Adding Switchyard Idea Pics

[HAZMAT9]

In my original message I was asking for suggestions on adding a switch yard to the Granite Gorge and Northern Railroad that I was proposing to build. A couple asked for pics of the benchwork to get an idea, hopefully the links below work (links at bottom). The first shot shows the original location on where I was going to put a switch yard, basically a 1'X9' added area. Problem is if towns are going to be located on both ends of the layout, a large switch yard will look "out of scale" since it spans the length between two towns. The second shot shows an alternative site which is at the end of the layout where I have about 3'X5' to play with.....any ideas on a 3' by 5' switch yard or use the original area for a yard? I had planned a second mainline w/ larger radius with any space left over from the original location for a passenger line. Any ideas would be appreciated. Steve [:D]

[img][http://www.geocities.com/hazmat9us/bench1.jpg

[img][http://www.geocities.com/hazmat9us/bench2.jpg

[darday]

Tough call. There are a lot of subjective value judgements in making this sort of decision, and only you will know what you can live with. Some thoughts:

1) From the pics, it looks like your table is against a wall. Reaching back 5' to the rear of the table is already going to be next to impossible. Adding another foot in front of table in front will not help. If you can keep access on both of the long sides of the table, so that you only have to reach no more than 2.5' in to the middle, that would be a plus.

2) The Granite Gorge and Northern plan is already what I would subjectively characterize as "busy." Depending on how you intend to scenic it, having the yard in front may or may not help the visual appearance. It might work if the scenery is all city/industrial, with some of the main line hidden behind or under structures. To me, it wouldn't look as good if the scenery is more rural, which I think is your concern.

So I guess if it were my decision, which it isn't, I would put the yard in the 3x5' space and pull the table away from the wall by 15" to 18", for better access.

--Dave

[HAZMAT9]

I agree Dave, I need access to the rear of the layout. I was planning on a backdrop the reason I had it against the wall as shown. What I'l probably do is add the extra foot to the width for the second mainline and use the small 3'by5' area for a yard. I'm trying a mix of industrial and rural and plan on some hills/tunnels and N-scale foliage toward the back to hide sections of the loops to make the layout appear farther in depth.

[SpaceMouse]

I'm not familiar with your layout plan, but what about putting your backdrop through the middle of you layout length-wise and have your yard on one side and the towns on the other. That way you split your layout and decorate each the way you like (and it doesn't have to be a 50-50 split.) Your trains can run through the backdrop as needed.

[HAZMAT9]

Thought of that idea as well, that might work too. Or I could add hills as a backdrop to separate the yard from the main layout...so many ideas, so much to consider. In fact that's a good idea just because the 3'by5' area could be used to place my work table...kinda wanted to keep it close to the layout. Will definitely keep that in mind. Steve

[SpaceMouse]

I've planned my layout so the landscape provides sort of a natural split backdrop. For instance, my logging operation will be only 18" from a city, but it will be split by a stand of 24" high redwoods.

[ukguy]

Steve,

you almost got the command right, just a little adaption needed. Try this command below, just change the ??????'s to your pic address and name exactly as you have above.





Best regards
Karl.

[Anonymous]

HAZMAT9, Steve this just another opinion among many. I was faced with a similar crisis. I finally determined that my area could not support both a rural setting and a yard adequate for much "shifting" operations. To "pull-off" a rural scene realistically; I needed more area than was available. Just a decent hill in HO can dominate much more space than I was willing to sacrifice to "operation." If it were my choice, I would "bite the bullet" and locate light industry on one end of the layout, a "through" yard (not "stub end") of modest size near the center and the town at the opposite end. With the deminsions involved, it may be prudent to represent at least one element [operation] in a realistic manner rather than two unconvincing "elements" [rural + industry]. I would probably tire of scenery before becoming bored with future rail operations. Only a thought! Best of luck Steve.

[HAZMAT9]

Thanks Karl for the tips on posting the pics, sure appreciated. Some great ideas out there. Below is the plan from "Mike's Small Track Plan" page. Putting a yard through town which are located within the loops will be pretty hard since they'll be crowded with quite a bit of residential structures. This was the original reason with going with an attached switch yard plan that would connect in at the south (bottom) portion of the layout. Another problem which makes it trickier is the fact that the plan rises/falls quite a bit with very few flat areas to work with. The idea of the thru way yard probably would work good with the south yard as originally planned. So much to think about and consider.....Steve [^]

[SpaceMouse]

My (our) idea of using a backdrop to cut the layout would work if you had the walkaround space and could add the 1x9 section to the layout.

In the upper left corner of the diagram there are some white squares. That is the level I would place the backdrop. If you straighten the top dogbone, your track will pass through the backdrop in 3 places. Using the 1x9 addition and the existing track (with some creative modification), you should have enough room for a decent yard.

[HAZMAT9]

One of the Atlas books has this layout yet they don't show the sections in the upper left/right....working so much off the book I pretty much had forgotten about the layout seen here. Does make sense that I can either hook in a yard at those spots or add another line. Steve