Just announced, attempt at largest T-Trak layout in the world 100 ft x 100 ft

[Kingmeow]

I know it's a long ways out but for those who will be in the area of Chattanooga, TN at the end of July 2026, at the NRMA National Convention, planning has just begun to put together a 100 ft x 100 ft T-Trak layout.  Supposedly it will be the largest in the world, over shadowing the last biggest one which was in Kansas City convention in 2018(?).

[cteno4]

Yeah I saw that. Ugh, I don’t get this fixation on having to do the biggest. But hey they enjoy doing it. When this ball of big Ttrak started rolling like 15 years back and I saw one that was like 20 tables I was struck how the audience only visited a fraction of the whole layout and tended to go more on the outside and not visit the nooks of a few of the peninsulas. Next year was the national convention in Philly and I got involved with some of the early spitballing and they wanted to go big. I shared my observations and suggested maybe 4-6 smaller themed layouts where modules were grouped better to give a themed impression and more approachable sized layouts for visitors to experience and not be overwhelmed. I was instantly shouted down with many emails in all caps… 

 

In the early days this drive for big also created a real problem of the “green plank” modules. In an effort to get more modules fast folks would take a plank and put 4 bolts on it, paint it green and put track now. Maybe a building would be put on it. They were real eye sores and really visitors’ memories tend to really remember bad bits as well or better than the good bits and really taints any nice modules there. Hopefully these days that is no longer the case as much.

 

Even at train shows with huge n scale layouts I see few train folks really spending much time at any one module and very few closely goin all the way around. 
 

But I gues folks just love to be part of the biggest. I’m just more oriented to what the visitor’s walk away is and I’m not sure biggest is a great impression to leave. But that’s just my opinion, I know others love it.

 

In the exhibit world we try very carefully not to overwhelm the visitor as if you do they stop absorbing anything even if they are still looking at stuff, stuff just doesn’t stick at that point. It’s also the Hitchcock thing where you also need to give resting places within the presentation and if you do when they see the real powerful stuff it sticks even better! 

 

cheers,

 

jeff

[brill27mcb]

I have to agree with Jeff. He and I both remember that in the early days of T-Trak it grew out of tram and small railway modeling in Japan. Then U.S. mainline model railroaders took it off in another direction. In reality, short modules with fairly right-radius curves aren't the best basis for running long heavy-haul trains. But, as mentioned, they are having fun! There are many well-modeled T-Trak modules, but they can unfortunately just get lost in the mayhem of these sprawling layouts. And no real operational benefit comes from the overall size of the layout...

 

Rich K.

[cteno4]

One of the early conventions I tried to see if we could set up a couple of tables of 25mm standard modules with trams and was told very firmly NO 25mm modules and that they were NOT STANDARD (there was a lot of bad feelings with 33mm being called Alternate). Sad times, many battles and divisions. But the last few years things have mellowed and NRail taking over Ttrak at a national level has been a stabilizing element as they see it as an important part of the future of the hobby. But my fear is the mega layouts make Ttrak feel less approachable and more daunting to a newbie. But it is a national train shows and few newbies and more showing other modelers I guess the scale you can do with tiny Ttrak modules.
 

I just come from the other side where most all our visitors (except for train shows but they are now maybe 5-10% or less of the eyeballs we reach) are non train folks or newbies with and interest, so we focus a lot of making things as welcoming and approachable as possible for that audience.

 

jeff

[Kingmeow]

I can see both sides of the argument.  One can make a "No Green Plank" rule and filter out those kinds of modules.  But having one or two green plank modules often gives the audience a view on the various "stage" of building a T-Trak module.  We often have "in progress" modules to show the in between steps for the audience.  Unintentional but serves as double duty for those who couldn't get it completed in time.

 

Having run on many larger size T-Trak combined layouts (Altoona, Amherst, 4H in Atlantic City, and the recent NSE National Convention in Bethlehem) it's a great feeling to be able to air out a 16-car Shinkansen without feeling cramped on a small layout.  😃

[Cat]

@Kingmeow that gets to the difference of the display being for the public and/or the operators.  
 
As a spectator, I find bare planks very off-putting.  A deliberately done module actually showing the stages of work is quite different, and I did admire one N-Trak module that was actually being worked on as the trains were running — the owner didn't have space to set it up at home to work on, but he was also fully engaged with the spectators happily chatting about the scenic construction in progress.
 
Spectator-wise however, I am more partial to seeing 16 car shinkansen zipping by than the more ubiqitous 120 car coal train.  Those make my eyes glaze over and I bypass admiring the modules too.
 
As for the yet another largest T-Trak in the world, I'm in the camp that it takes all the delightful individual snowflake modules and lumps them into a big pile of snow.  

