csxengineer
Member
I hate designing track plans. I truly suck at it. I try so hard to stick to a prototype, I can never finish one because I'd rather do scenery, so I half-ass the trackwork, then during the scenery, I don't like the way it's going so I rip up the track and repeat. I have the space & free time that most would envy, but I waste time, waste money, and end up frustrated. When we lived in an apartment, I finished a nice 4'X4' N scale layout, but got rid of it when we bought the house and now I have a 11' X 10' space but I am worse off. My first attempt at the house layout was a 8'x10' around the walls with a duck under. I vowed to never have a duck under again, so I made a 11' X 10' around the walls U shaped layout. Problem was that since I wanted continous running, the track runs through the same scene twice, once on level near edge, once on risers in back. unrealistic. I give up. Recently I saw a modular club who had the most simplest track plan. No grades, no spaghetti bowl, just a double track mainline loop with a yard and a couple of sidings. I think that may be the way for me to go. In this month's Model Railroader, the main layout was simple, yet his excellent scenery conveyed time and place. I think that is the focus I need to have. I currently have a huge mess to clean up in the garage, but I may post later after I hear from some of you if you've run into same problems. Thanks for letting me vent.