Would like comments on track plan

[Go Big1]

Hey all. I am still navigating through the various forums on The Gauge, and realized this would be the best place to post this. I originally started a thread on the HO forum http://www.the-gauge.com/showthread.php?t=25514, but maybe here is better.

Anyway, I generated the layout below that I have space for. I might enlarge it later, but ya gotta crawl before you can walk, right! This plan has 22 inch turns, and the one spur that heads north towards the industry elevates to bridge over the other track. Please offer comments on the overall plan, but I do have some specific questions if I were to try and build this:

1) The 2 ft by 2ft 8" area at the top is a carve out in my foundation wall. In order to reach the back area, I need to either build this on wheels or create a pop up. Which makes more sense? I am leaning towards building the benchwork on casters and rolling the benchwork away from the foundation wall if I need to, then roll it back against the wall for operation. Thoughts?

2) With regard to the track that is going to elevate, do I have enough distance from the start of the spur to elevate over the other track? How far back should I start elevating the track in order to make it over?

Thanks for any comments and help. I still really have no idea what I am doing, but I am learning!

http://www.the-gauge.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=35285&stc=1&d=1172549873

 

[Go Big1]

Click on the link

Click on the link at the end of the message. Doesn't it bring up the track plan?

 

[MasonJar]

Can you show us the entire space that is available? I don't think that this is very practical from an operations point of view. Or even construction - it's well over the standard 30" reach that should be your guideline...

There's only two turnouts at the front, while there are 6 or so at the back. I don't know how you intend to throw them, or to couple/uncouple, but at the very least, flip the plan so the interesting stuff is at the front edge.

You do not have enough room to get "up and over" as you have drawn it. If your minimum clearance is 3" (NMRA standard) plus benchwork, you are looking at something around 10% if you keep the track the way it is. (rise of ~5" in ~50" of run).

Again, I do not know what your operational goals are, but all your sidings are trailing assuming clockwise running. Running trains in the opposite direction will always require a run-around move if they are to do any switching.

Hope that helps.

Andrew

 

[Russ Bellinis]

If the squares are 12", then it looks like you are doing a 5' x 8' with a 2' x 3' off one side.

If that is the case, the passing siding on the left end of the layout is much longer than any train you would want to run realistically on that size layout. Running a train long enough to fill that passing siding will get awfully close to having the engine chasing the caboose. On a layout that size, it will work best with trains no longer than about 1 engine, 5 or 6 cars and a caboose, or not depending on your era. I would reccomend gp or sw type locomotives, if you are modeling diesel; and switchers, or 2-6-0 or 2-8-0, no bigger than a 2-8-2 if modeling steam.

Add 2 curved switches in the end to make 2 run around tracks out of the one long siding, and you will have a run around to help you work both sets of industries on the layout.

Your grade to the bridge will be steep, but that should not be a problem because you only have the capacity of about 3 cars in the 2 industries. You will have to work those industries by pulling empties and spotting loads in two separate operations. You don't have room to pull the empties and spot loads in one movement.

The industry that you put in just before you get to the overpass will be on grade. You just don't have room to make that spot level without making a steep grade impossible. You can't spot cars on a grade, or they will roll down the hill. I would suggest that putting in some houses and/or stores in that area; or put a farm in there if you would prefer to model country. Using the hill that the grade is on with some scenery elements will help to make the railroad look less like an oval of track with a few sidings and spurs.

I am presuming that this is an island type layout with access all of the way around. If any part of the layout will be against the wall, it won't work at all.

One more suggestion, if you put the run around from the spur in the to left corner to the outside of the mainline, then you could start the spur to the bridge in that corner thus reducing the grade. You would need to run some tight radius curves to enable the track to go behind the buildings in the bottom center of the layout, or relocate those buildings to allow a wider radius curve on the branch. In any event you will need to run small locomotives on this layout to look right, so a tighter radius should not be a problem.

 

[Go Big1]

Revised Plan

Andrew and Russ, thank you so much for the comments. I think I have taken your suggestions to heart, and have modified my plan accordingly (see below).

Andrew, per your comment regarding the reach, I turned the layout 90 degrees. I have to remove a small wall in my shop now, but it is not load bearing, and doesn't really serve a purpose anyway! I also removed the "up and over". As to my operational goals, I want to be able to do some minor switching and transport cars between industries. I have 3 and 5 year old boys, and I think they would enjoy helping me "get coal" up at the mine, then bring it down into town and deliver it to the manufacturing plant, etc.

Russ, as to the length of the train, I am looking at 1 engine (diesel gp most likely) with 6-7 cars max for this type of layout. I just wanted my passing siding long enough for that use. I am not sure geographically where I want to model, but the era will be late 60's to 70's.

Anyway, my revised layout is below. I hope I have improved it. My thought would be to have the long siding elevate on its way up to the 2 industries at the top. I would then create mountains in that area, and possibly have that corner of the mainline go through a tunnel. The rest of it is (hopefully) pretty straight forward. Would love more comments. Thanks a ton everyone.

 

[Go Big1]

Better picture

Just saw that that picture is a little small ops:. Hopefully this one will be better, although I did have to turn the picture on its side so that it would upload. So the foundation wall is now on the right side of the picture.