Expanding the NS&T

Posted byTrevorPosted inBenchwork, CNR Pine Street in HO, Layout Design, Layouts I have designed or built, Lighting and Presentation, Niagara St Catharines & Toronto Railway in 1:64, Philosophy, Room Preparation
The NS&T will continue up a new peninsula, across the aisle from Bydemill (at right).

After many months in which I devoted attention to other hobby projects, I’ve decided it’s time to tackle the final phase of my S scale layout depicting the Niagara St. Catharines & Toronto Railway. So I spent a couple of afternoons in the workshop and built most of the framing required for a 25-foot-long peninsula up the middle of my layout space.

This area has been long defined by a row of bookcases and storage units. But I faced several design dilemmas that stymied progress. I initially planned this as a deep peninsula accessible from both sides but was unsure how I would light it. My suspended ceiling is lovely, but not suitable for hanging LED strips and valances.

There was another issue too:

Once I started working on my CNR Pine Street exhibition layout, I started to question my decision to leave it set up but confined to a narrow window under the peninsula.\This would make it difficult to work on the layout. It would also make operation less enjoyable (and it has proven to be far more engaging to operate than I expected, even on my most optimistic days).

Plus, I realized my original height – roughly 36 inches off the floor – was at odds with one of my stated purposes for this layout: At shows, Pine Street will be mounted on 18-inch long legs that raise it off table height so it’s exhibited for adults to enjoy. (This is important for how the hobby is perceived, as I’ve explained before.)

I decided to consider whether I could raise Pine Street to the same height as the NS&T, and run a double-sided backdrop up the middle of the peninsula to separate the two scenes. The backdrop’s frame would also support lighting and valance rigs extending over each layout.

It turns out I could.

The peninsula from the CNR Pine Street side. The layout used to sit directly above the IKEA units. It’s now about two inches taller than it will be at exhibition. The vertical pieces behind it are the start of a double-sided backdrop that will also support lighting over both sides of the peninsula.

I’m very pleased with this decision and it feels great to be starting on the final phase of the NS&T. I have a list of desired features for this expansion – including a freight house and team track yard, a couple of industries, and a couple of tracks for building trains. I’ve rolled out an earlier design for these features and it fits with plenty of space, so I’m now considering what else I can add to this list.

Published by Trevor

Lifelong model railway enthusiast and retired amateur shepherd who trained a border collie to work sheep. Professional writer and editor, with some podcasting and Internet TV presenting work thrown in for good measure.