One of the reasons I chose to model a local short line in the 1950's was that it would be realistic to run short trains of 10 to 12 40' cars. An HO scale train of that size with two locos and a caboose can be between 6 and 7 feet long. Unless you have a large layout, it can be difficult to run much longer trains without stretching reality. Shorter trains also allow your track plan to include passing sidings. On my own layout, it was actually the length of the passing sidings I could fit into my track plan that dictated the typical train length.
Hornblower
Remember N Scale. Hope it helps.
With my Amtrak passenger train set length is 5'9". Two F40 or P42, baggage car, and 8 Superliners. If I want 2-4 MHC cars it will be over 6'.
Freight trains were length to 6'8"to 7'2" long to have 2 diesel or 3 depending on the cars. 18-24 cars a nice amount.
Minimum size or correct 3'3" that holds 2 diesels and 8-9 cars. This is the current setup on my layout. It's a nice balance of a long train without being too long, it's a stretch if I place a third engine on. Passenger train is down to 4 coaches and locomotive, Amfleet or Superliners doesn't matter.
Locals are usually 2-4 cars I find it underwhelming. It gets the job done but 6 or more is way too much to switch 2 industries.
If wanted to model Amtrak in HO I would need a little over 13 feet for the same normal consist.
Amtrak America, 1971-Present.
I only have a few modules at home so trains a just a few cars with no continuous running. The old club layout I have run up to eighty cars. Most of the time around forty was normal. It depended on what I felt like carrying. My passenger trains were limited to thirteen cars because that is all I have.
When (more like if.) I get control of the upstairs of the house, my layout construction will continue anew. Gosh darn boomerang kids.
Pete.
What is interesting -- well OK, I find it interesting -- is that regardless of scale it seems trains of about the same actual length tend to look satisfying to our (again, MY) eyes. By which I mean on an O scale layout a five or six car freight train seems like a decent length for realism; on HO a 10 or 12 car train ditto; for N a 20 car train.
I do not know why this is so but it might have something to do with just how much our eyes (and therefore mind) can take it at a glance. We know a three car freight is a three car freight just by glancing at it. A ten car freight? We probably have to count the cars.
This is not to say that a 25 car freight train in O scale or an 80 car unit coal train in N scale are not darned impressive. But it is possible to be happy with a train length that the prototype would regard as rather short. And it stands to reason that you might want your "local" to be shorter than your manifest through freight, even if just by a few cars.
If prototypical operations are important then it seems to be thinking about what length of train your yard can comfortably be used to create, what length of passing siding your space can permit, and what kind of curves you have, all play a role in deciding what the ideal "normal" train length is. No doubt about it however it makes sense to think about it first before having your layout make the decision for you.
Dave Nelson
On my layout, ten to twenty freight cars would be normal, but I have run trains of over 70 cars, just to see if it could be done.
Wayne
My HO layout is designed to comfortably run 36 car iron ore trains, and up to 7 car long passenger trains. My layout contains four towns, and each town is served by a separate freight train, so those are generally only 8-10 cars at most.
My plan has lots of staging, but none of it very long, even though the room is 22 feet long. I mocked up all the staging, and the longest tracks will hold trains with two locomotives, 12 freight cars, and a caboose. I have two tracks planned that will just hold a doodlebog or a single RDC. Other very short tracks will hold a ten-wheeler and two passenger cars or a pair of RDCs.
The outer loop tracks are a bit longer. These will accomodate 9 car passenger trains with a pair of PAs, or a 16 car freight train pulled by an EM-1 2-8-8-4.
The Manchester/Great Divide staging tracks will only hold a five car train. This is the longest train that will climb the 5.5% grade.
So, it might not be prototypical, but I like 10 car freight trains with double headed diesels or Heavy Mikados. That length can be managed in a small yard, and is plenty fun for me.
-Kevin
Living the dream.
I think this highly depends on the space available and operating philosophy - "Givens and Druthers" in other words. As far as train length goes, the longer the better but there is a point where absurdity is reached - think a 4'x8' oval running a 35 or 40 car train where the engine would be chasing the caboose. My new layout is about 14'x22', or about half the size of the old one. Main yard tracks are constrained to about 8-9' or so I will be happy to run 12-15 car freights and 6-8 car passenger trains (on the old layout I ran trains up to about 20 cars, constrained by the approx. 12' long staging tracks). There is also some consideration of ruling grade - mine is about 2.8% on the mainline, and the better pulling locos can do this, whereas longer trains might be problematic. The line down to the port branch is 4%, but there it will entail pulling small (max 4-5) cuts of cars up the hill. That all being said, if I had 1000 sq. ft. and unlimited funds for my layout, running 30-50 car trains would be an awful lot of fun!
I have been working on my track plan a little while I am on vacation, and I'm not exactly happy with what I am coming up with. One of the main features will be a HEAVILY condensed version of the Frankfort, Indiana yards. I am basing the overall yard length on the arrival/departure tracks, and have come up with overall yards lengths based on how long the trains running on the main lines will be. So what kind of train length do most people run and find as a reasonable compromise? My initial thought was to have 30 car trains, but I'm afraid the lengths will be a bit much. I would love to be able to run 50 car trains, but my space constraints just won't allow that, so let's hear what the majority runs.
Good Luck, Morpar