I still don’t think there’s too much to worry about when it comes to the plan. It may seem busy to some but it all depends on what you are going for. If you want an overall feel of wide open spaces, this isn’t it. However in industrial and urban areas, tracks may run everywhere. Many times prototype track plans can be crazier than those we imagine and build. The nice thing about urban scenery is that you have lots of scenery breaks. This means you can get a vantage point of realism from a small area without seeing lots of other things in the background that would kill the illusion. It’s really all about illusion. You looks at a layout differently from track level as opposed to above and the feel is very different. In modelling we use selective compression and forced perspective all the time to get a sense of realism. Yet none of those is real. In the same fashion, a track plan doesn’t have to be wide open to get a sense of realism either.
If everyone wanted pure realism, we’d never see HO layouts set up on 4X8 sheets of plywood or hollow core doors which is basically the equivalent of trying to stuff a real train inside a football stadium. You’ve definitely got lots to do and operations could be quite fun. Remember in the real world, not every industry gets served at the same time. You have all kinds of options. Have fun with it!
I like it. I can picture a bunch of little jobs running around the layout.
I’d probably make the sidings at Pysht and Sequim bigger.
I’d also stub out the top two tracks in the yard and route the rip lead off of the roundhouse lead. This will give you three usable yard tracks instead of just two.
I had a few questions about some of the tracks.
What is the runaround at the logging camp for?
What is the runaround at the kilns/ore docks for?
Why does the turntable have a track that runs out toward the right wall, over the crossing and toward the kilns?
I assume he wants the runarounds so he can move the engines to the other side to get out. This isn’t really necessary at a logging camp though as they’ll run those engines anywhere. He could always use that siding as storage and then still be able to get an engine out depending on how he got it in there. Same in each place.
The turntable/yard area is probably the only area that I’d really change around. At least one track has to be an arrival/departure track and another track is already a turntable and service track lead. That doesn’t really leave any room for switching. It could however be setup as staging without switching for operations. I prefer staging to be hidden though. I’d find a way to get at least 3 usable switching sidings (they can even be stub ended) and one a/d track and then keep these independent of the turntable lead.
As far as the back turntable lead, I don’t see much of an issue with it. He could always make it a little rougher, keep it poorly ballasted, and have lots of weeds growing up around it. Of course still find a way to make it usable. You never know when the ore docks or iron mill will need an engine sent out of the roundhouse to switch some cars around. That could be another operating session option that isn’t always used.
When it comes to yards, I’m still figuring out how they work. Also, I don’t have a whole heckuvalotta space. I’ve redone both the docks and yard, as well as adding some industries / scenicing details to Irondale. Feedback appreciated!
