Is Bigger Really Better?
or “Track and Decks and Helices (Oh my!)”
I’m a little behind on my model railroad magazine reading. This could be because I’ve been wasting time building a layout, or that I spend too much time blogging, or that I subscribe to too many model-oriented publications, but I doubt it. It’s probably just because I’m lazy.
Either way, I picked up the July 2018 issue of Model Railroader and was bombarded with the cover story’s headline. (See right.)
I don’t know Mike Tricker, but based on the photos, he looks to have a nice layout. And truth be told, this post isn’t really about his layout or that particular article.
It’s about the concept.
The trend at Model Railroader (and other modeling publications) seems to be toward showcasing larger and larger layouts. First it was double-decked, then mushrooms, now triple-decked. They had an article a while back about someone who built a four- or five-deck layout in their dining room, for crying out loud!
I fear this may be having a detrimental effect on the hobby.
While these layouts are impressive, and often inspiring, could it be that the focus on them in the modeling press is actually causing fewer layouts to be built?
Hear me out on this. With so many articles focusing on multi-deck layouts, how many people are then convinced that to have a good layout, it has to be multi-deck? So, off they go, designing a multi-deck track plan that fills every inch of available space with track and decks and helices. I know for a fact that designing a track plan takes time; it took me quite a while to come up with my plan, and it isn’t nearly as grandiose as a multi-deck affair. So months (maybe years) pass as this designing and planning take place. Then what happens when you actually have to build it?
How many modelers get to that point and—realizing the size of the project—procrastinate for months (maybe years)? Worse, how many modelers get to this point and are paralyzed, never actually building a thing? Because, let’s be clear, building a layout of any size is quite an undertaking, and multiple decks compound that. It might not be so bad if you have a crew to come in and help, but many modelers are lone-wolf-types. And it’s expensive. Lumber alone might cripple a budget, forget the track, wiring, locomotives, rolling stock, scenery and more that go along with it.
You could go smaller, but all the great layouts are multi-decked, right?
My advice: forget that crap. It’s not always about how much mainline length you have. Before getting too far down the design road, figure out what’s going to work for you.
- What type of operations do you prefer? (For that matter, do you want to operate at all, or is it more about scenery and structures?)
- How much free time (and/or time left) do you have to build it and get it to a reasonable level of completion and operation?
- What can you afford/what’s your budget
- How much help will you have?
- Can you live with the inevitable height compromises involved with a multi-deck layout?
Some (most? all?) of these questions came from three articles from Lance Mindheim’s “Shelf Layouts” blog site, which I found to be extremely helpful when I got really serious about my “final” track plan:
The time I put into thinking about these topics was very well spent, and convinced me that multi-decking wasn’t right for me (although I considered it) and that the single-deck design I had was not only achievable for construction, but would realize my operation goals (that is, primarily switching). I didn’t want to invest the time and money required for a multi-deck layout. And that takes into consideration that I am a) reasonably young b) fortunate enough to be able to afford a decent modeling budget and c) have a group of friends helping me with construction.
I’m not saying multi-deck layouts are bad. I know people who have them and love them. You may find they’re your thing. But they’re not for everyone. And people shouldn’t feel like they have to be.