Operation Manual
20
You never forget that fi rst layout
It‘s a very special moment when you turn the speed control knob for the fi rst time and the train
begins to move, when the train comes to a stop at the station for the fi rst time, or when the locomo-
tive is stored in the locomotive shed for the fi rst time.
And yet, model railroading has a lot more to offer
than the magic of that fi rst moment. For example, the
technology: Today, trains stop automatically at a sig-
nal, locomotives switch cars in the yard at a walk-
ing pace, and the layout controls 3, 30, or 50 trains
directly at the same time on the model railroad layout.
Simple and Fast
In other respects the demands have also increased:
Instead of an oval of track, more complex track lay-
outs rich in variety are now the thing to do. Despite
this, it‘s easy and fast to set up that fi rst layout: We
will introduce a layout on the following pages that
will fi t in any room thanks to its manageable size. It
does not have to be built like the pros would do. A
normal Märklin starter set can be used as the basis
for this layout. Using the track from this set, we‘re
going to build the individual layouts with some ad-
ditional track. Since Märklin‘s starter sets all come with C Track, we have planned the layouts
exclusively with the reliable C Track program.
Layouts on Plywood Boards
The fi rst layout is typically built on a plywood board or a partial plywood board, and the construc-
tion and operation of such a layout is easy for you to master. We have planned all layouts with
the Märklin Track
Planning Software
(item no. 60521)
(Note: available
only with German
text). Even begin-
ners can quickly
get good results
with this easy-to-
use program after
just a short while
to become familiar
with it.
Our fi rst layout design for you measures 200 x 120 centimeters / 79 x 48 inches. You can see the
setup for this layout step-by-step on the following pages. This will make it easy for you to repro-
duce the individual work steps.
PLANNING THE LAYOUT
This layout was developed from the material in-
cluded in a starter set, item no. 29xxx. It can also be
built with other starter sets. The track sections giv-
en in Column 3 are required in addition to the track
from the starter set. Please note the required add-
on track can change if you use other starter sets.
Column 1 has the total amount of track required for
the layout so that you may be able to reduce the re-
quired add-on track, depending on the starter set
you use.
A Tip from the Experts
A tunnel enhances a track route im-
mensely. It can be installed easily on the
single track part of the route. To do this,
cut supports in the shape of the moun-
tain along with the tunnel opening and
glue them on the top of the layout board
using wood glue. The supports are then
covered with screen wire, the mountain is
formed with plaster, colored in green, and
fi nally grass is “planted“ on the mountain.
LIST OF TRACK SECTIONS FOR THE LAYOUT
Total
Required
Contents of
Starter Set
Add-ons Item
Number
12 4 8 24188
11 4 7 24172
1 0 1 24077
3 0 3 24229
1 0 1 24064
3 0 3 24977
3 0 3 24230
2 0 2 24224
14 12 2 24130
1 0 1 24115
2 0 2 24107
3 0 3 24611
1 0 1 24612
1 0 1 24671
1 0 1 24672
1 0 1 24624
6 0 6 74491
7 0 7 76461