Designing a yard with Peco Streamline

[AndrueC]

I've started early planning of my next layout and like my current layout it will have staging yards. My current layout uses Setrack and sidings are spaced by having an opposite R2 curve connected to the diverging route of each turnout at some point to bring the track back to parallel. This is simple to design and easy to build.

 

Playing around with AnyRail suggests it's more difficult with Streamline so how do people normally do it? Do you just work out the siding spacing then cut a section of rail to fit?

Edited July 19, 2021 by AndrueC

[ITG]

I used the Peco track gauges (50mm centre spacing), and use flexitrack to bend a smooth curve. You don’t need to cut the length for the curve itself, as it’s just whatever length is needed for the whole siding or loop. Then lay it partly curved and partly straight. It’s only “more difficult” because you’re not using pre-cut lengths and geometry of track, but you have less joins and better conductivity.

 

By using Streamline points you can pick and choose their various radii to suit, and consequently a much smoother curve of flexitrack to bring it back to the parallel (compared to the sharper radii and greater angle of turn on set track points). Trains will thus not have to negotiate such a snaking S bend, giving greater realism, and less chance of derailments or coupling locking, especially when reversing.

Edited July 19, 2021 by ITG

[KingEdwardII]

18 hours ago, AndrueC said:

how do people normally do it?

For me, I design the layout (Using XTrackCad, but AnyRail is the same kind of beast) until I'm happy, then print out at 1:1 and stick the printouts to the baseboard. Then install the track to match the printouts. As ITG says, you form the curves and the straights using the 3' flexitrack strips and only cut at the ends when necessary. Generally many fewer track joints compared with Setrack.

 

The printouts make forming the curves a doddle. The main consideration is to ensure the printouts are correctly aligned - measure, measure and measure again! Always be on the lookout for baseboards, walls, etc, not being square.

 

Yours,  Mike.

[AndrueC]

Thanks for that. I've accepted that Streamline will be more difficult to work with but the idea of printing 1:1 seems like a good one. For my current layout I could just plonk things down in about the right place then tweak until it fitted. The benefits of a fixed geometry. But as you rightly say Streamline is more realistic so that's what I want for the big layout and I just have to accept the difficulty factor and using the track plan as gospel is a good move.

[Pete the Elaner]

2 minutes ago, AndrueC said:

I've accepted that Streamline will be more difficult to work with

 

I find streamline it much easier to work with.

It gives much closer spacing between the tracks, which is a huge improvement but that is not why I find it easier.

You can mark out where you want your sidings then just bend the track to shape.

You don't need to buy a selection of different track. Plain track is plain track, not different straights & different length/radius curves.

You can alter the design as you need. No matter how careful you are when designing in scale or on a computer, it always looks different on the layout & you may notice something you had overlooked. You can just bend or straighten flexi track as required.

If you have the space, the longer, more gentle streamline points look way better.

[AndrueC]

16 minutes ago, Pete the Elaner said:

 

I find streamline it much easier to work with.

You can mark out where you want your sidings then just bend the track to shape.

You don't need to buy a selection of different track. Plain track is plain track, not different straights & different length/radius curves.

Interesting. I didn't find that much of a problem with Setrack as I only have one radius of curve anyway but I see what you're saying about sidings. I was 'forced' to follow the geometry but it was just assembling a jigsaw and everything just fitted together.

 

Actually one more question would be track fixing. For my current layout I didn't fix anything until I was done and then just sprayed 'wet water' over the track and dribbled PVA down the middle. I'm assuming that for Streamline curves I'm going to have to fix them in some fashion during initial construction. From my brief experiments the track will tend to straighten out a bit unless it's held down.

[ITG]

19 minutes ago, AndrueC said:

I'm assuming that for Streamline curves I'm going to have to fix them in some fashion during initial construction. From my brief experiments the track will tend to straighten out a bit unless it's held down.

True, I used Peco track pins on 9mm ply, but on inclines of polystyrene (a la Woodland Scenics), I used double sided tape.

[AndrueC]

4 minutes ago, ITG said:

True, I used Peco track pins on 9mm ply, but on inclines of polystyrene (a la Woodland Scenics), I used double sided tape.

Not sure how I'm going to do the inclines this time around. I might go for Woodland Scenics again but now that feels like a cop-out. One of my proposed inclines (a decline actually) is on a curve which will be interesting. I've never had any issues with the ones on my current layout so thought I'd step it up a bit

[ITG]

27 minutes ago, AndrueC said:

Not sure how I'm going to do the inclines this time around. I might go for Woodland Scenics again but now that feels like a cop-out. One of my proposed inclines (a decline actually) is on a curve which will be interesting. I've never had any issues with the ones on my current layout so thought I'd step it up a bit

I have curves at 2%, ranging from radius 3 set track to about 5’. Trains of up to 6 coaches handled by all my steam and diesel  locos. On old layout, 3% was not so happy, although a lot was to do with the transition from level to 3%, which I don’t feel I got right.

[Pete the Elaner]

2 hours ago, AndrueC said:

 

Actually one more question would be track fixing. For my current layout I didn't fix anything until I was done and then just sprayed 'wet water' over the track and dribbled PVA down the middle. I'm assuming that for Streamline curves I'm going to have to fix them in some fashion during initial construction. From my brief experiments the track will tend to straighten out a bit unless it's held down.

 

Yes, flexi track would have a habit of springing back into shape. I chose to glue mine rather than pin it, but that was to avoid track pins, which make more of a difference on concrete sleeper track (you can't get concrete sleeper settrack) & also because I cut the sleeper webbing in order to space them out a little*, which makes the track a little more fragile, requiring you to compensate by fixing more sleepers in place.

A pin into the track bed once every 6-12" should hold it loosely in place while you decide if it exactly where you want it.

 

*re-spacing sleepers is something I chose to do after seeing how much better the track looks. This is quite a tedious task but also something you cannot "un-see".

[DCB]

On 20/07/2021 at 14:33, AndrueC said:

Actually one more question would be track fixing. For my current layout I didn't fix anything until I was done and then just sprayed 'wet water' over the track and dribbled PVA down the middle. I'm assuming that for Streamline curves I'm going to have to fix them in some fashion during initial construction. From my brief experiments the track will tend to straighten out a bit unless it's held down.

Streamline will tend to straighten. The answer is to use code 100 and mix and match.  Streamline points, then If space is tight , as in 44mm track spacing I use 3rd radius (4th is better,) set track for the curves cut to length to suit with 26" set track straights which stay straight.   Around 50mm spacing standard Streamline spacing  brand new streamline pinned with Peco track pins stays straight, above about 2ft radius the streamline will stay pretty much put if the webs between sleepers are all cut on one side and its pinned generously.  Gluing the track makes it noisy and you get glue on the rails which has to be cleaned off leading to issues with pick up and you can't remove it without a lot of damage.   Its very effective sound wise when a train leaves pinned staging tracks and emerges on to ballasted and glued visible tracks with a sudden burst of noise. Might wind the kids up if they are sleeping in the next room, but hey who wants to sleep when trains are running.