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NOTE: I'm in the process of updating the scripts that run the blog, so there will be changes made in the next few months. Comments no longer need approval, but you must be logged-in to view posts. If you want to become a member of this website, just click on the 'Sign-In' link on the menu bar for more information. Cheers, Rob.

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Wednesday, March 22, 2023 at 18:44:05 ADT.)

Wednesday, March 22, 2023

HO SCALE: Barchester on the Pennsylvania Railroad, by Robert (Robin) Mountenay

Back in August of 2019, I designed an HO scale L-shaped layout to fit in a corner of Robert (Robin) Mountenay's basement space. Since that time, Robin has transformed my original design into what is quickly becoming a beautiful piece of 3D artwork. It has been absolutely amazing watching the layout progress from empty bench work to finished scenes. The layout depicts the fictional town of Barchester on a fictional branch line of Pennsylvania Railroad during the summer of 1949. The layout was just featured in the 90th anniversary issue of Railroad Model Craftsman (March 2023) and I am collaborating with Robin on an article for Model Railroad Planning 2024. Before the RMC issue went to press, Robin asked me to create an updated version of the track plan, now that the types and names of industries and structures had been finalized. Here is the final draft of that revised track plan. In the near future, I will also put together a layout tour of the layout.

Views: 129 | Comments: 3

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Sunday, March 19, 2023 at 12:55:05 ADT.)

Sunday, March 19, 2023

N SCALE: Norfolk Southern (Switching Layout)

This is a modern-era freelance Norfolk Southern N-scale switching layout loosely based on NS lines in eastern Pennsylvania. The track plan is designed to fit in a 8'8" x 11'8" L-shaped space using 18-wide shelves and 12-inch minimum radius. The design also has a continuous run option that will be used as...

Views: 2052 | Comments: 5

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Posted in Articles by Rob Chant. (Updated Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at 1:03:34 ADT.)

Tuesday, March 14, 2023

ARTICLE: Grain Handling and Storage Facilities, by Chad Thomas

Many of us have driven through the countryside and have seen those tall steel structures with long pipes going over to tall galvanized or concrete structures. How many of you actually know what these structures are and their purpose? Why are there different sizes? Why are there so many different structures? In this article I hope to answer...

Views: 225 | Comments: 3

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at 21:23:00 AST.)

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

HO SCALE: Cascade Paper Recycling Plant

This track plan was done for a client back in December of 2021. When he contacted me, he was looking for a pulp and paper mill to fit in his 18x84-inch space. He also dropped a bit of a challenge on me to squeeze in as much track as I could, since his interests focused mainly on switching puzzles in the past. Since my client left the track type up to...

Views: 364 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at 20:14:00 AST.)

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

On30 SCALE: Mitchell Quarry & Stone Company

Back in October of 2019, a member of the Micro/Small Layouts Facebook Group asked for some track plans and ideas for railway that would serve a soapstone facility. The layout was to be done in On30 using Porters as motive power, and short (12') flatcar and gondolas for rolling stock. The layout was to have a footprint 12" to 16" wide by...

Views: 112 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Tuesday, February 21, 2023 at 19:40:00 AST.)

Tuesday, February 21, 2023

HO SCALE: The Dixie Southern

The track plan was just completed for a client that wanted an HO-scale layout based on the Central of Georgia Railroad in south Georgia. It was to be based on the "what if" scenario that the Central of Georgia was still operating as an independent line in the 1970s. The L-shaped space was 6x10-foot and would fit along two walls of a small...

Views: 206 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Monday, February 20, 2023 at 16:48:00 AST.)

Monday, February 20, 2023

HO SCALE: Aviston Switching District (ISL)

I created this HO-scale industrial switching layout (ISL) back in February of 2014, but never published it on my blog since the 3D work was never completed until now. Just in case you notice, the design is quite similar to the 1st draft of my recent Nova Scotia Railway layout. Although I think the track plan best fits in an 18-inch by 12-foot space...

