skipgearReggie, See if this helps. I think you have #6 turnouts there but I did it with both #6's (top) and #4's (bottom) just in case. Of course you will have to adjust the initial legs to match the track spacing you want to achieve but this layout should keep the same allignment and get rid of the S-curves.
Reggie,
See if this helps. I think you have #6 turnouts there but I did it with both #6's (top) and #4's (bottom) just in case.
Of course you will have to adjust the initial legs to match the track spacing you want to achieve but this layout should keep the same allignment and get rid of the S-curves.
Or maybe just run those middle yard tracks all the way out to the leftmost track, instead of having that S curve coming off the main (or whatever the leftmost diagonal track is). There isn't room for switching without fouling the leftmost diagonal anyways, so having a parallel diagonal seemingly gives you very little.
Like this:
Smile,Stein
BTW - as to your ballast comment above. Knuckle down and learn to ballast. I honestly can't believe that finished layouts with unballasted track make it into magazines. The ballast is there for more than looks, it also helps hold the track in place. Without the ballast, your track will never be stable. Without ballast, track always looks unfinished. It really isn't that hard once you get the hang of it, and with the amount of track you need to ballast, you will get the hang of it pretty quick.
Before Ballast -
After Ballast -
T-Sax In the last photo above, why not move the first and third right switch so that they come off the switches prior to where they are now. This should straighten out some of the s-curves. ie. From: / /| / | / /| / / |\ / / / |\ / / / / |\ / / / / / |\ | / || || \ || || || \ To: / /| / | / /| / / |\ / / /| \ / / / / |\ / / / / /| \ | / || || \ || || || \ Russell
In the last photo above, why not move the first and third right switch so that they come off the switches prior to where they are now. This should straighten out some of the s-curves.
ie.
From: / /| / | / /| / / |\ / / / |\ / / / / |\ / / / / / |\ | / || || \ || || || \
To: / /| / | / /| / / |\ / / /| \ / / / / |\ / / / / /| \ | / || || \ || || || \
Russell
i will take mprr & t-sax advice and redo the yard as t-sax has in his illustration he did. i went back down after not being in the room since i ran out of track and it really jump out at me. so redo it is will get on it to day. it is snowing here dont think i will bable to make it to the hobbyshop to get what i need. so this will allow me to redo the yard and possibly finish off the bridge going up to the second level. have a great day.
yes i agree with you that it doesnt look natural but with the way the track is layed and the way the switches fit together this is the best that could be done in this situation. i have the amtrak superliner train set that i will test out all these switches going forward and backwards at a nice speed to check for possible problems once i get my track this weekend. i tried to make the curves on these spots as broad as possible that way i have few problems in this area. if i would have made the curves closer together. where the track butts up to the switch would have had a sharper curve and i think that would have looked even more strange. i was/have road by the chicago passenger station thats downtown and they have alot of strangly arranged tracks with gaps similar to what i have and i figure if it works for them with minimal problems i should have the same if any problems. they made the curves broader that way the cars would navigate thru with ease. at least thats what i noticed the few times i have driven by there. thanks for the input i will look a little closer at the track again when more progress is done and i will let you know the outcome.
I don't like the kinks, (s-curves), at the turnouts for the passenger station area. It looks unnatural, and may cause problems for your trains.. Just my opinion.
well more work got done today but as you will beable to tell i ran out of track in the yard but have another box and a few switches on order and will pick up from the good old guys at dcc trains this weekend. hope you like
in the passenger yard it will have six tracks for passenger trains with the outside track to the left in the yard the main with a passenger track just inside it then spacing for platform then two more tracks and spacing for platforms then two more tracks and spacing for platform and one more track for passenger trains. in the photo's you can see some odd spacing where the tracks come off of the switch frogs. the reason for this is to have nice easements for smooth flowing trains thru the yard. it's not really pretty but it works and gets the job done. enjoy
I always look forward to your updates.
well i got a little more work done as some of the newly laid track i took up and replaced it with some newly placed track. basically i took a few switches out and moved them down a bit to get more run room to the ballast furnace, coke ovens, and rolling mill kit. also laid the run for the bottom line with cork and track all the way down one side of the peninsula. hope you like the photo's and i took a few of my locos with little engineers riding on the on the layout. enjoy.
this picture is old and it is of the the switches i removed. they are the 2 switches at the bottom of the picture with the 2 ieces of track laying beneath them.
