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 Posted - December 06 2021 : 09:35:55 AM
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Here are some photos of the layout taken this morning, Please pardon the clutter, we recently moved and I am trying to get things back repaired after about 2 years in storage.
This is the track plan for the layout. Overall size is 4 1/2 x 10 but total area is 30 square feet. less area than a 4x8.
This view shows the tower and wye at Cedar Cliff.
Another view of Cedar Cliff, with the beginnings of Knobley Mountain looming in the background.
The yard and turntable at Baltimore Street. The gondolas in the photo are part of the test train I am using to evaluate the pulling power of all my locomotives on the steep grades.
The layout is a work in progress. I need to dig out the buildings and place them, repair some switchpoints that came loose while in storage, and finish wiring the upper lever industrial area (LaVale) so that I can run trains anywhere. The backdrops also need to be painted and placed on the layout. Fortunately, I built the whole ting on casters so I can move it away from the wall to work on the backdrop.
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Posted - December 06 2021 : 09:52:00 AM
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Apparently the forum uploader didn't like the file name of the track plan, so I fixed that here.
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 Posted - December 06 2021 : 10:08:45 AM
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Nice. Looks very interesting.
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Posted - December 06 2021 : 12:33:03 PM
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| That is an amazing set up.
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Posted - December 06 2021 : 9:01:47 PM
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Unique layout with a complex (in a good way) track plan for a space smaller in square footage than a 4'x8'. Brilliant!
"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in Heaven." - Matthew 5:16
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Posted - December 06 2021 : 11:26:34 PM
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| Very nice. I'm looking forward to watching progress on the layout. I especially like the double decker approach.
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Posted - December 07 2021 : 12:00:24 AM
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| Ditto to all the above, more please.
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Posted - December 07 2021 : 09:12:14 AM
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quote:Very nice. I'm looking forward to watching progress on the layout. I especially like the double decker approach.
Originally posted by Brian4321Â -Â December 06 2021Â :Â 11:26:34 PM
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When you can''t expand horizintally you have to think vertically. Look for another post for an example of what exactly can be accomplished in 4x8 with a multi level approach.
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Posted - December 07 2021 : 09:20:49 AM
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There are a few things that have me stumped, scenery wise. If you've ever been to Cumberland, MD, the dominant feature of the area is the Narrows where Will's Creek cuts through the mountain. It neatly exposes the unique geology of the mountain, where the rock layers are tilted in different directions depending on where you are at. The whole area is like this. I'd like to do something similar with the mountain in the back corner. There are cliffs with a jumble of loose boulders at the base, and scruffy looking pine trees atop the cliffs and on the slopes that look nothing like the trees I've seen on anybody's layout. I need to figure out a way to model all of these effectively. I've rarely seen anybody try to model the features like anticlines and synclines, and thrust faults, that also predominate on a lesser scale in the local areas.
Modelling the buildings and handlaying the track is the easy part.
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Posted - December 07 2021 : 09:25:52 AM
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Really thinking outside the box. Reminds me of some of Dave Frary's
track plans, but completely unique in your approach.
Myself, I am too gun-shy to take on grades; they require too much
real estate. I once tried a grade in what I thought was a decent
length of space and later calculated it to come out to a whopping 9%.
If I was modeling Shay country, might have had a chance. With a
stationary car puller at the top.
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Posted - December 07 2021 : 10:01:51 AM
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I don't think I've ever built a layout without heavy grades. The first one I ever built, with my dad when i was 12, had a 6% grade that led up to a bridge 10" above the main yard. That was way too steep and we had to use helper engines on the trains. We also quickly found out that locomotives with traction tires would bounce themselves off the track when the wheels slipped on the grade. SO much of what I do to-day and what I run stems from my experiences on that layout.
Planning a grade is a matter of calculation. figures like 3% and 4% sound arcane until you break them down into usable dimensions. Most of us on the forum are using sectional track in one way or another, and in HO the 18r and 22r curves are roughly 9" long the same as the straights. With that in mind you can estimate the grade you need by counting the number of full sections from the base of your grade to the top, and compare it to the height you need to gain.
In HO you need at least 3" of height for one track to bridge another. Calculating 1/4" rise per track section, you'd need 12 sections to gain the 3" height, and your grade would be about 3%. BTW, that 1/4" rise per section is what the Atlas pier set uses, and it's quite manageable for most locomotives. If you need a shorter climb, increase the rise per section to 3/8" which will give you a 4% grade and get you to the top in 9 sections. I don't advise going steeper than that, as it cuts your pulling power down to about 1/6 of what you can pull on level track. Most steam locomotives I have can only pull 5 cars or less on that grade, while the diesels do much better with the newer Bachmann and Atlas units pulling 20 cars.
In the near future I will be going through my fleet and testing them on my 4% grade and I will post the results here.
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Posted - December 07 2021 : 7:15:59 PM
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Good info. I'm more of a shoot-from-the-hip type of modellor, and
it does lead to trouble, particularly with grades. On my British
layout I really avoid grades, as a number of the single driver, "bicycle"
locomotives spin out on almost any impedance.
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