Well here she is. There might a be a few things that need changing, I whipped it up pretty quickly last night in about an 90 minute session. It's planned out with AnyRail demo model so there isn't all the features, but so far the only real limiting factor is with the free "demo" version you can't go over 50 pieces of track. It's all laid out in Atlas code 55 flex and #5 turn outs. I oringinally planed to use a mix Micro-Engineering code 70, 55, and 40 flex and their #6 turn outs so a little finagalling might be needed. My latest thought is to use the ME C55 on the mains and C40 on the spurs/sidings, then just use the Atlas #5 turn outs. Will all those different components work together?
This is a two deck layout but I didn't include the lower deck in the plans. The lower deck is just length of the back all (longer wall) and will only be about 12 inches deep. It is simply for staging and to connect to the helix on the right side wall. I will probably do some scenicing simply because it can be seen, but nothing more than a printed back drop, balasted track, and covered ground, most likely a mix of dirt spots and grass with a MOW road following the track.
Starting at the bottom left is an industry I'm not quite sure on yet. I just know it will deal with concrete. The idea is that the concrete place gets 7 cars, but that will change. The passing siding and spur track are long enough to hold seven 50' cars. I planned all measurements on 50' cars but in the end it works out best and I didn't realize it. Starting out will be in early 60's and they will get cement in PS2 2-bay covered hoppers, but there's enough room to expand to use ACF 2 bay hoppers and eventually 3 bays like ACF 4650's and PS2 4740's and 4750's that the concrete business by my apartment gets. Next up is a small business that will get two 11,000 to 17,000 tank cars that are less than 40' prototypical length. I didn't see it before but I know I should probably add a passing siding on the left side of the main to place the extra cars, otherwise the train crew will either have to run just the two empty tank cars all the way around the layout to the yard or try to put them on the passing siding by concrete place. Next up is the saw mill. The first spur is for unloading log cars. It's sized enough to fit four 45' log cars. The passing siding and the second spur are long enough to fit 8 50' cars. When operating I figured the saw mills would be spotted on their own run since it could take up as much as 8 50' box cars for finished product and another 8 log cars. The log car spur will also be located by a sceniced holding pond for logs, and there will be two saw mills, part of the reason why the loading spur track is so long.
And that's it. Some figuring put the total number of max inbound cars at 25 cars. I'm starting to wish I would have had the staging yard on hand to post. It's a double-main track yard with 6 total tracks, 3 for inbounds and 3 for outbounds. Each yard half can hold 13 cars on inside track, 9 cars on middle track, and 7 cars on outside track having 29 inbound and outbound cars in the yard at one time for a total of 58 cars. It may be able to hold more, I'm think I was pretty leanient on fouling points and may have figured in more track space than needed for them. Deck levels will be connected with a single track helix of 2%, 2 inch rise per turn, 6 inch total rise, and 12 inch radii curve. It will be covered with a removable back drop and I may possibly add signal detection, I'm not too sure. It would definetly need it if I ran more than one train at a time but I don't think I will. Main line run, including helix and yard main line, will be aroud 90 feet. Thats all I got for now.
I like how yr keeping it simple and leaving plenty of room for the industries (something I'm rarely able to do), as well as the scenery divider / tunnel on the backleft: it will add depth & time by separating the scenes into the "warm" colors of the cement plant and the "cool" earthiness of the logging.
I'm visualizing being in the room, and I dig the feeling: The log unloading / loading scene will look quite the centerpiece!
Just a couple thoughts: the logging area seems very linear / horizontal / flush with the front. Any way to even slightly angle the track from front to back, left to right? (or vice versa?) Unless there's some reason they have to be straight across I'm not picking up.
And I know I have CTD (Compulsive Tracklaying Disorder), but it seems you could put a small industry or servicearea or even a small tt on the right upto and over the helix. The line could come off the siding / passing on the far side of the logging, or off the main right before the curve right towards the helix.
Quarry for cement plant on other side? Just a thought.
M.C. Fujiwara
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When I originally drew up this plan there was a conflict on how much of the room I could use with the "significant" other. Some time over the months she decided with out really telling me that her mind was changed and I could no longer use the entire room. It suddenly went down from a room sized HO layout to a small N scale layout taking up the long back wall and a short chunk of the right wall, which could only be 5 feet long before it would interfear with the bedroom door operation. So this was kind of designed to be a narrow around-the-walls shelf layout to prove that even though it goes around 3 of the 4 walls, it still would not take up much room. Appearently she didn't want to clunk her head on the framing when she was using her desk even though my old computer desk is 2 foot deep and my layout was only about a foot deep on the left side where her desk would be. She also didn't think that a shelf style layout set 4 feet above the floor would take up too much room for storage. Funny thing, a really good friend had a bad fight with his dad and was going to move in with us so him and me cleaned out the back room for him to use. Short story shorter, apartment owners decided to hassle a little bit, he lived with us for a week, and all of a sudden now since that 2nd bedroom is completely cleaned out and is once again a spare room she wants to move a bunch of stuff in it, like the computer desk. Something she doesn't even use now, and is fine where it is. So it is becoming a battle. Wait till she finds out I have decided to switch to HO. When she argues about this I will kindly remind her of the time we both went to the LTS and I bought a few N scale freight cars and she basically implied I was kind of dumb for not buying the bigger, more detialed, neater looking HO cars. So even after the switch to HO it will be narrow, which is ok. The biggest industry will be a brewery, which will be made of all low relief buildings. I was hoping that my decision to move up the height to 55-58 inches would help my case but I think she tunned me out again when I started talking trains. She collects Barbies and purses and I collect Hotwheels, guns, trains, 1/18 diecast, empty gun shells (that I've shot), auto magazines...I'll stop there. Back to my point. the old N scale layout.
The plan was a sort of an architects sketch of my layout idea, not the blue-prints. I mainly made the saw mill tracks straight because I knew then that there would be enough room from the track to the layout edge to include the saw mill buildings and the body of water. But fret not, if I stuck with this plan the straightness would have changed. I also agree with you in that angularity can be your best friend. The plans may have been drawn out paralleled, but it most likely would have been made angled. I did do a slight boo-boo though on the helix. My full intentions were to have the helix connect to the upper deck next to the wall, not away from it like in the plan. I didn't realize I made that mistake untill after I had posted it. My full intensions where to build the helix so the helix roadbed would be on the opposite side it is now. With the 1 inch drop of the 1/2 turn of helix and either a hollowed out hill or modified buildings a town could easily have been built over the top of the helix area, which is exactly what I would have done. I know one thing I've always wanted it at least some representation of a down town area. This will be much harder in the HO plans with the space premium. The layout area will be the same size but different demensions. The long back wall and short chuck to the right can all be 24 inch deep layout with no problems, but to the left is where the significant other will have her little desk area so it will be relegated to 12 inches deep. I thought for sure with the need for low-reliefe buildings I would have to be scratch building all of my buildings, but as of now the only reason I have to scratch build any building is because of the simply fact I want at least one building on my layout that I can't point out to people and say "see that builing right there. Yeah I built that myself from scratch." In case you are wondering it will be modeled after the Coblskill coal dealership. I forgot the company that makes the kit, but I have the issue of Railroad Model Craftsman that has the article of one that was scratch built. I will try to see if I can fit a full size building, but if not it will be a low-relief building a few inches thick of the trackside.