Since it's looking more and more like I'll actually be able to build a layout, albeit a small one...I've drawn up a track plan for an L-shaped switching layout, and I'd like to see if anyone here has any opinions about it, good or bad.
The first image is the room itself, so you can see what I'm working with as far as space. The red lines are the edges of the layout that I'd like to build.
The second one is the track plan itself. Originally, I had a switchback in the "industrial" area, but decided against it.
So, anyone have any thoughts about this? Is is good? Is it awful? Am I smoking crack?
Thanks in advance for any insight that anyone might be able to give me!
Robert Beaty
The Laughing Hippie
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The CF-7...a waste of a perfectly good F-unit!
Then it comes to be that the soothing light at the
end of your tunnel, Was just a freight train coming
your way. -Metallica, No Leaf Clover
You should be able to hold up such a layout with just wall brackets going into studs every 16 inches. I made up my own brackets from scrap 2*4 and plywood gussets. Your track plan looks OK to me. Although, you could go down to #4 turnouts for the industrial trackage to save some space. I looked over the industrial section of Albany NY one time. They had track running down the center of the streets with really really sharp curves to let spurs swing off left and right into industrial buildings. They had like two of three spurs per city block and it went on for blocks and blocks. I saw a 70 foot tank car going round one of those curves and the overhang was worse then we see in HO. Most 40 foot HO freight cars will get around a 15" curve.
.
David Starr www.newsnorthwoods.blogspot.com
I probably should have mentioned that I'm planning on using Central Valley turnouts for the curved turnouts and for the industrial track. Unfortunately, a # 5 is the smallest they make. For the # 6'es, I already have several of the Atlas Code 83 "Super Switches", so I'll probably end up using those on the "main line" track.
I've sort of designed the layout so that if I ever get the space (i.e. after my wife and I buy a house), I can expand it.
I already have shelf brackets in place...the heavy-duty track shelving, mounted to studs spaced about every 16 inches or so.
Thanks for the comments!
I've got a fleet of CF7's just itchin' to work this plan...
Looks good, Roberto....
Now let's build the darned thing....
If you have cars spotted at the industries in the upper right end you won't have tail room the reach the industries on the upper left. you would be better served to come off the leftmost track and go up into the corner, more tail room.
Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com
dehusmanIf you have cars spotted at the industries in the upper right end you won't have tail room the reach the industries on the upper left. you would be better served to come off the leftmost track and go up into the corner, more tail room.
A good point, though I'm actually considering the slightly curved track between the freight house and Heritage Furniture to be mainline track, for possible future expansion. That's my tail track.
tin canI've got a fleet of CF7's just itchin' to work this plan...
*AHEM*
Old friend, please see my signature, below.
tin canLooks good, Roberto.... Now let's build the darned thing....
Let me finish cleaning the room, and it's gonna happen.
Track plan looks realistic. You have a few tracks in an industry yard instead of trying to fit in a huge division yard. You have a runaround. No switchbacks. Not too crowded. I *really* like the way your layout is designed so easily can be extended - with the mainline closest to the wall in the lower left and number 2 from the wall in the upper right. And I like your scenery plan - excellent work thinking about roads and parking lots. Great work!
Mmmm - anything that might be slightly optimized ? Maybe worth considering if the track can go in front (ie aisle-side) of the motor freight terminal in the upper left hand corner for better reach. Don't know how you are planning to deal with uncoupling (under track magnets ?), but it might be hard to reach over the building to uncouple by hand if you have to, and you probably wouldn't want to handle the buildings too much. But then again - you might want to accept the slight inconvience to get the scenic effect you are looking for with tracks going behind buildings. And it is something that would be dead easy to change later, if it turns out to be desirable.
In the upper right hand corner, you can probably squeeze into the 18" gap just fine if you have to do stuff behind the buildings without having to remove the buildings.
When door to the room is closed (and locked!) you could potensially even use a 36" cassette to feed traffic into or out of the layout at the mainline in the lower left.. 36" isn't the world, but in H0 40' cars, it is about 6 cars. But that main from the lower left up past the mission style depot can work just fine as visible staging at the start (and end) of a round of operations. It will fit a 5 1/2-6 feet feet local of maybe 10-12 40' cars and an engine (assuming H0 scale - part numbers for your buildings indicate H0 scale).
You can easily fit about 20 cars into your yard, so you have room to stash incoming cars (or outgoing cars) with a little work room in addition, without having to use the main for that. Runaround has a sensible length. Tail tracks for runaround and access to industries in upper left hand corner looks like they have an adequate length. You have a sensible number of industry spots relative relative to visible staging and yard capacity.
Everything taken into account - great work!
Smile, Stein
Arjay1969 *AHEM* Old friend, please see my signature, below.
LOL....
Like you are going to switch with F7's & FP45's.....
Hi,
Nice plan, well thought out! Hard to find anything to nitpick!
My only suggestion would be to take another look at the upper left corner. Being behind the buildings, the tracks there will be a little less accesible for operations.. things like coupling or reading car numbers. At the least, flop the pikestuff building on the far side to the other side of the track.
I would also suggest you think about a way to orient the turnout leading to the industries (the one at the five foot marker) so you have a little more room to pull cars out. That may be a non-issue.. It doesnt look like you plan on having many cars back there. Just putting that up as food for thought.
Looks like fun!
Chris
tin canLOL.... Like you are going to switch with F7's & FP45's.....
Actually, I was thinking more of a GP7 or GP9.
Stein,
Thanks!
Now that I'm considering the idea, I might be able to fit a short cassette to the right end to extend that lead a little, as well as one on the left main. That's not a concept that's really common on layouts here in North America, but it makes sense for small layouts!
And that's a good idea about the truck terminal, too. that's the one industry that I hadn't fully thought out.
Thanks for the input!
Chris,
Stein pointed out the same thing about the truck terminal, and it makes sense.
As far as the turnout, I thought about moving it closer to the industries there, but I'd have to sacrifice the spur to the depot. I kind of like the idea of having a sleeper sitting there, or a couple of express boxcars. And you are correct...I was figuring only two 40' cars at the depot and two 40' cars at the terminal.
Here's the layout with the suggested revision to the trucking terminal (upper lefthand corner).
What do you think, guys?
Very nice. And for my own sanity, please tell me you have been working with XTrk for at least a year have have revamped this design a goood 50-60 times.....
As a matter of fact, this the 14th saved version of the layout, and it HAS been revised about that many times.
As a side note, I also use XTrkCAD to design my modular club's setups, by using a basic template to create custom groups for each module or set of modules so that all I have to do is drag and drop modules into the layout.