Hi everyone. Here is my proposed track plan. I am especially looking for lots of animation and am open to any suggestions that anyone has for improving the overall layout. I hope that all of the links work.
This is the area that I'll be modeling in. It is an 8' x 32' trailer. I am in the process of covering the windows with sheet rock, taping, painting and then scenicing the walls before I start building my bench work
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/the%20_beginning.jpg
This is a partial overall plan.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Parent%20Directory%5cMainline%20w-City%20comp.jpg
I am modeling in HO because my dream has always been to have a layout with lots of animation, including street as well as rail traffic. I have scoured eBay for the old Johnny Lightning Thunderjet 500's because unlike their modern 1/64th scale cousins, these are true 1/87th scale vehicles. The second part of the challenge was to find cars that you would actually see on the streets of a small town and highway. No funny cars, NASCAR racers or hot rods (with possibly one or two exceptions for high school kids) on my streets. I now have a fleet of 20 or so different cars and trucks, although only 8 or 10 will actually be in motion at any one time. The rest will be parked at various places.
As you can see from the diagrams there will be three separate slot track sets. The small one uptown is independent of the other two, but the downtown streets interact with the highway traffic. All three sections will have two way traffic but the highway is slightly different. It will be in effect a long, one-way lane. Cars and trucks will travel in one direction and then enter a tunnel on either end where the two lanes split and circle around. they will then exit the tunnel traveling in the other direction. I have been toying around with delay circuits so that cars don't just enter the tunnel, zip around and come right back out. Like several model railroad design books I've read where you can visually extend the length of a tunnel by having the train stop for a short period inside, I plan to do something similar with the slots.
The reds are city streets and the blue is the highway. The green spots are intersections, four of them, two on the highway and two on city intersections, will be controlled by stoplights. The outer two intersections on the highway will have flashing yellow right-of-way lights and be controlled in the same prototypical manner, with highway traffic having the right-of-way. The lighter blue track shows the underground turnaround. The crooked marked off area at the right side of the layout is a canyon 20" deep from the main level, complete with a spectacular (I hope)waterfall, arched bridges, rapids and a viewpoint/rest stop for tourists complete with cameras.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Parent%20Directory%5cMainline%20w-City%20comp.jpg
The next challenge was to overcome the tendency of one car being faster than another on the same track, causing rear end collisions solved that by rigging a section of track with a sensor so that when a car goes over it, that section of track shuts down for a few seconds. If a second car is close behind the first one it will stop and let the first car get some distance ahead before it starts up again. strategically located sections of this track will enhance the overall effect. for example, one in front of the train station where someone is being dropped off or picked up. The next step was to address traffic at intersections. I designed a circuit that will operate traffic lights and stop traffic one way while allowing it to flow in the other direction. Now if I can figure out a way to get the pedestrians to cross the street with the lights.
I ran some speed tests on several cars and found that the cutoff voltage was 9v. I determined that that while it worked out to a scale 60 mph, it visually didn't look too fast for street traffic. Increasing the speed on the highway by a small amount will enhance the illusion.
I have also designed a circuit for railroad crossings where the signals start early enough for highway traffic to clear the crossing, and then stopping traffic until the last car of the train goes by like it would work in the prototypical world. There has been some discussion on this circuit in the thread www.the-gauge.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6727&perpage=15&pagenumber=1
I am looking for animation of all kinds, from kids playing on swings and teeter-totters to a distant thunder storm. I am putting in either a granite or marble quarry and am trying to figure out how to animate a rail mounted crane and to have occasional blasting.
This is the underground staging area. It will be monitored by two remote control swiveling video cameras.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/Staging%20v8a%20jpg.jpg
This is the upper level dual mainlines.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/Level%203.jpg
This is the top level tourist railroad with a steam locomotive and turn-of-the-century cars.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/Level%204.jpg
This is the quarry. It is an active user of the rail lines as access to it is limited to rail and helicopter. I know that there are a lot of lines in a small space, but except for the mainlines, all of it is used at slow speeds by gondolas and a small switcher.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Parent%20Directory%5cQuarry.jpg
Like I said, if anyone has any suggestions on additional animation or ideas in general I'd love to hear them. Just remember that I'd like to keep it as conventional as possable (limiting the UFOs, etc.)
