New Laout Idea


F

FSUDave

New Member
Hi everybody,

I have mostly finished my kids new school room in which I have negotiated a small corner for the train (um arts and crafts) corner. So I am going to scrap my 4 x 8 layout (my first layout, which has some issues and from which I learned a lot, also I did not know about this forum which the few times I have been on have learned a lot from) for a new 6 x 12 L shape layout(see below).
It is going to be HO Scale, no particular era or site, just the world according to me. I am partial to steam engines although I do like many diesels. I have kept all radius to 22in. Any comments on the layout would be greatly appreciated.


View attachment 11114

Thanks
Dave
 
Are you going to be able to reach the layout from all four sides? If not, you're going to have some reach problems, particularly in the top section.

You also need to look at your track alignment as it's running far too close to the edge. I realize some of that may be the computer but you should strive for at least a 2" clearance from the edge on all your track. You even have one curve that's shown as going off the layout surface, which I think is a result of trying to have too much track in too small a space.

Your yard really needs some re-thinking. The tracks end way too close to that mainline curve. You have five tracks with no crossovers and no runaround track. That means your switcher is going to get stuck behind cars when making up and breaking up trains with no way to escape except the the old 0-5-0 helper. :)

Your roundhouse has just one entry/exit track. That means anything coming into the roundhouse will have to be cleared for this track before another engine can leave and vice versa. That will be a pretty time consuming problem. You should look at adding another track from the mainline coming into the other sided of the mainline so you can have locomotives entering and departing without having to clear just one track.

Overall, it's an interesting layout but one without a clear purpose and so much track that squeezing in any scenery is going to be a challenge. I'd urge you to think more about the time period, part of the country you want to model, and exactly what your railroad will do to earn a living. It's not clear to me from the layout plan what the answers to those questions are.
 
Parts man, I used atlas rts prog to put this together and they only have a few buildings and that was the only one I thought would serve a purpose.

UP2CSX, I will be able to pull the layout out several feet from the wall so access will be easy all around. I know the yard is a little screwy at that point I was just trying to put something there for an idea. I had a hard time with the rts prog in getting a siding to come of on the angle I was looking for. I don't know if it was an issue with the prog or me(more likely). I figured once I set the mainline down I could play with the yard to see if I could get something to work.

I know the track may be a little tight to the side. I do have about 8in on the 6X4 side to extend if I need to and a few inches on the 12x4 side.

I see your point with the round house. I wasnt quite sure how to solve that at the moment. Also the prog only had a 12in round house and I want to put in an 18 because I do tend to like the big steam engines. And I do have a 4-8-2 that if I remember correctly is about 14in long.

The one building on the layout is a freight transfer station which I thought would serve a purpose. I have not decided on the other aspects of the area as of yet. I am very much a visual person and even with the computer have a very hard time imaging things. So I am planning as I lay out track to see how things fall and work from there.

I have not started tearing down my old layout yet. I hot glued down the track and have been trying to figure a way to remove it so it may be usable. Any ideas?

Thanks
 
Removing hot glue from tracks without causing damage is a real challenge. The first thing I'd try is the hottest hair dryer you've got. That will sometimes soften up the glue enough to allow you to pull it off the layout. You can use a razor blade to get under the glue blob and work that loose from the track.

The next thing I'd try is a hot iron, with a sheet of aluminum foil under a piece of moist paper toweling. That should heat up the glue enough without causing the ties to warp.

The last thing I would try would be acetone. It will soften the glue but may also soften the plastic ties so the rail section goes out of gauge and is unuseable. If you go this route, try it on some scrap track first to see what the acetone does to the ties.
 
FSUDave said:
Parts man, I used atlas rts prog to put this together and they only have a few buildings and that was the only one I thought would serve a purpose.
Click to expand...

Understood. I have been playing with RTS also. Hadn't even found the buildings yet. How did you post it on here?
 
Partsman

I printed out a copy of the track plan and then scanned it back into the computer. I did print it out with that intention but when I went to upload it I figured that would be the quickest thing to do.

Dave
 
Dave,

I know I may come off as a snob, but I think someone needs to speak up. I don't know why you are moving up from you old layout, but I think I can guess. The thing is, more track doesn't make a layout less boring. If all it does is go round and round, eventually it will lose interest, just like the first one did.

The previous post hit the key when he stated that the layout did not seem to have a purpose. Typically that is what determines the difference between a model railroad and a toy train--purpose. Why do the trains do what they do. Every track should have a reason for being there. Two tracks going the same place side-by-side without a reason for being there only make it harder to make scenery look good.

