Mini OneTrak

[cteno4]

Well I’m sure I will feel different and everything look great in a few hours when April 2 gets here!

 

jeff

[Tony Galiani]

I thought we learned last year never to read anything Jeff posts on April 1st!

 

Of course, we shall see what he posts on April 2nd ....

 

Tony

[Cat]

But even though April 1st falls on a Saturday this year, in the US it is still observed on the first Monday in April, so we won't be really in the clear until Tuesday.

[Tony Galiani]

Didn't realize that.  Thanks for the heads up!

 

[cteno4]

Well I’m a purist, April fools is April 1 damn the day of the week! I actually forgot it was April 1 until this afternoon and thought I would give a whack at it… it only comes around once a year. figured I had destroyed the club and the club layout enough times so had to go more local.

 

happy official April fools day!

 

jeff

[cteno4]

Ok enough screwing around, back to work.

 

Actually things are progressing on the mini onetrak. I’ve been playing with track overhangs. Since the module size is fixed track must be fit to it. Other rub is some of the frames can be up to a quarter of an inch shy of their advertised dimensions. So if you set a close to full dimension track piece it may have a larger overhang on these slightly smaller modules. Also track prices are not cheap anymore so using a limited number of pieces helps. luckily the 5x7 is perfect for s186. 
 

I’m just trying to look at different size track overhangs/module gaps look like and if they vary does that look strange. It’s not a quick process.

 

like rich noted the gap does help the scenes not bleed together and helps the eye focus in better. Just concerned on what may be the best gap range and if anything needs to be done with the gap area under the track. The Kato mini dioramas have about a 4mm overhang that has a base area under it.

 

just plopping some buildings on some of the modules near each other looks good and fun so far. But like in my April Fool’s post great visions can go poof in 3D! 

 

anyhow I’m going to take my time on this and not rush it for the Sakuri Matsuri. But I really hope I can have a good loop ready for Otakon this summer if we do that show. The audience there I think will be the most receptive to the mini one concept.

 

jeff

[Cat]

18 hours ago, cteno4 said:

luckily the 5x7 is perfect for s186

Pity that even Blick doesn't make a 7x7 box so you could go with a single size for consistent heights.

 

Hmm, can you fit a 45º curve across the 5x7 with sufficient overhang to connect the boxes?

Edited April 2, 2023 by Cat

[cteno4]

The little M4 inserts and nylon hex bolt work well to even up the heights to 1”. It’s also nice as it floats them like a quarter inch off the table which is just about the right amount of float. I tried a few different heights and like 1/4” gap looked the best across the range of sizes. Larger modules can tolerate a higher float, but the little ones can’t.

 

Length and depth vary a up to 1/4” on the different ones I got. Most are spot on, but some are a bit shy maybe because made for a metric size close to the imperial size.

 

I purposely bought from a variety of sources as I didn’t want the concept wedded to one manufacturer or source. It’s the issue these days with few Ttrak module sources.

 

I was looking a bit more at the module gaps today and I don’t think those will need to be super similar at all as long as the module shapes vary as well. Also with some little 15 degree degree sections to jog the path and I think the gaps will be pretty out of the picture. Plus part of the whole concept is to break out of the modular mould of things being all very much the same on sizes and such. Mini onetrak is aimed to be more organic shaped and feel. I now need to just screw down a bunch of track overhang permutations on a different modules and just try a mess of permutations. This will also get a better feel of how well things can wander and lining things up in the end.

 

im looking at trying some rectangular 30 and 45 degree curve modules as well.

 

cheers, 

 

jeff

[philip gunter]

On 2/13/2023 at 8:25 PM, cteno4 said:

Thanks cat! I mentioned the gamers more not for gaming but the fact that some of the gamers like yourself like the idea of throwing together lots of little bits into something to make a bigger display. At the last two years at Otakon about half of the non train folks that were really interested in Ttrak mentioned they were war gamers who did some model building and scenery for their wargaming and they saw a lot of crossover on skill sets and such and had a little hankering for model trains. Ttrak seemed just a tad much for them I sort of got back when talking with them. The other half of the anime folks were crafters of one sort or another and they saw that the modules were more like crafting projects and little dioramas not a huge layout like they had always associated with model trains and turned them off.

 

hoping maybe mini onetrak will be an entry level drug, err I mean activity.

 

cheers

 

jeff

I can say for sure this Mini Onetrak has got me thinking about the possibility's the kato mini dioramas had me thinking but i just did not like the looks of the way they connected and then the part about wood canvas gave me the drug 🙂 lol i have a order coming today Amazon this will be great to test out. it just mite allow me to have the layout i always wanted as i am not able to travel and can be put in storage if need be it will allow me to set my own standards for sure its such a  great idea let the fun begin.

