Planning a staging/fiddle yard


2002p51

2002p51

Well-Known Member
I have made some room next to my existing layout for a much needed staging/fiddle yard. Here's a sketch of what I think it will be.

staging-vi.jpg


As you can see it will be 2' x 12' and connect with the existing layout at either end. Since this will also be a "fiddle" yard for adding and removing cars from the layout I have the tracks on 3" centers to give me some finger room between them.

I could space them closer and have a couple more tracks but the other consideration here is to keep the cost as low as possible so, as drawn, this only requires six turnouts. (more tracks=more turnouts=more $$$$) :)

Four of the six tracks are 7' long and the math says they should each hold fourteen 40' cars, or probably a 12 car train with locomotive and caboose. The other two tracks are 8' long.

The track at the top of the drawing is a through track for continuous running.

I'm giving my self a 3' aisle and access will be the 52" duckunder at either end. If operation proves the duckunder to be a problem I can convert it to something movable or removable.

This is a DC only layout (and let's not get into that debate again. DCC ain't happenin' here!) that I run by myself, one train at a time. So there's no need for any multi-operator considerations.

I'm pretty satisfied with this design so you may be wondering what's the point of this post. Well, I just want to make sure there isn't some brilliant idea out there that I'm just not thinking of. The layout is set in the fifties and four axle units and 40' cars are the rule.

So, let's hear it; comments, concerns, criticisms, better ideas, what have you got? Just remember the budget rules here! :D

Thanks in advance.
 
1) East staging could be longer and avoid the S curves of you had the turnouts same as for west staging - sloping forward towards the aisle instead of away from the aisle

2) No tracks are double ended, so every single train will have to be manually fiddled or turned. Having at least some tracks be run through staging would be more flexible - the same train can run in the same direction in the next session - which would not be weird e.g. for a passenger train.

3) You could make your tracks longer using a pinwheel ladder:
pinwheel-2.jpg


Smile,
Stein
 
Last edited by a moderator:
See what you thing of this plan. This plan has a siding in the middle so you can run a train in then swap ends of locos/caboose & send it out in the opposite direction. Also you could bring a train in switch out cars them send it out in either direction. Only drew the curved switches because it was easier. You can do this easily w/ regular switches.
 
cajon said:
See what you thing of this plan. This plan has a siding in the middle so you can run a train in then swap ends of locos/caboose & send it out in the opposite direction. Also you could bring a train in switch out cars them send it out in either direction. Only drew the curved switches because it was easier. You can do this easily w/ regular switches.
Click to expand...

Good point. Btw - since it is a staging yard, the tracks doesn't have to be straight all along - one could bend the end of the tracks to gain a little more length and shorter reach - say something like this:

staging.jpg


Train illustrated has 22 forty foot cars.

Smile,
Stein
 
steinjr said:
Good point. Btw - since it is a staging yard, the tracks doesn't have to be straight all along - one could bend the end of the tracks to gain a little more length and shorter reach - say something like this:

staging.jpg


Train illustrated has 22 forty foot cars.

Smile,
Stein
Click to expand...

See, this is why I posted. :D I knew somebody would come up with something better! I like this plan a lot, although it does take a couple more turnouts and that adds to the expense, I think the improvement in operation would be worth it.

Thanks!
 
And here it is:

staging-vi.jpg


I modified your plan a little steinjr. I used 7 tracks instead of eight with only one through track. This was mostly driven by the cost of turnouts, saving two. (Yes, the budget is THAT tight! :))

Plus I wanted to keep the center-to-center distance at 3 inches because this is also a fiddle yard so I need "finger room" when moving cars on and off the layout.

The three tracks at the back represent Roanoke, VA and points East, while the three near side tracks represent Bristol, VA and points West.

It's been up and running now for a couple of days and works really well for what I wanted so I really appreciate the help.
 
gregamer said:
I like it. Nice panel too. You really put this together quick.
Click to expand...

Thanks, it was pretty simple really.

The benchwork took one day. It's all flextrack and commercial turnouts so laying the track also only took one day. (There was a quick trip to the hobby shop in there because my math was off and I needed just one more piece of flex track to finish up! :D)

I made the panel in an evening and wired it at my workbench in another evening.

Adding feeder wires and connecting everything was another day.

I spread this work over about a week and a half.

Once it was ready for test runs there were only two small bugs to work out and that was it.
 
Nice one, that looks really good and you certainly didn't waste any time! Got any videos of the yard and/or your layout in action?
 
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