I have been studing the hobby for several years and am finally in the process of building an around the room layout (11' x 14') and would like to have any suggestions that the veterans may think helpful for the most efficient and interactive yard layout design. I really think i would enjoy switching and building consists more than just watching the trains run. Any suggestions would be appreciated.
CAN3 - Welcome to Trains.com!
Darren (BLHS & CRRM Lifetime Member)
Delaware and Hudson Virtual Museum (DHVM), Railroad Adventures (RRAdventures)
My Blog
Hi CAN3!
Welcome to the forums!!
Kalmbach Publishing offers a book titled 'Track Planning for Realistic Operation' by John Armstrong, who was a professional model railroad designer and one of the most respected model railroaders ever. It explains clearly how real railroads operate, and it has excellent advice on how to design a model railroad, including yards, so that it can be operated like the real thing.
When I first got into the hobby I designed my layout in ignorant bliss. Looked fantastic to me! Then I got my hands on Mr. Armstrong's book and realized that, had I actually built the layout to my original plan, it would have been barely functional. It would not have done many of the things that I wanted it to do.
The book is available through this web site. Click on 'SHOP' in the black header above, and then select 'Books'. I got mine through eBay and saved a few bucks.
Dave
P.S. I suggest that you post your layout plan on these forums. There are lots of fellow modelers with tons of experience and a keen eye for details and potential problems in layout designs.
I'm just a dude with a bad back having a lot of fun with model trains, and finally building a layout!
CAN3 the most efficient and interactive yard layout design. I really think i would enjoy switching and building consists more than just watching the trains run.
the most efficient and interactive yard layout design. I really think i would enjoy switching and building consists more than just watching the trains run.
There isn't any single design that is "the most efficient and interactive" classification yard. Whether a yard design works well (for it's intended purpose) totally depends on what it's intended purpose is.
Craig Bisgeier has a list of rules of the thumb about factors worth taking into account for a busy flat switching classification yard here: http://www.housatonicrr.com/yard_des.html
Kalmbach has a book that discusses many aspects of yards here: "The Model Railroader's Guide to Freight Yards".
There is also a downloadable PDF of advice by John Armstrong on designing model railroad yards:
These will give you a basic understanding of the principles and core challenges of model railroad yard design.
Then it becomes a question of applying (or deciding to not apply) those principles or a subset of those principles to your layout, depending on what you want to do on your layout. How busy your yard will be - how many trains will arrive or depart while you are building trains (or whether you will be the lone operator, and there will not be any trains arriving or departing while you are building blocks), whether you also will be having engine service or an engine terminal in connection with the classification yard, how long trains will be arriving or departing, how many and how long blocks you will be building at any given time and so on and so forth.
Byron Henderson put it pretty well in this blog post: "Does this yard make me look fat?"
It is not easy to say "this is 'the best way' (or at least 'a not too bad way') of building a classification yard", knowing nothing about your layout.
Hope that was at least somewhat helpful :-)
Smile, Stein
My layout is a double track mainline, twice around, with a branch through the middle. Next to the mainline are the passenger platforms. Through trains pickup and drop off passengers from the mainline side of the platforms. Originating and terminating trains use the inner track in front of the depot. Next over is a three track stub coach yard.
Next over is a six track double ended freight yard, plus a runaround track. Trains can arrive and depart and be switched from either end. There is a long yard lead to allow switching sizable cuts of cars, without fouling the mainlines.
This photo shows the passenger platforms between the mainline and the inner arrival track.
This shows a steel train on the lead waiting for the signal to depart. In the distance, you can see the separate passenger lead to the mainline.
This is a train departing from the other end of the yard. Back in the 50s and 60s, every train yard had a hobo camp somewhere nearby.
60T, the steel train waits for the signal to come up so he can depart. I try to keep things simple. The signals are just turnout indicators. When the switch is lined for the yard lead, he will get a green signal, and the signal for the main will go red. The signal on the outer mainline is for a crossover from the inner to the outer main, that is out of sight on the end of the layout under the window.
