Inspirational Scenery & Layouts

[Darklighter]

Some scans from various issues of Tetsudo Mokei Shumi: 

 

http://www.1999.co.jp/image/10244157a/20/1

http://www.1999.co.jp/image/10187426a/20/1

http://www.1999.co.jp/image/10232183a/20/1

 

The first layout is Z gauge and the last one HO scale but they could be N gauge as well.  ;) 

[Densha]

Just found this one on youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/user/riostam

Just a few vids of the layout:

 

 

 

 

I think he is inspired by this one:

http://www.youtube.com/user/yukikazeful

Edited December 25, 2013 by Densha

[cteno4]

excellent little layout and nice videos. love the use of audio, well done!

 

thanks

 

jeff

[JR 500系]

Dunno whether this has been posted before, but i'm sure this guy was having a really FUN time with his trains!

 

 

Also, a true hardcore Tetchan! 

[miyakoji]

I think this guy could just show up at the depot and drive the train!

[cteno4]

I like the fact he is sitting in the middle of the layout!

 

Jeff

[JR 500系]

Yap Jeff, i mean, look at that layout! It's LONG! I think he was in a room or something dedicated to his trains... I reckon it's a space below a staircase in a house?

 

Agreed Miyakoji. I think he spent quite some time looking at what Yamanote line conductors do driving trains day in and out. Perhaps the Yamanote got a similar situation which he experienced and he decided to 're-enact' it out on his set at home ~~

[IST]

This is a cool video. Does anyone know what is he saying?

Is it typical to use the throttle at this way, so when you start a train you pull the lever to max position?

[miyakoji]

I don't know about the use of the throttle, but what he acts out is an emergency stop because a passenger's bag or something sticking out through a closed door.  He speaks with the conductor and the control office.

[ToniBabelony]

Is it typical to use the throttle at this way, so when you start a train you pull the lever to max position?

 

Depends on the type of train. Some need a more civil means of accelerating due to having no ESP system or are jerky when accelerating at full throttle (Odakyu 8000 type comes to mind). Other, mostly new types can have a smooth and fast departure at full blast.

[JR 500系]

Here's another latest upload from, in my opinion, a guy that did the best Shinkansen video ever:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVuLbaSlIRg 

 

 

Here's the original video which made me say the sentence above: 

 

 

It's a wonderful video, and the audio just fits perfectly to show the majestic of the bullet trains ~~

Edited January 10, 2014 by JR500 のぞみ

[Densha]

Yet another inspirational layout. Very nice modelling and filming work:

 

http://www.youtube.com/user/gorigorira74/videos

 

Just one of his videos:

 

 

and another nice video from the person who did Ochanomizu station:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnPwV5VddR8

Edited January 12, 2014 by Densha

[cteno4]

very nice layout on the top one. some sections with all the catenary, electrical, and telephone lines in there!

 

lots of hard work getting that audio just right in the shots as well. kudos.

 

jeff

[Keikyu]

and another nice video from the person who did Ochanomizu station:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lnPwV5VddR8

 

I love the ballast in this, it looks very realistic. Like how the brown leaks out from the tracks.

[ToniBabelony]

This layout is gorgeous and amazing! Powered by an 8-bit PIC microcontroller and is inspiring as to no end. I believe the operations are completely DC, but with computerised controls. This makes me want to take on Arduino or get back into basic electronics for creating a simple circuit for automating a small autonomous station with passing loop... Hmmm~

 

[Densha]

In some posts of these blogs you can see very nice tram layouts (and also a lot of kitbashing of trams):

http://pub.ne.jp/arccentral/?cat_id=170828

http://tombi.fshiba.com/

[Densha]

For the B-Train Shorty fans out there: http://blogs.yahoo.co.jp/jt2004sky/folder/60238.html

[cteno4]

Nice little layout.

 

Jeff

[ToniBabelony]

Gah! B-Trains are too much! It makes me want to put together a small layout with them... Maybe only 4-car trains, but with DCC operation like this (of course sans the annoying moe-moe-kyu~ voice). Ah, probably way too much out of my financial league... Maybe I should try trains with radio control operation on batteries instead.

 

 

[kvp]

Beautiful! Actually you don't need DCC for this layout, just three controllers. If you put the power feeds into the 3 station tracks and isolate around halfway at the back and use tomix fully power routing turnouts, then you don't need anything else to operate a layout like this. I made a simplified drawing of the layout and attached it below.

 

The idea is that the turnouts select which controller powers which part of the mainline. The left turnout group can route power to the left inner track from controller 1 and 2, and to the left outer track from controller 2 and 3. The right turnout group can route power to the right inner track from controller 1 and 2 and the to the right outer track from controller 2 and 3. At the same time controller 1 can be used to move a train to and from one of the yard tracks if it is not powering anything from the right mainlines.

 

Actually it's very simple to operate this, you just need 4 hands. Operation can be made easier by adding route selection logic with a few diodes, so you can have the following pushbuttons:

-train from left inner mainline to track 1

-train from left inner mainline to track 2

-train from track 2 to left outer mainline

-train from track 3 to left outer mainline

-train from track 1 to right inner mainline 

-train from track 2 to right inner mainline

-train from right outer mainline to track 2

-train from right outer mainline to track 3

-train between yard track 1 and track 1

-train between yard track 2 and track 1

This system has the added benefit of setting all the signals along the turnouts if you add a few bistable relays. Positioning the buttons on a drawing makes it easier to find the good one. One button is needed for every square block around the switches.