There are two basic types of model railroaders based on interest. There are the operators and the railfans. The operators try to imitate the movements of trains. These are possibly the most interesting layouts because each session is sort of a puzzle to be worked out. You have to keep thinking about your moves.

The rail-fan just likes to watch trains go. The thing is the appeal is watching trains run through scenery, the more realistic the better.

Of course, you can do both.

The thing is, that what you have designed does not seem to fit either bill. If you don't have a clear vision of what you want your railroad to be, the chances are you will outgrow it shortly after the track is working.

If you want a railroad the will grow with you need to clarify what you want from it. If you just want to watch trains run, then you need to design the layout to make the most of the scenery you want to run the trains through.

If you want to set out cars and build trains in your yard and service the locos in the roundhouse, then you need to do a little reading. My "Beginner's Guide" is a good start. Armstrong's Track Planning for Realistic Operations is even better.

The thing is, it's a lot cheaper to get right in the planning stage than to figure it out after dropping a couple grand into it.
 
Dave, I have used the RTS software. Form a helix, using whatever radius your curve needs, and don't worry about the elevation. This will serve as a place holder, showing the proper size circle to represent your turntable.
 
If you have space for a table layout, it is possible you have space for a layout that is more conducive to a better design?

For instance, if you consider that you must provide walk around space, a 4 x 8 table takes at least 10 x 11 ft to fit it. In the same space, you have a room for a 10 x 11 layout that you access from the center. The design limitations, for instance, the need to use 2 1/2 feet of of your space on each end to turn your train, doesn't exist.

Design for the room and not the table.

Also, I know that RTS is easier to use, but it is also much more limiting and beginner's tend to design "stiff" layouts that waste a lot of space. XtrkCAD is a full featured free package that takes about 4 hours to learn though it's tutorial. Once you do, you are not longer limited.

Here's my layout drawn with XTRKCAD. It is an 8 x 10 layout. Notice that there is a here to there feel to it. The train can run it's laps, but it also can make and break down trains at either town. There is also staging which adds about 10 times operational functionality.

rockridgetraincityII-2a.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:
SpaceMouse,

Thanks for the info. you do not come off snobbish. In my opinion the whole point of forums like this for people especially like me is to post our ideas and let the people who have been there and done that tell us what is wrong and what is right. Considering the work I have seen on this forum there are a lot of people who are quite knowledgeable about model railroading and I appreciate all their input.

With that out of the way the reason I have chosen the 6X12 layout is yes I do have the room to pull the table out so I can walk around the table, however it cannot stay out. It does have to be stored in that L shaped corner of the room I plan to build it. Can I squeeze a few more inches out of one side or another If need be yes, but that is about it. Now in 15 years when my youngest goes to college and we no longer are homeschooling then I could have a layout with very little space limitations. At this point though I need to work within the L shape.

As far as the 2 tracks running the perimeter side by side I did that so one train could just run.

I understand both posts about purpose. My thought was if you take goods (such as coal) from point a to point b you create purpose. I have not decided the industry that I would like to have on the lay out but I figured with the spurs there the purpose would show up when I decided on the industry. The one building on the layout is a freight transfer station. So my plan was to have 2 factories producing goods and have them transported to the freight transfer station to have them put on trucks for the local city. Is this thinking convoluted?

I did notice as I was working on the layout I was trying to squeeze in track. I will take your advice and prioritize what I want and decide on the industries and see what else I come up with and post it back.

Any other thoughts would be greatly appreciated.

Dave
 
Hi Dave
I like your over all track plan but I think its limiting on a few things

1st you have only 2 aeras that a industry can be placed and a spur reaches it.
2nd will you be able to reach the center or corners of the layout easy?

If you can somehow get a few more industrys with spur track access this will give the track plan a solid function. Also its ideal to have proper access to the layout where ever track is layed.

Like mentiond above a table top layout thats elevated to about your lower chest hight will limit you to 2 1/2' reach add a stool and you can get about another foot but then it becomes a hastle to work at that far of a reach. Design the layout around the room and it will make life easy on you.. I had a simmilar space to work with and I made a shelf around the room with dog bone ends. It allows access and a continued loop for trains to do laps as you opeate a swithing operation .

keep up the good work
Trent
 
What Trent mentioned (round the room) is what I came up with too. I'm using a roughly 10'x16' room, and running a minimum 22" radius means a lot of space is taken up by just turning the train around or 90 degrees. I found my first plans were working with widths of 5 feet, yet I had no idea how I was going to get to the track in the back.

Mine is around the room, but since I have two doors to work around, it will run as a short point to point with the duckunders removed, or a round the room with staging with the duckunders in place. While I do switch work, engine maintenance, etc., I may also have a coal drag or unit train passing through.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.



Back
Top