Greetings:
I've recently obtained a suitable sized basement to proceed with plans for a layout of about 25' X 40' in size. Interestingly it's been so long since I've operated on a layout I've forgotten some basic points.
I'm interested in building a circa 1975 layout generic in nature in order to run equipment at different times from a diverse range like CR, MILW, and even Canadian prototypes.
While extensive switching is the basis of the plan, a mainline capable of handling long trains, perhaps on a moderate helper grade is desirable.
How many cars do you suppose two or three average model units could pull on a level track, through curves maintaining about 40mph?
On a 1.7% grade?
Is it realistic to plan a layout in this size of room for trains to handle 45-60+ cars?
Dynamics of train weight and equipment going through several curves at once
Should all tracks and the signal system be built and debugged prior to starting to scenic the layout?
If the layout was built in stages what pitfalls might be encountered building a second level over a finished lower level, updating a CtC or signal system, or DCC system?
to avoid the plywood central appearance for several years it might be practical to finish an area for photography and inspirational purposes.
Do hand built switches and DCC go hand in hand?
Using commercial turnouts are not only expensive they are less flexible when planning a prototypical yard.
Can separate sections be conventionally operated and the mainline DCC?
i.e. branch, spur, yard
Is it difficult to upgrade a conventional portions to DCC at a later time?
Does evolving technology cause frustration for layout builders or have all the major improvements already been made?
Yard Planning
My intent is to plan a yard with a large capacity to perform switching. At least 2 tracks should exist for the longest trains which might be 45 feet!
In addition to the main tracks and a long lead a this location an impressive 5 track wide signal bridge might be accommodated here. To wards the bulk of the yard an additional 6-8 receiving/departure tracks in the 20' range are for locals and block swapping. Perhaps a 9-18 car small gravity hump will be experimented with by tinkering with bowl elevations to test the rolling qualities of models against prototype rolling stock. (this is where I remember the model least resembling prototypical qualities such as drifting). It may be required that this class yard be rebuilt as a flat switching yard and equipment shoved to rest instead of kicked or humped. Getting 20+ tracks wide in such a confined space may be difficult. Slip switches and multi yard leads may need to be employed to branch out quickly so the shortest tracks are at least 10'. A 3-6 track local yard would likely be built elsewhere on the layout as congestion in the main yard with hump, trim and yard engines, road arrivals/departures precluding locals time for blocking their trains.
The Staging Yard
Tying all together is the staging yard. It is where offline traffic is sorted , stored, or waits to appear on the modeled portion. A rather simple explanation for perhaps the most important part of any layout. Some staging yards have wyes or loops for turning power or passenger equipment. Mine might have multiple entrance points to store local freights simulating being out on the road before returning to the yard (this layouts focal point)
Any advice in planning a staging yard would be greatly appreciated.
Thoughts about selective compression.
At one time I thought about modeling a branch line hub with 25 car trains, 4 axle power and a walk-around theme. The main yard a 6 track affair had a passing track and 5 tracks for switching a storing trains. It scaled out at 30 feet which is correct for a 2000' yard. Problem is a branch line terminal while fun to build to scale, it is not as interesting to operate. Limitations in equipment, frequency and length discourage the realistic use of 6 axle power, yard engines, passenger trains, eclectic mixes of traffic and long trains prevalent in my era of modeling. It also seems to be suited to a one man operation.
Planning to operate a moderate sized city yard exponentially increases the satisfaction level of operating a complex and constantly bustling model layout. The potential for failing to convey the feeling of a realistic yard
however is also exponentially increased.
It might have to be conceded that to model in it's entirety a yard large enough to handle and switch 60 car trains is very difficult in this confined space. Some thought might be given to modeling only a portion of the yard. A realistic CR yard in Pennsylvania might be 5 miles long due to the limited space the prototype has between a river and a mountain ridge. So an argument could be made for a layout which has an arrival/departure yard but no classification yard (visible). Conversely one might only build the class yard and have yard engines tote off transfers to the A/D yard (not visible) having no real trains modeled. These concepts does not appeal to me.
Another thought might be to model one end of a large yard, effectively compressing it's length by up to 50%. The main tracks and long arrival/departure tracks might carry through to staging. The class yard instead of being double ended might be operationally stub ended, a bridge or view blocking structure helping to disguise this limitation. Yard and hump engines typically predominate one end of a yard anyway, particularly when a roadway exists at the other end. Can the operation of this type of yard can simulate quite realistically normal aspects of a double ended yard? Trains operating in both directions can yard in the long tracks. Yard engines either remove the caboose and switch out the train from the tail end or the power removed and yard engines tack onto the head end. Trains built in the class yard are doubled up and brought back to the departure yard. Transfers are likewise built and sent to satellite yards elsewhere on the layout(or to staging). Short locals might depart directly from a class yard track, placing a caboose in this era being the only complication. Trains destined to wards the unmodeled portion of the layout can be likewise built and placed onto departure tracks only to be run into staging.
At the present time this concept appeals to me the most. I can built the yard and staging first. Until a mainline plan is developed switching, blocking and building trains that proceed to staging in a simple loop can accomplish some mainline running. Eventually a second level, perhaps a seven mile grade with helpers can provide more viewing action, grinding upgrade at 15mph lengthening the run time. Perhaps 3-4 long trains can be accommodated on the layout, one or two in the A/D tracks, one going upgrade and one down, perhaps waiting at a control point for a yard track to come available. Into this mix place several local freights and a transfer which traverse a portion of the layout, swap cars in the staging yard, lay over and return at the end of the day. I hope it could be very interesting for several people to operate such a layout.
