It seems that a roundhouse and turntable facility needs a minimum of three tracks, one in, one out and one service track for supplies (Ussually two). It seems to me that the inbound track would have blow down pits, ash pits and inspection pits. It seems to me that the out bound track would have coal, water and sand. Yet many of the pictures in the magazines and service facilities books, seem to indicate other wise.
Does any one know, or at least have opinions, on which facilities go on the “in track” and which on the “out track”?
If the prototype varied the order and arrangement of the activites on the track, then I would have to say that any of those variations are valid, unless you are modeling a specific location, then the arrangement at that facility would be “correct”.
There are very few absolutes regarding track or facility arrangements.
This might be simple lack of (any) experience with steam, but I don’t think that the leads to a TT/RH are necessarily inbound/outbound, but rather Northbound/Southbound (or East/West) depending on the relationship of the facility to the mainline.
For example, in the “Servicing Steam” insert from the september or october '07 issue, Dan Zugelter’s facility looks to be on a roughly east/west line (or at least an east/west portion of said mainline). It looks like locos could come from either the east or west end of the yard and weave their way into the servicing facility. However, the westbound locos (coming off the main line) would have to be driven in reverse through the stations until they reached the turntable (or perhaps they were placed on the turntable, spun around, and driven in reverse down a runaround track… there seems to be missing parts here and there in the diagram, and definitely in my knowledge)
‘Turning’ a steam locomotive, as you figured, involved refueling, filling the tender (or tanks) with water, emptying the ashpan/ash hopper, lubrication (including refilling the mechanical lubricators) and inspection - and could also include a trip across a wash rack.
The Norfolk and Western, which had steam locomotive service down to a fine science, lined up their facilities so that ashes could be dropped at the wash rack, fuel and water were simultaneously dealt with (standpipes immediately adjacent to the coaling tower) and (in the latter days) lubrication and inspection took place in a closed “lubritorium” fitted with pre-positioned lube guns. The whole process could be done in about 90 minutes. Depending on which direction a locomotive had arrived from and would be departing, the process might either precede or be followed by a 180 degree ride on a turntable. Only locomotives requiring repair, or scheduled for attention, would be routed to the roundhouse.
Toward the very end, locomotives on the ready tracks were positioned under pollution control devices that looked like quonset huts on stilts, designed to precipitate the particulates in coal smoke.
Of course, N&W set standards that most of the industry never met!
Chuck (modeling Central Japan in September, 1964 - with much more primitive facilities)
As I understand it, the coaling tower was usually situated on the inbound track. The coal supply was replenished on the way to the roundhouse. Same for the sandhouse. Remember, a roundhouse was for relatively light repairs. Anything that would take very long relegated the loco to a backshop.
On the outbound is where I think you found the water column, though in many cases it was between the tracks and so served either inbound or outbound.
For what it’s worth, at Laurel on my layout I have (in some cases will have) on the inbound track: water, sand, coal and ashpit, in that order. Inspection pits were omitted because the roundhouse has them. On the outbound track is coal at the outer set of chutes (to be used mainly by the yard switcher) and water, in that order.
Probably a lot of what went on which tracks was prototype dependent. I doubt you could really do it wrong.