yes i was richhotrain, my mistake. DOH!
A little digging and searching showed me a technique I can use to figure out where my gaps are, basically drawing out a stright line track plan then on each side of the stright line start drawing colored lines for right and left rails.
This became important as I was looking at how this staging yard will connect to the layout and realized I've designed something like a reverse loop inside of another reverse loop.
I don't have a scanner but the local library might. I'll try to draw something out and see if I can post it this weekend.
Thanks guys
Modeling the Cleveland and Pittsburgh during the PennCentral era starting on the Cleveland lakefront and ending in Mingo junction
locoworks are the blocks done for showing which section trains are in?? or are they where you feel the breaks should be?.
are the blocks done for showing which section trains are in?? or are they where you feel the breaks should be?.
If you are referring to gandydancer's diagram, he posted that as an example for the OP to consider. We are still waiting for the OP, ruderunner, to post a diagram of his own layout.
Rich
Alton Junction
Here is a general plan with some gaps. It may have some of what you want, but it also has block gaps for signals although it does show gaps for a wye and reverse loop. Block 11 is a reverse loop that would be connected to the output of an auto reverser.
Elmer.
The above is my opinion, from an active and experienced Model Railroader in N scale and HO since 1961.
(Modeling Freelance, Eastern US, HO scale, in 1962, with NCE DCC for locomotive control and a stand alone LocoNet for block detection and signals.) http://waynes-trains.com/ at home, and N scale at the Club.
Can you scan the rough sketch on paper and email it to one of us and we will post it for you?
That way, we can visualize it and make suggestions.
A rough sketch on paper would be easy, getting it on te site is where I run into problems. Let's say I'm not computer literate. Any suggestions for that?
As for what I have in mind, I guess you could call the yard tracks sidings off the 2 mains except the center track which would be like a shared siding for both mains or a really long crossover. I imagine this would have to be considered part of the reverse loop since a train could come in on this track, go around the loop and leave from this track, though in practice it would more likely enter from this track and leave from another.
Cutting power to unsed trains is a good idea and easy, just need to figure out if the power is coming from the main buss or the reverser at this point.
I guess I could use multiple reversers and let them figure it out but that can get pricey.
any chance of a track plan???
The easiest way to figure the wiring and gaps for a reverse loop is to visualize it without the other sidings. The gaps should go on all four rails at the frog end of the switch that forms the reverse loop. The loop itself should be where you wire in the auto reversing unit.
As a thought, you may want to put insulating gaps on both ends of your sidings as well. Even an inactive locomotive will draw some current from your DCC power pack. Insulating and switching each of these tracks will remove inactive locomotives from the load on the power pack.
So I've got a pretty good track plan drawn out and now I'm working on devising staging yards that allow trains to be turned and either return on the track it came in on or another track. What I have in mind is a 9 track yard, 180 degree turn on one end, 4 tracks for staging in each direction, 1 center track that allows for crossover from 1 direction to another, the open end of the turnback ladders out into the staging tracks, the other end of the staging tracks ladder down to the mainlines.
I'm definitely ging to need autoreversers and rail gaps to prevent shorts with DCC but I'm confused about where to put the gaps and reversers. I'm thinking I may be best off to isolate the ladders on both ends and run them off the autoreverser but I don't think that wuld be right for the loop. Should I include the loop with the ladder on that end? What about the center track?
Would the simplest solution be to treat the loop, loop end ladder and center track as 1 unit and ignore the staging tracks on either side except their turnouts on the loop end?
Sorry nothing drawn up just yet, though I have a pretty good idea of the track layout in my mind. I'm trying to come up with something that can be moved as the layout expands over the years, allows for continuous running or loop to loop running. Basically I want it all!