Over about three or four phone calls tonight I've gotten all the dimensions that I need for the layout. I'll start finalizing these this week and produce a drawing. Then I'll buzz over to I.D.'s house and we'll check them together.
ALWAYS CHECK THE DIMENSIONS
Even the best people with the best measuring tools make mistakes measuring a room. I've made mistakes. Use two people, make the drawing and use different people to check it. I'll carry a buddy with me.
Then we can draw!
Showing posts with label Correspondence. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Correspondence. Show all posts
Monday, January 11, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Chat with I. D. Jackson
Questions for I. D. - answers with a *
Per telephone call on 1/11/10
Did you actually build a DCC layout? To completion?
* No, just a DC layout. Group is DCC savvy. No on signalling. Ops is not that big of deal.
I can't read your top 10 things you want on the layout
* He'll resend them to me tomorrow
Do you really want CTC for the trains? Railroad And Company
* GNRR no. Maybe in the future for the CSX.
The door to the extra room. Does it swing in or out?
*Swings in to the train room, as does the garage doors.
Review basement dimensions
* He will get answers to my circled items
What is the length of the right hand rooms?
* He will get answers to my circled items
Are there any windows?
* There are no windows in the basement
What is the ceiling height?
* 9' 1 1/2" There is no ceiling. Lights are in. No ceiling. Most is covered by duct work.
The door to the train room, swing right or left?
* swings in to right
The 20' wall in the Extra Room doesn't match the opposite wall.
* Re-measure and get me the new calculations
Additional conversation:
He would use tortoise machines for inaccessible or congested turnouts but wants ground throws for most everything.
He wants to model the GNRR Passenger Car Office but doesn't know what kind of car it is.
Model year is anywhere from 1980 to present
He's flexible with the bench depth and would like for me to design benchwork that is quickly installed to get him up and running as fast as possible.
Per telephone call on 1/11/10
Did you actually build a DCC layout? To completion?
* No, just a DC layout. Group is DCC savvy. No on signalling. Ops is not that big of deal.
I can't read your top 10 things you want on the layout
* He'll resend them to me tomorrow
Do you really want CTC for the trains? Railroad And Company
* GNRR no. Maybe in the future for the CSX.
The door to the extra room. Does it swing in or out?
*Swings in to the train room, as does the garage doors.
Review basement dimensions
* He will get answers to my circled items
What is the length of the right hand rooms?
* He will get answers to my circled items
Are there any windows?
* There are no windows in the basement
What is the ceiling height?
* 9' 1 1/2" There is no ceiling. Lights are in. No ceiling. Most is covered by duct work.
The door to the train room, swing right or left?
* swings in to right
The 20' wall in the Extra Room doesn't match the opposite wall.
* Re-measure and get me the new calculations
Additional conversation:
He would use tortoise machines for inaccessible or congested turnouts but wants ground throws for most everything.
He wants to model the GNRR Passenger Car Office but doesn't know what kind of car it is.
Model year is anywhere from 1980 to present
He's flexible with the bench depth and would like for me to design benchwork that is quickly installed to get him up and running as fast as possible.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
Note from I. D.
01-09-10
you don't need to ask me any questions? did get the measurement for the garage side of the basement and the height but forgot, been so long ago. i'll have to do it again. i am currently thinking of 16" shelves for lower and 12" upper. this cuts down on scenery. just enough for structure and track, this will make track for the front or back. it will look like modular, but against wall. can make wider as needed, yard, or big scene. well i am retired and home most the time day or night and answer machine.
questions for you!
thinking- 10-15 years layout can be easy removed.
the 10 page sheets i sent you, my machine said 9 was sent? missing?
close or move door between front and back garage?
distance between modules?
how many peninsulas will work?
probable 2 months til build, still have some sheet rock to install and floor repaired in 10x20 room. will be upgrading my circuit breaker panel also.
1x3 construction, sandply, with (foam-ceiling tile-homosode)? top.
will be putting down 1x1 adhesive tile, ceiling will be open ceiling fiberglass joist. screwed ballast lights to joist.
enough to contemplate
you don't need to ask me any questions? did get the measurement for the garage side of the basement and the height but forgot, been so long ago. i'll have to do it again. i am currently thinking of 16" shelves for lower and 12" upper. this cuts down on scenery. just enough for structure and track, this will make track for the front or back. it will look like modular, but against wall. can make wider as needed, yard, or big scene. well i am retired and home most the time day or night and answer machine.
questions for you!
thinking- 10-15 years layout can be easy removed.
the 10 page sheets i sent you, my machine said 9 was sent? missing?
close or move door between front and back garage?
distance between modules?
how many peninsulas will work?
probable 2 months til build, still have some sheet rock to install and floor repaired in 10x20 room. will be upgrading my circuit breaker panel also.
