Once you have decided what sort of layout you want to build and assessed the limitations of available space, time, skills and cost that you have to work with, the next step is to start turning dreams into reality by designing the track layout. There are several ways to go about this:

• Using or modifying an existing layout track plan,
• Using or modifying a prototype track plan,
• Designing your own from scratch.

There are a huge number of layout track plans available in print and on line. You may be fortunate enough to find one that exactly fits your requirements, but it is more likely that you will use an existing plan as your starting point and modify it to suit your needs. Be aware too that many published plans will have been made for a different scale and gauge, may be based on a manufacturer’s own track products, and may assume a pattern of operation that is different from yours. The last of those is particularly the case for plans based on US railroad practices.

It is important to check any plan that attracts you for feasibility to fit your site and your operational requirements. Check the curve radii, loop and siding lengths, turnout sizes and track spacing. Ensure there is sufficient track space for your locomotives and rolling stock. Many modellers collect far more of these than the operating pattern requires or the prototype would have used. If you are in that position, you will have to decide whether you want all your stock on the layout at any time, or just a selection of it. Fiddle yards and cassettes can assist in this respect.

Some of these are available on line also.

• The Gazette contains many descriptions of layouts. Some but not all articles have track plans.
• Small Layouts (currently three volumes). Volume 1 is available as a free download: Small Layouts Volume 1
• Layouts to Inspire.
• A Compendium of Track Plans published by Peco.
• Model railway magazines such as British Railway Modelling, Model Railway Journal, Model Rail and Railway Modeller frequently publish layout descriptions, some with track plans.

• FreeTrackPlans is a web site with collections of layout plans, prototype plans (not to scale), and plans based on Hornby products. All are free to download.
• SCARM is a web site containing plans for many different scales and gauges.
• Track plans for model railroading is a US-based site with a limited number of plans.
• Model Railroad trackplan database is a US-based forum where members post their track plans, layout descriptions and photographs.
• AnyRail is track planning software. The web site contains a number of examples of layouts designed using AnyRail.

If your aim is to model a particular station or stretch of railway line you will have to research the location. A web search using the station or railway name may provide some information. Ironically, this is more likely to be helpful if the prototype is disused or no longer exists, otherwise the search results will tend to be focused on present-day operation (times of trains, etc).

If you are modelling a contemporary scene, a site visit is the obvious place to start, armed with camera and sketchbook. Be warned that a track pass to get beyond the boundary fence is not easy to obtain. On line mapping tools such as Google Maps are a source of current track layouts.

• The National Railway Museum library has very large collections of historical data, but track plans can be difficult to find.
• National Library of Scotland contains browsable Ordinance Survey 6-inch to the mile maps of England and Wales from 1842-1952. This is a sufficiently large scale to make out the track plans clearly.
• Old-maps allows browsing of old Ordinance Survey maps at a scale sufficient to reveal many track layout details, but very high levels of zoom require a subscription. Old maps are available to purchase.
• There are specialist societies [link required] covering most of the former railway companies of Britain, and they will often have extensive collections of information.
• Heritage railways have often preserved old track layouts, though this is not certain and local research will be required to determine the exact date of the present layout. They do tend to be more welcoming to visitors and those conducting personal research than commercial railways.

Your own layout design can be made in the traditional way using paper and pencil, or on the computer using specialised software. Both have advantages and the choice is ultimately one of personal preference.

The drawing should be as large as can conveniently be handled. Obtain a board and paper of adequate size on which to prepare it. Squared paper in large sizes can be purchased, and is easier to use than plain paper. It is very likely that there will much rubbing out, so good quality paper is very desirable. Work with a soft pencil, 2B or softer, and keep it sharp. A straight edge as long as the width of the paper is necessary, and if the paper is plain, a set square for drawing right angles will be required. A compass is the usual tool for drawing circular arcs to set out curves in the track, but it may be difficult to find one large enough. A pin, string and pencil will be adequate for larger radii. Flowing curves or transition curves that are not a single radius may have to be drawn in by hand, unless a suitable template can be found.

Start by marking out the space available, if it is a permanent layout, as accurately as possible. Show any obstructions that occur, e.g. roof braces, boiler flues, pipes, cables, access ladders in a loft or positions of doors and windows in the layout room. Mark the locations of power points. Be particularly careful to allow for the inward slope of the roof in lofts and attics; this feature will determine the general height of the track and the usable space.

Then start working on your trackwork design. Check the curve radii, loop and siding lengths, turnout sizes and track spacing as you do so. This will save you later disappointment and ensure that time is not wasted. Check that there is sufficient track space for your locomotives and rolling stock, or decide that you will only run a selection of them on the layout at any time. Plan hidden storage (fiddle yards, etc) on this basis.

Go through the layout design checklist once more to make sure everything important has been covered.

There are specialised software packages available to assist with layout design.

Templot is probably the most widely used package. It describes itself as a “workshop tool for modellers who build their own track”. The web site is comprehensive and worth studying even if you are not (or do not intend to be) a user. Templot has two major functions: making and printing pointwork construction templates for all manner of trackwork designs, and creating full layout track plans using them. Templot is free, donations are requested.

Other layout design packages do not have the facility for designing and printing pointwork templates, but use libraries of turnout designs from commercial suppliers. These libraries usually extend also to plain track components, but the facility exists for simulating flexible track. All are available as free downloads in basic versions. Many have licences that must be purchased to unlock the full features of the package. If you are interested in this approach, it is worth downloading and installing the basic version to decide whether it has the features that you want. All work on Windows 10 but generally not on other operating systems.

• C&L Finescale supply paper templates for a wide range of points and crossings in fine scale and ScaleSeven.
• Marcway sell a Layout Planner containing photoplans of their range of O gauge points and crossings.

Whether the track layout design is done on paper or on the computer, it is desirable to make a final “reality check” by laying it out on the baseboard before beginning to make or lay track. It is surprising how often this provides an additional perspective to the proposed layout and highlights things that could be improved.

Computer software may allow you to print out the whole layout at full size, even though this will require a large number of sheets of paper on the average personal printer. If you prefer, you may be able to print out the turnouts separately and lay them in place on the baseboard, connecting them with plain track drawn by hand. If you can only print out a scaled-down version of the track plan, you are now in the same position as if you had made a scale drawing of the layout by hand.

Using the scale drawing, transfer the centrelines of the tracks on the small scale plan to the baseboards and track beds. It is not necessary to draw in the rails unless it helps to visualise the final layout. Circular curves can be drawn using a pivot and string. Transition and arbitrary curves are best marked out using a thin strip of wood that can be bent to shape (an extra pair of hands is very helpful here). Be careful to observe the required spacing between adjacent tracks and between tracks and platforms, bridges, and other scenery.

Pointwork must be marked out with care, using known dimensions, radii, crossing angles, etc. The process is much easier, and the result more certain, if you can print out or acquire paper templates that can be laid in place, or if you are using commercial track, loosely lay the points themselves in position.

This article was originally written by the Technical Committee for the Gauge O Guild Manual. It was edited and adapted for the GOGWiki by Nick Baines.