I feel this sentiment, i often over plan my projects and then never start them because of how ambitious they seem. Sometimes it is just better to get building a model and see where it goes

Maybe we should see the builders of the "perfect" layouts as the Olympic athletes of model railways. We can admire their work, but at the same time realise that we can enjoy model railways as a hobby without having to copy their achievements, in the same way that we could enjoy running even in the knowledge that we'll never set a world record.

A Swede: Thanks to you Brits, I'm going to build an Inglenook HO with what I have collected since .... forever really. No more excuses, I have the stuff, the space and no partner to nag me for my "expensive" hobby. I'll try, fail and learn like I've done with other stuff, (making 1/32 scale cars in paper looking like boxes for instance). You are the inspiration, I have some ideas. Hopefully I'll be able to show something come summer, (the archives are jammed ATM). Thanks thanks thanks!

The very best thing about this hobby, is it can be as simple or as complicated as you want it to be and still be very enjoyable. Whatever floats your boat

It's good to lose yourself in model railways. So soothing to watch a loco going round and round! 🚂

Yep, I’ve always wanted a layout since I was a kid. 18 months or so ago I told the Mrs I’m building one, I’ve now got a little 4’6” x 2’6” DC n gauge work in progress, even the Mrs has got involved which makes it a joint hobby we both enjoy, building Metcalfe kits together, going to local exhibitions together, yes I’ve made a few blunders but hey ho it’s enjoyable non the less. 👍🏻

You inspired me six years ago to take the top off a bookcase we were about to throw away and create a shelf layout. I'm still using it and working on it on a daily basis. All buildings etc I have designed and 3d printed.

This video is a breath of fresh air. There are so many setups in the magazines and on utube and quite frankly they are beyond me. Though my layout is simple, a terminus with loop and a couple of sidings using live frog point, and discovered wiring is a right royal pain, never again! So thank you and your layouts are great.

I would recommend "The Hornby Book of Model Railways" by Chris Ellis, it gave me the inspiration to build a small inglenook style layout which incorporated a hunters puzzle. I rented at the time so wanted something that would be relatively compact but look nice and be functional, it was the first time I broke away from the mind set of 'needing' to have a full loop and it gave me lots of fun until a time when I could start building my dream layout.

Good advice. I’ve lost count of the times that I’ve (re)started a layout and got nowhere, aiming for perfection and failing.

I could not agree with you more, as a 15 year old modeler limited to my room I can relate to the classic 'not enough space' excuse but I built a gorgeous shunting layout with a floating shelf and I love using it on the daily!

You are spot on, most kids like a run around! The problem seems to be shows, with fab but unrealistic for many layouts. Love your simple budget models.

100% Agree. We're a non-profit ride on railway but we used to be a garden railway open to the public. Lots of visitors would tell us they wanted to build a garden railway but were overwhelmed by what we had created (Brides, tunnels, hand carved concrete castles and over 100 buildings. But our advice was always the same "drop a circle of track on the lawn and play, have fun with it and add bits as you go. Don't worry about a permenant line. Just have fun" And iyt was usually the case that those folk that did take the plunge would eventually start to add to their railway and eventually build it in a more permenant way!

You are SO RIGHT!!! Having fun and learning is the more important. And if this is a hobby, it is supposed to help us relax. And creativity is a healthy thing...

You are absolutely right! Just get started with something that you can build right now. As Mary Poppins said "Once begun, half done!". I had this problem for about a year when I finally realized that if I did not start building something, I was never going to build anything. And as you mentioned, any layout is better than no layout... infinitely better. Great sentiment, and great video. Thanks

😅Never a truer word spoken. I pondered for years after moving away from where I was modelling only with a Club. Then, I took the plunge, and am now the proud owner of a simple 4 x 2 oval, with one loco, three wagons,money coach, NO points, but highly detailed scenery that's kept me busy for 3 years. Total cost probably less than £100!, but the wealth of fun I've had and the online modelling fraternity is amazing.

Well said. I've been in the hobby since 1980. Even when I've had " no room" I've built a switching layout on a hollow core closet door. You're absolutely right start with what you can do now, it'll be enjoyable and allow you to build your skillset.

