hope you are all well , thought I might try pick some brains on here with a tricky little subject that was raised at our club last night

challenge a few people are having is on couple of our club layouts they are as we call them roundy roundy continuous layouts with no access to the operation well without climbing under the layout . With a few members that use these layouts crawling under and up again is becoming a bit of a struggle due to numerous reasons, plus the risk of catching wires and legs etc under the layout itself

so the thinking now is how we can make it easier to access the inside of these layouts , 2 problems we have with ideas are these are exhibition layouts so aren't fixed so will need to be rebuff enough ,also the access points for both these layouts will need to be on curves as the straights are made up of fiddle yard and scenery sections

so I'm open to suggestions , drawings etc from the floor


Mark

That's a real poser, Mark, as I have pretty much the same issue with my home layout. I built it 44" off the floor to give me a fighting chance but I still struggle to get to the back of the fiddle yard. The layout is operated from the front and I'm trying to automate as much as I can of the rear of the layout but, should anything derail, there's nothing for it but to crouch and crawl underneath

As yours is an exhibition layout I am surprised there is no central operating well (which most seem to have). I'm also sure most layouts have legs at each corner (at least) so accessing under curves is nigh on impossible. Still, I'd be interested to see what those who do exhibit layouts have to say

You've got two options really, a lift out section or a bridge over the layout.

You could try flying them in and out with a big drone - or a trampoline ?

 

a walkway bridge was a suggestion .lol

I have seen a layout with a sit on trolley, and you just ride underneath the layout. it's still a long way to get up, but at least you're not crawling on the floor.
Other than that, it's a bridge, either lift out completely or  swing up one side or swing out horizontally.

We have exactly the same problem with our modular club layout. One suggestion we are going to try is using an old typist's chair set at the lowest level and with the back rest removed so it becomes a low stool on wheels that you can scoot under the layout with.

If it's modular don't the sections come apart already? If so wouldn't a hinge on one section with some sort of electrical connections on the other side be enough to make it a "flip/swing" opening, just make sure you stop operations if someone needs in or out.

Hi Intercity, we did think of your options too but we will try the typist's chair first.

Setup a narrow gauge railway on the floor that you can sit on and ride in style under the baseboards. :-)

A lift up section is possible although of course it means operation has to stop while someone passes through.  I've seen a very nicely constructed lift up section in use with East Surrey N gauge group's modular system, built from aluminium extrusion IIRC.  You can see it here behind the roundhouse:


With my own layout I went from the original design of the fiddleyard being directly behind the scenic boards, to having extended side boards that place the yard behind the operators and create a centre well.  It gave myself and my operating team better access to the scenic boards for shunting etc. and also defined our required space better than simply standing behind the layout, but to be honest we found it awkward ducking underneath and so that configuration hasn't been used for some time and I've reverted to the original style.

I think retro fitting this kind of thing is always going to be problematic, because you if youd planned it at the beginning, it would have been in a place that was the least disruptive. Not helpful I know.

I think @Newportnobby touched on an idea in your first reply... make the layout taller! I like layouts that are viewed at a high level - but I get that wheelchair users and children have problems with them. But if you could make it higher, it may be a lot easier to get under, along with the use of tunneling trolleys etc.

Cheers
Kirky

I allso have the same problem getting into the center of my layout and I have a bench leg and a cupboard on one side to help me get down on the floor to crawl under then a chair the other side to help me get back up again .
I cant dig down as there is six inches of concrete under the floor of the shed  and there isnt enough height in the shed to make a bridge over the layout , and there.are too many wires going round the layout to make a lifting section .
Val said tough luck and anyway thats the only exercise I get , so.it looks like I will.have to put up with the inconvenience .
Thats the joys of getting old .
Bob Tidbury

Thank you all for your suggestions

I can tell fair few have the same issues and also finding a way to resolve it isn't as easy as it seems

Agree in hindsight would have been easier if these had been thought before layout construction , so doing it retrospectively certainly doesn't make it easier

I will put a couple of the suggestion to the members and see what their thoughts are

Theres a thread on hereabout a shed roundy where he used kitchen door hinges to make a swinging section, the hinges work like a parliament hinge so push out as well as up to give clearance to raised bits, ideal for curves.
Alan