layout is going great, been putting in some time, some roadbed down, afew changes here & there…
yesterday I was looking at the area where i would like to put the BIG YARD[:D][:p], & the way the mainline in that area looks at the moment, made me stop & think & wonder…
now would a double ended yard beable to hold more or a single ended, including, runaround track, engine parking track…
just guess once again I need some advice…[8)]
thanks
Mike
single ended definitely holds more cars becasue the wasted space of the second ladder east up siding space. Draw it on a piece of paper and prove it to yourself.
Single ended holds more cars and has greater operational problems to have fun with. Thats good if the yard is not too busy but for a major yard with lots of traffic a double ended yard is better because of the speed that you can get things done.
I like the idea of more cars…
not really in the need of speed to get things out!!! hahaha
how is it for making & breaking down trains?
still new to the yard design , have read a few books…
First it would help if we knew what the purpose of the yard will be. Will it be mainly visable staging or will it be for classifying cars. If it’s use will be staging then double ended would seem like a good solution since you can pull trains out of both sides. Which brings up another question - Where on the layout will the yard be situated. Is it at the end of the mainline where trains will be only entering from one side or will it be in the middle with trains entering and departing on both sides? How much space do you have set aside for the yard.
If it’s for classifying cars then I would highly suggest MRR book on freight yards they just put out. it goes over everything that should be put into a yard. Remember if you are classifying cars you should have atleast one lead track that is the same length as your longest lead track. I hoped this helped some. Much Luck
Andrew
Have you checked out the article on yards in one of the recent MR’s? Also, they’ve got a book out on this subject that you might find very useful.
For pure storage, single ended yards rule.
But if you plan on switching the yard… double ended yards become very useful.
I am going with switching… just don’t want to park trains there…( staging) the club I am in does that with their big yard…
my yard is basically going to be int he middle of the layout…
be nice to make up atrain, run it, have it come back, unhook the engine & then have the train broken down…
Part of your yard needs to be double-ended then. But you can stick some single ended storage tracks in the back of the yard for more storage - nobody says it’s an all or nothing proposition.
[#ditto] To what Jeff said.[:D]
For switching the best yard arrangement is that described in the Freight Yard books or John Armstrongs trackplanning for realistic operation. Have 2-3 double ended A/D tracks. I suggest three because then you can hav two tracks to hold trains and still have onee open for run around moves to get engines to the right side or out to the srevicing area. Then have how ever many tracks for classification.
How you have switchs set up determines how well you can run trains. You will want to make as much room possible in the yard tracks but if you skimp on turnouts you’ll lose on operation. I’ll try and post pics of yard ladder so you can get an idea of what I’m talking about.
Andrew
Absolutely! Even with a small yard one needs at least one double ended track for inbound/outbound and run around track…If possible the yard should have a “runner” track so the road engines can get to their train or engine service area and the yard crew can get from one end of the yard to the other without having to foul the inbound/outbound track.
I agree with Jeff, a few double-ended and the back tracks as single-ended is both functional and looks good. As some have pointed at, the location of the yard is also a factor. If you are in the middle section of the layout, including double-ended works well. If you are at one end or the other, double-ended may be tough to pull off.
My major yard is on a peninsula on the end, so it is single-ended (although a couple of tracks may give the illusion of being double ended, off the end of the layout). If I remember right, I based the design off something in Track Planning for Realistic Operations, although I laid it into the plan months ago so my memory may be deceiving me. My goal was to have it be a switching layout within the layout.
going with #6 switches…
thanks for the advice & info… keep throwing it my way!!! hope have some photos soon…
have a good one
Mike
When building my yard, I took an old Linn Westcott plan (Switchman’s Nightmare, from 101 MRRs) and used it. It’s two single-ended yards with parallel ladder tracks, with the ladder-ends butting against one another (the ladder tracks are essentially parallel, with several crossovers), so that I could use almost all of the available rectangle. It wouldn’t work for a yard where there was a huge amount of activity or congestion, but it provides a lot of switching opportunities in a small space, uses #6 switches (so I can still accomodate decent-sized engines), and uses every bit of the available room.
Another resource worth looking into is the 2nd issue of MR’s annual supplement Model Railroad Planning (I believe it is the 1997 issue but I am not certain). Yards were the primary theme of that issue, and it contains enough valuable information about designing yards and the prupose of yards that I would recommend tracking down an old copy and reading it before beginning construction.
One thing to keep in mind is that every track in a yard has a purpose. Some tracks are for classifying cars while others are used to hold inbound and outbound trains/cuts of cars (arrival/departure tracks). A switching lead that doesn’t interfere with the arrival/departure tracks so trains can enter and exit the yard without interfering with the classification of cars will make the yard more efficient. If you plan to have an engine terminal, easy access to and from the terminal to the arrival/departure tracks with a minimum of blocking the other functions of the yard should also be considered. If you model in the caboose era, a track for storage and maintenance should be included as well.
While car capacity is important, I have found that it is only one of many important characteristics that need to be considered when designing a yard.
Jason
I’ve often thought that a single-end yard looks too “static”, like not much traffic.
But if it ends at a wharf or dock for transfer to a barge or car float, then it’s a lot different.
That’s my plan; small single-ended to a waterfront.
just wanted to make sure that it was the MRP 97 issue… ?
The club I was in had a good yard design, about 5 inbound/outbound double ended tracks then had 4 switching tracks singel ended to makeup/breakup trains.
There was an MR article about the biggest yard in the smallest space which was a good article about how thick you could get cars in a small space and make it workable.
Basically your inbound/outbound tracks have to be the max size of your possible train. It could be only 2 tracks or one, that depends how busy your RR is.
I read all the replies so far and I didn’t see one important question asked. How many people will be operating the yard simultaniously?
i am in the middle of makeing my yard and one day i went to the hobby shop and got this book the model railroaders guide to freight yards a+ book by Andy Sperandeo And Model Railroader/Kalmback books