I've actually got one in the works right now, problem is my LHS is constantly out of the track elements I actually need to finish it and the ones they do have are focused around medium-sized multi-track mainline display layouts, not operations-focused ones like what I'm building. I'm using KATO Unitrak on a 3x6 N scale with lightweight ladder-frame benchwork, by the way. It's actually got quite a lot of layout for the space - a small marshaling yard and interchange, a coal mine, a brewery and a scrapyard, and features a unique out-and-back layout with a reversing loop that curves back through the yard so that it also has a continuous run. For anyone concerned about space but who doesn't want to just build a little switching layout, going to a smaller scale can make a huge difference. Similarly, if you have a lot of outdoor space to work with but not much indoor space, consider bumping up to G, particularly IIm (Meter Gauge), Fn3 (US 3ft Narrow Gauge) or SM45 as there's tons of smaller locomotives for those scales that can handle tight turns.

I absolutely agree, you don’t have to have a massive layout, a layout is a layout whatever ever the size, all bring a smile to our faces. 😊

Great advice for life, not just for train layouts. Thanks.

Totally agree, just build it.

I agree, i’ve recently got my own little place, but wanted a layout anyway, so i’ve build a small oval in Marklin M-Track. 2 switches. 2 dead ends. It’s got everything, a hill with a tunnel, a bridge, a railway crossing, a station and a freight depot. Even a little farmside. Not really a place for a small town, but hey. I was so happy when it got done

You are so correct. For years I've had a little shuting layout with little to no scenery. Now I have a spare room in my house and I'm building a reasonable layout in it. I have all the buildings and rolling stock and I'm away!

When I was living in an apartment I built an HO scale shunting layout on a piece of planking I got out of a dumpster, about 6ft by 18in. Started with the trackwork so I could run trains without having to wait for scenery. I had grand schemes of a photorealistic recreation of a specific location in a specific era and was trying to plan everything down to the littlest details. 8 years on, I've moved with it twice, attached it to the wall, and added 6 feet of runout on a narrower shelf, but I still haven't touched the scenery. It's still a bare plank, I store project supplies on it, but keep the track clear to run trains. At the end of the day that's what it's all about. That said, this really motivates me to build something for the scenery even if it isn't perfect or exactly what I had in mind. No excuses 👍

Thank you so much for this video, which gave me the impetus to restart railway modelling after a 12 year hiatus. One thing that helped me is to claim that my 4’x2’ OO station layout is a module of a much larger future layout, so I can keep my high ambitions while still getting down and dirty with a small and manageable board in the space available. If I never build the next module, so be it. Keep up the great work!

Thanks for the inspiration, enjoy repairing and resurrecting old locos but have no layout to run them on. One I have planned was to ambitious for now but thinking of picking up an IKEA shelf and getting a basic shunting layout done!

This ist the spirit of model buildung and model train: Just do it, get creative and work with everything, you have! You only can become better in what you are doing. Thank you for encouraging other people!

I've got a 6ft x 2.5ft picnic table in the shed and started an N gauge layout with 1st radius. 1 big loop and 2 sidings. I'm having so much fun making scenery out of 5mm foamboard, polystyrene packing and modelling clay. I've got 2 small locos and some rolling stock. That's all I need for the moment!

I am reviving my Hornby Dublo 2 rail locomotives along with a few carriages some wagons and four locomotives. The baseboards are built and the track planning is under way. There is such pleasure from running these old British built models which have stood the test of time. Thanks Mike for your inspiring videos

For minimal layout, I think that the British modellers have developed a know-how on how to do great on a shoestring with really close to nothing. The books written by British authors on this subject are the best inspiration I have. Layouts are like fiction stories : what you need is imagination, and take time to remove everything that has no purpose in it. You makes me want to take the challenge to do a OO layout on a A4 size plank. I already have an idea on it

Lots of good advice there. I have been planning my dream layout for years and buying things for it all the time, BUT I have built many smaller layouts over the years for myself, my children, even 1 of my Daughters wanted one, I built them for my Grandkids, the eldest is now a teenager. I have enjoyed the hobby all my life. The best news is that I am now Mortgage AND Debt free, my wife approves of my hobby (She has bought ALL my Newest locos for me) and now I have the space, in a loft I am currently converting. The most important thing to me was that I was able to keep enjoying the hobby whilst waiting for the opportunity build my dream layout. Anybody who says they dont have space for a model railway, doesnt honestly want one in my opinion.

