Tehachapi Loop II

[ednadolski]

Hello and welcome everyone to Tehachapi Loop II, which is a re-build of my N-scale Tehachapi Loop layout. All comments, advice, and feedback are greatly appreciated.

My core concept  is essentially unchanged:  a modern-era model of the Tehachapi Loop featuring long trains and railfanning operations. Some of the key improvements are as follows:

• Model the Loop as accurately as possible, with minimal compression.  To achieve this, my track plan is based upon aerial images of the prototype, and I have designed this to 80% of the scale size which is as large as I can fit in my available space without compromising the basic plan.  This works out to a curve radius of 34.5" on the main Loop and #12 turnouts for all visible track.
• Trains likewise are minimally compressed: typically around 6 engines and 80 cars. Staging is capable of accommodating up to eight trains.
• Better backdrop and mountain scenery, which surround the viewer in order to create a sense of being at the actual Loop location.
• Sectional design.  While not a genuine "portable" or "modular" approach, the design and construction will allow (should the need ever arise) the layout to be disassembled into sections with minimal damage, transported to a new space, and re-assembled.
• Provide a variety of viewing angles (my old layout really had only one practical viewing angle)
• Eliminate "reach-in" types of access problems for track cleaning and maintenance.
• Large radius curves (24" minimum in hidden/staging), to accommodate body-mount couplers on long rolling stock (autoracks, flats, and centerbeams) and close-coupling on locomotive consists.
• Functional signaling and computer-controlled dispatching
• Minimum rolling stock standards shall include body-mounted Z-scale couplers and all-metal wheels (no pogo trains!).  Rolling stock may be custom-weighted, heavier or lighter as needed.
• Support for live helpers: mid-train and rear end DPUs.
• Era to encompass 2003-2012, which includes some of the times that I have visited the Loop.   The SP-style signals, including the Walong signal bridge, will be preserved.  Strictly speaking, this constrains the layout to pre-2013 when the prototype bridge was removed and the signals upgraded (so Tunnel 10 will remain single-tracked).  Some amount of locos and rolling stock from later years will still be permitted.

Here is the overall plan:



The 'on-stage' portion of the layout is divided into 8 sections.  These are designed to be small enough to fit thru a typical doorway and up/down a staircase (tho they may be a bit large for a single person to manage efficiently).  I'm using a 'custom slab' construction (details to follow) that should facilitate this.

While the Loop is the primary focus, I have also included a representation of South Woodford.   Part of this was pragmatic necessity, since I could not fit in the north-side approach curves into my space while retaining the 80% scale. On the proto, if you are looking from the right place then you can see the next train pulling into Woodford while the current train is still climbing the Loop, and this is a scene that I wanted to re-create on my layout.

Construction has already begun with the South Woodford section.  I will be posting more pics and info soon.  Thanks for looking!

Ed

Edit:  I should have mentioned: the entrance is on the lower right corner, and the 90-degree curved section is a lift-out for easier entry & egress.

[Cajonpassfan]

 
Will follow with interest!
Otto K

[GaryHinshaw]

Great to see you going forward with this now!  But I'm disappointed that it won't be proto:48.   



Oh, and I recommend calling it Tehachapi, CO.

[svedblen]

Isn't the RW a great place to be!? So many great layouts, and now we have (at least) three incarnations of the Loop.
This will be awesome 

[Scottl]

I am looking forward to seeing your vision emerge. 

[tom mann]

Looks like a nice plan.

[Cajonpassfan]

Oh, forgot to say, I love the look and feel of your graphics!!
What do you use, other than obvious talent?
Otto K.

[svedblen]

I love the look and feel of your graphics!!

It is almost as if you had used Google Earth or some other satellite view 

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Very awesome. Can't wait to see it come together.

[glakedylan]

great plan
I especially like the way you scaled out the prototype
very interesting and skillfully done
will be following along
thanks for sharing
sincerely--
Gary

[Smike]

I read all of these comments on the plan, but the link is broken 

[ednadolski]

Thanks guys for looking an commenting, let me see if I can address a few specifics:

I'm disappointed that it won't be proto:48.   

A scale Loop in 1:48 would be nearly 24 feet in diameter -- more than would fit in my house!     That plus the idea of building say 6 Dash-9s or ES44s plus even one long train to P:48 standards is not something I could accomplish in my life (neither time-wise nor budget-wise) 

Oh, and I recommend calling it Tehachapi, CO.

Has a nice ring to it... 

