Virtual Model Railroad Tour and Foam Risers!

[@donmartin9567]

You can make continuous risers like the woodland scenics. Tape 2 1/2" styrofoam sheets together, you only need them to be as wide as the height of your elevation change. Draw a line from one corner to the other and cut the foam along that line and you'll now have two pieces of foam with the grade you want. To go around corners you can bend / break the foam. To get a more precise rise, you can use a hot wire and clamp a 1 X 2 across the corners to use as a guide. Hope that makes sense.

[@SteveH-TN]

Thanks for sharing this video and details. Currently I Am migrating from KATO Unitrack N Scale to Rokuhan Z scale. I am also learning to use SCARM. It will be my first attempt at building a layout with 2-3% grades. I especially enjoyed seeing how you created the grades. Your advice to test , test some and test again seems very wise. Now I just need to discipline myself to be patient and actually time the time to incrementally test.

[@ictmainline9273]

Great Update Jimmy! Looking really good. Excited to see what’s next.

[@1babysag]

You can make 2.5” risers with Woodland Scenics, just add an 1/2” riser to the 2” riser. I did it on my last layout. In fact I had a 4” riser that went down to table top level causing the train to gradually disappear. It was marvelous. I need to build a new layout. I have the space, I have some time, but now I need to develop a decent plan. Your work is inspirational to me.

[@acrranscaleandlifejourney4330]

Thanks for riser building techniques. And thanks for the video

[@allenbarnes7202]

Use straws to go THROUGH the hollow core door, easier to thread wire through,

[@davidf9630]

Great job jimmy. I can see that youthful exuberance break through… you just got in there and started cutting… thanks for bringing us along

[@dexterdog62]

Your first layout was always my favourite so I’m stoked to see you back at it. Looking forward to further progress on it. What’s old is new again!

[@lowcountryrailroad7701]

Looks like it's going to be fun Jimmy

[@brianpagemodeltrains]

Awesome, Jimmy! It's good to see the first layout again, only better!

[@CM-ARM]

I have been doing a bit like you are but I'm covering it with plaster cloth that I get from a medical supply. It's alot cheaper than Woodland Scenic. Well you keep having fun, Chris

[@anthonyshipman3611]

Brilliant video Jimmy. Makes me want to start all over again with my layout but no room. All the best Anthony.

[@loispadgett6306]

That is coming along nicely I love watching builds because you always learn new ways to do things. Plus thanks to those great ideas everybody are adding in the comments. So much fun. GOD BLESS 🚂💖🚂💖🚂💖

[@melkitson]

Another good one Jimmy. I like the way you have been working with foam. I am using similar methodology and it is coming out well. I am now impatient to see the next sessions. I endorse previous comments on the use of straws or other tubing to go through the foam and hollow core door. I have been going from the bottom upwards and find that my tubing will easily penetrate the foam without drilling.

[@gravesclay]

Use a coat hanger to fish your wire through the door. Feed it up from the bottom, tape the wire to it, them pull it back through! No issues no muss no fuss.

[@StephenParsey]

I know you like to work with Unitrack but have you considered doing your straights “not square” to the edges? This has the added benefit of naturally making the track slightly further from the layout edges as well. I find this helps tremendously when trying to make small layouts feel more realistic and providing some space for small foreground scenery work.

[@SteveH-TN]

Enjoyed your comments & ideas. I’m just migrating from KATO N Scale TTRAK to Rokuhan Z Scale

[@NewHavenRails]

Nice update!

[@mikemunley9563]

I just finished a project on my layout using foam insulation board. Although I respect your choice of the DAP caulk, I recommend a hot glue gun. One of the build advantages of foam is speed of cutting/shaping. Using a hot-glue gun gives full strength adhesion within a minute or two. That is a big deal for projects like yours.

[@kend3900]

Excellent

[@sampleexamplemusic]

YES. LONG VIDEO. THANK YOU! :)

[@jvanamb]

Great job! Especially integrating the Original with the Upgrade. A quick hint/hack. When scratch building raiser build up the height to a fraction of an inch ABOVE what you need. Then with a hotwire slicer remove about an Eighth of an inch at a time. Until your at the correct elevation. An additional thing I do is after I'm close to my desired height for my top layer I use a cut that mimics the complete area roadbed. It's that top piece I slice on the Proxon. Lastly, YOU RAN HALF-MARATHONS??? What was beyond the finish line? "DEATH BY COFFEE" ☕, three sugars, no cream? 😅 ~Jim

[@gerlandkent6377]

[thank, you for you're great video]👍

[@needs2quit1atgmail87]

This one ia the best yet!! Good job

[@anfieldroadlayoutintheloft5204]

Good video

[@bobsinclair9886]

I LIKE THE WAY IT REALLY EASY THANKS

[@Horse2021]

The very first thought that came to me is to slice plastic straws length-wise and feed and glue that through the door first. The only reason for cutting a slice is in case there is no drill bit that matches the diameter of the straw in question. Better to have the straw over-lap itself in the doorway holes that leaving a gap for the wire to sneak through (defeating the whole use of an enclosed tube. That way there is a pathway between the upper and lower surfaces of the door itself. Then just trim the straw flush as needed against the doorway.