1x3 construction, sandply, with (foam-ceiling tile-homosode)? top.
will be putting down 1x1 adhesive tile, ceiling will be open ceiling fiberglass joist. screwed ballast lights to joist.
enough to contemplate
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Received The Layout Questionnaire
I got a copy of Jackson's layout questionnaire and have started to go through it. What I try to do is to get a feel for the persons likes and dislikes. What would make them happy. What things really irk them. That kind of thing.
Designing a layout for a person is a very hard thing to do. It is very personal. Each of us has strong feelings about parts of the hobby and some parts we dread. My job is to figure out what the owner sees in their head when they think model railroad. My other job is to help them make right decisions that will increase their enjoyment. Often I wind up with a layout I would never consider building myself, but makes them quite happy. This is why you don't see the work of pro designers in the hobby magazines. Often, its just not what the hobby press wants to see!
The questionnaire is a tool in and of itself. How a person answers the questions tells me alot about the person. I.D.'s answers are short, simple and incomplete. I'm inclined to think that he will want his layout to go together quick and without a lot of effort. This usually means no tricky track work or unusual benchwork designs. It will mean cookie cutter systems for quick gratification. This is where I nudge the owner to make sure that QUALITY doesn't suffer. A layout that is built quick often sits in ruins only one year later.
Another big part of the questionnaire is to ascertain the skills of the owner. Everybody is good at something and sucks at something else. My job is to figure out what those skills and non-skills are. If a person is great at scratchbuilding then I'll focus on key scenes and structures that really show off the modeler's talent. If they hate doing eletrical work, I don't want them to be forced in to more than they need, so reversing loops, signals and other eletrical apparatii will remain off the table.
Luckily in this case I've been friends with I.D. for many years, chased trains with him, and know some of his limitations. This inimate knowledge will help me design a winner for him.
Did I tell you about the time he drove his van down the tracks of a mainline? Really! LOL. We'll model that, too.
I.D. is actually doing the right thing. His weakest area is in layout design, so he's subcontracting that to me. His railroad is one of my favorites and I've done massive amounts of writing and photography work around the Georgia Northeastern. His prototype is local, so if we have a question, we just go see it. He has plenty of room, a good budget and most importantly HE KNOWS WHAT HE WANTS. This project will be a huge success.
What I need to cover with the customer:
Designing a layout for a person is a very hard thing to do. It is very personal. Each of us has strong feelings about parts of the hobby and some parts we dread. My job is to figure out what the owner sees in their head when they think model railroad. My other job is to help them make right decisions that will increase their enjoyment. Often I wind up with a layout I would never consider building myself, but makes them quite happy. This is why you don't see the work of pro designers in the hobby magazines. Often, its just not what the hobby press wants to see!
The questionnaire is a tool in and of itself. How a person answers the questions tells me alot about the person. I.D.'s answers are short, simple and incomplete. I'm inclined to think that he will want his layout to go together quick and without a lot of effort. This usually means no tricky track work or unusual benchwork designs. It will mean cookie cutter systems for quick gratification. This is where I nudge the owner to make sure that QUALITY doesn't suffer. A layout that is built quick often sits in ruins only one year later.
Another big part of the questionnaire is to ascertain the skills of the owner. Everybody is good at something and sucks at something else. My job is to figure out what those skills and non-skills are. If a person is great at scratchbuilding then I'll focus on key scenes and structures that really show off the modeler's talent. If they hate doing eletrical work, I don't want them to be forced in to more than they need, so reversing loops, signals and other eletrical apparatii will remain off the table.
Luckily in this case I've been friends with I.D. for many years, chased trains with him, and know some of his limitations. This inimate knowledge will help me design a winner for him.
Did I tell you about the time he drove his van down the tracks of a mainline? Really! LOL. We'll model that, too.
I.D. is actually doing the right thing. His weakest area is in layout design, so he's subcontracting that to me. His railroad is one of my favorites and I've done massive amounts of writing and photography work around the Georgia Northeastern. His prototype is local, so if we have a question, we just go see it. He has plenty of room, a good budget and most importantly HE KNOWS WHAT HE WANTS. This project will be a huge success.
What I need to cover with the customer:
- Need to do an in depth personal interview.
- Did you actually build a DCC layout? To completion?
- What is your favorite thing about model railroading? Couldn't read the answer.
- I can't read your top 10 things you want on the layout
- Review basement dimensions
- Do you really want CTC for the trains? Railroad And Company?
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