The Silver Flash Mining Co. HOn30

[Scott1984]

Hi everyone,
Well here is my small layout that is in progress. It is 28in x 53in and is a freelance layout revolving around mining operations. The layout is not really prototypical due to size and my lack of imagination and funds(haha) The layout has two levels. The lower level will be the underground mine operations, so just a basic oval with a small train running with some ore cars and such. The mine will have tunnels and hopefully will give the idea of a mine operation. The top part will be the actual track plan. The plan as you can see is very simple, only 3 turnouts. My hope is to make it more interesting by adding scenery that will give the appearance pf something more complex. I have some pics but they are pretty bad. I will upload them but they are not great. Thanks for looking!!

[Alan B]

Welcome aboard! It looks like a fun building exercise! Adding dim lighting in the mine will be a great plus. Looking forward to the build.

[Scott1984]

Thanks Alan!! I have some yellow flickering LED lights for the mine scene. I think it will look pretty good. I made a small mock up of a tunnel to see what it would look like and it looked pretty good. Maybe one day I will actually get to the lighting stage. It has been cold here in Idaho and hard to work in the garage. It will be done one day, hopefully!!

[Paul S.]

Welcome to RMR, Scott! Nice to have another narrow-gauger on board.

I've dabbled now and then myself with HOn30, and am thinking an HOn3 logging railroad might be in my future.

Please feel free to post away! Interesting layout you have.

[Scott1984]

Thanks Paul!! Nice to be here. I hope it will turn out nice. I have seen some of the work on here and it is a little intimidating for sure.

[Paul S.]

Thanks Paul!! Nice to be here. I hope it will turn out nice. I have seen some of the work on here and it is a little intimidating for sure.

Many of us here on RMR have been in the hobby for decades, Scott. So what you see is a reflection of experience and skills that came with time. That being said, please don't feel intimidated. First, you have wisely chosen a layout with a small footprint. It's a layout that can grow as you gain experience, skills and confidence.

Second, it's not a race. It's a journey. Be willing to say, for example, "Well, that tree is OK, but I bet I can do better." My gosh, if I had earned a dollar for every time I went back and redid something because I wasn't quite pleased with my first attempt, I wouldn't need a 401k!

Third, ask questions. Do a little research first on your own, too. But sometimes the answers can be hard to unearth, or you encounter conflicting ideas, and someone here can help. And get some books on scenery making, DCC and the like. Great investments in benefiting from the experts which will answer lots of basic questions. I heartily recommend Dave Frary's scenery books.

[Scott1984]

Thanks Paul!! Really appreciate the encouragement. I think it all comes down to having a little confidence in what you are doing and not being afraid to make some mistakes along the way. I built a HO layout about 9 years ago, it was 4X6 and was nothing to write home about but I did learn a lot from it. So I am hoping that I will remember what not to do and what worked. We will see how it goes. Thanks.

[Scott1984]

So I thought I would put up a photo of the critter that will be in the mine section of the layout. The picture is pretty bad so sorry about that. It is just a 3d printed shell I bought from e-bay. It sits on a Kato 11-109 chassis, probably not what they would have run in a mine. I thought it would at least represent what I was looking to do. I will try to get better pics in the future on the layout. I was wondering if anyone has ever put an LED in one of these type Kato chassis? I have looked around online and on the youtubes but have not seen much info. I would like to have a light on it since it is suppose to be a mine scene. I am do not have much electronic knowledge so please bear with me. Thanks!

[Guest]

Welcome Scott. I love your unique design and am excited to see it progress. When you said two levels my mind thought one thing but you are doing something completely different. In this hobby it is always enjoyable to see someone play outside of the sandbox.

[Scott1984]

Thanks Loren!! The layout is a little weird and different for sure. It sounded good in my mind when I thought about it. Hopefully it will all work out. Hey Loren, I just looked at your layout photos, very impressive work!!! This forum has a lot of very good modelers!! I am a bit intimidated but I know folks on here have been doing this for a very long time,

[Scott1984]

Thought I would put this pic up of my scratch built ore shoot. I put one in two different tunnels. I posted this on weekend update so I figured I would put it here as well. Thanks!

[Russ C]

Hi Scott, welcome to RMR!! I like your mine theme layout. It's got great scenic potential.
Years ago I was mixed up in the narrow gauge movement here in Australia up to the point of trainee driver. The largest concentration of 2' gauge track is in Queensland, actively hauling sugarcane to the mills. I'm talking trains of 500 up towards 1,000 tons here, unbraked cane bins. So narrow gauge is big downunder (aside from the extensive 3'6" government systems)

I see your using the Kato 11-109 mech for your critter. An excellent choice. Also keep in mind battry mine locos were extensively used underground too, a simple box on top of the mech can representate this

Some ideas for you-
https://twitter.com/ApogeeLoco/statu...62201204318212
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/235141031277
https://www.flickr.com/photos/19531332@N03/9856305424

[Scott1984]

Hi Russ,
I have seen some videos of people with narrow sugar cane layouts, very cool looking and scenic. I know there are some folks that have 3d stuff on shapeways and thingiverse for that specific modeling. I like the Kato chassis, it works great when the track is clean and it is pretty simple. I think eventually i am going to get the battery loco shell, probably the one from Apogee. I know they would not have run a diesel or gas powered loco in a mine. I found that body on e-bay and figured for the price, it would work for now. Thanks for the links for those battery locos!! I like the one on e-bay UK but they do not ship to the U.S. I hope it all turns out like I see it in my head, when I mock things up it looks pretty good. Thanks again!!

[Scott1984]

Well I worked on a few things the last couple of days and thought I would post them. It's not a lot but it at least things are moving forward.

I put in some mine cart tracks that follow the front of the layout. They connect to the mine tunnels. I also painted the ore carts. The black plates on the ground are plates that the ore cart can turn on so you do not need a turnout.




I also mocked one of the tunnels to see how my lighting idea was working. Put in timber bracing to how it looks.


I had a short video of the lighting but could not upload it.

I know everything looks a little rough in the pictures, hopefully it will get better as I move along. I think it will look better once I get some dirt down and a bunch of other stuff! Thanks

[Guest]

The lighting and lumber framing really make everything pop.