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Layout Size: Small Layouts
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Tuesday, November 02, 2021 at 10:19:59 ADT.)
Tuesday, November 02, 2021
HO SCALE: Prairie Dog Central Railway
I designed this for a client way back in August of 2000. Back then I wasn't doing a lot of 3D work, so the layout had to wait 20 years for me to finish it. At the time, the owner wanted a layout depicting a Canadian prairie setting, and wanted to run both diesel and steam. Although meant to be purely fictional, his premise was based on the Prairie Dog Central...
Views: 5474 | Comments: 1
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Staging Options: Staging Yards, Theme: Branch Line Railway, Theme: Canadian Prairies, Theme: End of Line Station, Theme: Passenger Service, Theme: Steam Excursion Trains, Canada (Provinces): Manitoba, Canadian Railways: Prairie Dog Central Railway
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Saturday, February 29, 2020 at 7:44:00 AST.)
Saturday, February 29, 2020
This design was done for a client back in May of 2018 who wanted an HO-scale layout to fit in his spare bedroom plus it's closet space. The layout was to be set in northern California sometime during the fall in the 1930s. Since this was my client's first room-sized layout, he didn't really want anything too complex, but he did...
Views: 1147 | Comments: 0
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Staging Options: Car Float, Theme: Regional / Short Line Railway, USA (States): California, American Railways: Sacramento Northern
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Saturday, February 29, 2020 at 13:17:00 AST.)
Saturday, February 29, 2020
HO SCALE: Delta Valley & Southern Railway
Well it doesn't get much smaller than the Delta Valley & Southern Railway located in Arkansas and owned by the Wilson family to serve their cotton farm. The two photos below represent the entire 2-mile long line, and what's even more interesting, the line could be still operating today, although I can't find definite proof...
Views: 1063 | Comments: 0
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Industrial Railway, Type: Based on Actual Location(s), USA (States): Arkansas, American Railways: Delta Valley & Southern Railway, Types of Industries: Cotton Processing Plants
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Sunday, October 30, 2022 at 10:40:49 ADT.)
Sunday, October 30, 2022
HO SCALE: Omaha, Lincoln and Beatrice Ry (OLB)
This is my version of the Omaha, Lincoln and Beatrice Railway (OLB), "The Big Red Line", which still operates in the city of Lincoln, Nebraska, as a 2-mile long Class III switching railroad. The line interchanges cars with Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe and serves industries such as Ag Processing, Inc., ADM Farmland, Snyder...
Views: 1806 | Comments: 3
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Single Station / Town, Type: Based on Actual Location(s), USA (States): Nebraska, American Railways: Omaha, Lincoln and Beatrice Railway
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Saturday, March 07, 2020 at 7:19:00 AST.)
Saturday, March 07, 2020
HO SCALE: Iowa Branch Line Railway
This modern-day prairie branch line railway was done for a client back in March of 2019. Originally he had seen an N-scale layout I designed to fit on a hollow core door, and he wanted to try and duplicate that in HO-scale on a 4x8 sheet of plywood. I knew that it would be impossible to give him everything he wanted in such a limited space, so I...
Views: 6340 | Comments: 0
TAGS: Design Feature: Interchange, Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: End of Line Station, USA (States): Iowa
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Saturday, October 31, 2020 at 7:07:35 ADT.)
Saturday, October 31, 2020
HO SCALE: Soo Line Branch Line
Back in July of 2017, a member of a railway forum offered to send me something that I still needed for my On30 layout in exchange for my layout design services. At the time, I had pretty much all the motive power, rolling stock, and track that I needed, so I explain the situation, thanked him for the generous offer, and assumed that was the end of it. However, he...
Views: 1697 | Comments: 2
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Staging Options: Staging Yards, Theme: Branch Line Railway, American Railways: Soo Line
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Monday, November 15, 2021 at 18:12:12 AST.)
Monday, November 15, 2021
HO SCALE: Canadian Pacific Branch Line
Many of my small layout designs focus on branch line operations that make it easier to portray in a small room. I also tend to make them as generic as possible so they are easily adapted to a variety of prototypes, and this design is a good example of that approach. This is an HO-scale design for a small end of a branch line operation that would easily...
Views: 2537 | Comments: 2
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Staging Options: Staging Yards, Theme: Branch Line Railway, Theme: End of Line Station, Theme: Passenger Service, Canadian Railways: Canadian Pacific Ry
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Tuesday, May 17, 2022 at 8:16:28 ADT.)
Tuesday, May 17, 2022
In exchange for my layout design services back in July of 2007, a client offer to send me something that I still needed for my On30 layout. But since I had all the motive power, rolling stock, and track that I required, I thanked him for the generous offer, and thought that was the end of it. However, he insisted that he compensate me from my time, and the...
