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 Posted - May 26 2016 : 9:03:32 PM
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Haven't had much satisfaction with that "shelf" layout and have been thinking of all sorts schemes on what to do . . . 36 inch circle? And got to thinking how satisfying that would be. For some time I have thought it would be best if my locomotives were run on routes that included both left and right hand curves. And the thought of elevation and maybe even an "over an under"?
I had read a bunch of stuff about grade limitations (prototype and scale) and was hesitant thinking of the space required to have a grade that wouldn't defeat performance.
So, I'm thinking about using this Atlas 47 Piece Pier Set as the basis for a layout (guess I'll be cramping my attic space up again, though maybe with a better designed table). Here it is, right out of the box with "snap track". The piers at track ends actually seem to help hold the sections together. I'm actually pretty satisfied with the performance. It seems if you hold the throttle to a reasonable speed, you don't have to worry about gaining such a lot of speed going downhill.
Here it is . . .
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Posted - May 26 2016 : 9:28:15 PM
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Well, the over-and-under figure eight is a classic. What locos have you tried on it so far?
Feedback-hungry attention w****
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Posted - May 26 2016 : 10:32:25 PM
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Looks good! That could have lots of scenic opportunities. Keep us posted! 
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Posted - May 27 2016 : 6:47:58 PM
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Those grades look reasonably gentle, so it's probably not an issue, but some locomotives will lurch downhill a bit, especially with a train pushing on them. A thing to test would be whether that happens to any of your locomotives.
If all of your engines will make it around the track with their intended trains, you're golden.
Carpe Manana!
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Posted - May 27 2016 : 6:54:34 PM
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Sometimes pier pressure can get to you...
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Posted - May 28 2016 : 11:36:05 AM
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| Well, after spending a bit more time messing with this (beyond the 10 or 15 minute initial trial), I find there are going to be some challenges, but it also seems like this really could be a test track for locomotives. Seems if you can get them to perform up and downhill and under load, it may be worth while, unless . . . you never can get them to perform well. If nothing else, it will likely get me to put a bigger layout platform back in place (vs the "shelf"). We'll see what happens.
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