archonix Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 So, what a nice new place this is! So very blue. Old thread, something inspired by Yorkshire if anyone remembers it. I never got very far before I moved and now I've got a room just for the railway to go in. Well, there are one or two caveats. I think the wife likes using it to dry off clothing (though I'll do something to sort that out) and there's a wardrobe in there that just can't go anywhere else, which scuppers the plan of a nice big layout around the walls. Oh yeah, and I can't actually secure it to the walls either. Stipulation of the lease, it seems, but that's okay as I was planning on making this portable. Ignoring the wardrobe for a moment the usable space in the room is approximately 7' by 10'. I can either run something end to end or set up a loop. I had panned on doing something that ran on two levels for a little more variety, and I was going to try and incorporate some of the features of my previous attempt. The thing is, I'm sort of stuck for what to do. I want to have a loop but I want more variety than just watching trains chase their tails. On the other hand if I do something that wallows around two or three walls I lose that loop and my two-level deal. I'm trying to work out if I can create a sort of squashed loop or something that makes more use of the space without being obviously crammed in. I've got half-baked plans I've sketched out that end up too ambitious for the space. It's a case of suddenly having too much to work with and no idea how to really use it. Any suggestions? Working on plans, something will be posted shortly, one hopes. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edwin_m Posted November 2, 2009 Share Posted November 2, 2009 How about pulling the wardrobe out a couple of inches and putting a single track tunnel behind it? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
archonix Posted November 2, 2009 Author Share Posted November 2, 2009 ... why didn't I think of that? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
archonix Posted November 22, 2009 Author Share Posted November 22, 2009 Hokay, after a few over ambitious plans with huge Eurostar stations and the like I've finally come up with something that might just work. Messy huh? Working on three levels, with "operational interest" on the top and bottom levels and a mainline loop on the bottom and middle. From the top, we have: Neath Mill station A rehash of the aborted shelf layout I was working on originally, this is a smallish branchline station that nevertheless sees a fair deal of traffic due to the large factory/mill towering right over it. The yards here still need a little work. The main loop I'm not sure about the gradient down from Neath Mill to this level - it's quite tight and steep - so I'll probably play with it a bit more. At the bottom left you can also see the main line coming up from the lower level, and on the right the line back down again just makes an appearance behind the wardrobe. Prestby Sidewell An industrial area, perhaps some sort of dockyard, where the mill delivers or receives something, as well as other loads that come in from elsewhere. There's some fiddle-yard type tracks at the back but they're underneath scenery, so I'm unsure of those as it would be hard to actually fiddle. I may go for some sort of drawer-style system to load cassettes instead. I could also drop the middle layer entirely, I suppose, but it provides a longer visible run between the mill and the yard. I can build in three stages so I don't lose interest. The lower stage obviously comes first and gives me a complete loop for trains to chase their tails and a place to play shunter at the same time. I'm tempted, I will admit, to try and squeeze another station onto the lower or middle level. What I've got now allows me to run mainline trains without having to worry so much about where they end up but it'd be nice to see them stop occasionally. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bloodnok Posted November 22, 2009 Share Posted November 22, 2009 Assuming for a second that the grey square is the wardrobe (am I correct?) then you are going to regret putting all that pointwork behind it. It's going to be hell to rescue derailed stock from back there... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
archonix Posted November 23, 2009 Author Share Posted November 23, 2009 On top of which I seem to be still making things too complicated, so call me Beeching, because I'm rationalising again. sorry bad joke... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chrisr40 Posted November 23, 2009 Share Posted November 23, 2009 Assuming for a second that the grey square is the wardrobe (am I correct?) then you are going to regret putting all that pointwork behind it. It's going to be hell to rescue derailed stock from back there... ah - but what if he took the back out of the wardrobe so that he could rescue any derailments in a kind of journey to Narnia fashion ? must stop reading bedtime stories... Chris Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
archonix Posted November 23, 2009 Author Share Posted November 23, 2009 Here we go again. Escuse the woodwork stuff, it's convenient for working out the board sizes. Neath mill as before, with some changes to the yards: Middle loop, comes up and re-attaches to itself before heading back down again. I may alter this to make the junction neater Lower level, again some minor alterations to the industrial yards and an extra relief loop. If anyone has any suggestions on improving that area please feel free to say so. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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