 

 

[ToniBabelony]

Wow, thanks for the plan! This really makes me want to get into micro electronics a bit more... I have so many ideas to rebuild trains with capacitors (see here: http://www.jnsforum.com/community/topic/3994-making-trains-run-smooth-with-capacitors-electronic-flywheel/) and implement self controlling circuits on layouts... And now R/C controlled trains as well:

 

A bit too complicated with the camera car, but the general idea is very neat! One car for propulsion and the other one for the receiver and battery. I think you can very easily create this from cheap remote control toys (e.g. Digi Q Train toys from Konami and so on). Maybe even put a constant current on the layout and make a completely battery independent system... Almost like DCC! xD

[kvp]

This really makes me want to get into micro electronics a bit more.

You are welcome! But it's actually a way to avoid using extra electronics, so all my plan needs are a few simple parts (diodes and relays), so no complex digital electronics are needed. And you can even switch the turnouts and the signals by hand with off the shelf manual switches and it would still work correctly. Of course you can do the whole turnout and signal control with a microcontroller and a few motor driver ics, but it's less fun and much easier that way. (also needs some programming and electrical engineering skills)

 

 

And now R/C controlled trains as well:

 

I'm not sure if we really need it. Lego and maerklin switched over to battery powered trains for young kids and even they are remote controlled, it's more of a problem than a solution. If you really need two trains on the same track and don't want to use blocks, then DCC is better. With DCC, you don't have to charge batteries and it's less suspectible to rf noise. Personally, i think conventional DC control is enough for most small layouts and it's way cheaper than DCC or radio control, especially if you have more trains than tracks.

 

A really cheap solution, that is used by most toy makers is infrared, this is the technology behind lego and maerklin sets, but this is not really usable if you can't see the trains all the time, because if you can't see them, then you can't control them, so they will keep the last speed and direction until they get a new command and this can lead to accidents. (Besides that, my lego train remote switches channels on my old tv if i set it to train id 2.) Of course radio would be much worse, starting the trains or rc cars in the next house in case of a channel collision. In this regard DCC has a good side that it keeps the command stream in the tracks, so crosstalk is minimal. Also, battery operated trains keep running after a derailment, so extra care is needed to avoid runaway trains that go off the tracks, cross any terrain in their way and jump off the layout.

 

 

Maybe even put a constant current on the layout and make a completely battery independent system... Almost like DCC! xD

 

If you really want that, then you can even modulate the commands onto the rails and call it DCC. There is not much point in using infrared or radio if you still need power from the tracks. You would just combine the pickup problems with radio or infrared receiving problems and get a less reliable system with the drawbacks of both.

 

My question is: What do you want to do? Defining the actual problem usually helps finding a good solution. Finding a good problem for a solution is much harder.

[Densha]

Gah! B-Trains are too much! It makes me want to put together a small layout with them... Maybe only 4-car trains, but with DCC operation like this (of course sans the annoying moe-moe-kyu~ voice). Ah, probably way too much out of my financial league..

Have that with anything I see, but while I'm not a B-Train fan it certainly makes we want to do a small roundy-roundy on just a simple board. Those T-Trak modules just don't come of the ground... also fun when you've designed the track layout for a station and the station building doesn't fit on the module. (with track planning software that is) And the problem is that I generally want to cram too much stuff into a small space, but at least I notice that beforehand now.

[ToniBabelony]

My question is: What do you want to do? Defining the actual problem usually helps finding a good solution. Finding a good problem for a solution is much harder.

 

That's the main problem I'm faced with now as well. I think for the main part with the remote control model train is to have a cool gimmick which is runnable on other layouts with other trains. However, as you say, going on parts where there is no direct contact with the sender, that might become troublesome... Then again, making one R/C train doesn't require a complete switch to R/C though. I was thinking about modifying a train from DigiQ Trains from Konami, since they are small, cheap and are easily reprogrammable to 32(!) channels. I don't know if these things are still available, since they came out more than ten years ago, but there are many alternatives of course.

 

Okay, R/C is maybe not the best for big layouts, but for rental layout circuits without long tunnels, home floor layouts and so on, I think it'd be cool to have one or two trains built like this (probably short EMU or trams). I don't have space and time for something big and permanent anyway, so I don't have to think about that.

[Martijn Meerts]

Have that with anything I see, but while I'm not a B-Train fan it certainly makes we want to do a small roundy-roundy on just a simple board. Those T-Trak modules just don't come of the ground... also fun when you've designed the track layout for a station and the station building doesn't fit on the module. (with track planning software that is) And the problem is that I generally want to cram too much stuff into a small space, but at least I notice that beforehand now.

 

Sounds familiar.. You always end up wanting to fit in more than you can, even if you have a ton of space :)

 

(as for the T-Trak, I'm still working on it.. I'm almost ready for another batch of lasercutting ;))