Hey thanks bob the train for the compliment.
I'm looking forward to sharing more pics with you guys.also the layout would have been bigger but the wife wanted a movie theater and workout room to so i compromised and this is all the space I was alloted. I wanted to make it go thru the stairs and all but I figure I have enough on my plate with what I have already.
The layout of the tracks is another guys design with my few tweaks here and there. So the compliments should be directed at wp@p aka mike r. for the track layout.
questio for you and whoever else wants to respond. do you like the look of the track not being ballasted. Cause i'm thinking of not doing it. But I know it will look good afterwards but I also don't want the hassle of ballast derailing trains and for the purpose of track expansion and contraction and if I need to replace the track that's another issue all in itself. So what do you think and what would you do. There is a guy in the n scale magizine I think in the may/june or july/august issue with about the same size layout as mine maybe a few feet bigger than mine with his track not ballasted and I think it looks rather great. If you you know which guy I'm talking about check his out. Let me know what you think about his.
Great Work! I love the size and layout of the tracks. i'm looking foward to seeing more pictures from you!!
here is the work i have done since last talked about its not much as i havent been able to work in the trainroom since im working 2 jobs but its more than i had and that much more complete to being finished. hope you enjoy.
Can't wait to see whats happened in all this time!!
Knowcents: thanks for the compliment. It gets me motivated to show my work with comments like yours.
Bdp: thanks also for the compliment. As far as being complete that will happen when I kick the old bucket. Plus this layout is enough for me and 5 other people to be doing. So I have enough on my plate. But as far as scenery goes that want happen until at least another year or two. As I want my trackwork to be flawless or as close to it as possible. Now with the continious loop running I'm testing the trackwork in both directions going thru all switches. Thus far only a couple of problems and one has been fixed already. I'm glad that my work has inspired you to get started and I wish you happy railroading in the near future. As far as framing I used 1 x 6's, 1/2" plywood and legs 1 x 4's. Its very sturdy to where I could stand on it and light enough that if I ever had to dismantle I could carry one of the 4 x8 sections myself up the stairs. As far as progress I have completed some of the intersection but camera has stopped working completely so I have to buy another camera before I can show anymore progress but work is done. Will probably get camera this weekend. Sorry for the delay on the pics that just means more for the next post. Again thanks for the compliments.
Reggie, great looking layout. Cant wait to see the final product. I compliment the other post on how you have showed your project from start to finish and also finishing your basement.
I am starting a layout also and you have helped and inspired me in getting it started. I wish I had a little nicer basement but hey atleast it is a start.
I am just wondering did you use 1"x6"s and 1/2" plywood for your layout? I was thinking of doing my benchwork just like yours.
Thanks again and keep us informed on your progress.
You are doing a fine job. I always look forward to seeing your updates. Keep up the good work!!
yeah i know i wish i had more room to make the radius larger but you cant always get what you want. so im thankful for what i have. i need to go get the magazine you are talking about. i have looked at it a few times when i have been in johnny's. but i cant recall the exact photo your are talking about but will pay more attention to it when i go back and it might just make me buy the book.
no i didnt make it to the show as i was busy christmas shopping for the little one this weekend. also made it out to dcc trains and put in my order for the el capitian, cnw ac4400cw twin locomotives, sf warbonnet ac4400cw, cp gevo's and last but not least 10 sets of the twinstacks from kato with the teal emp containers. only other thing to get is another box of track and 10 each of left and right switches.
still trying to get that mental idea of the intersection before i lay any track. hope to have that finished in the next few days. will post pictures when it is complete.
happy holidays to all and to all a goodnight.