 

Philip     

[cteno4]

Philip,

 

what can I say I’m a full blown pusher! Pretty much my same path, Kato mini dioramas looked great, but the limited real estate to do scenery and only 2 track pieces limited layouts. That the got me on my big Ttrak frustration of it was usually forcing your scene idea into set sized Ttrak spaces with set track location. Flipping the concept around to dream up a scene then choose the size and shape module and where the track should go really was a grand feeling. I’m also liking its so less linear than Ttrak and much easier to pay for, build, transport and setup. It’s meant as an alternative to Ttrak to get started or if you have very limited funds and space. There is also something nice as them being little jewels of scenes.

 

unfortunately you will find the wood canvases’ thicknesses vary a lot and even with in a brand from 0.6” to 0.8” and not always as stated, so you need some sort of feet to get them all to the same track heights. I used the little nylon hex bolts and threaded inserts, but 3 screws of any sort into the bottom (4 and you will have a time getting it exactly flat! 3 much easier) to lift them up to a standard track height. I messed with a number of heights and 1” just seemed to look the best and took up minimal storage space. Running on a table or two you really don’t have to get into leveling it all up perfectly and just be back to more line setting up track on a table(s).

 

have fun and please share your results and thoughts!

 

I had some family issues here which put a lot of train stuff on standby, but that’s passing and hope to have my first doze or so modules done for the spring to show at the cherry blossom festival here in dc! 
 

cheers,

 

jeff

 

 

[philip gunter]

6 hours ago, cteno4 said:

Philip,

 

what can I say I’m a full blown pusher! Pretty much my same path, Kato mini dioramas looked great, but the limited real estate to do scenery and only 2 track pieces limited layouts. That the got me on my big Ttrak frustration of it was usually forcing your scene idea into set sized Ttrak spaces with set track location. Flipping the concept around to dream up a scene then choose the size and shape module and where the track should go really was a grand feeling. I’m also liking its so less linear than Ttrak and much easier to pay for, build, transport and setup. It’s meant as an alternative to Ttrak to get started or if you have very limited funds and space. There is also something nice as them being little jewels of scenes.

 

unfortunately you will find the wood canvases’ thicknesses vary a lot and even with in a brand from 0.6” to 0.8” and not always as stated, so you need some sort of feet to get them all to the same track heights. I used the little nylon hex bolts and threaded inserts, but 3 screws of any sort into the bottom (4 and you will have a time getting it exactly flat! 3 much easier) to lift them up to a standard track height. I messed with a number of heights and 1” just seemed to look the best and took up minimal storage space. Running on a table or two you really don’t have to get into leveling it all up perfectly and just be back to more line setting up track on a table(s).

 

have fun and please share your results and thoughts!

 

I had some family issues here which put a lot of train stuff on standby, but that’s passing and hope to have my first doze or so modules done for the spring to show at the cherry blossom festival here in dc! 
 

cheers,

 

jeff

 

 

Well today i got my first order of wood canvas panels 12x12 what i have found so far i a kato S248 and S62 fit great with about 2mm over hang on both sides this

opens up a lot of possibility's as far a track work for sure as there is no standard as far as track placement. I'm sure this mini onetrak will work for many people. one thing for sure is you can work on it any where can you just imagine dragging a 4 foot module around to work on while running from your wife:)    

[cteno4]

yep just about perfect. I actually like having gaps between the modules in Ttrak and with mini onetrak it’s really needed with the variety module sizes and shapes you can do. Also having slightly different gaps is no issues when I played with it with a number of different sized and shaped modules together. So this doesn’t force you to try to get the track lengths super close to the edges using multiple small track bits. Freedom is nice! Really ends up like pearls on a string.
 

We do a number of train shows and cultural events here in the DC area and most all younger folks (ie under 40) say space to work on, play with and store is very very limited. When I talk about Ttrak with them cost and woodworking are also usually blocks. Gluing modules together seems ro be something many are bit afraid of even though I show then the modules sort of snap together (although most laser and CNC cut modules sold usually do require a tad of filing to fit well) they just kind of shrink from that part. Also saying shipped module and track is around $40-50 gets a bit of pull back as well. Hoping these under $10 with track and no assembly will help. Most also express the most interest in the diorama aspect of the modules and turning the paradigm around to have the scene rule size, shape, and track appeals to them.

 

looking forward to what you do with yours!

 

jeff