Yep, switching layouts are ideal-small space, low cost, and you can learn everything there is to know about structures, scenery and track, and 95% of everything you need for operations (including the most interesting bits). Nice job, well done!
Fair enough. It got annoying for me, too. I should have just killed it. I got many comments similar to yours complaining about the bell. And if I was watching I’d have probably said the same thing!
A nice paced session. Did that 30 minutes include coffee and pie at the diner? A great advert for good things come in small packages. Most appreciated.
Great video! My layout plan will be larger, I am one of those guys that often just likes watching the train run, but I also enjoy a good operations session and this one was great! Nicely done. And watching the Chessie GP-7 work was great. Thanks for sharing!
Nice job! That track plan looks like a repurposed Timesaver layout! Operations is one of my favorite parts of the hobby! Railfanning as they go round and round is nice now and then, but it's switching that really makes me happy. Especially when you do it in prototypical fashion! Thanks for sharing the session with us!
I've gotten a couple of comments relating the trackplan to the Timesaver, but I swear that's not on purpose (mostly because I prefer to switch as a railroad would, and I find the Timesaver a little too contrived). But yes, switching makes me happy, too!
@@ThePixelDepotLLC Yes, the Timesaver really is contrived, that's a great way of putting it! What you build has a similar feel, without the car limit constraints of the actual Timesaver which let's you get some real operating going on and that's what I love so much about it! Great job, and I love the name "The Grunge" it really does give it more of that switching in the city that most people don't notice and used to be everywhere. Great work, and again, thank you!!!
Really well-done ops session! One thing you could do to add to the operation is maybe have a daily scheduled commuter train coming through that the main must be cleared for? Also, love the stuff like the driver blocking the tracks. That is something often overlooked in models that can add to ops time.
Thanks for the suggestion! I didn’t think about it much so I hadn’t considered what is beyond the west end of the alley. Also, the left side of the layout ends at a wall, so any commuter train would probably have to be theater of the mind.
@@ThePixelDepotLLC Oh for sure I saw it more as a "theoretical" thing vs an actual one, or say there is an area that needs to be cleared by a certain time, it all adds to the challenge. That said I love how much action is possible in such a small space. It busts the idea that you need a mansion for an awesome layout!
It was a good suggestion. I’m not usually a passenger guy so I tend not to think along those lines. It’s good to suggest things out of my comfort zone! And if I’ve shattered the notion that you need a huge layout to have fun then I’m accomplishing my mission. That is the whole point of the series.
I love shelf switching layouts like this! Ive had six layouts, the last was modular and at full size was going to be a 25 x 25 square, with a 20+ foot peninsula inside the middle for a 8 industry industrial yard to represent the line I did a 20 part on a abandoned industrial spur. Then when I moved I started with a 17 inch by 12 foot long shelf that was based on my hometown that had rail service only between 1919-1926, the layouts now in a 7.5 x 8.75 foot room that now has my staging yard underneath the pre existing shelf that is now a huge part of my dream layout. I have one video of it up so far but will have another showing the completion of the top deck completed with only way for trains to get from top to bottom is by simulated rail barge/ ferry moves.
@@ThePixelDepotLLC Lol my bad, I did read your caption on your video titled "Unboxing a Genesis gp7" So I assumed it was the same model, you pulled the old switcher-roo on me lol. My bad buddy, I didn't know you had two of them, still looks very nice though. ;)
Hi Joe, I'm new to model railroading and would like to put togehter a Chessie System (C&O) inspired layout, focusing on someplace in west Michigan. I noticed The Grunge has a C&O locomotive with boxcars from several different railroad companies. Where would you recommend I start researching for my layout, and what kind of railcars may have been being serviced by Chessie in this geographical area? Looking forward to your response.
