Tight track design for a small shed

[@jolliemark6294]

What a great design in such a small space. Never thought about a rolling bridge section for access this might work for us older guys. Thanks for sharing 👍👍👍👍🤩

[@chrisdraper5067]

Plan is not my cup of tea, but I think this plan shows how much you ‘go the extra mile’ for the customer and put your own preferences to one side - the mark of a true professional

[@mpeterll]

Thank-you for noticing that.

[@ranger6-2]

Considering the limited space you were given to work with, I think you came up with a great design.

[@mpeterll]

Thank-you

[@Over3900]

I've actually really been enjoying these small room layout plans. As a model railroader with very limited space myself, I find a plan like this very inspirational. Thank you for sharing and great work as always!

[@mpeterll]

I'm glad you like them. I agree - While the big spectacular plans are great for letting my imagination roam, plans for modest spaces are often more useful to more people. I have a variety of different sized plans in my design queue; most of which will be published as and when I complete them.

[@PeterTillman3]

That is a very nice design Peter. It amazes me how much you can squeeze into a relatively small space.

[@ashleyhamman]

This is a great reference for myself. I'm not yet ready to give up a bedroom, but depicting passenger rail in a 10x10 or smaller space is surprisingly difficult to find, especially for multi-platform stations.

[@ianmorris7485]

Personally I would never have considered HO for such a small space, but the end result is impressive, well thought out.

[@mpeterll]

It was challenging in HO. N-scale would have been a lot easier in this space.

[@robertcooney4139]

It's been a long time ⌛ I'm back after having a quadruple bypass and 3 strokes... Bob Cooney Good to see you 😀

[@darrinbanks8558]

A well thought out design and plenty of operation.

[@jgalexander510]

I did enjoy! Lots of interesting features in a small space, and yet they aren’t super cramped. Well done.

[@derekalexander4030]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts on the planning of this layout. Thank you also for showing the rollaway section to avoid duck unders and swing gates. Even people that use rollouts always make them square and do not take advantage of the wedge design you used which aids in aligning the tracks.

[@mpeterll]

The wedge is essential. If it was built with square corners, it would need big unsightly gaps in the scenery to avoid jamming.

[@alwheeler8302]

I always click on videos of HO in small spaces, great stuff

[@Haymarket47]

I’m glad you’ve produced a design such as this as many people have a restricted space akin to this. Wondering what it may have looked like with say Peco flexitrack code 75. Thanks.

[@andrewblake2254]

I don't think a small radius peco would match what he has there which I believe to be 18" rad points. It would be worth looking at peco curved points. Piko would also be worth looking at with some very tight radius curved points.

[@mpeterll]

This plan could probably be duplicated fairly closely with the PECO code 75 range. It wouldn't be an exact match, but could probably be fairly close.

[@markjohnson9136]

Your attention to detail is mind boggling

[@mpeterll]

Thank-you.

[@HumancityJunction]

This is a great example of how creative design can make a good end product. I know it is more cramped than your usual designs, but this has a lot of running options which it sounds was the clients main goals.

[@mpeterll]

I also think I pretty much nailed what he wanted. There was a lot that had to be omitted because he wanted far too much (as do most of us) and a multi-level plan wasn't an option.

[@termaddict]

I'm adding the baseboard alignment dowels with, electrical pick ups built in, made by DCC concepts for a removable section. Building my layout around some gas lines and a tankless water heater. Love your work!

[@Lutain1337]

This was a wonderful video. Its shows compromises that most people have to make due to size restrictions. You really maximized space on this one. Thank you for sharing.

[@mpeterll]

Thank-you for watching.

[@JoeyBPhotography]

Cramped? Yeah. A track plan that works for that space? Yup! Like you, this is not an ideal space for a layout for my purposes at HO scale, but you made it work for them!

[@alexwake850]

Amazing what can be designed into such a small place, thanks for sharing.

