Inglenook micro layout – Märklin C Gleis/Tracks - General information

If you made the decision to have a look at my blog, you probably already have a good comprehension of the concept of micro-layout.  There are many good books and articles from different experienced modelers (I. Rice, I. Futers, J. Andrews, N. Palette, P. Lunn, P. Fletcher, D. Tailby, L. Mindheim and others) that have been published mainly in European magazines.  Being a late vocation in the hobby (I started 5 years ago) and due to the fact that I must move on a regular basis, I’ve been contemplating for a while to build an industrial micro-layout.

I made the decision to start my project after I read a post on the small-layout-design group.  I currently live in Washington, DC, so the summer weather is usually very hot and humid.  Fortunately, we had very clement weather over the last weekend (July 7 & 8).  Since I already had all the materials required to build a small layout, I started to work on it Saturday morning, having in mind to just do the framing of the layout over the two-day period.  Well, I ended up putting in 15 hours of work and was able to complete the entire woodwork.

In terms of tools, I’m well equipped to do woodworking.  I invested in an excellent table saw and I prefer to use hardwood plywood, ½ inch, birch, instead of pine for the framing.  Birch plywood might be considered an expensive material for framing, but it usually doesn’t wrap, and I can cut a sheet of 4 X 8 the way I want.  For the layout legs I made the decision a couple of months ago to use IKEA IVAR side units, either the 30 X 124cm (11 ¾ X 48 7/8 in) or the 50 X 124cm (19 5/8 X 48 7/8 in).  I already use the IVAR units in my basement for storage. It’s a very good product, I can find it everywhere in the world, the height of my layouts is standardized, and it’s about the same cost as using dimensional lumber (1 X 2 in).    The other material I use is 1/8 in (or 3mm) MDF for the back drops and the fascia.  For the roadbed I use foamboard ½ in (12 mm) instead of pink insulation material, since the Märklin C Gleis/tracks already have the roadbed built-in, and it’s easy to fix the tracks to the layout with screws.  It also reduces the noise during the operation.

Below you’ll find a list of criteria I used during the design phase:

- Be able to move it by myself;
- Should fit in my current SW/Estate car;
- Should be expendable;
- Use wood that I have in stock;
- Use pre-built structures or some that I have in my stash;
- Be able to operate in analogue or digital mode;
- Should have a main line usable for freight or passenger traffic;
- Should be build in a short period of time (if possible by mid-August 2018);
- Cameo style, or self-contained (my basement can get very dusty);


I made the decision to build an L shape layout, instead of the traditional rectangular shape.  I got the idea from the book Minimax-Anlage by Herbert Fackeldey.  In his book, he presents 12 different narrow gauge small layouts, including the different options for the storage/fiddle yard.  An L shape layout also offered me the chance to use one of the curved turnouts that I already had in stock, including larger radius curved track segments.

The layout dimensions are 122 X 90 cm, or 48 X 36 in.  I use Franzis 3D Eisenbahnplaner 10.5 for my track planning.  You'll find detailed construction information over the next pages.

 Photo 1:  The layout after 20 hours of work