009 Layout - ideas?

[rynd2it]

I rescued an 009 layout from being dumped with a view to one day finishing it. 

It has two baseboards 4' x 2' and all the track is laid with some very rudimentary wiring and the backscene supports are will fixed down. The immediate plan is to mount it on folding legs, repair any damage to the track and get something running. I am undecided on DC or DCC and I have yet to closely examine the point frogs etc to see if this will influence the decision. This is my continuing lock down project to allow me to run some trains just keep me from going totally stir-crazy

Here's the basic track plan and one idea I have been mulling over.

I'd appreciate any comments and/or ideas for a period, style, industries etc; it's basically a blank canvas but I'm not looking to change the track plan, just use it.

 

[Keith Addenbrooke]

Very nice.  Actually having the layout gives you the chance to try things out and see what looks ‘right’ to you as you work on the layout.  At first glance (I just happen to be online before lunch at the moment and saw this as it was posted), I wonder if I might share a couple of thoughts:

 

1.  Perhaps a key decision is whether you want to model a ‘working line’ or a ‘heritage line’ ? *  I’d expect the former to have more goods / freight traffic, but the latter might see more, longer passenger trains and need a bigger car park.

 

2.  For a ‘working line’ I think the river / dock siding looks great, but I’d be tempted to swap the goods yard to the right, and have the carriage siding / engine shed on the left.

Just a thought, Keith.

__________
(* heritage lines are of course a type of working line, and full credit to the volunteers and staff who work very hard on them, I just wasn’t sure how to phrase the distinction: I hope it’s clear what I mean).

[rynd2it]

Actually the last 009 I worked on was a heritage line which provides great scope for running just about anything you want. 

I also thought about reversing the sheds and sidings 

Thanks for the input

 

 

 

 

[DCB]

I would use a dedicated N gauge power unit, low powered, on this elderly layout, otherwise I would expect problems with the contacts between point blades and stock (?) rails.  

If you get a short, derailment etc, you can get arcing between poor connections like point blades or loose fish plates which rapidly gets wors.e

DCC will probably need a complete extensive rewire, unless you fit a really sensitive overload cut out, which isn't that readily available.  Polyswitches are a bit too slow, it needs something more like the Triang / Hornby Dublo/ H&M controllers cut outs but 1/2 amp not 1 amp. 

Heritage railway is the obvious scenario, you can use a wide variety of stock.   Otherwise the UK Narrow Gauge railways tended to have two types of Locomotives and often one style of coaches and massively long trains of silly little slate wagons.   Irish were a bit more muddled up. using purpose built suburban passenger locos on coal trains, double headed cattle rains etc but...

 

[rynd2it]

I will have to totally rewire anyway with a heavier wire for the buss. The stock rail/blade contact is never reliable so I would add jumper wires if I can isolate the blades from the frogs, dead frogs would help for once. 

 

I agree with you on the heritage idea but as I just did one I was thinking about creating a working line this time

 

Thanks for the input