This is the area that I'll be modeling in. It is an 8' x 32' trailer. I am in the process of covering the windows with sheet rock, taping, painting and then scenicing the walls before I start building my bench work
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/the%20_beginning.jpg
This is a partial overall plan.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Parent%20Directory%5cMainline%20w-City%20comp.jpg
I am modeling in HO because my dream has always been to have a layout with lots of animation, including street as well as rail traffic. I have scoured eBay for the old Johnny Lightning Thunderjet 500's because unlike their modern 1/64th scale cousins, these are true 1/87th scale vehicles. The second part of the challenge was to find cars that you would actually see on the streets of a small town and highway. No funny cars, NASCAR racers or hot rods (with possibly one or two exceptions for high school kids) on my streets. I now have a fleet of 20 or so different cars and trucks, although only 8 or 10 will actually be in motion at any one time. The rest will be parked at various places.
As you can see from the diagrams there will be three separate slot track sets. The small one uptown is independent of the other two, but the downtown streets interact with the highway traffic. All three sections will have two way traffic but the highway is slightly different. It will be in effect a long, one-way lane. Cars and trucks will travel in one direction and then enter a tunnel on either end where the two lanes split and circle around. they will then exit the tunnel traveling in the other direction. I have been toying around with delay circuits so that cars don't just enter the tunnel, zip around and come right back out. Like several model railroad design books I've read where you can visually extend the length of a tunnel by having the train stop for a short period inside, I plan to do something similar with the slots.
The reds are city streets and the blue is the highway. The green spots are intersections, four of them, two on the highway and two on city intersections, will be controlled by stoplights. The outer two intersections on the highway will have flashing yellow right-of-way lights and be controlled in the same prototypical manner, with highway traffic having the right-of-way. The lighter blue track shows the underground turnaround. The crooked marked off area at the right side of the layout is a canyon 20" deep from the main level, complete with a spectacular (I hope)waterfall, arched bridges, rapids and a viewpoint/rest stop for tourists complete with cameras.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Parent%20Directory%5cMainline%20w-City%20comp.jpg
The next challenge was to overcome the tendency of one car being faster than another on the same track, causing rear end collisions solved that by rigging a section of track with a sensor so that when a car goes over it, that section of track shuts down for a few seconds. If a second car is close behind the first one it will stop and let the first car get some distance ahead before it starts up again. strategically located sections of this track will enhance the overall effect. for example, one in front of the train station where someone is being dropped off or picked up. The next step was to address traffic at intersections. I designed a circuit that will operate traffic lights and stop traffic one way while allowing it to flow in the other direction. Now if I can figure out a way to get the pedestrians to cross the street with the lights.
I ran some speed tests on several cars and found that the cutoff voltage was 9v. I determined that that while it worked out to a scale 60 mph, it visually didn't look too fast for street traffic. Increasing the speed on the highway by a small amount will enhance the illusion.
I have also designed a circuit for railroad crossings where the signals start early enough for highway traffic to clear the crossing, and then stopping traffic until the last car of the train goes by like it would work in the prototypical world. There has been some discussion on this circuit in the thread www.the-gauge.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=6727&perpage=15&pagenumber=1
I am looking for animation of all kinds, from kids playing on swings and teeter-totters to a distant thunder storm. I am putting in either a granite or marble quarry and am trying to figure out how to animate a rail mounted crane and to have occasional blasting.
This is the underground staging area. It will be monitored by two remote control swiveling video cameras.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/Staging%20v8a%20jpg.jpg
This is the upper level dual mainlines.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/Level%203.jpg
This is the top level tourist railroad with a steam locomotive and turn-of-the-century cars.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Layout/Level%204.jpg
This is the quarry. It is an active user of the rail lines as access to it is limited to rail and helicopter. I know that there are a lot of lines in a small space, but except for the mainlines, all of it is used at slow speeds by gondolas and a small switcher.
home.centurytel.net/pitch/ctr38021/Parent%20Directory%5cQuarry.jpg
Like I said, if anyone has any suggestions on additional animation or ideas in general I'd love to hear them. Just remember that I'd like to keep it as conventional as possable (limiting the UFOs, etc.)