The engine serviceing and caboose tracks are accessed from the runaround track.
The layout is DCC, powered by a Zephyr system and two tethered walkaround throttles. I can set two trains going on the two mainlines, and switch in the yard, or run a third train in and out of the branch line.
In addition to the excellent comments that follow your original posts there are several examples of yard throats that could be helpful. The common designs for space saving ideas are double ladders, yard tracks that diverge both to the left and right of a track instead of just to one side, a number 6 ladder on a number 4 angle, this occurs when curving your track so a more gradual diverging path is used in a shorter space and compound ladders so that multiple routes diverge in a shorter space.
It is possible to find many of these examples on the web site in the track plan data base and in the books mentioned by other posters. They are all good reads and worth the money.
Here's a few more views of the other end of the layout.
Decatur Junction, coming off the Decatur Branch.
Train time at Decatur.
This gives a little better view of the coach yard and freight yard.
This is the other end of the yard. Although you can't see them very well, there are two curved turnouts in the picture.
All this great advice, including the most important - it has to make sense to YOU. I'm building my yard mainly as storage for my collection, with a lot of detail around it - a backlit inspection pit with an overhead crane in operation above it; a yard manager's oversight on steel girders above the yard, with lights & a pop machine; a storage track for the circus train; water, fuel, and waste lines everywhere, probably from pill-bottle tanks; with the middle third of everything covered by a meccano-inspired & constructed arched corrugated metal roof, lit by streetlight lights...seven full length tracks in all, with two switcher stumps...almost 8 feet long by two wide...makes sense to me...
After looking over all of the preceding I have only two things to add:
1. If you learn how to hand-lay turnouts you can save a pocketful of $$ while shaping your throat geometry to match your design, not compromised to accommodate some manufacturer's products.
2. If you feel a temptation to model a hump/gravity yard, take two aspirins and sleep on it. Large clubs and affluent individuals have built hump yards that work. For mere mortals with normal-size layout spaces, not such a good idea.
My own yard design is heavily influenced by the practices of my prototype, but wouldn't be very useful to anyone who doesn't speak Japanese...
Chuck (Modeling Central Japan in September, 1964)
Hi,
especially Stein gave you great information. Reading Track Planning For Realistic Operation Might give you ideas.
Basically trains are divided in yards, into different destinations. This is done in a part of a larger yard which is called the bowl; the process is called classification. When one or more tracks are filled with cars for the same destination, those cars are pulled and combined into a train. Only after road-engines and a caboose are added and some test are done, the train is ready to hit the road.
But trains do often have to set out cuts of cars in some stations on their journey, picking up cars as well, so it is good practise to block a train in station order. This can be done in the main yard as well, sometimes a different yard could be used. This process is called blocking.
Building trains on real railroads is not just picking up some cars from a track. What you are up to, remains the question.
SmilePaul
steinjr Kalmbach has a book that discusses many aspects of yards here: "The Model Railroader's Guide to Freight Yards".
Indispensible
Alton Junction
Thanks for the advice, really enjoyed the John Armstrong article
thanks for all the pictures, nice layout
Thank You, Great to be here finally!
You can check out my HO scale yard on YouTube under <diamonjim6> There are several videos or my yard and industrial area.
Yards are space wasters unless one has a large layout. On a medium and small-sized layout a decent classification yard dominates. In HO scale garage-sized layouts, I've found that yardless layouts with staging are very satisfying. Since breaking up and making up trains in a yard (shuffling cars without going anywhere) doesn't interest me, I wouldn't have a yard in a bedroom-sized layout, that is, if you don't count a mere runaround track as a yard. But if shuffling is your thing, have a yard and do it right.
Nevertheless, here is good advice on yard design.
http://macrodyn.com/ldsig/wiki/index.php?title=Yards--freight_and_passenger