[@steveross129]

I appreciate seeing some smaller plans because my layout will be placed in a spare bedroom. These give me great ideas, e.g., the rollout entry section.

[@mpeterll]

Glad it was helpful.

[@steveross129]

@@mpeterll how do you ensure the tracks align with this or any other removeable section? I see you would recommend deadbolts to hold it in place, is that sufficient with a careful fit?

[@nedmerrill5705]

Plenty of challenges in small spaces. What I like what you did here was maintain some open, non-railroad space which tricks the mind into believing the overall layout is larger than it really is. I read about that trick in Lance Mindheim's books.

[@mpeterll]

I've not read his books, although most layout design books that I have read seem to present mostly the same information in different ways so it doesn't surprise me that we both use many of the same ideas. I have over the years developed quite a few tricks for making a layout appear larger than it really is, although I don't believe that any of them are completely original; I've simply taken ideas from others and refined them in my own ways.

[@Tachikoma-sj6kz]

for a huge number of modellers the reality is that is still a lot of space - personally i'd like to see more smaller layouts. enjoyed the vid

[@mpeterll]

I don't get many small layout designs to do. Maybe that's because most people who are willing to pay for a professional design are those who have more space at their disposal. Another possibility is that while anyone can design a simple layout, a complex one is more challenging and can seem overwhelming - hence the desire to pay someone else to do it.

[@Wild-Dad]

Nice plan to fit a lot in a small space. For space consideration, I personally would have gone with only a two track main station - but then I’m not the customer.

[@roberttucker960]

A good job as always!

[@sturnie1]

You do a lot of design work I wish we could see the end results of those layouts.

[@mpeterll]

In most cases, I don't get to build the layouts I design for others. Even when a client is eager to share the progress of their layout, they generally take years to construct. Maybe in a decade or so, someone will post a video of a completed layout that I designed. I'd very much like to see that too.

[@chrisdraper5067]

Dratt, two of you beat me this week. third comment - I blame work!

[@rjl110919581]

thank your detail video as great watching fine out work and not work out are planning layout

[@andrewblake2254]

Just a general note on designing layouts for German railways. Typically stations comprise of a number of loops and very few stub sidings compared to UK trackwork where stubs are the norm. I have several books of German track plans and that is pretty much the rule though doubtless there are exceptions. Loco facilities are almost always a roundhouse in the steam era except at branch ends where there might be a small shed for tank engines. In the diesel era there were some traversers about as locos did not need to be turned. It is possible to have smaller radii with German railways as many bogie corridor cars are only 200mm long compared with 250mm for British Mk 1 corridor stock. Also there were many 4 and 6 wheel cars that look good on smaller radii and run well and these were around even until the '70's. Same goes with the locos, there are a large number of mid size locos that are less than 200mm long which are good on tighter radii. In the current era many regional trains are two car dmus/emus so again do not take up much space. The track i use is Piko profigleis which dispose of all frog and wiring issues and it comes in a several tightly curved point sizes that allow for great track flow on this kind of layout. I avoid the smallest straight point as is has given poor running. This stuff is more delicate than peco so needs to be laid with care. There is also a vast selection of plastic building kits which can be painted to one's own time period. I just hope this might assist or inspire anyone wanting to give German modelling a go.

[@mpeterll]

Thank-you for that information. I am aware that German railways used more loops and fewer stub tracks than Britain. Unfortunately, loop tracks take up more space - space my customer didn't have. I've incorporated as many loop tracks as I reasonably could and supplemented them with stub tracks to give him more operating potential. Likewise with roundhouses... There's no way that a roundhouse was going to fit in the space available.

[@jvanamb]

Peter, You have mentioned in a few layout design episodes that they a shorter in duration, I disagree. The 12 to 15 minute lengths seem to be perfect for the content. No need to change.

[@mpeterll]

Yes the 12-15 minute range is what I aimed at for a long time, gut as my layout design commissions got more and more complex, the plans took longer to describe, so mu design videos gradually got longer. I did try an experiment with one layout design - breaking the video into three parts - but that video series was not as well received as most of my designs.

