My Model Railway

When I was a child, I had a small Märklin layout. If I remember correctly, it consisted of five points, and a crossing, and the layout was an oval with an X in between and a siding. It wasn't a fixed layout, but I put it together whenever I wanted to play. I think I also had some signals, and the points were electrically operated. Over the years, all parts were lost.

Many years later, I had children of my own, and at first, we had a Duplo railway, and then I decided to buy some Märklin tracks which we would assemble and disassemble, and finally were mounted on a plywood board measuring approximately 2·40 m by 1·20 m. Unfortunately I didn't have more space, and so due to space restrictions I could not build anything resembling reality. Modeling reality was never my goal, though, my main interest were the signals, and so I focused on having several different signals on my layout, including signals which you usually won't find on a model railway.

On the picture page you will find some impressions of my model railway, and I also have a page dedicated to the signals used on my layout. The layout is rather simple due to the restricted space. It consists of a double oval with a siding, a diagonal track and three holding tracks. Also, there is an upper level with a loop.

Lower level:
I have two oval loops and a diagonal track. In the front (lower part of the picture) there is a platform between the inner loop and an additional siding. The outer loop bypasses the station. The exit signals to the right are East German Hl signals, to the left the signals are semaphores. The straight exit of the upper station track is leading to the upper level.

Upper level:
The upper level is a turning loop. The only point is a spring-loaded point. Of course, all Märklin points are trailable, but this one is usually set to diverging, and the returning train will cut open the point when trailing from the straight direction. Its point signal is coloured orange and there is a supervision signal facing the point.

	Lower level: I have two oval loops and a diagonal track. In the front (lower part of the picture) there is a platform between the inner loop and an additional siding. The outer loop bypasses the station. The exit signals to the right are East German Hl signals, to the left the signals are semaphores. The straight exit of the upper station track is leading to the upper level.
	Upper level: The upper level is a turning loop. The only point is a spring-loaded point. Of course, all Märklin points are trailable, but this one is usually set to diverging, and the returning train will cut open the point when trailing from the straight direction. Its point signal is coloured orange and there is a supervision signal facing the point.