Hey! That’s great, like your attitude ‘something is better than nothing’! I’ve collected a bunch of Irish rail locos, coaches and wagons but so far only the intention of static display at eye level just for nostalgias sake. 35 years ago though I used to love helping a friend build his in his loft. We never got to scenery, remote controlled points or signals. I always had the dream of a single line right the way around it.

The classic four foot by six foor or four foot by eight foot layouts from the 1950's Atlas and Hornby track plan books are what people should start out with first.

Well said! The other option is to run 00 narrow gauge (009) so you have 00 buildings, scenery etc but N gauge Rail.

Some great messages here for oldies returning to model trains after 50 years - like me! Thank you...

There's a lot of very useful and down to earth comments in this video, Mike, for which I thank you. I have a lot of pleasure running trains around a bare baseboard while I'm on the phone - for me, that works because I have so many other calls on my time. As you say, I probably need to start again smaller to find that sweet spot where I can start adding buildings and scenery. I loved seeing your previous layouts again too ❤

Totally agree, Mike. As you know, I have built a compact DC round and round layout in 00 gauge using flexi track on a 2' x 6' baseboard which sits on an ironing board. It's not set anywhere in particular but has lots of interesting elements. When not in use the board stands up against the wall, it's less than 3" deep. If you make it modular you can have loads of interesting features too.

Never let perfect get in the way of good enough. Some good advice you are giving there

My only experience with layouts is basic train sets my grandpa got me when I was a kid nearly 30 years ago. But my dad did build a 6x6 oval of track from a simple sheet of plywood. We never did any scenery or ballast or anything like that, but it was still a layout. Now, I simply have a few freight cars still in their boxes for static display.

Me these days down to a T. I'm 64 & in a small rented house. When I was 12 I had a small bedroom that I loved. Had a board that fitted 2/3 over the bed that was a bottom bunk. It must have been about 6ft by 3 or 4ft. I could take it to bits & lean the board against the wall so my mum cud change me bed! Wish I had photos but haven't. Can remember most of the layout I built. Had 2 circuits & 5 engines. Sold it at 16 but kept my first 060 engine & the last br coloured flying scotsman. Still got them. Been making excuses for too long 😂

Spot on mate! I've had HO gauge sets that have sat in a box since I was a wee one, I always put off building anything because I didn't have space while renting, but could never justify forking out to replace it all in N gauge. Now I've got space and two shelves put aside, I kept putting off building a layout for a lot of the perfectionist and size reasons you mentioned. Last week I bit the bullet and got some tomix N gauge track, a couple of locos and wagons, a Kato pocket line freight set and a Kato bare chassis. I now have a dogbone loop running round my computer monitor on my desk, and the main track is going on a 1500x350 shelf this weekend.

Spot on! When starting off, keep it simple. I made the mistake of trying to keep mine in a set time frame in a set location. I have since found that far too restrictive and so mine is now used like a preserved railway. I am still keeping to steam but it has more variety and is easier to pick up bargains.

As always I agree with everything you do! Excellent! Single lines make it look like a longer line as well.

I always like hearing your perspective on these things. It's so tempting to go the perfectionist route.

1:39 This is great advice that I've really taken to heart the past year or so. Currently working on the 2nd attempt at a simple 4x8 Loop and it's astonishing how much smoother it's going compared to the 2 previous builds (Attempt #1 & a Christmas layout I constructed but couldn't finish in time). Just the experience you gain is super valuable, and the attempts ya don't wind up liking can be re-used (Currently planning on turning two of the old baseboards into a small wooden house for my cat). Also, creating modular boards is an excellent way to store them and expand later on. My "Grand Plan" is big enough to warrant it's own building with the current 4x8 being a single station on it, but the 4x8 is what I can currently afford in terms of finances and space, so the 4x8 is what we build. Just slap a point on each end of the loop & a Y-switch to meet up with it on a future expansion and you're ready to expand when ya can!

