Operation Manual

ManualsBrandsMarklin ManualsMiscellaneous29060 - Digital Starter Set

building houses and other buildings for the layout. Roads, sidewalks, and town squares can be col-

ored at this time and details such as the crossing gates for the two grade crossings are installed.

“Planting grass“ completes the layout.

STEP 5: DOING THE DETAILS

Now it‘s time to do the details in the scenery such as trees and bushes. You should be careful in

how you place trees and bushes on the layout, because it‘s very easy to make a small layout look

overloaded with too many of them. Next comes the lighting for the houses and buildings, station

platforms, and roads. Automobiles and trucks, ﬁ gures, and advertising signs are the icing on the

cake. The layout is now basically ﬁ nished.

STEP 6: REFINEMENT

There are still several ways to re-

ﬁ ne your layout. If you want to make

a really realistic layout, you can

install a backdrop on the

back side of the layout.

Backdrops are available

from many accessory

manufacturers (Check

your local hobby shop

or train specialty shop for brands available in your country.) Even better is when

the train disappears into a tunnel. With some plywood supports, a little screen

wire, some plaster, and ap- propriate application of scenery grass, you can have

this attention getter in place in no time. And, for the crowning touch you can

install Märklin catenary (also called by some people “overhead wire“) for operation with electric

locomotives.

CONTROLLING THE LAYOUT

The modern Märklin starter sets come already equipped for the Digital system. The locomotive(s)

in the sets have a digital decoder for the most in operating fun.

STEP 1: PLANNING

External measurements, setup of the track subbed, and scenery elements (optional, Modellplan

Company) such as houses, roads, trees, and vehicles are entered in the 2D/3D Märklin Track Plan-

ning Program (Note: German text only). When the layout has been planned down to the last detail,

we enter an elevation plan. The software program generates a 3D representation which provides

a realistic image of the layout to be built. In addition, the Märklin Track Planning program provides

a buying list for all of the products entered on the plan.

STEP 2: BENCH WORK

We have selected

two each BPS

21120 frame

components

from the “Ba-

sis Plus Pro-

gram“ in the

track plan-

ning program

for the plan- ning of the bench work. These pre-manufactured wood parts

are available in cabinet maker quality from the ﬁ rm Modellplan. Experienced

modelers can also buy the individual components from a home builder‘s

market and cut them on their own. Feet with rollers that can be turned in

any direction have been planned for the legs on the bench work both for the

setup of the layout and in case the layout has to be moved.

STEP 3: LAYING TRACK SUBBED

Now you can use 10 millimeter / 3/8 inch thick plywood on top of the bench work for our layout and

lay the track. You can also just cut out the subbed for the track and roads as well as for the station

and building areas from plywood and install it on top of the bench work. This method of construc-

tion will make the layout considerably lighter in weight and the scenery is easier to form as a

result.

STEP 4: POWER CONNECTIONS AND BUILDING HOUSES

Separation points, feeder wire connections, signal and turnout connections are all done when you

install the track. Signals are set up and connected. The family can get involved in the meantime by