# My MTH & Lionel Layout



## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

I figured I'd make a thread here since I plan to share my progress as I go. I have my basic layout planed, my table is built, and my new MTH set and extra track should be here tomorrow. I have my Lionel coast guard set I plan to run on a seperate loop inside of my new MTH.


Here is they layout idea I have, I won't have enough switches to make it happen right away though.









Here is a factory I built that will be my main attraction, it's 23" tall










Here is the table









Some of my coast guard set


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

It will have a mountain in the corner with track rising 3" to it.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Just finished giving the table a nice dark green coat of paint!


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Coming along nicely. The cost gard set is killer. Maybe since the factory looks so real you could manufacturer switches?


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Here is the engine that will be with my set that's coming tomorrow, BNSF SD70ace, I can't wait!


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## njrailer93 (Nov 28, 2011)

Wow that's amazing. Like the bench work, I'm in the process of building of my first layout. Wish I had the space to do something that big


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## eljefe (Jun 11, 2011)

I like the BNSF diesel. That's one I've been looking at. I'll be curious to hear what you think of it.


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## erkenbrand (Dec 6, 2010)

I love that factory. It looks great. You're going to have one cool layout.


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## sabes35 (Dec 2, 2012)

Looks like it's going to be great. What is the size of your bench work?


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Thanks everyone, the bench is 14 1/2' feet long 4' wide then goes to 8' wide for the last 4' of it. I hope that's not too confusing, if it is just look at my layout diagram and count the squares (square feet).


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

One thought, you might look into making two loops so you can run several trains at the same time.  A little reconfiguration of the inner loop with the sidings might be enough to do the trick.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

That's what I'll probably end up doing


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Got my MTH set in, spent all night setting it up and figuring out how to run it. This set is awesome and a good price too, I love the detail on it. I'm not impressed with the MTH track but o well.


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## theace18 (Dec 30, 2012)

Wow. That MTH set looks great!


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

That engine is heavy! I love it, also since it's my first train purchase in 16 years.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Love the locomotive.  I agree with you about MTH RealTrax, it's junk IMO.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

I like the tanker that is with it also.:thumbsup:
You need placards on it, did they give you any?

Those crates look like mine that I can't find now.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

I have a gondola with the exact same crates. Yep, it's also an MTH.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

I didn't see any decals for the tanker, I noticed that also when I got it out.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

I don't know your room configuration but it would be nice if you could have added on another L on the other side.:thumbsup:

One negative comment?
Your green looks too shiny on the table top, maybe hit it with some dull coat?

Edit,

I just re-looked at the pictures, and the one with the engine on the trestles, the paint doesn't look as shiny there as in your first picture of the whole table.
Maybe seeing it in person it is different, I must be seeing the flash.
It is a nice dark green, what kind of paint was it? Hunter green?


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## santafe158 (Jul 14, 2010)

big ed said:


> I don't know your room configuration but it would be nice if you could have added on another L on the other side.:thumbsup:
> 
> One negative comment?
> Your green looks too shiny on the table top, maybe hit it with some dull coat?
> ...


I think the picture you saw of it seeming shiny was when the paint was still wet.


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## Dave Sams (Nov 24, 2010)

NICE WORK! I love the dark green paint 


Keep up the good work and keep up the reports.


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## ftauss (Sep 18, 2012)

Cape T/A said:


> I figured I'd make a thread here since I plan to share my progress as I go. I have my basic layout planed, my table is built, and my new MTH set and extra track should be here tomorrow. I have my Lionel coast guard set I plan to run on a seperate loop inside of my new MTH.
> 
> 
> Here is they layout idea I have, I won't have enough switches to make it happen right away though.
> ...


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

I painted it black in Microsoft paint, lol. Yah the paint was still wet in the first picture but it does have a little more gloss than I'd like. It's hunter green color from wal-mart, Krylon brand


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

here are a few more pictures of the new MTH set


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

here is a video i made today, also the fastest ive taken the train.


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Nice video. The lights on the factory make it pop. Where is the smoke?!?!


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

i forgot to turn it on


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Here is your smoke video! Haha


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Well it doesn't appear that my video is working, anyhow here is a couple pics of the progress.


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## the_big_e81 (Jan 2, 2010)

Looks great so far! I'm thinking about purchasing the exact same set, just can't decide on road name (I really like Montana Rail Link stuff) but BNSF would get me close!  

Btw - I like the snow plow on the front pilot, where did you pick that up?


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

The plow came with the set, I just had to screw it on.


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Smoking like a champ now! Thanks.


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## Big Ed (Jun 16, 2009)

Does she smoke? 

That picture had me coughing when I looked at it. 
After running it a while I guess you have to turn on the ditch lights to see it.:thumbsup:


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Haha, it puts out A LOT of smoke!


