New table, New layout! Pics+ Video

[SubwayHypes]

Yea i was forced to keep a single loop track and set it up on a desk really cheap like for a long time, but i moved into this rented house which has a very big bedroom so i can fit a 8x4 in there, im sorta tempted to replace my bed with another table and extend the layout and just sleep on the floor LOL.

[Mudkip Orange]

Yea i was forced to keep a single loop track and set it up on a desk really cheap like for a long time, but i moved into this rented house which has a very big bedroom so i can fit a 8x4 in there, im sorta tempted to replace my bed with another table and extend the layout and just sleep on the floor LOL.

When I was in college I elevated my dorm bed on a wood frame and put the desk & computer underneath it. You could do the same with your trains.*

*may want to make this setup adjustable so you can revert to a normal bed when you have "company"

[SubwayHypes]

Im still waiting on some packages in the mail, so i decided to run some trains.   I was robbed of a couple hundred dollars to pay my mechanic to fix my car....(money that could have been spent on trains)...so i was angry, came home, had a few beers and decided to play with the layout...here is my drunken train video and photography!



Heres the video, youtube stole my song!
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/oi55uwtMh3s" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/oi55uwtMh3s</a>

[Bernard]

Subway - Hope the car is working alright now and we all have these unexpected expenses.
Every time you post I always see something new. What are you using for ground cover around the tracks?

[SubwayHypes]

Yea, everytime i update i want to make sure i at least added something new!

The stuff around the tracks is Elmer's clear glue mixed with grey ballast/pebbles, i mix in a little brown to make it look a little more realistic

[SubwayHypes]

Built an overpass kit from greenmax, which i highly recomend, also adding in grass and trees here and there..also building a greenmax station kit should be done shortly.

[disturbman]

It's slowly taking shape. But you should try to take picture that are not unfocused. It hurts my eyes to see those blury things. ;) :p

Anyway, the last addings look good.  :)

[SubwayHypes]

yea my camera skills are seriously pretty bad, i dont know why i cant get the damn pictures to stay sharp.  I was using Macro Setting so only the closer objects remain clear while the background is fuzzy....also uhh last night when i was taking pictures i was a six-pack deep soo.... ;D


heres to getting drunk and trying to build tiny greenmax station kits!

[disturbman]

I'm not an expert but I've the feeling that you are trying to get too close of your subject. And if you are using a powerfull zoom it's easy to get things blurry. Because, one, you are too close and the camera can't focus and, two, because if you move even just a tiny tiny bit the fuzzy ninjas will ruin your picture.

Try to practice a little bit, taking picture untill you get them like you want.

[SubwayHypes]

Yea the main thing is sturdyness, i try to use some kind of support because i dont have a tripod.  I've lowered the exposure time and upped the ISO to 400 and my pics are a little sharper lately.

[SubwayHypes]

MUAHAHA...little update.

So in case you havent checked the "obcessed with trains thread", i recently got flooded with 221 series sets!

First, i paid 154.99 for a six car set from hit-japan, it was steep, but whatevs.

Then next week on ebay, i find another 6 car set for 110 shipped, BOUGHT IT, thought i got a real goood deal.

Low and behold, less than a day later, on a three day auction, i find what i thought was a 4 car set for only 80 bucks shipped, BOUGHT IT.

when the set comes in the mail, its a six car!!!!  So now i have three 6 car 221 series sets, perfect for my commuter train/yard ideas!

im gonna run one as a 6+4, and the other as a 6+3 with my 223 series u@tech train.

[SubwayHypes]

[Shashinka]

Can't speak for the model 221's, but the prototypes run surprisingly smooth.

[Bernard]

Subway - Everytime you post photos the layout you see how much you've put into your layout. You are getting an interesting effect with the table top and the gloss, it looks a lot like water (better results than what I've been gettting)
Have you thought of using this as a waterway on the layout?

[SubwayHypes]

^the table is a standard styrofoam 4x4 sheet that you can buy at Home Depot for $8...i layered it with 2-3 coats of Rustoleum enamel primer.  It would definately be cool to have a waterpart of my layout but unforunately my subway theme kind of doesnt make that possible, although i have always wanted to recreate this Tokyo railscene, where the train exits a subway directly onto a bridge that goes over a tokyo canal...the one i have in mind in this one that has the Tokyo Metro Maranaouchi subway line and in the background the Chuo Line..


In the meantime, i have been working on more cabs, i havent even been running any trains lately because i need to clean the track im getting lots of power loss and dead sections i gotta hammer out...i also gotta reinstall most of my building layout

taxi cab assembly line!


should have everything back together shortly, also...HAVE A FEW MORE SURPRISE TRAINS COMING IN THE MAIL!!! heheheheh....my grandpa in tokyo went on some shopping missions of his own and sent me a few goodies, so stay tuned!

