I’d like to thank everyone who assisted me with planning my layout. I got several good ideas from members here and with the help of XTrackCAD I think I’ve finally come up with a plan I like. Definitely not prototypical but it will keep me busy for some time to come. Here’s a look at the design. Feel free to chime in if you see something glaringly wrong. Curves are minimum radius of 18" and the outer mainline should handle an Amtrak train in the future with the possibility of staging running off the lower left corner somewhere down the road.
i don’t know what your expectations are and what earlier advice you found useful. I don’t know if you’re more interested in running long or multiple trains, or shorter trains and switching cars, or both. Don’t know if you’ve given much thought to operation and how it will keep you interested once the trackwork is completed. Saw some other plans in your shutterfly site. (i’m afraid i may suggest undoing things other suggested you do)
i see 2 reversing sections but they are both in the same direction. i don’t see a way of reversing the train going in the counter clockwise direction.
i only see one siding of some length (left), doesn’t seem that your interested in allowing trains to pass one another (either in opposite directions or a faster train passing a slower train).
A siding could be created by reattaching the inner loop track (bottom left) to the middle loop track (bottom left) instead of creating a 2nd unnecessary reversing section. (it leads to another reversing section anyhow).
there’s a pair of cross-overs (top) that make a short siding. Could the one on the left be moved much further to the left (around the bend) to effectively create a siding that can be used on both one of those tracks? (and eliminate the siding and 2 turnouts ($$) on the left only serving the outer loop track).
i don’t know the intention of the spur (bottom left). Moving the turnout toward the top would lengthen the spur allowing it to hold a longer train (or trains).
is the connection just before the turnout creating the reversing section (top) and the yard ladder necessary? eliminating it and 2 turnouts ($$) would effectively move that reversing section further from the yard.
it seems desirable to have a counter-clockwise reversing section. On the left, there is an inner and an outer loop.
The above is a bit beside reality; though just Gregc’s opinion. IMHO John Arrmstong described all kind of moves in reality made by trains. Indeed he also tried to explain how much switching with freightcars is involved during their journey from A to B. To have a layout where fast trains are overtaking slow drags or trains of opposite directions have meets you need sidings (just as Gregc stated). To make this really interesting you’ll need quite some layout. All the goodies Frank Ellison is talking about were worked into his amazing Delta Lines layout, however it took him 37x44 square feet in O-scale (about 24x30 in HO).
Mainline operation with interesting dispatching does need space; lots of space. On smaller layouts switching or wayfreight operation could be an alternative and attractive activity; though probably not for every one. Making miles on a small layout necessarily involves doing laps; if you like it or not.
If Smuggler wants a double track main, just to have a couple of trains orbiting aroun
Your post was very helpful. I did notice that I had a problem with the reversing loop but I was getting tired and just didn’t know how to fix it. I’m new to XtrackCAD and still learning. There are some things I would do a little different but I don’t know how, like putting a turnout on a curve. I played with it some more today and did manage to get a clockwise/counter clockwise loop. I should mention that I’m interested in a double main because I like to see trains running in opposite directions and passing each other. Just a thing from my childhood. This layout is quite extensive for my abilities so I think just putting it together will keep me interested for quite a while. I’m hoping to one day get some Amtrak stock and wanted to keep the outer mainline curves as large as I could with the space I have. That’s one reason why the mains run on the outside of the yard. I lengthened the spur per your suggestion on the lower left as a staging area for the future Amtrak and also as a possible route to another module someday when I have more room in the basement. I also moved the left crossover further down around the curve as you suggested. The siding on the left off of the outer main is for my Amtrak station. I have an affinity for the Amtrak because I used to work the train every night when it entered the country from Canada. I also included a couple more industry possibilities above the Amtrak station. I’m thinking of raising the reversing loop and the adjacent industries to about 2 inches so yes the curve next to the tunnel area will be raised and not through the tunnel.
This is still a work in progress and I appreciate you feedback.
I’m certain if everybody studied the plan closely enough, there would probably be several ways to get substantially the same operating scheme while using much less track.