When it comes to radius, bigger is always better but you just don' t have the room. There is a picture in the Model Railroader Guide to Coal Railroading book that is just about an exact copy of your setup. You need to take a look at the shot on page 69. It is a double track flood loader and the two silos are staggered to keep the track spacing as close together as possible.
Did you make it to the Library show this weekend. I haven't made it out of the house since Thursday due to Strep throat. Starting to feel a little better tonight.
N Scale Diesels......I like 'em
well got alot accomplished today by get the kato bridges install over lake reggietrain. laid rest of track to connect it to the rest of the track. plugged in my nce power procab. reprogrammed a couple of ns sd70m's #2591 & #2599 and lashed them up. backed into the yard latched up to my favorite kato twinstacks hit forward and off it went. now i can run around the whole layout without getting to one point and having to reverse and go back. one of the cars gets deralied at one spot and found the spot where it happened. will work on that next before i advance. but here are pictures of what i have done.
first of the bridge on the table top by itself
sorry no work has been done since i last added pics. but i finally have some time this week that i only have to work one of my jobs and that will give me some free time to work on the bridge section of the layout. that will give me one complete loop to run trains while i work. hopefully i will have compleed this section tomorrow and i can post pics for you guys. hope all is well and everyone is ok.
ps i also have a few items for sale/trade if you are interested please private message or email me
hey tony thanks for the help. im glad you could make it down and checkout the layout last week. hope you can do it more often or maybe i could come up to you sometime. so what do you really think about the setup of the coal mine is it bunched in or do you think it fits right in. i recall you stating that the power plant scene didnt have enough run room to really look right but it could have been pulled off. also do you think the radius's of 14" and 12 1/2" respectfully are to tight.
You are going to need another auto reverser and gap the tracks after each turnout. You can share one AR unit for the flood loader tracks providing you are not running two loco's through the loops at the same time coming from different directions. Being that you only have one line into the loops, more than likely you will only have one train at a time working the area.
It would be safest to put an AR unit on each lead flood loader lead. That way each loop can be controled independently and there is no way for two loco's to cross the gaps at the same time and create a short circuit. Even though it is very unlikely for it to happen, it is a possability.
The primary feed would come from the main, the reverse section would be each entire loop.
Tony
i got a little more work done with the tracks being laid for the coal mine, and it is prewired with feeders waiting to be connected to the main buss. but i think this section requires a reversing loop/needs to be gapped. if someone could please help me by possibly telling me where to gap this segment of the railroad. if you cant tell/see from the pictures i will have to try and find a way to edit his trackplan drawing to show you what i have added taken off the trackplan. also all my bridges came in and the piers for them so hopefully i will get to install them within the next few days. but all this these photo's are of work done today. hope you like and enjoy. comments welcome needed and wanted.
the first picture is of the 6 pieces of flex track i soldered together for the outer loop in the coal facility nothing special. it was kind of hard to work with but once i got the end piece soldered to the track thats already laid. it practically bent relly easy around the curve
these are of the track finally laid and spiked down
well the plan is a go all except the coal mine. i have been thinking about this alot for the past few days and i have decided to change it to kind of look like the one in the model railroad book industries along the tracks 1 pages 44-45. i will have to find a place to move/put the power plant when its time to do so. dont be mad at me for this mike roundtree as i knew you really wanted to see me do the load in/load out. hopefully you like what i have come up with. plus i can use the fload loaders i all ready have. its in the same area as the myles family coal mine but it is a 2 track like the one in the magazine and the radius's are 14" and 12 1/2". here are the pics hope youy like. i also completed the rise and layed the track on it.