Views: 1659 | Comments: 1
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Staging Options: Staging Yards, Theme: End of Line Station, USA (Regions): Mid-West, American Railways: Soo Line
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Saturday, May 09, 2020 at 8:28:00 ADT.)
Saturday, May 09, 2020
HO SCALE: Sydney Steel Corporation (SYSCO) at Sydney, Nova Scotia
The owner of this layout liked my plan for the Dominion Steel & Coal Corporation (DOSCO) in the 1950s, which was presented earlier on this blog (see this link). However, he wanted the era shifted to the 1980s, when the mill was owned by the Sydney Steel Corporation (SYSCO), and he also needed the plan adapted to fit...
Views: 1321 | Comments: 0
TAGS: Design Feature: Interchange, Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Industrial Railway, Theme: Single Industry, Type: Based on Actual Location(s), Canada (Provinces): Nova Scotia, Canadian Railways: Sydney Steel Corporation (SYSCO), Types of Industries: Coke Plant, Types of Industries: Steel Plant
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Tuesday, October 24, 2023 at 19:14:54 ADT.)
Tuesday, October 24, 2023
HO SCALE: Pel-State Industrial Lead
This modern era design was done for a client who is a professional railroader that wanted a modern era proto-freelance layout based on two industrial spurs in Shreveport, Louisiana where he works. The layout room was 10'6" x 11'6" and had a closet that needed access, but I could use a lift-out across both doorways. There are still a few...
Views: 2288 | Comments: 2
TAGS: Design Feature: Continuous Run Option, Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Regional / Short Line Railway, Type: Based on Actual Location(s), USA (States): Louisiana
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Saturday, May 09, 2020 at 20:04:00 ADT.)
Saturday, May 09, 2020
HO SCALE: Pennyrile & Western Coalfield
This HO-scale design was done for a member of the Micro/Small Model RR Layouts Facebook group and his proto-freelanced Pennyrile & Western Coalfield Railway. The layout owner wanted a 1940's era layout based on a small town in western Kentucky where the economy is dependent on tobacco, corn, and coal. He planned to use small L&N or NC&StL steam...
Views: 2351 | Comments: 0
TAGS: Design Feature: Continuous Run Option, Design Feature: Interchange, Layout Size: Small Layouts, Staging Options: Staging Yards, Theme: Regional / Short Line Railway, Theme: Single Station / Town, USA (States): Kentucky
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Friday, August 26, 2022 at 12:20:52 ADT.)
Friday, August 26, 2022
HO SCALE: Brownville & Ashland Railway
I recently did this track plan for a client, but only got around to adding the 3D work today. The layout owner wanted a design that depicted his fictional modern-era Brownville & Ashland Railway set somewhere in northern Maine. It was to occupy a footprint of 10x11 feet and the layout could run around all four walls of the space. My client also...
Views: 4109 | Comments: 12
TAGS: Design Feature: Continuous Run Option, Design Feature: Interchange, Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Regional / Short Line Railway, USA (States): Maine, Types of Industries: Pulp and Paper Mills
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Sunday, April 25, 2021 at 20:43:33 ADT.)
Sunday, April 25, 2021
S SCALE: Texas & New Orleans Railway (Llano, TX)
This track plan was started back in June of 2020 in Proto:48, but my client decided to change to S-scale in September. The design is based very loosely on Llano, Texas in the 1970s and is meant to be built in two phases. The first phase consists of an L-shaped layout that includes the shelf on the north wall, and just a single switching lead/staging...
Views: 1258 | Comments: 2
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Branch Line Railway, Theme: Single Station / Town, Type: Based on Actual Location(s), USA (States): Texas, American Railways: Texas & New Orleans Railway
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Monday, March 28, 2022 at 15:45:23 ADT.)
Monday, March 28, 2022
HO SCALE: Langsport & Southern Ry
This design from February 2021 turned out much differently than my client initially wanted. When originally contacted, my client was only looking for a 1-turnout layout based on one of Lance Mindheim's track plans with a modern bakery as the single industry. During the discussion, I showed him my Sweet Tooth Bakery & Milling Co done in a 14x72-inch...
Views: 1541 | Comments: 1
TAGS: Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Regional / Short Line Railway, Theme: Switching Operations, Types of Industries: Bakeries, Types of Industries: Pulp and Paper Mills
Posted in Layout Designs by Rob Chant. (Updated Friday, April 01, 2022 at 7:29:11 ADT.)
Friday, April 01, 2022
HO SCALE: Lobo Creek & Western RR
Now this design has quite a backstory that started in February of 2014. The first version of this design was done to fit on a 4x8 sheet of plywood, and it was based on a track plan that I had found on the Internet. After I posted my adaptation online, I was contacted in March (of 2014) by another modeler who wondered if I could fit the plan ...
Views: 1623 | Comments: 10
TAGS: Design Feature: Interchange, Layout Size: Small Layouts, Theme: Regional / Short Line Railway