Critique please, bedroom switching layout plan

[TheGloriousTachikoma]

So, I'll soon have my room back to myself. Realizing the potential, I took a tape measure to it and was delighted to find that it is slightly larger than the room I tried to build my last layout in. So, I'm increasing the likelihood of getting this one to operational status. I've compiled a list of givens and wants and think I have a solid plan to work with.

Givens:
-11.5'x13' room
-Three doorways must be easily accessed at all times
-Must function as a bedroom with comfortable capacity for me and up to one guest, plus my dog

Wants (I'm sorry, I'm too young for 'druthers'.) :
-Modern switching (no spots fewer than two cars, usually more)
-As a result, relatively prototypical train lengths (8-10 50' cars)
-Continuous running
-Sunny theme

So, imagine my delight to find this page on SIG
http://www.macrodyn.com/ldsig/wiki/i...Michael_Powell

This plan was nearly perfect and my adaptation in SCARM resulted in a 13' long plan. Expanding the short leg out to fit the width of my bedroom, and adding a peninsula to use the top of an L-shaped computer hutch, I now have this:

http://sadpanda.us/images/1144920-HD1DJOY.jpg

I've already added the necessary requisites to continue a loop around the room. I had the idea of adding small Iain Rice style shadow boxes between the doors and connect them with lift-ins. But for the meantime...how does this plan look? The curve at the bottom of the short side would be hidden by scenery/structures, and the tracks there are flexible anyway. I took the two-track yard and put it out over top of the computer hutch and tried to keep the tracks straight enough to still couple reliably.

I'm not sure yet on operation specifics, but essentially a cut is brought out from staging, sorted, and the local crew works a given section or list of clients in the district. Planned primary motive power will be a LPG genset-converted SD45 with either similarly converted SW1500 or Geep

So I'm just asking for critiques on this plan, as well as offered advice. One point is that I don't have any engine servicing on this plan. I don't need a gaudy roundhouse, just someplace where Big Grunt and Little Grunt get parked when off shift for refueling. One idea is that they just get parked by the LPG dealer who's contracted to provide fueling.

I have a good idea of what the remaining industries will be. I'd originally planned 'C' to be a team track, but I'm now thinking to make it the LPG dealer since the spur is only about long enough for two of those big tankers. A potential deal on some Roundhouse 50' tank cars has me thinking to make 'G' a waste oil recycler. And I'm thinking that 'F' can be a paper recycler owned by the same company. And 'H' and 'I' can just be random boxcar warehouses with names like 'RACO' or 'ARDCO'. 'B' was planned to be a scrapyard but that kinda clashes with the theme I'm going for. Would be nice to have some 65' gondolas for variety though.

I am thinking that the yard may not be needed. In which case I'll just add an extension to the runaround, make it an interchange point, and turn the yard into a small intermodal terminal.

Thanks for the time and any opinions.

[steinjr]

So, where is your bed located ?

Smile,
Stein

[Doughless]

As a track plan, I don't see much that will cause problems. Switching industry H when there is a car in front of industry F will cause you extra switching moves to clear the spur, but that may seem interesting to you instead of a problem.

I prefer as little track as possible. There is probably a way for the layout to accomplish the same thing using a little less track, but I haven't really looked at it closely.

Seems like a reasonable plan; however, I can't see how you, a guest, your dog, and a peninsula are going to fit comfortably in that room.

[TheGloriousTachikoma]

Originally Posted by Doughless

As a track plan, I don't see much that will cause problems. Switching industry H when there is a car in front of industry F will cause you extra switching moves to clear the spur, but that may seem interesting to you instead of a problem.

I prefer as little track as possible. There is probably a way for the layout to accomplish the same thing using a little less track, but I haven't really looked at it closely.

Seems like a reasonable plan; however, I can't see how you, a guest, your dog, and a peninsula are going to fit comfortably in that room.

Dog is usually in the bathroom where the cool linoleum is. And the peninsula is atop my computer hutch. 0" on the layout will be about 54" above the floor.