You are absolutely spot on!

Great video! And I totally agree! Being, now, into diy synthesizers I see the same problems in that hobby 🥺. Start at with a small project you can finish is important. I was planning for a small layout 8-10’ by 3’ using small GWR tank engines and (mostly) 2-axle vans. As I have a solid background in electronics I had ideas of how to control the layout with digital circuitry. However, I had all my gear, locos, vans coaches, rails etc stolen. But I am still very interested in railway modeling and would sell a kidney to get that nice 4-4-2 tank kit back that some scoundrel stole from me.

You highlight some really good points here. A layout is still a layout, no matter the size or what you run on it. A good example, is Peter Snow, a former news broadcaster. He has a large loft layout but barely has any scenery on it and he runs a mish mash of all sorts of locos and stock. He says he doesn't care about everything being uniform, he just wants a mix of what he likes. This is the approach I take. My layout is single track first radius curve, meaning I don't have a fat lot of choice of locos that will suitably run on it. I mainly stick to 0-6-0 locos but I am more than happy with this. I run LNER locos with SR coaches and have an LMS colour scheme for the station among other things. But the main this is I am happy and it works for me. I run short trains as this is what works best for my small layout. I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm glad I ditched the one company, one era and one location idea years ago as it is so restricting, because as you put it you miss out on the bargains and good deals. It seems only one can do this is they have or are willing to spend limitless amounts of money, time and resources to achieve, some things of which many of us don't have.

True words of wisdom as always. The other thing I've learned from this channel is that trams and multiple units are great because they take up less space than a big loco and rake of coaches but still add variety. Even with Kato N in most houses you're going to need to clear the living room floor and set up a temporary carpet layout if you want to run Shinkansens. That's why the compact Pocket Line range which I found out about from you is so great. I'm currently putting together a modular layout for Kato R160 curves made from four upturned 25x35cm plywood trays. I need space under the baseboard for various electronics and wiring for sensors, point controllers, separate blocks etc but don't have space for a huge layout on staging or trestles. I'll let you know how it goes.

Hear hear! I have not strayed from the 6x4 starter layouts for the past half a decade or so - aside from a small hypothetical shunting plank I'm thinking about. My own stock is whatever bargains I can find (though with a definite bias towards the Western Region. You've been instrumental in helping me finally get down scenery. Thank you

You are totally right: a small layout is better than no layout at all. My OO-scale layout is 95x85, just a circle with a double station track and one siding. Three points and radius one track. My H0-layout is 140x100, 5 points and lots of flexitrack 😊 And true: model trains can be great therapists!

Thank you this video made me view the hobby differently. I’ve always been doing it on a tight budget I’ve got to the point where I’ve got some locomotives, wagons, track and even a baseboard but currently I was waiting to move house so I had the space for it but watching your videos shows what you can fit in a small space I’ve made a smaller baseboard and just laid some track and it’s so much better than laying it on the carpet then putting it away when I’m done now I can just play when I want

A great motivational video,what you say really is true. The OO layout is excellent, you do have a skill of building on a budget.

Preach it, Brother! I subscribed just for the encouragement. Yes, someday I will build my O-guage layout!

I have a 6x4 layout. I'm literally running anything I like on a 2nd radius loop with sidings. It's mobile and put on top of my bed. I take it down to go to bed. Having great fun. Cheers Paul.

Thank you so much for that. I can recreate something like your oval on my empty 4 x 2 board in n gauge. This is the inspiration I need!

I agree with this idea100%. In fact, building just a complete circle of track would be a good way to start. No points needed. Kids like trains running continuous. Wiring is simple. This would provide a place to practice scenery work, ballasting, making buildings from scratch or kits improves your skills. Just get out of your comfortable chairs people! Start building today!

Fantastic advice, I hope people are inspired by this as its DEFINATELY the way to go, love the layout you've got running there. You can always theme it around a heritage/preserved railway where anything goes !