Regards
C
I've recently obtained a suitable sized basement to proceed with plans for a layout of about 25' X 40' in size. Interestingly it's been so long since I've operated on a layout I've forgotten some basic points.
I'm interested in building a circa 1975 layout generic in nature in order to run equipment at different times from a diverse range like CR, MILW, and even Canadian prototypes.
While extensive switching is the basis of the plan, a mainline capable of handling long trains, perhaps on a moderate helper grade is desirable.
How many cars do you suppose two or three average model units could pull on a level track, through curves maintaining about 40mph?
On a 1.7% grade?
Is it realistic to plan a layout in this size of room for trains to handle 45-60+ cars?
Dynamics of train weight and equipment going through several curves at once
Should all tracks and the signal system be built and debugged prior to starting to scenic the layout?
If the layout was built in stages what pitfalls might be encountered building a second level over a finished lower level, updating a CtC or signal system, or DCC system?
to avoid the plywood central appearance for several years it might be practical to finish an area for photography and inspirational purposes.
Do hand built switches and DCC go hand in hand?
Using commercial turnouts are not only expensive they are less flexible when planning a prototypical yard.
Can separate sections be conventionally operated and the mainline DCC?
i.e. branch, spur, yard
Is it difficult to upgrade a conventional portions to DCC at a later time?
Does evolving technology cause frustration for layout builders or have all the major improvements already been made?
Yard Planning
My intent is to plan a yard with a large capacity to perform switching. At least 2 tracks should exist for the longest trains which might be 45 feet!
In addition to the main tracks and a long lead a this location an impressive 5 track wide signal bridge might be accommodated here. To wards the bulk of the yard an additional 6-8 receiving/departure tracks in the 20' range are for locals and block swapping. Perhaps a 9-18 car small gravity hump will be experimented with by tinkering with bowl elevations to test the rolling qualities of models against prototype rolling stock. (this is where I remember the model least resembling prototypical qualities such as drifting). It may be required that this class yard be rebuilt as a flat switching yard and equipment shoved to rest instead of kicked or humped. Getting 20+ tracks wide in such a confined space may be difficult. Slip switches and multi yard leads may need to be employed to branch out quickly so the shortest tracks are at least 10'. A 3-6 track local yard would likely be built elsewhere on the layout as congestion in the main yard with hump, trim and yard engines, road arrivals/departures precluding locals time for blocking their trains.
The Staging Yard
Tying all together is the staging yard. It is where offline traffic is sorted , stored, or waits to appear on the modeled portion. A rather simple explanation for perhaps the most important part of any layout. Some staging yards have wyes or loops for turning power or passenger equipment. Mine might have multiple entrance points to store local freights simulating being out on the road before returning to the yard (this layouts focal point)
Any advice in planning a staging yard would be greatly appreciated.
Thoughts about selective compression.
At one time I thought about modeling a branch line hub with 25 car trains, 4 axle power and a walk-around theme. The main yard a 6 track affair had a passing track and 5 tracks for switching a storing trains. It scaled out at 30 feet which is correct for a 2000' yard. Problem is a branch line terminal while fun to build to scale, it is not as interesting to operate. Limitations in equipment, frequency and length discourage the realistic use of 6 axle power, yard engines, passenger trains, eclectic mixes of traffic and long trains prevalent in my era of modeling. It also seems to be suited to a one man operation.
Planning to operate a moderate sized city yard exponentially increases the satisfaction level of operating a complex and constantly bustling model layout. The potential for failing to convey the feeling of a realistic yard
however is also exponentially increased.
It might have to be conceded that to model in it's entirety a yard large enough to handle and switch 60 car trains is very difficult in this confined space. Some thought might be given to modeling only a portion of the yard. A realistic CR yard in Pennsylvania might be 5 miles long due to the limited space the prototype has between a river and a mountain ridge. So an argument could be made for a layout which has an arrival/departure yard but no classification yard (visible). Conversely one might only build the class yard and have yard engines tote off transfers to the A/D yard (not visible) having no real trains modeled. These concepts does not appeal to me.
Another thought might be to model one end of a large yard, effectively compressing it's length by up to 50%. The main tracks and long arrival/departure tracks might carry through to staging. The class yard instead of being double ended might be operationally stub ended, a bridge or view blocking structure helping to disguise this limitation. Yard and hump engines typically predominate one end of a yard anyway, particularly when a roadway exists at the other end. Can the operation of this type of yard can simulate quite realistically normal aspects of a double ended yard? Trains operating in both directions can yard in the long tracks. Yard engines either remove the caboose and switch out the train from the tail end or the power removed and yard engines tack onto the head end. Trains built in the class yard are doubled up and brought back to the departure yard. Transfers are likewise built and sent to satellite yards elsewhere on the layout(or to staging). Short locals might depart directly from a class yard track, placing a caboose in this era being the only complication. Trains destined to wards the unmodeled portion of the layout can be likewise built and placed onto departure tracks only to be run into staging.
At the present time this concept appeals to me the most. I can built the yard and staging first. Until a mainline plan is developed switching, blocking and building trains that proceed to staging in a simple loop can accomplish some mainline running. Eventually a second level, perhaps a seven mile grade with helpers can provide more viewing action, grinding upgrade at 15mph lengthening the run time. Perhaps 3-4 long trains can be accommodated on the layout, one or two in the A/D tracks, one going upgrade and one down, perhaps waiting at a control point for a yard track to come available. Into this mix place several local freights and a transfer which traverse a portion of the layout, swap cars in the staging yard, lay over and return at the end of the day. I hope it could be very interesting for several people to operate such a layout.
Regards
C