I am looking forward to seeing your vision emerge. 

Me too!   One of the first steps will be to tackle the helix and staging.  That's going to require some hand-built curved turnouts... more to come!

It is almost as if you had used Google Earth or some other satellite view 

Quite right.  This is actually an older view than what is currently available (pre-2013 since the signal bridge is still there).  If you look closely, you can see that there is actually a stack train rounding the Loop when the image was taken.

With AnyRail, you can import an image and then scale it to whatever size you like.  It is then easy to lay track right over it.  The South Woodford section is made up from a couple of pieces (I wanted to include the two white water tanks and the grade crossing).

I read all of these comments on the plan, but the link is broken 

Try this direct link: https://i.imgur.com/L28w6ct.jpg

Cheers,
Ed

[jagged ben]

I might have to steal your plan for my own future use.  Or steal the layout.   

Will the turnout from your other thread be the one in South Woodford?   What jumps out at me is that your layout only requires you to build two more of those for the scenicked portions.

Question about the helix...  does it not make sense to make it an oval taking up more of the behind the scenes space?  Maybe with one fewer turn?   Another possible advantage of that would not be having curved turnouts at the top of the grade.   Maybe fit a regular ladder into a straightaway.

And one more comment... I could see a Hwy 58 overpass as your scenic break at the north end of Woodford there.

[James Costello]

Looks like a great project Ed.

I'm another watching with interest with a Tehachapi focused layout in the works and part of the emerging push to rename this place Tehachawire. 

Details on "Tehachapi: AU" in a thread soon 

I would have been tempted to reduce the size to maybe 70% or so to enable a peninsula at Tunnel 10 for a Marcel passing siding and perhaps visible staging on a shelf on the left wall (or under). This would give you three sidings to pass trains around during an ops session. But I certainly get the attraction of minimal compression with all the details you are well known here for. 

[ednadolski]

I might have to steal your plan for my own future use.  Or steal the layout.   

Well I pretty much stole the whole thing from William Hood.... but I won't tell anyone if you won't

Will the turnout from your other thread be the one in South Woodford?   What jumps out at me is that your layout only requires you to build two more of those for the scenicked portions.

Yes, that's the one.  I'll have a few pics of that section to post soon.

There is one additional turnout on the 'onstage' part of the layout is for the stub siding at Walong.  On the drawing it is hard to see, since I just faked it as some overlapping flex track.  It will be custom-built, and I may make it as a nonfunctional turnout since it is only ever used for MOW.  It has a sprung frog that I would like to model.

Question about the helix...  does it not make sense to make it an oval taking up more of the behind the scenes space?  Maybe with one fewer turn?   Another possible advantage of that would not be having curved turnouts at the top of the grade.   Maybe fit a regular ladder into a straightaway.

I had looked into that but there is not quite enough space at the upper left to keep all the parallel tracks above the 24" minimum radius.  From the highest point just above Tunnel 10, the grade in both directions descends at about the same rate so there is no opportunity to fit the staging tracks below the visible potion of the layout.  So I've settled for using that upper left part of the space as storage.  In any case that helix is a beast -- over 5 feet in diameter!  The curved turnouts are 30"/24" outer/inner radii which I think should work OK for body-mounted couplers on long rolling stock.  I tried to leave enough room to allow for sufficient vertical curve transition before getting to the turnouts.

And one more comment... I could see a Hwy 58 overpass as your scenic break at the north end of Woodford there.

GMTA!   I had the same idea in mind tho it is not shown on the plan.   I want to see how it fits in with the adjoining scenery (once there is some scenery there )

I'm another watching with interest with a Tehachapi focused layout in the works and part of the emerging push to rename this place Tehachawire. 

You might get some pushback from the CR & WM dudes, but I hear that bacon is an effective bribe tool. 

I would have been tempted to reduce the size to maybe 70% or so to enable a peninsula at Tunnel 10 for a Marcel passing siding and perhaps visible staging on a shelf on the left wall (or under). This would give you three sidings to pass trains around during an ops session. But I certainly get the attraction of minimal compression with all the details you are well known here for. 

I've tried a couple of different sizes and arrangements, some of which would allow for additional scenes (like the Upper Tunnels for example).  But I was finding it hard to balance everything out in a way that would do justice to the other scenes while not being dominated by the Loop.  The space would have to be larger, but at that point I would worry about my ability to finish what I started.  So even tho this is pretty ambitious (for me at least) there are some aspects that reflect the 'less is more' philosophy.


Thanks!
Ed