Terry's American Flyer S Gauge Layout

[Terry]

Since I'm tired of having wood stacked up in my living room I decided to get all the layouts framed out so I can get rid of the unwanted wood.  In the east end of the basement I have an 18 foot by 10 foot area reserved for a 00 layout with a few circles of S gauge underneath. I'll start a thread for the 00 layout later.

The goal is to be able to run two trains around, and have other complete trains parked. The outside loop has the siding nearer the window, and will have passenger trains.

The inside loop has sidings toward the standard layout and also has a few sidings.

Here's some pictures:

 

 

 

The masking tape defines an area 6 foot 4 inches by 10 feet. The four posts are where the legs will be for the 00 layout.

I think the layout will be done with glued down grass rather than carpet. I'd have to buy carpet for about $70, and if I spilled on it while working on the 00 layout it would make a mess. With grass, I can just glue more grass down over damaged areas!

[Terry]

I put some accessories out on the floor with the track just to get an idea of what will fit. I let them sit for a few weeks so I could see how I feel about them

On Sunday July 3rd, I decided to run some trains, but the transformer in the photos above had been "repaired."  I checked it and then put it together correctly. Then, since I had the worktop TV going, I serviced a bunch of S gauge locos.  I got the layout framed out and decked on Monday, then today I put down the Celotex.

I'm going to grass the layout so I glued the Celotex down rather than using nails. This means I don't have to detail the nail heads. Once the glue dries, I'll cut the edges of the Celotex and detail the seams. On the O gauge layout I had problems with the Celotex absorbing the paint I used to put the grass down. Since the paint is free and I'm almost done with what the city gave me, I'll paint the entire layout.

Here's a bunch of photos:

[Terry]

Here's a video of the first trains running on the layout:

I am considering just painting the whole board dark green except for an area for the water that will be blue. Then I can paint some roads with black paint later. I have rubber roadbed for the track.

No hurry.

[Terry]

Here's where I'm at now. I took the track up and painted the deck green. While the paint was drying, I washed a bunch of rubber roadbed. Then I put the track down using cleaner track I had put aside.

I also spent hours cleaning the motors on the Northern Pacific Alco so it runs and reverses as it should. I wasn't planning on keeping the NoPac set, but it is neat. I ran the set around the layout as I put out the accesories. About 3 hours without a problem, then I put the white and red crossing gate on the layout and the train hit it and derailed.

Once the track was up, I started unpacking trains and accessories. The trains not on the layout are stacked in another room. I put the accessories on the layout.

NONE of my American Flyer trains except Gabe the Lamplighter came from a train meet, and I found him in a junk box under a seller's table. Everything else came from running ads to buy trains and then going out and buying trains.

Here's a Video:

Here's pictures during the process:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm having fun with these trains.

[Terry]

I painted the roads, and then got out the boxes of toy cars and I'd put aside for this layout. Originally I was planning on using Ideal and Renwal vehicles, but they were too big. The Renwals are more Standard gauge size. I had some smaller Ideal vehicles and a half dozen of the newer Dimestore Dreams vehicles that look much better.

 

 

 

I also wired up the switches and the uncouplers so I can run the trains. The American Flyer switches can be used to turn the sidings on and off so there is no need for blocks. The switches make them and energize the rails they point at. I think I can wire the switches to the semaphores so they work when the switches are thrown, but I'll do that later.

Here's a video showing all four trains running and the 346 switcher dropping a reefer on a siding:

(The NP alco wouldn't start again when I moved the camera so I replaced it with a K335 Northerner. Also I thought the 346 0-8-0 Switcher was waddling when I first put the layout together. But it seemed to have stopped. In the second camera view you can see the waddle. I guess it's a matter of perspective. )

After wiring up the switches, I had problems with the accessories. The 326 Hudson hit the Guilford station. EVERYTHING hit the cattle ramp, but I bent it and put some screws into it. The log and coal loaders just seem to big for this little layout. The operating crane is still on the layout, but I'll probably take that off too.

Next up is to paint the parking lot areas and then start with the framework for the 00 layout that will be above this layout.

Overall, I still think these trains are neat, but I think they are designed to much higher tolerances than they could accomplish.