Well, the types of cars would really depend on the industries you intend to have on your layout. Given that it's the central part of the US, I'm thinking you could probably reasonably get away with just about any roadname. As far as research, that can be tough. I found a lot of mine through the B&O Historical Society, since I'm modeling B&O territory. So the _C&O_ Historical Society may be useful to you. They have been around a long time and have a lot of resources. Then I would start looking for Chessie System and C&O related books that relate to Michigan. (A cursory glance shows not many, though.) I also found this group on Facebook that might give you some inspiration: facebook.com/ChessieSystemMichiganDivision/ Good luck!
I am thinking about doing something similar to “The Grunge” and I do now have room, however I have a question about waybills: how do you decide what cars need to be moved and which ones need to stay? The only easy way that I can think of is to have the list of cars and roll a dice or use a random number generator to decide what happens. I know that for more prototypical operations it takes time to load and unload so how would I get around that?
Random using dice is definitely one way to go. Usually when I'm working on my industry list for waybills, I will figure out how long things typically stay. From there you can either keep track of it yourself or, using a combination of 2- and 3-slot car card boxes. With the 2-slot, the assumption is that the industry can unload the car before the next session with the left slot being for cars just delivered and the right for pickups this session. With the 3-slot, that's still true, but the middle slot is for "hold" cars that aren't to me removed this session. It all comes down to how formal you want your ops to be, really.
I make all of my buildings removable. Sometimes I will rig up something with Lego to hold them in place better, but I never want to be in a situation where I can't get at something or make changes to a structure.
Yep, switching layouts are ideal-small space, low cost, and you can learn everything there is to know about structures, scenery and track, and 95% of everything you need for operations (including the most interesting bits). Nice job, well done!
Thanks! I’m really enjoying the small layout and I think it’s a great start for many people. Especially if you’re limited in space, time, or budget.
I enjoyed the video, but that incessant bell sure reminded me why I don't do sound in my locos.
Fair enough. It got annoying for me, too. I should have just killed it. I got many comments similar to yours complaining about the bell. And if I was watching I’d have probably said the same thing!
Very nice thanks for the video
Glad you liked it
A nice paced session. Did that 30 minutes include coffee and pie at the diner? A great advert for good things come in small packages. Most appreciated.
It did, but at HO scale size they were so small it didn’t take long to finish! 😉
Great video! My layout plan will be larger, I am one of those guys that often just likes watching the train run, but I also enjoy a good operations session and this one was great! Nicely done. And watching the Chessie GP-7 work was great. Thanks for sharing!
Happy to share!
Nice job! That track plan looks like a repurposed Timesaver layout! Operations is one of my favorite parts of the hobby! Railfanning as they go round and round is nice now and then, but it's switching that really makes me happy. Especially when you do it in prototypical fashion! Thanks for sharing the session with us!
I've gotten a couple of comments relating the trackplan to the Timesaver, but I swear that's not on purpose (mostly because I prefer to switch as a railroad would, and I find the Timesaver a little too contrived). But yes, switching makes me happy, too!
@@ThePixelDepotLLC Yes, the Timesaver really is contrived, that's a great way of putting it! What you build has a similar feel, without the car limit constraints of the actual Timesaver which let's you get some real operating going on and that's what I love so much about it! Great job, and I love the name "The Grunge" it really does give it more of that switching in the city that most people don't notice and used to be everywhere. Great work, and again, thank you!!!
Thanks for the feedback on the name. And thanks for subscribing!
Nicely done. Looks good.
Very nice opps. Thanks for sharing, David
Glad you liked it!
Great video. Enjoyed watching how you operate The Grunge.
Thanks, John!
Really well-done ops session! One thing you could do to add to the operation is maybe have a daily scheduled commuter train coming through that the main must be cleared for? Also, love the stuff like the driver blocking the tracks. That is something often overlooked in models that can add to ops time.
Thanks for the suggestion! I didn’t think about it much so I hadn’t considered what is beyond the west end of the alley. Also, the left side of the layout ends at a wall, so any commuter train would probably have to be theater of the mind.
