.

Earlier posts have covered the gamut of options pretty thoroughly.

I made my shelves out of Diamond Plate material. I happened to do business with a company that had a Brake and Shear.

@lashup50 posted:

I too, am finishing up a layout and looking at storage/display options. I'm curious as to everyone's take on the possibility of metal or spring fatigue from long-term display of trains with roller pick-ups. I run 3-rail but was considering displaying my trains on 2-rail track, letting the pick-up roller mechanisms suspend between the rails rather than keepingp them continually compressed. Any thoughts?

Any further thoughts on lashup50’s concern about spring fatigue? Truthfully, never would’ve occurred to me.

@HiramO posted:

The best display and storage for the trains is shelving with clear plastic or glass sliding doors. I have both covered and open shelves; dusting trains on the open shelves is a big nuisance...

Jan

I'm with you, Jan! I don't have nearly enough wall space in my finished basement (train room/home office), but what space I do have is used for commercially made wall units with sliding glass or Plexiglas doors. Some of the units have O gauge (U.S. Army and Amtrak, mostly); some have O gauge tinplate; and a couple have my collection of LGB streetcars.

I don't get much dust at all in my basement, despite having three very young grandsons--1, 3, and 5--trumping/stomping/jumping around upstairs a couple of days a week, and I'm not really sure why. My guess is that having had the basement's open-ceiling sprayed with black dryfall paint when we did the finishing has helped keep dust to a bare minimum. Nevertheless, I prefer that any trains not on the layout be displayed in glass-enclosed display cases.

@Mark V. Spadaro posted:

Any further thoughts on lashup50’s concern about spring fatigue? Truthfully, never would’ve occurred to me.

My trains with pickup rollers have been on my layout for years.  I've never had a spring issue.

Ron

Back in the seventies I collected American Flyer Trains.

Thanks for your comment, Ron.

Some of my storage is under my rolling train table.   My wife made alternating brown & camo covers.  It is amazing how many people including kids don't notice anything could be there.

I found Pizza Dough boxes at the restaurant supply .  They each hold 12 lionel items.   Some cookie sheets  where the space is a little tighter.  All In all I have 25 of the Pizza pans and 6-7 cookie sheets.

Then some kitchen shelf anti-skid in the bottom of the pizza pans.   I know, keeping the items on their side is not a good idea unless you have some paper that wont stick to the paint.

I did have to re-inforce the shelves with a 2x4 about every 2- 2 1/2 feet.  Those steamers tend to warp the 1/2 plywood shelving otherwise.    the table has 6 of the wheels you see in the first picture.   I think they are each rated at  500lb/240Kilo or more.   About 2x what I need with all the boxes loaded.

My house is 1 story, cement floor, no basement so it works.  I wouldn't recommend it on a floor with a basement under it or 2nd story unless the floor was very well made with at least 2 layers of 3/4 ply.   It gets heavy in a hurry with a number of steamers.

Running out of storage, isn't that one of the good problems to have?

Is there any concern about rubber traction tires getting flat spots from sitting on storage track or aluminum shelves that are similar to track? Would it be better to cut shallow grooves in wood shelves and  have the wheel flanges bottom out & support the weight & take the load off the tires, at least for shelves that store locomotives with tires?

routing out the shelf to make it look like rails and ties....  I like that.

much thinner than using track.

I could do that with my laser cutter.

@Mark V. Spadaro posted:

Any further thoughts on lashup50’s concern about spring fatigue? Truthfully, never would’ve occurred to me.

I don't see any issues with pickup rollers, but traction tires develop flat spots over time.