Just an idea what to run Z Shorties on...

[MichiK]

This is just a little exercise I did for the sheer fun, a little layout to run Z Shorties on (indeed, I have a serious crush on those little critters!).

 

And this is my reasoning behind it:

Most microlayouts seem to consist of a mere continuous loop, which at times can become a bit boring in terms of operation. So people sometimes also include a siding to add a possibility for some action (like, e.g., on Takashi's adorable southern coastal railroad).

A train, however, can depart easily from that siding, but to arrive you'd have to reverse direction. Therefore I've added yet another siding, which gives the possibility for point-to-point operations.

And, because it's not easy to build a believable scenery with two termini on such small layouts, I've cheated shamelessly and put the two end points into one single station!

Furthermore, I've added a yard of a respectable size, so while one train happily turns its circles others can be conveniently parked in sight.

 

And here's the result of my little execise:

 

 

For this execise I wanted to use standard track only - no flex nor cutting to length. The upper variant turned out a bit stiff in its appearance, but the lower one already looks quite ok. The length of the various sidings should be sufficient for 3-car-trains (this seems to be the standard for EMUs/DMUs), and the platforms a dawn with 150mm length.

 

Of course, these track plans work much better for EMUs/DMUs than for locos, but even then you can abuse them for the odd game of inglenook sidings!

 

Michi

 

[cteno4]

Very cool Michi! Whole layout in the size of a 2x Ttrak module!

 

Cheers,

 

jeff 

[MichiK]

Thank you very much for the likes!

 

10 hours ago, cteno4 said:

Very cool Michi! Whole layout in the size of a 2x Ttrak module!

 

Thanks, Jeff, though actually it's not that difficult with things like Shorties and the like (Nakanak of B-Team seems to have built a few micros, which are mor operation orientated, on a size of 900 x 300mm. Scaled down to Z they would come to about that size, too).

The "downside", of course, is that you wouldn't get to much out of it in terms of scenery, but that's the point with microlayouts: You really have to focus on one single thing!

If you're looking for scenery you won't get much in terms of operation, and vice versa.

[cteno4]

It’s sort of like a Ttrak module focusing a scene. Enough room on your layout to put in quite a bit to pop the scenery. Japanese scene allows a lot to get crammed in near the tracks fortunately. You are right though you can’t have the spectrum of scenes on a conventional layout! Just very fun you can do a lot in a small space.

 

looking forward to it evolution. 

 

Jeff

 

ps i agree the second plan feels much more organic.and will allow for a much more interesting overall scene.

[MichiK]

On 7/4/2018 at 6:47 PM, cteno4 said:

looking forward to it evolution.

 

Well, so far it's only a design study - I might do mock up (maybe 1/1250 scaleish or so) to test whether it would work in 3D at all, but I hve no actual plans of building.

With Nick's Shorty challange, however, the first thing will probably be to try to transfere the concept to a 42 x 21 cm base.

[cteno4]

That would be interesting. I did a bunch of mockups of t scale possible module sizes and shapes at 1/450, starting on scaled down Ttrak sizes. I just used foam core and then plunked down tracks buildings, some ground cover bits and trees and vehicles. 

 

Ironically the scaled down Ttrak sizes did not feel right at all in 1/450. Slightly smaller ones felt right along with long thin ones and larger square ones. Actually use to happen When doing 3/4” scale exhibit models, you couldn’t get the feel of the space just looking at the model from above, you could only rescale it well in the head by getting down to eye level thru the camera lens and then it popped into a full scale space. 

 

So it will be interesting to see what happens with a 1/1250 model ofmthe layout.

 

cheers

 

jeff

 

 

[MichiK]

Our mind can indeed be quite puzzeled when reality doesn't quite meet our expectations. I guess we all would be less content with our layouts if we'd  experience real railways from a fivehundret feet above on a daily basis!

 

Didn't do much, but found at least an hour to try whether I could use my Paper Structure buildings for a mock up (i.e., at least an urban one) - yes, I can:

 

[cteno4]

Beautiful work michi! You should be doing t scale! 

 

I found that reducing a lot of the papercraft models i had were excellent for t scale as the building relief at that scale is practically invisible unless you hold it an inch or two from your eye! At worst you just cut a bit out of the same wall and layer over as you did as the thickness of a piece of paper is a couple of inches in t scale.

 

I was struck how differenr scales sort of of screamed for different sized and shaped modules. The original Ttrak module was done on practicality and visual size to hold a tram and a nice bit of scenery around it. Scaling that down to t scale just didn’t look right... t wanted a smaller module for the small ones. Longer skinny ones and the bigger square ones as well. I tired a big range. When you got down with the camera they all looked the same of course, but on the table as usually displayed (from 500-1000’ in the air in t scale) things looked very different! 

 

Looking forward to the mockups!

 

Cheers

 

jeff

[MichiK]

And now for something completly different:

Something to run Z shorties on!

 

Japanese illustrator and mangaka Yayotcha has posted recently three views of a proposed small to micro layout, which I took an instant liking to:

 

 

He also linked to a youtube video, which explained how such a layout could be operated (apart from letting the train run, and run, and run...)

 

 

Finally, an illustration of the layout as a whole followed today:

 

 

 

As I said, I liked the layout instantly, and doing a little feasability study was the logical next step (the ruler is 50cm long).

I think this would work very well!

 

 

 

 

 

Edited May 3, 2019 by MichiK

[defor]

On 5/3/2019 at 12:27 PM, MichiK said:

He also linked to a youtube video, which explained how such a layout could be operated (apart from letting the train run, and run, and run...)

 

 

out of curiosity- any idea what's being used for the decoupler in the video?

I see some caution striping by where the decoupling is happening, but it looks like normal rapido couplers are being used and I don't see any magnets or similar...

 

thanks!

[disturbman]

From the comments and the video description:

Video description

A simple freight car replacement game using command cards. Using the automatic connection, automatic release, and delayed release (DU) by the magnetic coupler, you can have fun with simple settings.

Hotseanosuke

It seems very fun to be able to open the connection without touching the vehicle. I can't see the magnet between the tracks, what kind of uncoupler track do you use?

Tamakicha

Thank you for watching. Uncouplers have their own works using commercial (100 grade) neodymium magnets under the track. It is introduced in detail in the article “Enjoy the replacement operation with a magnetic coupler” in the “N Gauge Encyclopedia 2018” (cat publishing).

Edited November 28, 2019 by disturbman

[defor]

sorry- didn't think to even check the video description!

thanks!