The Great Train Expo

I spent most of this weekend (and a bit of money) at the Great Train Expo. I started rebuilding my collection of rolling stock and motive power--and came to a few decisions regarding the layout.

While I might want a more prototypical layout, the fact that I have only 6 feet in width pretty much limits me to a basic loop. Even in N scale, the blobs required for reversing loops simply take up too much room. But if I take my cues from the modular movement, I can have 3 mainlines running around the perimeter of my layout area. I've also decided to break my prototype completely by putting a tunnel under the Cetronia/Dorneyville area. This will let my have continuous runs without completely cramping Alfundo Park. It also gives me the opportunity to model the 8th Street (now the Alburtis Meyers) Bridge. This bridge allowed Lehigh Valley Transit to access its Fairview car barns on the south side of Allentown.

One of my new toys is a DCC Lehigh Valley F7. I also got the NCE ProCab for my DCC solution. So now, it's just a matter of getting lumber and starting to lay the first mainline so we can begin operating as soon as possible. However, since it may be a few weeks before we afford a major lumber & tool purchase, I may settle for a spot where I can have a basic test track.

I've posted 2 new layout designs to my Picasa album.