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

MTH locomotives are the smoking champ, I have to turn them down to the low settings or a fog develops.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Been a while since any updates, well we decided to sell our house, so we put it on the market and it sold in 14 days, then we had 14 days to get out! so everything got taken apart and packed away. We found a new house and it took 3 months to get in it. We are just now getting settled in, hopefully in the next week or two ill get to setting the tables back up and re-doing our layout. The new house has a very well lit and finished room for the train so no more dark and dirty basement pics from me!


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Sounds great, look forward to seeing the "new" layout.


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## Blackout (Jul 23, 2013)

Looks like a real nice train set and the factory turned out nice. Good job! Gotta love computers, I drew my layout on a huge sheet of paper.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

well its taken a lot longer than I hoped for, but here is where my "Transplanted layout" stands now. Most of it is similar to how I had it last spring at my other house, but I did paint the table a different color, and I added a few switches. I also bought a couple green BNSF hopper cars.















I suppose my next order of business is to fasten all the track down, hide/extend wiring, and then finish and paint the mountain.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

A few more pictures.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)




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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

I remember that factory! Hope the move went well, I missed that part. The newly improved layout is impressive. Happy to see the factory back up and running. Somehow a fresh start makes everything new again!


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

pretty much! lol


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## callmeIshmael2 (May 28, 2012)

Nice layout, coming along well. Funny how time works; I missed your first postings, so only have the latest to see the progress and the move from first home to your present one. To me, it happened all at once, lol. I really like your factory and your choice of new rolling stock on the layout. It all looks very good. If you're considering adding some ground cover, you might want to check out a product called "Fusion Fiber", available from Scenic Express. It's sold in bags for about twenty bucks, and should be enough to get some really nice-looking ground cover over your layout/where you want it. Good for mountain cover, too, of course. One of the main positive points of this product is the length of time you have to work with it - days - before it sets, and then if you're not happy with the look, you just mist it, wait for a few minutes, and redo it. When you mix it up, just add some kind of powder or acrylic paint to color it, and you have it. I'll attach a few pix of what it did for my yard area, etc. Keep up the good work and keep us informed of your progress!


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Thanks! That looks really good! I'd like to do something like that eventually. I'll just want to make sure I don't move any tracks first!


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## callmeIshmael2 (May 28, 2012)

Actually, one of the reasons I recommend this stuff to people is that it's so user-friendly. You can totally re-do your layout by getting the Fusion Fiber wet, slop it all into a bucket if you want (or just move it to one side) and redo the tracks. When you're ready, slop the stuff back into place (you can even re-color it at this stage) and re-shape it then, or wait a few hours to dry enough to put telephone poles, tiny people's feet, or any other thing you'd like in place. Won't dry for at least one to two days when re-done, but when fresh, it takes days for it to totally dry. 
This is in total contrast to all the classic "plaster of paris" formulas including Woodland Scenic's plaster-type powders. With the best known one of these, you literally have less than twenty minutes before it sets hard, so not much work time and forces you to work in small batches and quickly. The above-mentioned stuff sets in days and is EZ to work. Just my opinion, but at twenty bucks a bag, how can you lose? Just add some type of coloring as you mix it and it goes down that color, looking like ground cover.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Where can I buy it at?


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## callmeIshmael2 (May 28, 2012)

Google "Scenic Express" for Fusion Fiber, or just about any of the larger distributors that handle scenery could have it. It's a modelling product, so you won't find it at Home Depot. Just in case you decide to try it, I'm going to attach my "how-to" for you. If you do try it, I'll bet you won't regret it. It's got to be the easiest, less messy way to make layouts look much more real.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Well, no progress has been made since those pics have been taken. I recently bought a 1971 Firebird so that has been the focus of most of my time, and last week the engine blew up in my truck so the layout will definatly be on the back burner for a while.


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Definitely bad new for the truck and the layout. Better luck soon. I hope .


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Well it’s been a long time since an update. Shortly after my last post I began the fun process of a divorce. Had to sell my house and pack everything up. Finally getting my life back on track and just purchased a new house 2 weeks ago on my own. The new place has a full and big basement so I’ll have lots of room for a new layout. It will probably be this winter before I start on building a layout, but I’m excited to start on it!


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## Wood (Jun 9, 2015)

Good luck Cape. Hope it all works out for you.


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## sjm9911 (Dec 20, 2012)

Wow, worse luck. I went the same way. It gets better. I haven't started my rebuild yet. Too much else to do with a new home. Best wishes my friend.


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## seayakbill (Jan 16, 2016)

best of luck on your new home and future layout.

Bill


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## Spence (Oct 15, 2015)

Well hopefully the 3rd. time will be the charm with the layout.


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## gunrunnerjohn (Nov 10, 2010)

Bummer you have to start over, but I know about that.  We look forward to the "new" layout.


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## Guest (Jul 15, 2018)

Fresh start. Not a bad thing at all. Make the most of your new layout opportunity.

You have lots of friends on the MTF who will follow your progress with your new layout.


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## Cape T/A (Aug 15, 2012)

Thanks everyone! Between remodeling the new house and my #1 hobby (cars)and #2 hobby (rc cars) I have plenty to do lol. I guess I like anything with wheels!


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