Edited August 12, 2024 by Cat

[Kingmeow]

Additional information:

 

https://nationalt-traklayout.com/chattanooga-2026

 

They plan to do Ops on the layout!  😲

 

http://www.gvrrclub.org/OPSplan.php

 

 

 

[Kingmeow]

Things are starting to firm up.  Here's the preliminary layout plan.  I *think* each one of those box is a single module.

 

I just heard that they have max'ed out on modules.

 

 

[RS18U]

Wow.

 

[Kingmeow]

More info from the organizers:

 

At a bare minimum, the layout will require over 160 8’ tables (with space to grow to over 200), require over 600’ of 12-16 gauge T-TRAK standard bus cable, at least 300-400’ of loconet cable, and, currently, according to estimates from the planning committee, 16-20 individual DB210 boosters with corresponding PM42/PM74 power managers, and Loconet repeaters (LNRPs)… not to mention the power supplies, electrical cords, Command Station, wireless routers, JMRI-equipped laptop with large screen monitors, etc.!

 

Right now I think they say they have over 600 modules of all sizes, not just singles, registered.

 

I'm the electrical guy for my club.  I sure hate to be the electrical guy for that event!  😲

[Wolf]

I demand they run a single EMU with a Kato SX pack for lol

[Kingmeow]

More info from the organizer today.  I'm not going to count those little boxes in the layout diagram above but they said it will consist of 1,570 equivalent single modules!  😲

[Kingmeow]

Organizer reported track plan is officially complete and full!

 

[brill27mcb]

I am adding this to my mental category of "good things taken to a bad extreme."  The other things on that list are trained operatic singing and bodybuilding.  😀

 

Rich K.

[cteno4]

Yes get that feeling as well. Presentation wise it will be complete overload after 10% of it even for diehard model train folks. With ttrak being 2-4x more scene per linear length of ntrak it’s going to just exhaust the brain quickly. So much we do seems to be if its good it will be gooder bigger.

 

Years ago when the talk of doing one of the first records was fermenting I raised my hand and wondered if maybe doing 4 smaller layouts that were themed some what or otherwise had some help to focus each to be a bit different might be better than a monster layout. Less of the ‘huge’ issues, may let more folks easily operate more trains, allow dc and dcc setups easily [and layouts designed for each better]. I was shouted down so hard, angerly, and fast I walked away. 

 

It would be really fun to do some visitor observation of the setup and even some visitor interviews on this.

 

One thing I’ve noticed talking to the general public at events about getting into the hobby is size. Many have said they are very intimidated by the hobby some as layout need to be big and take up a lot of space. I fear for the general public these huge displays can take something that can be small and personal like ttrak and push it up to huge scale can be further intimidation. All my thinking as been going the opposite direction of trying to do more smaller setups to the general public to help the hobby. I realize folks enjoy being a part of something big like this, but I dont see it really helping the hobby in the long run and i fear takes the attention off of trying to bring the hobby to new generations and audiences to maintain and grow it.

 

jeff

[Tony Galiani]

I like to think "less is more".

But in our part of the world, Frasier Crane's idea seems to carry the day:  "If less is more, think how much more more will be!"

 

Tony

[cteno4]

Well if less is more then it follows that more is less so more more is less less… go figure.

 

Im sick of being asked “Would you like to SuperSize that?!”  I always bite my tongue from saying “No could you please SmallSize that for me?” I even at times order off the kids menu as it’s closer to my appetite many times. It is this obsession with big!

 

The last couple o years I have gone back into exhibit developer mode and been watching folks and how they approach, walk around, how long they spend, and where they leave. Less than half make a complete circle of even a 2 or 3 table square/rectangle. Kids are actually the best at wanting to see it all. Adding more does not retain more. But my complete focus on doing events is not on model train folks, its on regular public and leaving a big stamp in their brains model trains are a fun hobby to think about, then that makes it all about giving an experience that plants the best seeds for that. There being big can make it seem totally unapproachable to the public.

 

To each their own.

 

Jeff

[Kingmeow]

I think it depends on the venue.  This world record attempt is at the NMRA National Convention.  Sure there'll be some public wondering in but it will mostly be train nerds.  Now if you are going to display at a train station or a public library or some other non-train event, then maybe you don't want to put on such a large layout.

 

Also, what's considered large or too large or small or just right?  At this year's Amherst Railway show in Springfield, MA, we had two major T-Trak layouts.  One was a 32' x 32' letter "E" and the other was a 65' oval.  The public loved both and both were crowded to the point where it was difficult to run trains.  🤣  Certainly it did not intimidate anyone that I could see.  BTW, the Saturday and Sunday attendance broke their record.  27,500+.

 

Large (or small) doesn't mean bad.  What is that famous show business saying, know your audience?  🙂