Four compact track plans

QuanaAcmePacific

Present and former members of the Model Railroader staff designed these four model railroads. Each can fit a 150-square-foot space. That space could be a 10 x 15-foot spare room, an 8-foot-wide stall in an 18-foot-long garage, a 5-foot-wide space along a 30-foot basement wall, or anything in between. What resulted was a variety of […]

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HO scale 59th and Rust

HOscale59thandrust

Click on the image to download a PDF of the track plan. Name: 59th and Rust Layout owner: Raymond O’Neill Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 18 x 96 inches Theme: freelanced urban switching Locale: northeast New Jersey and New York Era: 1965 to 1975 Style: Shelf Mainline run: 14 feet Minimum radius: 24″ Minimum turnout: no. […]

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HO scale Fox Hill & Metuchen RR and Fox Hill Traction Co.

HOscaleFoxHillMetuchenRRandFoxHillTractionCo

Name: Fox Hill & Metuchen RR and Fox Hill Traction Co. Layout owner: Fred Miller Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 18″ x 11′-8″ plus 9′ x 6′-9″ staging Theme: Generic steam and urban traction Locale: Northeastern United States Era: 1920 to 1930s Style: shelf Mainline Run: 12 feet (steam line), 18 feet (traction) Minimum Radius: 24″ (steam), […]

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HO scale New Woodstock

HOscaleNewWoodstockNY

Name: New Woodstock Layout owner: Phil Lord Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 8 x 14 feet Prototype: Lehigh Valley RR Locale: Madison County, N.Y. Era: 1945 Style: shelf Mainline run: 40 feet Minimum radius: 18″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: flat Benchwork: open grid Height: 481⁄2″ Roadbed: none Track: Atlas code 100 Scenery: extruded-foam insulation […]

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HO scale Los Angeles Junction Ry.

HOscaleLosAngelesJunctionRy

Name: Los Angeles Junction Ry. Layout owner: Lance Mindheim Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 4′-0″ x 9′-6″ Prototype: Los Angeles Junction Horn Lead Locale: Vernon, Calif. Era: 2008 Style: Shelf Mainline run: No main line Minimum radius: 24″ Minimum turnout: no. 6 Maximum grade: none Benchwork: box grid Height: 58″ Roadbed: none; track glued directly to […]

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O scale Olympia Logging Co. v.2

OscaleOlympiaLoggingCov2

Name: Olympia Logging Co. v.2 Scale: On30 (1:48 narrow gauge) Size: 1’-10” x 13’-0” Minimum radius: NA Minimum turnout: Peco On30 code 100 Maximum grade: 6.9 percent Height: 40” This track plan originally appeared in Model Railroading: The Ultimate Guide. Click on the link  to download a PDF copy of this track plan. […]

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HO scale Sierra Pintada & Western RR

HOscaleSierraPintadaWestern

Name: Sierra Pintada & Western RR Layout owner: Willem Van der Hoeven Scale: HO (1:87.1) Size: 10′-0″ x 34′-10″ Prototype: freelanced, inspired by old-time western United States railroads Locale: Arizona Era: 1880s Style: shelf Mainline run: 40 feet Minimum radius: 24″ Minimum turnout: no. 4 Maximum grade: 2 percent Benchwork: shelf on consoles Height: 40″ […]

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WRF layout update 2018

Scene from White Road Forest layout

After almost two years of building, here’s a brief photo update of “White Road Forest,” my small shelf layout. Having no place at home, I built the layout in the back of the warehouse where I work using some second-hand components (for lower cost). I made “the private spot” using a couple of shelves as […]

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WRF layout update 2018

Scene from White Road Forest layout

After almost two years of building, here’s a brief photo update of “White Road Forest,” my small shelf layout. Having no place at home, I built the layout in the back of the warehouse where I work using some second-hand components (for lower cost). I made “the private spot” using a couple of shelves as […]

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HO scale Tar Branch

HOscaleWinstonSalemSouthboundTarBranch

Name: The Tar Branch Size: 2′-9″ x 8′-2″ Prototype: Winston-Salem Southbound Ry. Location: Winston-Salem, N.C. Era: mid-to-late 1950s Style: shelf Minimum radius: 20″ Minimum turnout: no. 4 Maximum grade: none Benchwork: L-girder Height: 46″ Roadbed: milled Homasote on ½” plywood Track: handlaid code 83 Scenery: Sculptamold on extruded-foam insulation board and plywood Backdrop: building photographs […]

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HO scale Grand Trunk & Indiana

HOscaleGrandTrunkIndiana

Name: Grand Trunk & Indiana Layout owner: Russ Rettig Scale: HO (1:87) Size: 2 x 16 feet Prototype: New Jersey, Indiana & Illinois RR Locale: north-central Indiana Era: late 1970s Style: single deck Mainline run: 16 feet Minimum radius: 18″ Minimum turnout: no. 4 Maximum grade: none Train length: 8 to 10 cars Benchwork: 1⁄8″ […]

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Small shelf layout

Scene of a small shelf model railroad

Alejandro’s small shelf layout measures 9.51 x 7.55 feet with an average width of 1.31 feet. The layout is set in the mid-1970s somewhere between Oregon and Washington (previously Great Lakes area). […]

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