Here's the latest version, with modifications as recently discussed:
I'll also post some partial plans, zoomed in. I've started to add in dimensions to locate curve centers and radii, and guidelines to lay out the angles. Obviously, this can become a very cluttered drawing if I tried to fit in dimensions for everything, and it seems like you've been able to continue laying track without having such dimensions previously, so just let me know if you need more information than this. For curves with the center in the aisle, to lay them out you can just tack up a temporary board across the aisle, locate the center, and scribe the curve with whatever trammel you prefer. On my own layout, I just clamped a board in place until the curve was drawn.
The climbing grade in Naijahville was pushed further to the right; this required a handful of changes around the Union Station. I've added in the scenic element of a Main Street; I envision this rising and falling, fluctuating between the high line and low line, tying them together in a way. This street provides bridges over a few key areas to hide things I think should be hidden, such as the backdrop penetration.
You should notice that I tweaked the backdrop a bit, too; I straightened the left end, as you requested, and the right end I bent just a tiny bit sharper, to make room for the passing siding on the high line. The Main Street passes right in front of the backdrop where it's labeled "Downtown"; this gives the opportunity to use building flats or even a decent photo mural backdrop of storefronts on the far side of the street, with full 3D buildings on the near side of the street. At the location marked "+1.0", Main Street can either rise up and cross at grade, with crossbucks and all, or else it could drop down about a half inch to pass under a bridge here. If you're familiar with Madison Road in Oakley, where is drops under the old B&O tracks, that's a case where a level grade crossing was turned into an underpass later on, that's kind of what i was thinking. This is often done on busy mainlines. But if you intend to do so here, be aware that it means cutting out some of the plywood to allow the road to drop (i.e. you must cookie-cutter the road).
Wherever there are bridges along the rising grades, I suggest you just lay the WS foam risers right on through and then cut and remove the risers where the bridge will drop in. From your pictures, I think that's already what you're planning on doing.
I added in the indication of a plywood mill, to load up your centerbeams, but as with other industries I'm not getting into the nitty-gritty of trackwork here. That can all be played around with once you figure out the buildings that will occupy the site, and you could just scoot switches around until you find something you like. I have Main Street starting out high on the left, so that there can be a service road leading to the Grain Mill branching off it, and also so that it forms a bridge to mask the tunnel entry (in fact, with care, the bridge could be made *as* the tunnel entry, a sort of optical illusion). As the road goes to the right, it drops down to zero elevation, and doesn't rise again until you get past the "+1.0" marker; it would need to rise to about two inches in order to bridge over the tracks, so this makes downtown a bit more interesting.
As always, glad to hear any comments.
WP&P I see you laid the risers more towards the middle of the benchwork, whereas in the plan I last presented I had the double track main bending out to the outside edge and going into a tunnel. I placed them out at that edge in order to allow enough room for scenic plausibility of the creek, plus to make the hidden trackage readily accessible from the side. As it appears you've got risers and cork glued down in this position, though, I think the tunnel concept is out; these will need to be visible mains in order for the scenery to work out. No big deal - just want to make sure that's your intention! I'll spend some time tomorrow night after work on the plan, revising to match what you've posted here. Looking good!
I see you laid the risers more towards the middle of the benchwork, whereas in the plan I last presented I had the double track main bending out to the outside edge and going into a tunnel. I placed them out at that edge in order to allow enough room for scenic plausibility of the creek, plus to make the hidden trackage readily accessible from the side. As it appears you've got risers and cork glued down in this position, though, I think the tunnel concept is out; these will need to be visible mains in order for the scenery to work out. No big deal - just want to make sure that's your intention!
I'll spend some time tomorrow night after work on the plan, revising to match what you've posted here. Looking good!
the reason for me laying the risers towards the middle of the benchwork is. because when trains are coming down the that incline it is prone to have more derails if an operator is not use to the slack action i would think. thats why i eliminated the curve on the incline just for that reason. i liked the idea but i started to think of all that could happen right there and that could be a major problem being that its a two track main going up and down that incline. if a derail happens it would block traffic in both directions until we could get the mow in there to get that mess cleaned up. so i made it a straight away. there can still be a tunnel but the scenery around that area will just have to change. sorry for the inconvience.