[@andrewpalm2103]

I've been interested in smaller track plans since I first got interested in model railroading in the late '50's; so I enjoyed this video very much. One's preference on how crowded a track plan is varies from person to person, ranging from toy-like window displays to very sparse one's close to a prototype. I like to see them all, but my preference is crowded prototypes as seen in metro areas. To each one's own, eh?

[@sparky107107]

that is a perfect reason to switch to N scale. but to each their own.

[@mpeterll]

Yes, it would be much better in N scale, but the client was already firmly entrenched in HO scale.

[@markarnold8160]

I have 13' x 11' and suffered the same problem. Answer? N scale.

[@mkloz]

Good vid I am planning something just like this in a 3m x 3m shed

[@mpeterll]

So, almost the same size then. Glad you found it useful.

[@donaldshroyer8633]

Fascinating idea, the rolling entrance. How did you envision reliably aligning track? I have watched enough of your videos to feel you would have thought through the details, even if you didn't mention them.

[@mpeterll]

I would arrange for a pair of sliding bolts to lock it in place, and probably build in some height adjustment with a single screw in each corner that can be loosened and shimmed if necessary.

[@donaldshroyer8633]

That would make a good video all by itself.

[@robertcooney4139]

Are you okay after your loss ?

[@ValConB]

Will the tracks align quite well without any adjustments each time the moveable section is put back in place? Thanks for posting!

[@mpeterll]

With anything like this, it depends on how carefully it is built. The client told me that he was a skilled cabinet maker so I have every confidence in his ability to get it to work reliably.

[@hjones3056]

Great Vid :) Any progress on your own railroad?

[@mpeterll]

Not yet.

[@johnchesworth4865]

Peter, I wonder whether given a free hand you would have gone for "less is more"? The end result is a happy client which is what it's all about but ................ Take care and keep safe.

[@mpeterll]

In that space in HO-scale and if given a free hand, I wouldn't even attempt a main-line layout. Instead, I'd go for either a small branch-line or a purely switching layout. I think a nice waterfront industrial area wound be a good choice, but that's not what the client wanted.

[@scrag2841]

Hello! I have been binge watching your videos and I wanted to ask a question if I may. What version of 3rd PlanIt are you using? I have version 9.02 and I'm thinking of upgrading to the latest version and I was curious what you are using.

[@mpeterll]

I use the Beta test version (so it has some features not available to the general user-base). Not sure what the version number is.

[@MarkInLA]

Peter, when you state "snap track" 1:10 do you actually mean the early 1950s designed Atlas code 100 junk with the plastic frogs and possibly with brass rail to boot ?!! I truly hope not ! That being German theme it's Marklin or some Euro track with simu-ballast, say and not Atlas. What control will it have; DC, DCC ? M

[@mpeterll]

It is fleischmann profi track - German made, I believe.

[@SarykMoBa]

@@mpeterll Austrian made

[@dexterdog62]

First again!

[@andrewblake2254]

I understand its what the customer wanted but i think it very ill advised to have a hidden and inaccessible fiddle yard and also visually horrible to cram the area with track. It is really greed to cram everything into an area where you could do a secondary mainline station very nicely. It will also be a nightmare for one person to operate. I suspect the would be owner has no experience of this. I have built about 25 layouts over 45 years so I do understand the trade offs.

[@mpeterll]

The staging yard is not inaccessible. It is hidden from a seated position but visible as soon as the owner stands up. He'll have to lean over a little to see the nearest track or two, but that is easy enough with the benchwork being fairly low. Although one turnout ladder is covered, the castle diorama (built on foam and very lightweight) gives easy access for maintenance. It's also perfect for him to operate by himself as he lets one train run by itself while driving the other one, since there is no interference.

[@andrewblake2254]

Well I hope it all works as planned and the customer enjoys it. As a matter of interest are they using dcc or other programmmable systems?