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

I swear you’ve read my mind.

[@stuartprince7229]

I'm waiting for my new condo to be finished. I will be utilizing the unfinished basement. I m enjoying your video and your use of foam. I noticed u r using unitrack. Is this for N or HO gauge? What is the table height of your layout? Thanks for the inspiration

[@lowcountryrailroad7701]

Do you have any oil industry kits available?

[@BanjoPars]

HI, is there a link to the next video in this series? Thanks

[@ianstubbington2334]

Really excited about this build. Its coming along so quickly. Question: Is that an interchange track that joins the mainline almost under the bridge? Are you thinking maybe have a cartridge type system to attach there?

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

You sir have a very good eye!

[@waltslostson1056]

Great video. How did you get a truss bridge in SCARM

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

Thank you! Kato makes a truss bridge and therefore it was preloaded as a kato track section that you could select.

[@waltslostson1056]

@@DIYDigitalRailroad Thanks i realized that after i thought about it for a while. Have fun!

[@chrisridd9423]

I'm wondering how you're going to fit your below track point motors as you can't fix them into the foam.

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

This is actually one big drawback of foam if you are using below track point motors, luckily I am using Kato turnouts that have the point motors built in and all I have to do is run a wire.

[@chrisridd9423]

@@DIYDigitalRailroad that's cheating :-)

[@aliciahoflack138]

i live in a small appartement and have litary no room to build a nice layout, i bought my trains when i still lived with my parents and later moved out to live with my now wife. Any tips on were i would be able to enjoy the trains i have? they are from marklin

[@iangerahty3422]

Check out diorama types of layout. Some are only the size of a fish tank but others can become quite large in terms of length if not height or depth. Also a module that you can contribute to a Freemo or similar exhibition can be rewarding too. Have a look at Boomer Dioramas channel starting with his Glover Road project. He’s both a great teacher and philosopher about modelling and brings decades of experience in Film and Museum work. Search around for other similarly generous modellers in the genre that resonates with you. Jimmy is a good place to have started but a few more inspirational channels that provide a wider range of views can be good.

[@StephenParsey]

Jimmy’s MRROne playlist is a simple but good starter layout and only on 2x4ft! kzbin.info/aero/PLhNb9AHNpkeei0oTCywo9rVMnD8EBy41Z

[@electricgaming9914]

So as I under stand it foam is the only way to make mountains?

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

Actually there are quite a few ways to make mountains. Everything from cardboard strips to chicken wire!

[@electricgaming9914]

Can you pls make a tutorial on how to make mountains with a 20 dollar budget??

[@TheSuperStarCarWash]

@@electricgaming9914 Yeah... He'll make a video just for you. Special Ed students should have equal opportunities.

[@electricgaming9914]

What’s special Ed? 👉👈?

[@jimktrains0]

Cardboard strips glued or stapled together, covered with paper or news paper that's been soaked in plaster. Cardboard and scrap paper should be nearly free, and a bag of plater of paris isn't too expensive.

[@EndlessFilmLimited]

4* is not realistic- that's a long stretch to say considering my hometown railroad operates on a 9* grade with steamers and have operated on those grades for 121 years... It's your railroad- you do you. People who say things aren't realistic usually just are not well studied.

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

That sounds amazing! Where is that railroad?

[@EndlessFilmLimited]

@@DIYDigitalRailroad Cass, WV. Most of the grade is 6* plus along the entire run with many sections well above that up to 9*. Before they rebuilt the track there was a long section of track that was over 11*. Public rides are available most of the year and the view is amazing. One loco- #5 C/N 1503, 1905; Class 80-3 has spent her entire 116 year operating career on those heavy grades. I do recommend the visit!

[@tczephyr3665]

Keep in mind that because your grades are on a curve they are actually a bit more than 2.5 and 4%.

[@DIYDigitalRailroad]

Hey Wendell! Luckily SCARM does all of the calculations for me! including the curves, but this is a great tip for those who plan their grades manually with math.

[@dwest4473]

I see many options for liquid nails. What do you (anyone) find to be the best option that works for foam as well as track?

[@TheSuperStarCarWash]

You are thinking to hard... ANY glue will work!

[@PKCrouse]

Caulk works very well with foam, cork roadbed, and track, it cleans up with soap and water, and it dries clear.