Views: 240 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Monday, February 20, 2023 at 15:26:00 AST.)

Monday, February 20, 2023

N SCALE: New York & Greenwood Lake Railway (Passaic, NJ)

A member of my JoMRD Facebook Group wanted and N-scale layout based on the New York & Greenwood Lake Railway in Passaic, New Jersey to originally fit in a 1x6-foot space. After looking at his list of G&Ds and Google maps, I knew that I wasn't going to be able to squeeze it all in that footprint. After voicing my concerns, the member...

Views: 170 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Monday, February 20, 2023 at 15:13:00 AST.)

Monday, February 20, 2023

HO SCALE: Angel Manufacturing & Fabrication Company (HO Scale)

After John (A member of my JoMRD Facebook page) made a post talking about what could be modeled in a 9x60-inch space, I started wondering myself. Along with his post, John also included a very simplistic track plan and attributed the original design to Bill Livingstone from back in the late 1940s. John also felt that the resulting track plan...

Views: 106 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Monday, February 20, 2023 at 15:00:00 AST.)

Monday, February 20, 2023

HO SCALE: Meteghan Valley Railway

This HO scale design was done for a client back in September of 2011. The bench work had already been in place from a previous layout, and although I was given some leeway to change it, I decided to keep it as built. Most of the shelves were 24-inches wide, and I think that is overkill for shelf layouts and adds too much unneeded space...

Views: 70 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Articles by Rob Chant. (Updated Monday, February 20, 2023 at 14:54:00 AST.)

Monday, February 20, 2023

ARTICLE: The Sangaree Valley Railway - a branchline in a bedroom

It has been awhile since I bored you with the article on representing a branchline operation in a small room, so I thought I would mock up another design and discuss another favourite premise of mine. Some of you may be aware that I have quite a fondness for prairie branchline operations, and I have created a few designs over the years with...

Views: 160 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Sunday, February 19, 2023 at 7:56:00 AST.)

Sunday, February 19, 2023

HO SCALE: Sweet Tooth Bakery & Milling Co

This is an HO Scale track plan I did for a client back in October of 2020. The footprint is 14x72 inches and the owner wanted a single industry layout with as many car spots as possible. He left the choice of the industry up to me, but he wanted to shuffle around covered hoppers and box cars, and possibly tank cars. I decided on depicting a...

Views: 1851 | Comments: 3

TAGS: Layout Size: Mini Layouts, Staging Options: Cassette Staging, Theme: Single Industry, Type: No Run-Around Track, Types of Industries: Bakeries

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Friday, February 17, 2023 at 16:25:00 AST.)

Friday, February 17, 2023

HO SCALE: Seaboard Air Line (Paper Mill)

Back in June of 2021, a member of my JoMRD Facebook group requested a paper mill to fit his 13x78 inch space done in HO scale and set in the 1950s to mid-1960s era. I knew from the beginning that the space was not ideal to represent an entire paper mill complex, so I had to choose what I was going to included. In the end, I settled on...

Views: 161 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Friday, February 17, 2023 at 15:45:00 AST.)

Friday, February 17, 2023

HO SCALE: Rumington Industrial District

Back in December of 2021, a member on my JoMRD Facebook group, Gary Ruming (I named the track plan for him), introduced me to the Pompano spur in Florida, and I gave him some feedback and help with a track plan to fit his 66x96-inch space on 12-inch wide shelf. I was quite impressed with the area depicted in the prototype, and I wanted to create a...

Views: 207 | Comments: 0

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Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Friday, February 17, 2023 at 13:51:00 AST.)

Friday, February 17, 2023

HO SCALE: Coastal Industrial Park

This design was done for a friend of mine that really liked my Northside Industrial Park track plan, which done in a 1'4" x 9'0" footprint. My friend had a shelf that was 2'0" x 16'0", so a great deal of extra square footage was added to the original after the expansion. With more width available, I was also able to...

Views: 237 | Comments: 0

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