Finding Hidden Staging - My hidden staging's Boxes

[bluepuma]

Calculated N scale tray for two locos, 22 each 40 ft. boxcars is 6.5 ft, for E8A/B + 12 budds, about 7.5 ft. My gut feeling was that the Euro solution was not enough. Means a lot of open end boxes would be needed. Thinking pre-built boxes. Plastic pipe perhaps with a farris wheel lift. Rotate a train into position. Plastic rain gutter?

I'm thinking losing layout along one wall, open staging, sliding tray or multi with a lift to layout level. Lift, run off, lower, top level is regular layout. Perhaps air or hydraulic lift or screw type jacks. Want gentle, quiet. Multilevel staging with sliding trays would be the best. Maybe someone has worked out some details. At least in N, the sliding shelf is shorter than 8 feet.

Perhaps enough room for two hidden tracks behind a low 6-8 inch backdrop would help overall.

There was a vertical siding shown a few years back in MR. Maybe tilt up one end?

[Jetrock]

Have you considered a cassette-staging system? The current series in MR uses this method--essentially, it's a long narrow box with track on the bottom as long as your train needs to be. You assemble a train by hand on the cassette, and stick it (temporarily) onto a track section on the edge of your layout. Then you just roll the train off the cassette under its own power. Another cassette can be used to pick up the train on the other end.

You can also use the cassettes for storage.

I hope to use cassette storage in the intermediate stages of my layout, to represent northbound/southbound traffic. The one problem I'm still trying to figure out is how to safely hold up a 3' long cassette without me sitting there holding it--since I will mostly be operating solo, I'll need my hands free to operate the controls to run the train off the cassette, and so can't just hold it in place by hand.

[bluepuma]

...I ran all my trains to hidden staging and now I can't find them!

There must be a good discussion of this somewhere.

Layout is small, room is small, after checking room in plan
for running under to a staging level, there just isn't room
for 3/4 of the run UNDERNEATH the table.

I don't want the trains hidden, but a lift out or crawl under
is needed.

The staging in Great Model RR with all around the room outside
is one idea I hadn't considered, but way lot of work, and the entire
room must be dedicated. 10x11ft.