Zackly this! Kids aren’t Bogged Down in All the Technicalities - A couple of 10 quid Holdens and Pugs, a few wagons and some 4 Wheeler coaches and Jobs a Gud’un 👍🏻

I love your thoughts on why you should run trains. For me it's the journey not the destination. (no pun intended). I enjoy the planning of the layout and finally the running what I've designed. Love your videos.

Right on the money. I'll build a inglenook shunting puzzle, and use my dcc dock authority shunter.

I am so guilty of making excuses for not making a layout. I did decide on N gauge as I knew I wouldn’t have the space for HO, and that was my best choice. I grew up with friends only doing certain periods or only running steam engines in HO and I thought that was how things were. Until I’d seen your channel I’d never even heard of ‘freelance!’ Now I have random engines and wagons/coaches, track and a controller…now I just have to get off my arse and do it! Oh, I run Kato as it was easier to get at the time 😉

Great video, thank you! Such great advice. Just do it. And the reality is you're going to make enough mistakes in your first one that you may have to re-do it, so just start learning. I had to go through two 'trial' layouts before I got it down for the 'final' one.

I needed to hear this! Thanks.

Thanks sound advice.

Very valid points and an inspiring video. Currently building the mini chest of drawers n gauge layout you did a while back and am enjoying the build....

Thanks for the video. I have a collection of Marklin HO from my boyhood days in the early 1970s (we lived in Germany then), on a recent visit to Berlin I was able to buy some spare parts and now have all of my locos running smoothly again. I am now building a small 6ft by 3ft 3" simple layout on which I will just enjoy running the models. I have also recently ventured into N, and have started by building a simple 6ft x 2ft 6" layout on which I have crammed track into every possible space so I can enjoy running the trains (which are a mix of British & German - that's due to the channel tunnel connection!!!!)

Thanks you've given me some ideas.

Thanks for the great video. Planning to build a new layout over the summer months. Have too much boxed up. Usual story!!

Thanks for the inspiration!

Tbh honest i have a cupboard full of N gauge track, locos, rolling stock etc. Im not really a train nut, but like them. But I got involved in a club, who belittled, said how I wanted to build it was not prototypical, wrong era, wrap ng buildings... everything was wrong. Completely put me off. So its stayed there. Thats why i didnt continue, probably thats why peopke arnt coming into the hobby. Theyvare looked down on. But after seeing this, I might get it all out again and have a look.

Or, if like me you live on your own in a 3 bedroom house, there is no excuse. So I put a couple of loops down on the carpet. They evolved into 6 loops with sidings for wagons and coaches. All dc...controlled by 6 Bachmann controllers. My static grass is the green carpet. 6 trains running...now thats cool. Nice one. All the best.

Excellent video with great advice!

Very true, 10% of something is better than 100% of nothing. my layout is DC and just track on board, not sure what to do first ie roads, ballast, etc

Thank you for that video! Absolute wisdom, encouraging by the way!

I've been doing quite some videos in German about how to scale down your topic until you can handle it. But yours is exceptionally good inspiration!

Words of wisdom indeed. Thanks for this video, puts things in perspective! Best wishes to you & yours!

So true. Guilty as charged. I blame KZfaq 😂

Totally agree with this sentiment - take on a small simple layout and just dig in! You'll soon discover what aspects of the hobby you enjoy. Respect for bring a great advocate for the hobby I started a finescale 5ft Inglenook 3 years ago, and I'm still miles off completing it due to adding a run round loop and discovering I love scratchbuilding everything on the layout bar the track. But the point is that getting knee deep in the hobby is deeply enjoyable, and for me the joy is the journey as much as the destination

I agree your sentiment.

Build lots of smaller layouts, practice the craft and skills and then maybe one day when you DO have the money for a huge layout you already know what to do and where to start. and you had fun along the way.

I now have five (5) models in my garage. All table top size. 3 x N gauge and 2 x 00 gauge. Had lots of fun experimenting with the builds, the scenery and the electrics. All are running and Ebay has been a great place to find all the bits and pieces as well as my local model shop. Sometime I shall either sell some or at least pass on to my grandsons if they have the space. In the meantime, when summer comes and the doors are open I shall run trains and potter in the garden to my hearts content. The oldest model was built for my son around 25 years ago!

