Designing industry trackage

[Anonymous]

I'm currently in the planning stages of my home layout. I can always design the mainline just fine but I always get stuck when designing the trackage for the industries. I've read some of Armstong's books and while helpful I still get stuck. It might just be that I just have problems deciding between all the different options. So what I'd like to know is what process do you go through in designing industry trackage? Do you design very specically before starting consturction or just start building and just see what fits where?

[Anonymous]

Paul, I start out putting a switch/turnout at the most advantage spot. If I have an idea as to what type of industry I do up a cardboard mock up or a footprint on paper and set it in its spot. I leave it there for a while, playing around with its location to where I think it is best, then I put the track down. I hand lay mine in code 70. If I do not know what I would like in a location I just take a piece of flex track and tack it down in couple of spots, again comming back later and moving it around to give me some ideas, how much room I have to move a track before it gets to close to the edge or other tracks, on how much room I have for the industry, what type of industry I would like for the available space and what would look the best. I then leave it until I come across and idea for what industry I want to place there, then start with a cardboard mock up or the paper footprint then the track. I find this way works for me, it may take longer but this way you do not spend time ripping up track because your industry is a few feet larger than you anticipated or you need to move it to access a loading/unloading area.

[dknelson]

The Walthers books on autos, lumber, steel and waterfront have photos that contain some good ideas for industrial trackage.
I am in the midst of planning a layout based purely on prototype and have been using aerial photos and my own observations to get it right. One odd thing about my industrial prototype, which has its own railroad, is that only the coupler facing south is ever used: pickups, setouts, and internal delivery of cars all are based on the loco being north of the cars. This involves some switchbacks.
It is probable that some parts of the factory I am modeling were built before the industrial railroad was put in place, so the railroad had to be squeezed into place. But we have the luxury of truly planning this out from the start. I will be making cardboard mockups of the buildings and fitting the track around it rather than scratch building or kit bashing the buildings I want and need only to learn that a slight difference in dimensions would have made for easier or more practical track laying.
One thing about an industrial railroad is that really tight turnouts are prototypical -- and remember that what is really tight is a relative thing. The #6s and #8s some use on mainlines -- IF THEY ARE LUCKY and have the space -- are really tight frogs. But even if a #6 is a tight frog, if you have #6 on your main you need to make the industrial switches LOOK even tighter than the main line, so go with #4 or, perhaps, even the snap-switch which I think is something like a #3 1/2 equivalent (not exact).

[Anonymous]

Paul,

IMHO, there are three things to be considered here. First, the smaller the layout, the more important you make detailed plans before construction. A larger space is more forgiving with regard to changing your mind. However, this assumes you will use tried and true methods for constructing things such as open girder benchwork which accommodates changes. Second, how much experience do you have with layouts in general. The more experience the less important it is for you to have a detailed plan. Finally, your own disposition. If you are not inclined to planning, or just have too much energy and can't wait then I think you should just dive in. If you are inclined to frustration when you have to 'back up' on a project then you should take the time to plan ahead. Also IMO planning is cheap. Fixing gross mistakes can be expensive.

Best of luck - Ed