Looking for opinions. Let me know if you see problems or have a suggestion. I am a novice, only been doing some tinkering in the past and reading a lot on this forum. Have been working on this design for quite a while in my spare time. Thanks to AnyRail, and a trip back to Illinois this summer, it is finally happening. The framework is set up along the wall in my north Florida garage we share with our car. Plan is set in central Illinois where I spent the first 30 some years of my life, with this theme around 1970 focused on mainly grain processing. Want to use HO Atlas code 83 with Walthers/Shinohara #6 turnouts. rail height is set at 46 inches on 1/2 inch foam on 1/2 inch plywood in 1x4 and 1x2 module type frame work. Roadbed will be Woodland Scenics foam mainline and cork sheets in the yard area. Using Digitrax DCC, plan to wire 3 power districts. Open to thoughts before I lock into place.
Looks good; I have only two suggestions. maybe only one with two parts. There is not enough room at the bottom of your mainline/siding for an engine to clear the turnout, especially if you have modern engines or multiple units for power. I’d suggest you shorten the siding to provide some maneauvering room. One way to do this, and to add more flexibility, would be to extend the adjacent track (oriented at about 5 o’clock) with another turnout for the existing yard track. and continue the angle track to tie in with the shortened passing track and continue to the main. This would provide the additional room, plus adding another alternate route for local trains. I see no problems, electrically, with this addition. Best wishes for Happy Modeling…JWH
My comment - methinks the bottom end is a little too crowded. You have no room for the engine house and any other servicing facilities. And I think the yard track is too close to the main line. I would seriously consider decreasing the number of yard tracks by one or two to make room for a little bit of scenic elements between tracks. Give the main a little visual separation from the yard.
In addition to what RetGM stated, since that long runaround siding is essentially useless due to the engine escape being too short, it just adds to the clutter as it is now.
Be sure you have enough space to switch the corn syrup transfer without having to back into the enginehouse. And in general, for such a realistic and long linear plan, the actual spurs for all of the industries all seem kind of short in relation to the entire plan, especially in relation to the runarounds.
Just some tweaking needed.
Also, I repeat myself often, but the stub yard tracks would really benefit from using a #7 Walthers curved turnout to start the yard. Place it on the inside curve just south of the corn syrup transfer and that will allow you to lengthen the tracks considerably.
Take what the other responders have said to heart. They will go a long way to improving operations. AnyRail will keep you honest about whether the peices will fit; it can’t tell you you’ve got too much track in a given area or too short a lead.
You mentioned 3 power districts with DCC. If by power districts, you mean electrically isolated areas with independent power feeders, that’s fine (although maybe overkill on a layout the size of yours). If you have a short, it may help you isolate it. OTOH, if you’re talking about typical DC wiring with independent areas so that you can run multiple locos at once, you don’t need that with DCC.
I do plan to electrically isolate the districts, the yard, the switching spur, and mainline.
I appreciate the suggestions, they are all good ones. I did say I am a novice and although I have spent some time on the processes, I am embarrassed to say the diagram I offered is not in scale, noted by the diagional table lines up mid mainline. They should be identical and are not. I will have an additional 4 feet on the bottom end, so with that in mind and taking away one of the yard tracks, I believe I can get a ladder on the bottom end of the yard to help include all your suggestions. Thank you for the extra eyes.
If I read this correctly, the bottom yard will basically be extended by 4 feet. Relative to the amount of switching opportunities on the layout, that may mean you’ll have far more storage space on the layout than what you’ll need to operate it. That’s okay if you just like the look of a busy yard, but if you want to maximize your operating potential, you may want to make sure that the amount of industrial spurs are balanced with the amount of yard storage/sorting space you have.
That concept was also part of my previous statement about the spurs seeming short relative to the size of the layout. Just keep this in mind as you tweak the design.
I was thinking there would be quite a few turnouts in the switching areas, many places for shorts to occur on a beginners layout. Also, in case of expansion it would be a safe guard. It is a plan at the moment, not incorporated yet. One of those areas of suggestion I welcome. I do like the electronic side of things when they do their job.
I believe you will have to shim the turnouts because the Atlas ties are thicker than those on the W/S turnouts. The W/S flex is more costly than Atlas but looks better and will, of course, connect to your turnouts without any fussing. Also, consider using W/S #5s and even #4s to save space. The #4s actually have a 26" radius of closure rail and have accommodated my 2-8-2 and 6-axle diesels (test them yourself).
I did a little tweak, liked the idea of using #7 curved turnouts and losing a yard track so changed those. Still wanted to have a passing area on the main though. On the right side I moved the main to far right so the ethanol plant has it own siding, then curved those sidings for added interest
Consider smoothing that curve passing the corn syrup transfer leading to the engine service by substituting another curved turnout for the right hand turnout. Then connect to the engine lead with a LH/RH crossover vs. the RH/RH.
I like that much better. A couple of observations that are just a matter of personal taste:
What is the middle track on the lower peninsula going to be used for? If it will be a third yard track, which is what I would call the two tracks immediately to its right, then you could start that track from a turnout that’s located on the track that’s fourth-in from the left wall. That way, all three yard tracks would have more of a common lead.
And since you have room, you could relocate the corn syrup transfer to the far South, with the spur coming straight off of the main line runaround. My thinking, is addition to having more room for the flour mill and corn syrup transfer, you would have industries spread out throughout the layout. Having the ethanol plant at the far East and the corn syrup at the far South, your switcher would be traveling over the entire layout, maximizing its run. Or just leave corn syrup where it is and add a team track at the South location. I think your yard tracks are long enough now as to allow something there.