[SubwayHypes]

New train-  My grandpa sent some gifts from Japan.
Greenmax Series 5000
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/ucgbSQ_BE2k" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/ucgbSQ_BE2k</a>

Blue Train "Suisei"...still gotta buy a matching loco


Finished more taxis, they still need their little "hats"

[Bernard]

Your Grandpa has good taste in gifts!

[disturbman]

Your Grandpa has good taste in gifts!

Indeed. I've too be my own japanese Grandpa, I could be jeamous.

@Subway: When you will have your ED75 this train is going to look quite gorgeous.

[SubwayHypes]

Is the ED75 the correct one to match up with?  I was thinking about going with the EF65 or EF81.

*just checked the tomix mag, the correct match is the ED76 which is basically the same i guess.

Your Grandpa has good taste in gifts!

hehe well i kinda "steered" him towards a certain few models.  i send him the train videos via email so he can watch them. 

[to2leo]

Cool vids and trains, I gotta learn to post some on Youtube!

I don't have a grandpa anymore but I had fond memories of him bringing me little matchbox buses that were common in HK back in the 80s!

[disturbman]

*just checked the tomix mag, the correct match is the ED76 which is basically the same i guess.

Yes, sorry, it's indeed the ED76.

@to2leo: it's really easy to post video on youtube. You just need to register and to hit the send bouton. :)

[SubwayHypes]

^the cool thing is that the BLue Train sets comes with a few different signs, so i can make it a SUISEI or a HOKATSEI or some other lines..

[Fenway Park]

I don't know which area you are modelling but the 221s you have are D.C. and the ED75/ED76 are A.C. only so they would not be seen on the same track.

The ED76 are to be found in Kyushu only. ED75s are in Northern Honshu. 

An EF66 would be better.

[SubwayHypes]

yea my layout isnt really too realistic pertaining to where each prototype runs, i have 221s running with 531s running with tokyu series, i am not too area specific right now, just trying to get as many trains as possible.    in the future i would love to have more accurate lines, with subways lines running downstairs while my JR tokyo lines run upstairs.

i just love the 221s because i remember seeing them alot from my hotel in Kyoto.  plus they kinda look like the Tokyo Metro Hibiya sen too.



and my super messy layout, its a disaster right now, but by the end of the month the entire east side of the layout will be finished.

[Mudkip Orange]

Wao!

[SubwayHypes]

[SubwayHypes]

Greenmax Tokyu 5000 Series with New Microace 223 Series U@tech train.

[Bernard]

Subway - nice addition, where did you pick this up?

[Mudkip Orange]

New Microace 223 Series U@tech train.

That's HOT.

[to2leo]

Yikes please mind the gap between the train and the platform! 

Nice collection, I think I am beginning to like boxy train fleets!

[SubwayHypes]

Subway - nice addition, where did you pick this up?

The 223 U@tech is from Hobbysearch, here is a video highlighting my latest trains and some of my old favorites, plus done to Michael Jackson's Beat It for tribute.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/v/swJWE_dgCJo" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/v/swJWE_dgCJo</a>

And yes to2leo, passengers in my trains must brave a 4 foot jump to the platforms, lawsuits are piling up.

[disturbman]

Strange to see a blue train being pulled by a DF200.

I was also wondering, where happens your power related problems?

[SubwayHypes]

Yea i am well aware i need that ED75 but the DF200 is my only loco at the moment.

My power issues are intermittent, they are usually isolated to the outer line.  Basically about 4 or 5 of my motor cars (all kato) have trouble on the track, they seem to run fine, then lose power, and then RPMs raise again, then fall, then the train will die all together.  but then i have some motor cars (df200, all my microace gear) that run fine with no problems on both sides of the track. 

 

[quinntopia]

Great videos and pictures!  Thanks for sharing!  Really enjoying seeing your work!  I gotta tell you...I really love that Hitachi.....so cool.

[EWS60008]

Cracking layout there mate, I have the same model of that DF200 in my fleet as well. Keep up the good work and keep us posted .

[SubwayHypes]

So i have been thinking about tearing down the layout and starting over.   While i really really like my subway design, and i LOVE how the trains dissappear underground, the overall design is creating problems with power and current in the kato unitrack.  i could probably pull this layout off if i switched everything to a more flexible track of some kind, but the angles on my layout are creating stresses that i havent been able to solve.   I can barely run trains some nights because the power is so low in the track.


So i am thinking about making the layout a single level that would basically be a huge loop 3-4 tracks deep, with a large yard.  My current layout has made it hard to get create my train storage yard which i have always wanted.  I also just want my freaking trains to RUN, although i love my double decker and i amaze myself that i even pulled it off, these power issues are stressing me out and i am sure reverting to a more basic loop will enable me to actually run all these dozens of trains i have stockpiled.  i have spent too much money on them to just sit in place because every time i run them they stall.  i also just want to be able to look at my layout and see my whole collection sitting in place.

[disturbman]

That's maybe a sensitive idea. But couldn't you be able to have the yard and the station in the same area?

