Thornton

That looks to be a good sized shed and very well made as far as one can tell from a picture.

In the second picture are the battens screwed to the wall for the upper part of the layout? If so then you have pit them quite a distance above the lower level. You are going to need a good long run at 1 in 50 to climb that high.

Good luck with the project. It will be interesting to see it develop.

Robert

One of my friends commented it was a bit posh to be called a shed.

I spend 2-3 hours in there most days so it had to be comfortable..

The battens are 300mm above the storage sidings and are where the terminus station will be. So it will be a long slog up, 5 meters of which will be hidden under the scenery.

It seemed a shame to me when planning that a lot of space could be lost with hidden storage if it was all on the same level. Not being so agile as I once was I tried to give as much access as possible.

Derek

How are you planning the change of hight ? A helix ?

Hi Robert

Thanks for the advice, that is one idea I will be stealing. As I will have 2 lines crossing the flap a different levels I will make the hinge pins just higher than the highest one.

Many thanks

Derek

Two tracks at different levels poses an extra problem. It means that the lower part of the flap has to be quite a bit shorter than the top. (It's all to do with Pythagoras rule and the length of the vertical diagonal.) The exact amount of shortening needed depends on the length of the flap and the vertical separation of the tracks. If you need help, tell me these measurements and I could advise. However, you can probably work it out yourself by trial and error or careful measurement.

Also how to disguise the hinge which is nearest the lower track is something to think about because it will stick up well above it. This will be more difficult if the lower track is the one nearest the viewer.

Robert

I notice on the last picture that Anthony has tracks crossing the gap at quite an angle. Try to avoid this if possible because it means you have to be particularly careful with alignment each side of the gap to avoid derailments. If Anthony has avoided them then he has done very well.

Robert

Hi

Thanks for all the replies. The front track will be lower than the others, but will be in a cutting so the hinge can be mostly hidden from view. The pictures are a great help. Just as an aside, how do you get your photo's to display at a larger size, when mine are small but with about the same pixel count.

Ta Derek

Derek, are you able to tell us who supplied your shed? It looks really good.
Thanks,
Peter A

I first transfer pictures to from my computer to the 'Photobucket' website. Then when viewing my library on that site I hover over the top left of the picture and a drop down menu appears. One of the options is 'share'. I click on that, then when the picture appears, I click on the bottom option which is IMG. Once that says 'copied' I transfer to this forum which is on another window and click 'paste'.

Robert

Hi Peter

The shed is fully insulated and heated. It was built over a 6 week period by a friend of mine who normally builds loft extensions. Including an underground power cable, 2 large lorry loads of spoil and concrete base it came in at £18,000. A lot I know but it was planned for when the house was purchased. Most quotes I got off the internet for a comparable 20ft by 12ft lower spec sheds were at least £20,000.

Might be worth speaking to a local builder, he can use it as a fill in project. Mine was happy to work at ground level for a change.

I spent yesterday measuring, cutting and chamfering the timber for the lifting panel. I then glued and screwed it together and left it overnight. This morning into the shed to fit it, really fitted well, much to my surprise. Then went to lift it up and... it hit the ceiling. Thinking cap back on.

Derek

Thanks for that info about the shed Derek. I am house hunting at the moment and have no idea whether I will have space indoors for the layout but will definitely consider the shed option if not. There are lots of loft extensions in the area in which I am looking, so plenty of builders about with relevant expertise.
Regards,
Peter A