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Simple Model Railway Layouts by T.J. Booth w/ dust jacket
Simple Model Railway Layouts by T.J. Booth
Hard cover with dust jacket Reflection from the lights on some photos
Copyright 1987
160 pages
Contents
Acknowledgements6
Introduction7
CHAPTER 1 Standard gauge light railway9
CHAPTER 2 00 gauge branch line terminus23
CHAPTER 3 00 gauge 'modern scene' layout39
CHAPTER 4 N gauge main line56
CHAPTER 5 An American 'shortline'72
CHAPTER 6 009 narrow gauge quarry layout89
CHAPTER 7 French branch line terminus102
CHAPTER 8 0 gauge light railway120
CHAPTER 9 Railway Preservation Centre136
CHAPTER 10 N gauge North American layout148
Index157
For all modellers or would-be modellers who believe that they have no room in their homes fora model railway, here are ten simple but effective layouts to prove them wrong.
On boards as small as 8ftX1ft, and from the classic GWR branch lineterminusto a North American `shortline' and a rural French backwater, T. J. Booth discusses baseboards, trackwork, wiring, scenery construction and rolling-stock in clear, easy-to-follow stages. He also has an unerring eye for authentic detail and atmosphere which brings even the smallest layout vividly to life.
For T. J. Booth, small is beautiful, as well as being practical, economical and, above all, enjoyable. These layouts also provide an ideal proving-ground for the techniques and skills which modellers will later be able to use in the 'ideal' layout of which they all dream!
Introduction
With the abundance of excellent models, equipment, books, magazines and plans available, it is often difficult to know where to start in such a wide and diverse hobby as railway modelling. There are many excellent books covering in detail individual aspects such as locomotive construction, scenic modelling and electronics, but the intention of this book is to present ideas for small, fairly simple layouts which should not prove too expensive to construct and should be capable of finding a place in the modern home, two very important and often overlooked considerations!
With each of the layouts there is a guide as to how it may be constructed in the hope that it will encourage would-be layout builders to have a go. These are, however, intended purely to present ideas and suggestions and not to deliver either a blow-by-blow account or a 'tablet of stone' which must be slavishly adhered to. The methods suggested have all been well tried and are fairly common; in most cases there are also alternatives, and all but the most inexperienced modellers will no doubt have developed their own favorite approaches and methods.
Each chapter in the book is self-contained and provides an idea and a plan for a layout and suggests ways in which it might be constructed and the locomotives and rolling-stock which might be appropriate. However, it is quite possible that a suggestion or idea in one chapter could equally well be used in another.
No apology is made for dealing with baseboard construction in some detail, as the baseboard is in every sense the foundation upon which all else depends. Skimping on baseboards and careless track laying are two common causes of poor running on model railway layouts, and any short cuts and economies that are tried in these areas will undoubtedly prove false and probably costly to remedy.
The layout plans included are not revolutionary but are based on ideas and concepts which have been well used in the hobby over a long period. They are of necessity a compromise between reality and the practicality of constructing a small working model railway, but similar layouts have either been built by the author or he has been associated with them, and, despite their modest size, they can all become satisfying models.
Because of the scale, the layout plans cannot be entirely accurate; they are suggestions only, and because of their small size great care needs to be taken to ensure that adequate clearances and maximum lengths of sidings, run-round loops and the like are obtained. They can be accommodated in the spaces shown but would, of course, benefit from a larger area. The builder can therefore adapt the plans to suit his own preferences and the space available; they could be extended or perhaps later accommodated into a bigger system.
Because they are small and relatively cheap to construct, these layouts provide an ideal 'learning' exercise by which to practise and improve the various skills and techniques used in the hobby and can be scrapped and another layout built without too much concern. Small layouts can also be detailed to a far higher and more uniform standard than larger systems and have a much greater chance of being completed; a large layout can often prove too much for the individual modeller. Above all, small layouts are an ideal testing-ground for the techniques we will use in the 'ideal' layout of which we all dream!
At the end of each chapter is a list of some of the many sources of further information available which relate to the ideas dealt with in that chapter. These are not exhaustive and include books which may be out of print, but your local library should be able to get
copies for you and if you would like to have a copy of your own you may be able to trace one through a secondhand book dealer (there is now a good trade in second-hand railway books). Similarly, each chapter has specific references to a variety of products, and whilst every effort has been made to ensure that they are available at the time of publication, no guarantee can be made. Usually, however, good second-hand examples of many of the items of rolling-stock and locomotives can be found and for those particularly concerned with the cost of building a model railway layout, great savings can be made by buying second-hand from a reputable dealer.
Further information, help and advice is readily available from books and magazines and by asking questions at model railway exhibitions. If you have a local model railway club, the members will provide a ready source of help and advice. Equally, specialist societies such as the Gauge 0 Guild, EM Society and SNCF Society are there to help promote their particular interests and can be a useful source of help and expertise if your interests develop in those directions. Lastly, do not be afraid to ask the manufacturers themselves who in most cases are only too willing, for the consideration of a stamped addressed envelope, to give information on their products.
If this book provides some help and encouragement to would-be layout builders, and a few more model railway layouts are built, then it will have served its purpose.
All pictures are of the actual item. There may be reflection from the lights in some photos. We try to take photos of any damage. If this is a railroad item, this material is obsolete and no longer in use by the railroad. Please email with questions. Publishers of Train Shed Cyclopedias and Stephans Railroad Directories. Large inventory of railroad books and magazines. Thank you for buying from us.
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