Building the N scale Salt Lake Route

BARRY FELDMAN from MICHIGAN said:

This layout is outstanding

ROY MILLER from IDAHO said:

Great job over all...loved the series...also looking forward to more of the same!

JOSEPH WILLIAMS from KENTUCKY said:

I have been modeling in HO scale for quite some time. Looking at a move, I wanted to build something that I could run some trains on and enjoy building. This layout is it! I have all the benchwork done and am awaiting the track kit from Kato in order to get up and running. I am pleased with how well this layout is coming along for me as well. My only gripe could also be that dimensions were omitted from the articles and videos.

I hope that they will ask for everyone who built this series to submit photos to MR as it would be fun to see how people customized this plan!

Thanks MR.

LUIS LOPES from PORTUGAL said:

Nice layout!

There's just one thing that I don't like: Unitrack. But beeing a project layout, things should be easy, and Unitrack is really easy to use!

Keep it up!

MIKE ASMUSSEN from AUSTRALIA (QLD) said:

Thankyou so much for this series. When I first looked at the Salt Lake Route plan in the January edition, I thought "this is a great plan - I'd love to build this". Little did I realise until after reading all the other comments on this series, that I wasn't alone in that assessment. This layout has it all! So I started building the framework last week, and I'm planning some interesting modifications.
1. Seeing the L girders come in 10ft lengths, I thought why cut them to 9ft, why not make it a foot longer? Yes I needed a bit more than one sheet of plywood, but I thought it would open up the spaces just that bit more.
2. Some storage would be good. I am making some slideout draws to fit between the joists (which are spaced 1 ft apart) for storing rolling stock and materials.
3. I am using screw in legs instead of fold up, as this will reduce the overall lift weight as I remove the legs before transport. This also helps with my storage, as I'm using a pulley system to hang it from the ceiling (see my comment in part 5 of the online journal).

Can't wait to lay the track and get it all going, and I'm looking forward to see the rest of the articles in this series. Awesome!

ALFRED CORDEIRO from CALIFORNIA said:

Thank you

AL

JOHN BEMIS from NEW YORK said:

I have almost collected all the track I will need for this. I have made some changes to the plan also. I am planning on using the Kato converters to let me lower the tracks in the yard area onto PECO and Atlas trackage. The track is not built but I can play with the track I do have. I am using a NCE PowerCab for my DCC. I have been running my two trains using the crossover, great fun. I am just a rookie and will probably just be running 2 locos in a consist and maybe a third running free as a switcher.

BRIAN KINDT from COLORADO said:

I have almost collected all the track I will need for this. I have made a small change to the plan though. I am going to go with a NCE PowerCab for my DCC. I am just a rookie and will probably just be running 2 locos in a consist and maybe a third running free. If anyone has any tips on the scenery I'm more than open for suggestions.

ROBERT BRENTS from MISSOURI said:

I'm using Kato UniTrack for my current HO switching layout project because it's easy, practically bullet-proof, and I can try out different operating arrangements to see what works and re-arrange things quickly. It's not cheap, but my time is limited, so that's worth something! This project has shown me several new ideas that I can translate directly to HO. Thanks, MR!

MICHAEL SKONICKI from COLORADO said:

I have been able to keep up with the MR issues in building my own SLR. Only scenery remains (foam, ground cover, highway, bushes, riverbed, etc.) I have logged 82 man hours to get the layout this far. I'm going to predict that the completion will take 120 man hours. This does not include clean-up time and time buying things at stores (building supply house, hobby shop, Radio Shack, etc.) I have spent about $880 dollars to get this far. I also suspect that the final cost will be about $1,200, not including any motive or rolling stock. All in all this was not difficult to build. I am an experienced model railroader, but not a master. Being close to completion, I am glad I made the investment of time and money. This is one of the GREAT MR projects!

Mike...

MICHAEL TONDEE from GEORGIA said:

I used a ruler and measured from the gridlines on the trackplan. Using the scale of 3/4 of an inch = 1 foot, one will arrive at the same measurements as stated above for the placement of the backdrop.
The only change I made was to extend the backdrop height from 12 inches to 16 inches high. I felt 12 inches was a bit low and my layout will only have to be moved once.
I've also added two turnouts to the plan, one on the yard side and one on the mountainside that will facilitate expansion when my layout reaches it's permanent home. I will have to widen the narrow end of the benchwork by a few inches to add my new tracks but I wanted to go ahead and get my turnouts installed now.
This is a great plan. You can tell in that it's a Normal plan and there are folks here who want to build it Horribly Oversized!...LOL

JUSTIN LIAN from MARYLAND said:

@ WILL PETRY: I kinda guesstimated the positioning of the ends from the initial layout plan in the December 2009 issue. One end was almost spot-on at 12" from the long edge, and I guessed the other end was in the vicinity of 14" from the end. For the middle, I figured that since the apex of the center curve is inside the mountain, the backdrop only had to be far enough away from the track to allow long locos and cars to pass by...which allowed me about 1.5-2" or so from the spurs off the crossing on the Caliente side of the layout.

My one gripe, if you could call it that, is that dimensions for things like the backdrop and for most of the benchwork (cross-brace lengths, etc.) were completely omitted. However, that's pretty small peanuts, considering I am right on target to be ready for scenery when the May issue comes out!! Thanks for the great series, MR!!

CORY MAXIM from FLORIDA said:

Just got my copy of the April MR in the mail yesterday. I loved the article on how Dick wired the Salt Lake Route layout. I am currently building an N scale layout with similar dimensions and using the same Digitrax DCC equipment. The article really simplified how the wiring should be done. Like Dick mentioned in the article "it may not be pretty, but it works". For my current skill set, works for me too. Thanks!

DENNIS RAO SR from TEXAS said:

How about the same plan in HO scale? Lots of great tips in this entire series. Good work guys!

MASON AUSTIN from NORTH CAROLINA said:

I am building an ho scale and i have some good ideas for scenery.Thanks

PAUL R NEWHOUSE from ARKANSAS said:

I model in HO but, I got some great ideas for my scenery and a backdrop. Thanks

WILL PETRY from OHIO said:

Hey does anybody have any kind of measurements for the backdrop curve and positioning? I know it is 10.5" tall.
Thanks!