After I don't know how many months I finally came up with a solution to the last section of my layout plan, the switch yard.
Got the staging looking good with a lot of help from Train Clown, thanks TC. The industrial area now works like an actual business instead of the spaghetti strewn time waster that I started with.
The last challenge was the switch yard. It's hard to do a real classification yard, which my plans required, in the 6x2 3/4 feet of space at the end of the bench that was available.
I finally came up with a plan that does what I wanted it to do. It's not prototypical, but hey, it works; except for one small problem. It requires a double cross to enter the yard. Since it's a high traffic area I wanted to use #6 turnouts. I'm using Atlas code 80 track for everything else but the smallest crossover they make is 15 degrees which works great for #4 turnouts but not for #6's. I determined that I need a 10 degree crossing and started hunting for one.
I found a ready made #6 double crossing by Peco for $48. jawdrop
Then I found just the 10 degree crossing, also by Peco for $16. :thumb: :thumb: Now that I can handle. 
However after doing some more research I found out that it is code 55. Riverossi also makes one, same problem.
So here is my dilemma. can I use a code 55 piece of track with the rest of the code 80? Remember, this is a high traffic area with trains going through both forward and in reverse.
The only other idea would be to hand lay a code 80 10 degree crossover. The mere thought of it makes me shudder.
I would appreciate any ideas or thoughts you can provide. Until then I'll be doing this: wall1
Thanks
Clark
Got the staging looking good with a lot of help from Train Clown, thanks TC. The industrial area now works like an actual business instead of the spaghetti strewn time waster that I started with.
The last challenge was the switch yard. It's hard to do a real classification yard, which my plans required, in the 6x2 3/4 feet of space at the end of the bench that was available.
I finally came up with a plan that does what I wanted it to do. It's not prototypical, but hey, it works; except for one small problem. It requires a double cross to enter the yard. Since it's a high traffic area I wanted to use #6 turnouts. I'm using Atlas code 80 track for everything else but the smallest crossover they make is 15 degrees which works great for #4 turnouts but not for #6's. I determined that I need a 10 degree crossing and started hunting for one.
I found a ready made #6 double crossing by Peco for $48. jawdrop
Then I found just the 10 degree crossing, also by Peco for $16. :thumb: :thumb: Now that I can handle. However after doing some more research I found out that it is code 55. Riverossi also makes one, same problem. So here is my dilemma. can I use a code 55 piece of track with the rest of the code 80? Remember, this is a high traffic area with trains going through both forward and in reverse.
The only other idea would be to hand lay a code 80 10 degree crossover. The mere thought of it makes me shudder.
I would appreciate any ideas or thoughts you can provide. Until then I'll be doing this: wall1
Thanks
Clark
Shimming up the crossover isn't a problem. I know that lots of people use both code 80 & 55 on the same layout, I just wasn't sure it would work to stick a single piece of one in the middle of the other, especially in such a high traffic setting. :thumb: I was really worried about having to hand lay it. hamr 
