I have just completed building a series of HO scale Walthers back shop kits - combine four into a large structure plus three individual back shop buildings and a two back shop structure. In addition I combined three car shops into a long building and then have a stand alone car shop structure. The Walthers brick power house as well as two longer combined buildings complete my shop complex. Now this is not to brag but rather to illustrate my frustration in designing or should I say redesigning my HO layout. I have always loved these large industrial structures and have sought plans to build an HO layout that could facilitate them. My current layout is becoming stale - after 15 years and now I am searching for a plan for a corner of my redesigned layout to feature the shops. Classic trains magazine has run a number of very cool birds-eye-view images of shops, but what I am really looking for is an existing HO plan to modify. Can anyone help me?
Have you tried searching the Track Plan database? Probably something in there you could use or modify. Ian
I cannot refer you to any existing HO scale plans to modify, but here is a link to some track and structure diagrams for the Altoona Works during various eras.
http://www.altoonaworks.info/diagrams.html
Maybe, this could lend some inspiration in your search.
Rich
Thank you very much! I was looking at John Armstrong’s book on Realistic Track Planning and did find one drawing, but any thing that can spur on inspiration is what I am looking for.
I surely don’t see how you’ll be lucky enough to find an HO plan that will help. I would expect you’d have to study a buncha layout plans plus prototype plans and do your own design, based on what you learned.
That said, perhaps a book from our sponsor will help:
http://www.kalmbachstore.com/12228.html
Also, you might do the Google satellite views of existing facilities. It’s free. You can also frequently study current designs and see how they used to be.
I once was into the large engine facilities thing, and designed a layout for same. In my case, the facility was straight line–not in a corner. Plus it was more a large layover facility, rather than a backshop type. Thus, more fuel tracks and loco storage, and less heavy repair.
Ed
The Kalmbach book "Guide to Locomotive Servicing Terminals suggested above is worth a look. It has some partial track plans but it will probably be most useful for ideas and inspiration.
Good luck.
I put in “locomotive treminal” in as keywords for a book search in Amazon and came up with some quite interesting books.
I recommend doing same.
Ed
It is a good book and I have it in my reference library.
Thank you for the suggestion.
If you are lucky enough to have a library nearby that has back issues of Railway Age and Railway Gazette for the steam era, there are plenty of articles of the real thing with track plans and photos. Many railroads boasted about their new facilities.
Victor A. Baird
Ed’s suggestion caused me to think of a specific subject for this. It’s very visible in Google and may even be familiar to you, the old Algoma Central shop complex in St. Sault Marie, Ontario. Might give you some ideas anyway.
It’s familiar to me because that’s where my wife and I started our big honeymoon trip – the tour of the line to Hearst and back. Enjoyed it immensely. It’s great to have a wife who’s a bit of a railfan herself.[:X][swg]
Check out track plan database under “San Bernardino, CA” (I think) there is a nice shop/service corner plan in there that you could certainly use for inspiration. I have a copy of it pinned over where I plan to build it, if I live long enough.
Tim
NewB here - Track Plan Database? Please direct me or indicate the link for that.
TIA,
Nick