So I’m getting back into it after many years, and have the room for a 4x8 layout. Curious on the thoughts here. design principles: - will be using/modeling it with my kids. Expect unrealistic creative cardboard things on it. - want two completely independent loops, and plenty of switching on the side - plenty of track / wiring complexity to entertain me, while the kids are going to do the modeling (with help) layout will be DCC and nscale. Design is 1 sq = 1 in2. Gray box is a cut out 15x18, to allow the kids to be in the middle of the layout. All sides will be accessible. Built on foam layers on open grid bench. inner loop is R11 with easements, and at a 2” height. Outer loop is R17 with easements and 2” height at the front, with the one reverse loop going up to 4” (could make it 4-½”), and the other down to 0” (could be -½”). Peco #6 turnouts throughout. 2-3% grade. anything I’m missing to help “judge” or “suggest” changes? I was hoping to put a reverse loop in the inner loop, but running out of room. 412257B9-39B0-4CAA-A8C0-17D59C41944A by Menno Vanderlist posted Sep 16, 2021 at 7:16 AM
Welcome aboard! Nice plan! I like the dual purpose R-loop to R-loop plus oval idea. And I especially like your ideas to involve the kids. Rather than a fox-hole for the kids' access, have you thought about a "topside creeper" for access for them? The 15x18 hole seems pretty small and quickly outgrown, plus it consumes space for your desired reverse section in the oval. The fox hole would give them an immersive experience though, at least for a while before they physically out-grow it (trust me, that happens more quickly than you imagine!) If you keep it, you might think about expanding that adjacent stub siding into an Ingle-nook, for some switching puzzles (even Towers of Hanoi) for them. You could also designate a track stub and area for them to experiment with small, temporary Unitrack layout-lets of their own. Unitrack is amazingly bullet-proof, as long as you show them the right way to bend the joints to separate the track sections. Some simple (robust) structure models, vehicles, etc. for them to move around would add to the fun in that area. Depending on the (expected) size of your car fleet, you might consider extending the yard length/breadth, or even making it into two yards with back-back ladders in the middle. At the least, I would slide the yard tree to the right somewhat, to give it more capacity. But it's YOUR layout, so do what YOU want with it!!!
I like the topside creeper, but I've got at least 5-6 years before the foxhole is too small just realized where the foxhole is going to be, I'll have a frame support going through... so I'm still going through a few more drafts at least....
Yeah, you can always plug the fox hole when they get too big for it, and use the space for an "amazing new feature" on your layout! You have acquired the requisite Thomas The Tank (and friends) locomotive(s), haven't you?!
Haha! Yes, but in HO. Need to find a n scale set. any concerns with a 3% grade, especially going around r15 or r18 curves?
I think it should be manageable, especially for the size of trains on a 4x8 layout. If you had a huge layout with scale-length trains, you may need some helpers, but with the size of your yard tracks up front, that train length should be fine.
Kato and Atlas have great N scale locomotives. Lots of choices for railcars from many more manufacturers, including Micro Trains. My first N scale set was a Bachman Empire Builder set with Northern 4-8-4 steamer in ATSF livery. I still run some of the railcars (replaced trucks/couplers with Micro Trains). The track was horrific, especially their switches (turnouts). I replaced the track with Unitrack and never looked back. Unitrack offers far more selection in lengths, curve radii, etc. The 484 locomotive runs smoothly, at 100+ mph! At slow speeds, it stalls and lurches badly. Bought my first Kato diesel F7 (wow! the improvement was unbelievable; it would creep along so slow and smooth!) The 484 could out-run it (not by much), but it couldn't out-pull the F7! Oh, yeah I converted all the B'man stuff to MT knuckle couplers from the old Rapido's. B'man's new stuff is said to be much better, but I haven't tried them. I ran a few different hollow core door "layouts" (I would not go so far as to call them model railroads) for a few years, and then boxed it all up after a few more years. ~15 years later I retired and unpacked it all. Converted some of the locos to DCC, and bought additional DCC ones. Now running on the dining room table until some remodeling is complete and I can claim a spare bedroom as my train/hobby room. Will probably stay with the HCD (36x80) layout format. My DCC system is a Pi SPROG 3 'hat' on a Raspberry Pi 4b computer. I bought both together, with SW pre-loaded and power supplies, from a local SPROG dealer who was generous enough to come to my house in the depths of Covid to demonstrate a SPROG II and JMRI on his laptop for me on my test loop in my dining room. It runs great, and uses JMRI, which makes programming DCC decoders soooo easy and intuitive! At 2.5 amps, it would run your 4x8 layout in N scale just fine. You'll also need a couple of auto-reversers for your reverse loops. If I did it again, I would probably go with the new Pi SPROG 3 Plus, which has dual outputs, one of which can be either programming track or separate, auto-reversible power district. I may upgrade to that anyway. The next best part of JMRI is that it also gives you the ability to run WiFi throttles or smart phone apps using the host computer's WiFi. I just use the free Engine Driver app on my Android phone, and it works great. I just use my windows laptop to VNC (remote access) into the R-Pi when I need the GUI for Decoder Pro. Otherwise, the R-Pi auto-boots into JMRI Panel Pro to run trains and serve WiFi throttles/apps when I just want to run trains; I don't even need my laptop. Of course, JMRI can also do MUCH more than just program decoders and run trains! SPROG also has the USB based SPROG3 for use with laptop/desktop host computers (windows/intel, apple/intel, or linux) to run JMRI. They have a new SPROG 3 Plus coming soon with the same features as the Pi SPROG 3 Plus, but USB based for any host computer. And it's also hard to go wrong with Digitrax (e.g. Zephyr) or NCE (e.g. PowerCab) here in the US. There are also fine European DCC systems available in the US too. SPROG is UK, with a full-service US distributor not too far from you in Waldport OR. Wow, that got long quick... hopefully it helps you some.
Okay, one more nit regarding the track plan. The yard is hard to access from the inner loop for the kids. It's not easy to fix either.... You might think about a small yard for them to the upper left of the fox hole (off the olive green trackage leading up to the twin spurs), but close enough to the fox-hole for them to reach from there.
