Has anyone here done a closed in coffee table layout before?? I'm going to do one and in N scale. I'm really excited to have something displayed like that. It'll be my first time doing anything myself so I was looking at suggestions and tips to help a newbie along! Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk
I'm really curious to what kind of track would be recommended for something like this???? Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk
Here's an idea, a little less ambitious, but could be fun and just what you need as a newbie. It's a bought table leaving you with just the board, trains, and scenery to worry about. It's a glass top kitchen table with a shelf below from Ikea. The shelf can support a board that can be removed to work on and then placed for display. This is the larger of the two tables in my lady friend's kitchen with a very simple oval placed on a translucent plastic sheet of textured acrylic (like you might find in a shower door). She has her knick knacks and various trains to select from as her mood dictates. It has no scenery other than her various momentoes which she changes by season and whim. The clearance from shelf surface to underside of glass is 3 1/2" which is plenty of height for N scale trains OR... you could assemble the angle iron/ latticed shelf inverted making a pocket for your board to set in and getting another 7/8"- 1" height clearance for a total of 4 3/8". It's just an assembly choice not requiring modification to parts. The additional height will afford more scenery options for hills and buildings. Without flipping the shelf a 5/8" base will clear trains just fine and afford comfortable height clearance for about a two+ story building or scenery equivalent. Flipping the shelf and the extra space that affords could add a LOT to your flexibility for hills and buildings and maybe even a crossover. Tunnels might want to be avoided on a first board mainly because of track cleaning and maintenance. And here's to the larger rectanglular 4 seat package. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/70272059/ Here's a link to the small two seat square one. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/10272057/
Yes! That's the direction I was thinking...there's a coffee table you can remove the inside squares, or I can cut holes in lol I'm gonna look into those others tho. I need to check the height. I tend to get in over my head. But I'm gonna go slow lol Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk
Some track info for you. Atlas is a brand. They make 3 types of N scale track. Code 80 is the most common. They also make True track that I believe is code 70. And they make code 55 track that I am using. They make the code 80 and 55 in both snap track and flex track. You may want to start with something easy though. Kato makes track many modelers like. It has the track and the roadbed all in one. Some call Kato track bullet proof. And it is very easy to work with. Bachman also makes N scale track similar to Kato. I have not heard bad things about it but I have never used the Bachman track. Bachman does not have the same number of choices as Kato though. Peco and Micro Engineering are some other brands as well. (If I missed some ones favorite please forgive me.) The code part is the height of the rails. The bigger the number the taller the rail. Flex track is just what you would think. It is flexible track you can curve any way you need. It comes in 2 and a half to three foot lengths. Hope this helps.
Yep, my vote would be with Kato Unitrack for its simplicity and reliability. With a glass top impeding easy access, derailments will also derail your enthusiasm for a coffee table railroad.
Another advantage of Kato track is that it has ready made feeders (where the wires carrying the electricity connect to the track) so you don't have to solder you own. Soldering isn't the hardest thing in the world but personally I find holding a stick heated to a few hundred degrees pretty nerve wracking. Coffee table layouts are a great idea for a small layout. You can display them nicely and the lid will keep down on dust.
That's really good to know. I need it simple for how small it will be and my inexperience. But you live and learn and I'm excited! Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk
I love the idea of a coffee table layout, but fitting trains into a contained space adds a layer of complexity that a beginner doesn't really need. I'd suggest a "chainsaw" layout first, something simple, open topped, and designed to be temporary, where you can practice your skills and learn how to do things like trackwork and scenery. That's just my opinion though, and it is what I did when I got back into trains.
Well my boyfriend has a very extensive O gauge layout (roughly 10'×10') so he will be helping and teaching me. We are planning to make it simple for me to learn at first and go from there. I'm excited to figure out how we make it work Sent from my VS986 using Tapatalk
Jenna, "Code" in talking about model track means 1/1000 of an inch. In other words, Code 55 is 0.055 inch model rail height, which, in N-Scale, translates to prototype 8.8 inches from rail head to foot, or total height of the rail cross section. N-Scale Code 40 is much closer to the actual height of heavy duty main line rail, or 6.6 inches. The formula is "Scale Ratio" times Code equals actual rail height. Therefore, 160 (N-Scale ratio, 1:160) times Code 55 = 8.8 inches. Your boy friend's O-Scale ratio is 1:48. So a 6 inch prototype main line rail would be Code 125 in O-Scale, or 1/8 inch high. (6" / 48 = 0.125") Capeche?