@@ThePixelDepotLLC Oh for sure I saw it more as a "theoretical" thing vs an actual one, or say there is an area that needs to be cleared by a certain time, it all adds to the challenge. That said I love how much action is possible in such a small space. It busts the idea that you need a mansion for an awesome layout!
It was a good suggestion. I’m not usually a passenger guy so I tend not to think along those lines. It’s good to suggest things out of my comfort zone! And if I’ve shattered the notion that you need a huge layout to have fun then I’m accomplishing my mission. That is the whole point of the series.
I love shelf switching layouts like this! Ive had six layouts, the last was modular and at full size was going to be a 25 x 25 square, with a 20+ foot peninsula inside the middle for a 8 industry industrial yard to represent the line I did a 20 part on a abandoned industrial spur. Then when I moved I started with a 17 inch by 12 foot long shelf that was based on my hometown that had rail service only between 1919-1926, the layouts now in a 7.5 x 8.75 foot room that now has my staging yard underneath the pre existing shelf that is now a huge part of my dream layout. I have one video of it up so far but will have another showing the completion of the top deck completed with only way for trains to get from top to bottom is by simulated rail barge/ ferry moves.
I will ha e to check it out.
Very cool! That GP7 looks great Joe. I enjoyed this video and watched it all the way through, thanks for sharing. - Dave B.
Thanks for watching! But look close, C&O 6006 is a GP9. 🙂
@@ThePixelDepotLLC Lol my bad, I did read your caption on your video titled "Unboxing a Genesis gp7" So I assumed it was the same model, you pulled the old switcher-roo on me lol. My bad buddy, I didn't know you had two of them, still looks very nice though. ;)
I thought maybe that’s what you were thinking. I haven’t weathered the GP7 yet. Although it has been getting some run time on the main layout.
Really nice and inspiring, especially since I am planning on building a small layout myself at the moment. How did you come up with this switch list?
@@TotoMacFrame for this one I just grabbed a few cars I had around. But when finished I’d use car cards.
Hi Joe, I'm new to model railroading and would like to put togehter a Chessie System (C&O) inspired layout, focusing on someplace in west Michigan.
I noticed The Grunge has a C&O locomotive with boxcars from several different railroad companies.
Where would you recommend I start researching for my layout, and what kind of railcars may have been being serviced by Chessie in this geographical area?
Looking forward to your response.
Well, the types of cars would really depend on the industries you intend to have on your layout. Given that it's the central part of the US, I'm thinking you could probably reasonably get away with just about any roadname. As far as research, that can be tough. I found a lot of mine through the B&O Historical Society, since I'm modeling B&O territory. So the _C&O_ Historical Society may be useful to you. They have been around a long time and have a lot of resources. Then I would start looking for Chessie System and C&O related books that relate to Michigan. (A cursory glance shows not many, though.) I also found this group on Facebook that might give you some inspiration: facebook.com/ChessieSystemMichiganDivision/
Good luck!
@@ThePixelDepotLLC Thank you Joe!
I am thinking about doing something similar to “The Grunge” and I do now have room, however I have a question about waybills: how do you decide what cars need to be moved and which ones need to stay? The only easy way that I can think of is to have the list of cars and roll a dice or use a random number generator to decide what happens. I know that for more prototypical operations it takes time to load and unload so how would I get around that?
Random using dice is definitely one way to go. Usually when I'm working on my industry list for waybills, I will figure out how long things typically stay. From there you can either keep track of it yourself or, using a combination of 2- and 3-slot car card boxes. With the 2-slot, the assumption is that the industry can unload the car before the next session with the left slot being for cars just delivered and the right for pickups this session. With the 3-slot, that's still true, but the middle slot is for "hold" cars that aren't to me removed this session. It all comes down to how formal you want your ops to be, really.
Quick question - Are your buildings removable so you can paint / weather your track?
I make all of my buildings removable. Sometimes I will rig up something with Lego to hold them in place better, but I never want to be in a situation where I can't get at something or make changes to a structure.