Now this guy I like! He posts an obviously well-thought question with reasonable givens and druthers, considers the responses, does his research, and makes what seems to me to be a very rational choice.
Stein, I wish you all the luck and good fortune on your layout. Please post updates as it moves along.
Stevert
Stevert wrote in news:Cokxf.164$PL5.58 @newssvr11.news.prodigy.com:
Thank you for that kind comment.
Will try to do that. But it will take quite a while to get to the point where there is much to update yet, I am afraid.
As a symbolic start on the project I've ordered a Bachmann GP30 engine in GN livery - found one with a DCC decoder for $36 at walthers.com.
But the most important one is how lay things out. Basically, the layout should be something like:
South to North: Interchange with CNW MT main yard (scaled down) Side line to GN small yard, main line north Grade crossing, interchange with NP Local industries Interchange with Soo line
For the kids to be able to do continuous running, I need to be able to create a (non-historical) loop.
Will have to see what I can fit in and how. Back to Armstrong's book.
Grin, Stein
Stein R wrote in news:Xns9749AAABA0C1steinjr@
216.196.109.146:
Just thought I would post an update. Won't be spamming the group with these - just this one update with a link to a web page showing what is going on with this layout.
I have asked advice from people on the NMRA LDSIG (Layout Design Special Interest Group) about how to compress the prototype yards to a modellable size, and have worked a bit with some ideas I have gotten from various people.
Seems like I will have to plan to layouts in the same room.
Layout 1 (MT main exchange yards) =================================== The main level layout will be a representation of the Minnesota Transfer RR main yards, but scaled down a lot:
A round the wall shelf layout with a liftout/folding section in front of the door. 2 mainlines (GN on the north side of the yard - closest to the walls, Milwaukee road on the south side of the yard, closest to the center of the room), each mainline having one arrival/ departure track long enough to hold a train of one engine, eight 40 foot cars and a caboose.
The yard will be flat switching, long enough yard drill track, 8
170cm/66" classfication tracks in a single ended ladder,Visual separation between Milwaukee road main track/AD track and classification yard will be a retaining wall - 2-3" high, with the classification yard a little higher than Milwaukee road and GN (in the background) highter than the classification yard, Layout 2 (MT local industrial swiching) ======================================== Same era, same locale, same engines and cars - but not connected to the yards layout above - any movement of engines and cars between them will have to be BHITS (Big Hand In The Sky) :-)
A fairly narrow (12-18" deep) shelf layout around three walls located maybe 12-15 inches above the main layout. Can be built (or not) indepen- dently of the yard layout. Haven't done any planning on this part yet.
Here is a first rough sketch of a possible track layout for the MT yards:
Smile, Stein
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