Totally agree just get started, you will love it. My layout started as at small oval with one siding, but now fills the whole bedroom. Have i made mistakes along the way, yes, but that's all part of the fun. There are bits of scenery and buildings i would like to redo because experience has improved my skills, but i will not touch them yet as the layout is not complete (as if it ever will be lol) there is still a bit of bare wood in places, when all scenery is complete, that will be the time to revisit and improve.

Funny this pops up the week I took the plunge and have started 6x4 ft single loop 3rd radius which I've completed and run a train on today, now im going to add some sidings and start to decorate.

You are absolutely right. I've been wanting to make this big and very accurate layout for about 10 years. Luckily your videos inspired me to make a little shunting layout across the back of my desk and along a long windowsill. I've actually started a layout now in a small attic room so that I can have trains running around. The big one will probably never eventuate. Cheers!

Good to see an "OO Gauge" again!

Totally agree.

Agree 100 % ! I started building a aprox. size 4 foot wide by 6 foot layout after having a room size layout and I am having way more fun and the railroad has a weird side effect that I have been compelled to contrive more interesting scenes so I am getting more fun and entertainment out of less real estate and I do not feel at a loss at all one bit ! ! !

Kato Compact is also perfect for N scale/ 009 users who are set on having a complete loop layout. I've seen big american diesels and 4-6-0s run on Katos 6" Radius track. Flexi track is also a great tool

Totally agree. Well put.

I've recently spent time weatheing my track. I know it's crazy to mention that here, but I simply accept that I'm working on a project that takes decades to finish. Still I will need to learn to make compromises moreand this channel is a great place to learn that.

Here here! My layout is a tiny OO second radius oval with sidings and I’ve put 2 stations, an engine shed and a goods shed. It’s great fun and my Flying Scotsman can run around it. The legs of the layout come off so it can slide away beside a fridge. It’s fantastic

Superb, a really good video...thank you.

Very well said! I’m more than happy with my 4x8, and with that I have second radius curves (if I wanted a loop just without a yard on the outside as well as an s curve I could do 3rd radius). I’ve even thought of making a small 2x4 Christmas themed layout, you don’t need a lot of room!

Brilliant video and sentiment. It’s a great therapy for any age of modeller and we should entirely encourage hobbies such as this. I’m quite sure modelling companies such as Hattons would endorse this too. The skills gained from this are no less than some of the dubious skills supposedly gained from gaming etc.

Having started (and abandoned) two large and overly ambitious HO layouts, I have found great satisfaction and enjoyment in small switching layouts. N is a bit too small for my aging eyes, but I can run American HO and British OO in spaces ranging from 4 feet in length to 6 feet. The layouts store easily, don't require a lot of track and scenery, plus they are fun to operate! Sure, I wish I could have continuous running, but I enjoy Inglenook and Timesaver designs for switching/shunting operations. Best of all, I can build one to my own satisfaction in a reasonable amount of time. Thank you for continuing to advocate for railroad modeling that is attainable, affordable, and fun!

This is why your micro layout videos feel so revolutionary, and that is how I found your channel. They were the kicker for me to start my micro layout (and I have actually started now) that will run 0-4-0s and small 0-6-0s. And while that is coming together, I have some Z gauge that fits on my desk or kitchen counter and goes together in 5 minutes if I just want to watch a train go round! Something is a million times better than nothing, and done (or working) is better than perfect. Cheers!

Like the old Hornby adverts used to show you start out small and basic and then you gradually expand your layout. Also if you want to run your larger locomotives there are always the clubs that will already have a larger layout set up that you can run these size locomotives

Totally agree with you, been in the hobby for years and now have a 4ftx14" shunting layout, having more fun that before, using Hornby 0-4-0s and a few wagons. Have a selection of american N both layouts are built to use the dining room table, put away after. The boss is happy and I have a layout. Keep up the good work.

Hello glad to see you are still doing trains!