You could still try another double-decker but maybe with a less steep gradient. Maybe that's the issue here. Anyway, you should perhaps take the tracks off the layout and lay them on the ground to see if running is okay.

You could also, maybe start thinking about a new benchwork. One that can be more adapted to your needs.

[Mudkip Orange]

No!

Don't kill the two-level concept. Maybe bash your layout and start over (starting over is ALWAYS fun) but don't revert to single-deck operation. You won't be satisfied.

Assuming your max train length is 8 cars, you need a solid 3'6" for the yard tracks, plus leads. You can do that in a 4x8, but have you considered building a "wing" to the layout along an opposite wall? That would make a good yard location.

[disturbman]

Yeah, if you do it good enough you might even be able to have the yard over the underground section of the layout. I'm convinced you have to make a new benchwork and have an undergound section with a 2% steep instead of the 4% one.

[Mudkip Orange]

Are you planning on using Kato for the next incarnation? Or is Flextrack an option?

[disturbman]

Okay. I made a quick plan to show you the possibilities.

• The black lines are the upper loop (two track).
• The red line is a spur linking the inner loop to the underground loop.
• The green lines is the spur linking the underdroung loop to the upper outside loop. Here there is too possibilities. You can either build a folded 8 loop on the underground and then you will have to come out by the down side of the drawing. or you can make it like you had before goes down make a turn then come up by the upper spur.
• The blue lines are the yard

In fact there is another possibility. You can also isolate the underground loop from the other tracks. This is show with the clear blue line.

[SubwayHypes]

cool ideas ^^.     ideally i would like to have a main 4-track loop in which 2 of the tracks stay above ground, and maybe the other 2 dissapear underground and then re-connect with the 4 track somewhere else.

and then on top of that i would like to have a seperate 2 track underground loop that does not go above ground.

It would definately help to add another 4x4 table to the side of the 8X4, so that i would have an L shaped table. 

So many ideas, so little money!  In the time being im gonna keep the current double decker.  My housing lease is up in september so i have to start planning for dissassembly soon.

[to2leo]

If you want to create double decker without the agony of power loss, why not try using Kato V12 and V13 track sets to do it.  Beside, they are all very mobile and you can take down and rebuild again.

I know one thing that is on your side is your next house lease, since California is not doing well at all.

[SubwayHypes]

I used two kato v11 sets plus a 4% WS inclines, which i probably should have done 2% instead.   I would like to go with flex track next, specifically Peco Concrete Tie flex track, but money wont permit that right now.

Also i think my upper level supports are to blame, i should have used wood that was nailed into the bottom layer, instead i glued PVC pipe which made it kind of unstable.  ALso the upper level itself is too thin to support the whole level.  I will take these into consideration building my next layout.

[serenityFan]

I used two kato v11 sets plus a 4% WS inclines, which i probably should have done 2% instead. 

FWIW I am also using 4% inclines (although my layout is smaller than yours), I don't think they are that steep and so far no problem with the incline. I think I simply tried to avoid putting the unitrack joiners directly on the spot where the incline starts/ends, don't now if this helps...

But in general, i agree with the others, the two level concept is great, don't kill it   

[disturbman]

For your benchwork you certainly don't want a full double decker. Maybe you should try to have a wood benchwork (so it's sturdy enough for you to move it) like I drawn. The upper level will be abviously full in order to accomodate scenery. The lower will be smaller benches, nig enough to accomodate tracking where you need.

I also think that making an underground station under the upper one will be a great idea.

[Mudkip Orange]

For your benchwork you certainly don't want a full double decker. Maybe you should try to have a wood benchwork (so it's sturdy enough for you to move it) like I drawn. The upper level will be abviously full in order to accomodate scenery. The lower will be smaller benches, nig enough to accomodate tracking where you need.

I also think that making an underground station under the upper one will be a great idea.

You could do that by gluing the suspended track to the underside of an HCD.

[disturbman]

Yeah but then, on what does the layout rest?

Sub, another idea, you might also think about making your layout modular. You will then don't need to tear him down to be able to move.

[Mudkip Orange]

Yeah but then, on what does the layout rest?

Sawhorses? Cinderblocks? Used copies of "the purpose driven life" you bought off Amazon marketplace?

[Mudkip Orange]

cool ideas ^^.     ideally i would like to have a main 4-track loop in which 2 of the tracks stay above ground, and maybe the other 2 dissapear underground and then re-connect with the 4 track somewhere else.

and then on top of that i would like to have a seperate 2 track underground loop that does not go above ground.

What about this? Basically I took your existing layout (the green) and added "outer" tracks that stay on the upper level (yellow) and lower level (blue). You could build the upper level as the reverse image of the lower, but for operational variety I have the four tracks necking into a three-track station with side platforms and one "express" track. This gives you the opportunity to operate five trains continuously, or more with bottleneck/tower operation.

The turnouts at the station allow trains from the yard to access all tracks on the top deck. You'd need to add turnouts to the lower deck to allow trains from the upper yard to reach the blue line.