"Santa - please bring me a track cleaning car...or three.....or four!"

[shortliner]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BWdVeBlc8p8  I rest my case!

[Andy Reichert]

Look on the bright side. . . . . .

 

Andy

[roundhouse]

I think that I will stick with 22 feet!!!

 

However if I ever win the lottery I could employ a full time cleaner!!!!

[DanielB]

Got to love some of the crazy sized layouts some people have the time, space and money to build.

 

If I ever move to the 'states, I'll be doing that too!

[stock_2007]

I've often wondered if they get as much fun out of their big-ish layout as I get out of my 12 foot end to end, but each to their own

[DanielB]

There's something to be said for seeing long trains running around, and I love to see model trains running through vast expanses of beautifully recreated open scenery, but if I were to do something that huge, I'd have to have a team of guys/gals and run operating sessions - otherwise just putting a consist on speed step 3 and letting it run round and around would be pretty bloody boring!

 

I'm planning on building a double deck layout with a long run in my railway room, but to be honest I'd be more interested in switching industries and putting a rake of cars together for the next train coming in.

 

Have 2 small yards each - one on each deck of the layout - with an arrival track, departure track, and a couple of tracks for building consists, with lots of industries stemming from them. One operator per yard, then have one train leave each yard heading for the other yard, put them on a low speed, and have the operators switch the industries, swap out cars from each one, assemble them in the departure track ready for when the next train arrives in their yard.

 

The train then leaves its cars in the arrival track, collects the cars in the departure track, and sets off for the other yard, once it's gone, the switcher collects the new arrived cars and spots them at the industries before starting over.

 

The pressure of switching each industry before the next train arrives is interesting, and forces me to try and get as much of a main line run into the layout as I can.

 

And should I wish to just run trains for a while and admire the landscape, I can.

[PaulRhB]

I guess the advantage is you can look at it as a series of small layouts and have the best of both. Big group operating sessions or individual short line or switching sessions if you think about designing that in from the start. The main problem with cleaning these monsters must be all the industry tracks and yard tracks where you'll have to move all the stock out the way first. I think I'd have a few wagons with hardboard skates in trains just to keep the dirt at bay and have a few cmx cleaners too

[Andy Reichert]

I guess the advantage is you can look at it as a series of small layouts and have the best of both. Big group operating sessions or individual short line or switching sessions if you think about designing that in from the start. The main problem with cleaning these monsters must be all the industry tracks and yard tracks where you'll have to move all the stock out the way first. I think I'd have a few wagons with hardboard skates in trains just to keep the dirt at bay and have a few cmx cleaners too

 

My colleague tried replacing our hardboard skates with replaceable sticky backed, or conatct adhesive glued on, hard felt pads. For new track, or months of neglect, we keep adding a small amount of silver polish (and more pads if absolutely necessary) until all the tarnish is gone . For regular running maintenance, we just wet them with rubbing alcohol.

 

Andy