Layout design help

[jon_1066]

Your latest version looks good but you are going to have fun again with the gradients.  I think you will struggle to get clearance above your line to the London end terminus.   Each set of points is a flat and level piece of track so limits where you can put gradients.  Also your curve at the joint between the Xtrack and Paint on the London teminus lines looks very tight.  Finally you have a reach issue in the bottom corner by the stadium.  Try and keep the maximum reach to 2ft or so.  This is the advantage of having the Leeds station on the peninsular - it can be wider than 600 mm as you can reach it from both sides.

 

re adding another station - I don't think you have the room for it.  If you are trying to run prototypically long trains then something has to give.  Also if you look at Kings Cross often EMUs are stacked two into a platform - I don't see the problem with doing that on this.  A separate station doesn't do anything to make the London Terminus look any more busy anyway.  

 

re Scarm - I think it is incredible considering it is developed by one guy and he hands it out for nothing.  It is good for this kind of thing - broad overall design.  Where some of the other programs show their worth is in the detail.

[sub39h]

Hi again. My problem re: King's Cross is that I might be able to put EMUs there but I wouldn't have anywhere for them to go! I figured having a small terminus would also mean I could pretend that part of the line has 3rd rail and gives my Brighton Belle something to do! 

In regards to moving the station to the corner, I've measured across the widest part and it is less than 2ft so we're ok there.

Gradients wise, I was planning on going under for the London terminus. I have about 3m which at Silver Sideline's loading gauge of 63mm works out to 1:47.6? If I eek a bit more out I thought I'd try get it to 1:50 and use the Woodland Scenics 2% foam gradient risers

[jon_1066]

Ahh I see.

 

Personally I wouldn't be too bothered and simply send them to the terminus platforms in the Leeds station.  They leave London as a local train and arrive in Leeds magically transformed into a different local train!  Either that or Leeds is suddenly moved 250 miles to the south coast for that short period whilst they terminate then head back.

 

Another alternative is to use the Eurostar loop to send them out and back.

[sub39h]

Yeah, after I replied it occurred to me that I could use the Eurostar section for that too, though I'm thinking now instead of having a loop I'd just make it shuttle back and forth on a double line.

 

Thing is, my layout just doesn't look as good as yours. Particularly around the reverse loop, it just looks too messy. Instead of having the section from London curve around and join the left side of the loop I might just have it join the right side of the loop, and make the single track of the reverse loop into a double track. That might make it look less "busy". 

[sub39h]

Hmm, after watching a few more videos online I'm starting to have doubts again. Those across the pond have the space (and the cheap prices) to be able to build huge layouts where large continuous runs don't need as much hiding to look right/realistic. I know I am taking artistic license on Eurostar running from St Pancras 10 years before it actually did, combining KX and StP to one 6 platform station and things, but I wonder whether some sort of end to end layout would look better, with (as was suggested earlier) a storage sidings that represent "the rest of the world" so I can run a train in and keep it there, and run another train out etc. 

 

Also, I like the idea of having a small town station that the HSTs can zoom past without stopping. All trains would have to stop at the terminus (obviously!) and as far as I'm aware all trains that pass through Leeds would stop there too. 

 

Opinions would be most welcome.