I had some ideas this morning. I decided to nix any potential for continuous running and added a turntable and a two-stall engine house. The tail of the staging is not tucked behind a lift-out fascade. Biggest change is I expanded the yard and added a drop-leaf that comes up for operating sessions (high enough to duck under). Yard now will comfortably hold more cars than are allotted to fit on all the industrial spurs.

http://sadpanda.us/images/1147106-5H9AJEI.jpg

I know how you feel, Doughless. The twin spurs at 'B' are more just because I'm not sure what I want to go there. It could be just a single spur into a junkyard or in front of whatever industry I decide to put there. Conceivably 'G' and 'D' could share the same spur, but an oil recycler and a lumberyard kinda need their own spurs. The crossover between 'G' and 'F' is more for convenience so that the entire runaround doesn't have to be negotiated. The track between the spurs for 'H' and 'I' is merely a continuation of the mainline. I don't see how any track can be pared off the design as it is.

[Burlington Bob]

Reasonable enough track plan but I think that you will be very cramped and banging into your layout with a 54 inch height. Maybe you should consider N scale.

[TheGloriousTachikoma]

Originally Posted by Burlington Bob

Reasonable enough track plan but I think that you will be very cramped and banging into your layout with a 54 inch height. Maybe you should consider N scale.

The past month I've invested about...$200 building a fleet of HO rolling stock
I'm locked in to HO now. I don't think I'll be banging into the layout. The shelf on the top of the plan is only 15" wide. I can narrow the 24" wide section along the short side by eliminating the space for a road between the tracks, but that's over my bed anyway. I wouldn't even need to leave the central 'pit' when the drop-leaf is up, I'd just need a marker post where the uncoupling magnet is down by 'B'

[Burlington Bob]

Might want to try a mockup from cardboard before you build the actual layout. Try it for a week or so to see how you do for clearance, etc. It may be fine as is. One thing for sure though, it's a lot easier to change the shape of a piece of cardboard than benchwork for a layout. Good luck, Bob.

[steinjr]

Originally Posted by TheGloriousTachikoma

I can narrow the 24" wide section along the short side by eliminating the space for a road between the tracks, but that's over my bed anyway.

And your bed (and guest bed) is how big? Is it 2 feet wide or more? Are you planning to reach stuff on the layout while standing on your knees in bed, or standing on the floor reaching in across the bed and the shelf?

How tall is your bed? Are you planning to crawl sideways into bed under the layout, without being able to sit up in bed?

The track plan seems nice enough. The only thing several of us question a little is how well the layout will coexist with the use of the room as a two bed bedroom.

Smile,
Stein

[TheGloriousTachikoma]

Originally Posted by steinjr

And your bed (and guest bed) is how big? Is it 2 feet wide or more? Are you planning to reach stuff on the layout while standing on your knees in bed, or standing on the floor reaching in across the bed and the shelf?

How tall is your bed? Are you planning to crawl sideways into bed under the layout, without being able to sit up in bed?

The track plan seems nice enough. The only thing several of us question a little is how well the layout will coexist with the use of the room as a two bed bedroom.

Smile,
Stein

No guest bed, I meant guest in room 'hanging out'. My old full-size mattress will be too big, I'm thinking a twin. Maybe even a futon-couch, I'm fairly fond of them.

[cajon]

TGT
The pix in the SIG link sure look alot like the Los Angeles Junction Ry that I'm modeling, Just not the same areas shown in the pix. Doing a PowerPoint clinic on the LAJ 9/6/12 630-730P at the NMRA PSR convention 9/5-9/9/12 in Oxnard CA. You don't have to be an NMRA member to attend: http://www.psrnmra.org/
Here's a long link to the slides:
https://plus.google.com/photos/10738...041?banner=pwa
And a short version: http://tinyurl.com/9as5pxs
Shown are the LAJ Switching Maps along w/notes by Charlie Slater who was a conductor there '70-'84 then ATSF/BNSF til retirement. As can be seen the LAJ is nothing but a bunch of "Leads" radiating out from the yards. Only doing about 6-8 of the Vernon leads & the A Yard on my 12' x 14' layout w/ ALOT of selective compression!