The new Missouri Valley Western

[MVW]

This is a new layout engineering thread, the successor to two related threads. The first touched upon plans to build a HCD-based sectional layout for an undetermined space. The second centered on discussion of a track plan after the dimensions of that space were eventually determined. (Neither thread was particularly noteworthy.)

The original plan of using HCDs turned into something of a wash. I had started two of three planned sections for a division-point yard/major city before we moved. I'll incorporate one of those sections in the new layout. Track from the other HCD will be recycled into the new layout.

Here's the track plan. (It's a work in progress.) I was mostly concerned with locating the mainline to delineate between benchwork and aisles, estimate yard size, and determine grades and clearances. I'll figure out industrial trackage as I go, hopefully with a little help from you asshats.



The first new table is up, nailing down the footprint for most of the peninsula.



The table is constructed of 3/4" plywood and 1" foam. I went with the thinner foam for several reasons. First, there's not much need for relief on the peninsula, as it's supposed to be a relatively flat cityscape. Secondly, I'll likely add a lower deck at some point, so a narrower cross-section is desirable. Finally, the 1" foam tends to be perfectly flat, unlike the 2", which usually includes some annoying dips which need to be dealt with.

BTW, setting those bookshelves right up against the table legs virtually eliminated any horizontal wobble.

While the new table is nearly the length of a HCD, I went with plywood to make it easier to round the corners in order to provide more clearance for operators. I also "teardropped" the table; it's 30" wide where it meets the HCD, and 35" wide at the far end, allowing a 15"-radius curve.



The tables are 52.5" high, 4.5" higher than the original layout. This is the maximum height at which I could easily uncouple cars where the innermost yard tracks will be.

Original lighting in the room was atrocious, so I've made some improvements.



These are three 16" under-cabinet LEDs, screwed to a 2x4 which in turn was screwed into the overhead joists. You can link up to 10 of these fixtures in a chain, and they're dimmable with most incandescent rheostats. Each delivers 475 lumens at 3000K. They're sold under the Patriot brand at Menard's for around $25 each.

That's it for now. Time to start laying track! I'm aiming to get the peninsula pretty well operational by March. It will be at least a year before I have any continuous-run capability, but I should be able to start switching the 4-5 industries to be located on these tables relatively soon.

Jim

[C855B]

First impression of the plan is that yard in the middle - any thoughts about doing compound ladders on both ends? You could gain a bit more capacity unless you had other plans for the real estate.

[MVW]

Good point, Mike. I may have to play with that a bit. I have the capacity I want in the A/D yard (about 26 cars with doubleheaded power and caboose), but it would be nice to have a bit more length in the class tracks.

Jim

[MVW]

It looks like a compound ladder will add about 15" to the third and fourth yard tracks, and considerably more to the fifth. I'll post a revision tonight.

Thanks for egging me on there, Mike. I guess I'd been suffering from a bit of design fatigue. By the time I got the previous draft done, I was ready to walk away from the keyboard and start building. But this will be much better.

Jim

[Specter3]

If you really have any hope of putting in a lower deck later you better really consider what it is going to mount to under this current benchwork. Plus by doing it later you are forced to have greater separation due to the space needed to get in there and work on it. Think carefully about it.

[MVW]

I appreciate your concerns, Specter. But I don't think a lower deck has to necessarily "mount" with the upper deck.

Yes, lighting would have to be attached to the underside of the top deck. That's a relatively simple matter of running two screws into the plywood for every fixture. That will be done before the lower benchwork is added. For the benchwork under the peninsula, I'm thinking of building rudimentary shelves to fit, with the railroad occupying the top of the shelving. These are going to be relatively narrow scenes, about 8-10" deep.

Around the walls, the upper deck will be attached to the wall with "L" brackets. The same shelving approach will be used for the lower deck.

Ideally, the lower deck would have a base of 2" foam, in 4-foot-long sections, and not be permanently attached to the shelving it sits on. That way it can be removed and worked on elsewhere for construction or major repairs.

Jim

[MVW]

Converting to a compound ladder had a minor effect ... if increasing the capacity of the yard by more than 40% is your idea of minor.

Thanks, Mike!



Now then, anybody have an idea of where to put a caboose track?

Jim.

[C855B]

Huzzah! That's great, Jim!

A caboose track is often a runaround track parallel to one of the yard ladders. The location that jumps out as good for you would be a turnout at the right of the top class yard track, connecting to another turnout to the left of L2. This way the caboose/trim crew could pick and place a caboose from the bottom of the caboose track for departing "leftbounds", or pick one from the top of the track and tack it on to the end of a departing "rightbound". This would be either as it had partly pulled out of the yard and was fouling the main, or maybe pulling the cab(oose) back to the left via any empty yard track and pushing into the not-yet-departed "righty" while it was still in the A/D yard.

Don't forget to allow enough space between the cab track and the ladder for your cleaning crews and radio shop guys to service stuff. A small office shed next to it for comfort, supplies and radio staging would be ideal.

EDIT: Don't forget the pile of blue flags leaning against the cab track shed.

[MVW]

Once again, excellent advice, Mike. I was thinking the same, but uncertain as to which side of the yard to use.

As long as you seem to be a fountain of wisdom, let me ask this: Would it be common to keep one of the class tracks clear to use as a thoroughfare to reach the other end of the yard? I'm thinking one of the A/D tracks would certainly be kept clear,for engine traffic to and from the roundhouse. And if that's the case, there's probably little need to have a thoroughfare track in the class yard. Which means even more yard capacity.

Jim

[C855B]

Gleaned from years of listening to the scanner around yards... any track will do. Even the main. Yard track would be preferable, of course. Generally there's going to be a vacant track in any working yard - A/D track just cleared from a departure, a class track cleared by the trim crew, or an arrival track awaiting its train. You can never be 100% full or you have gridlock... something SP proved countless times at West Colton during the traffic peaks of the late '70s.

[C855B]

BTW, you've got a smart design to start with, I'm just doing the easy tweaks. That you knew to put tail tracks off the ladders is not your usual MRR thinking. Good stuff!

[GaryHinshaw]

The compound ladder is a big improvement, but I'm a little puzzled by the tail track on the left side of the class yard.  It seems like it is too short to really be useful.  You could lengthen it by curving it around the roundhouse, or you could make the existing track behind the roundhouse be the lead by swapping the two turnouts where the a/d and class tracks meet on the left.  A more radical suggestion would be to make the class yard stub-end, which would expand capacity even more.  That might lead to reach issues at the end of the yard though.

Nice to see you start a new Eng. thread for this build.

[C855B]

Oooo... thanks for bringing that up, Gary. I see an "oops" - not only is it too short, the left tail track is all there is on that side for getting cuts from the class yard into the A/D yard. The switch for the left ladder needs to be between the switches leading to the main and A/D yard. That way building trains too long for the tail can then overflow onto what may be the roundhouse lead. If what I'm calling the roundhouse lead is actually the main, at least you have the option of using the bypass track to the right of the roundhouse if the left-hand track is fouled by a yard move.

[MVW]

(Mike replied while I composed this; hopefully my response will answer all concerns.)

Good observation, Gary. The drill track at left is about 31" long. In real life, it will be possible to extend it another 10", because there's a recessed window set in that wall. (That explains the funky-shaped scooped-out table; it will be built that way to enable window access.)

So the left drill is about 41", and the right drill is 48" as shown. That should enable cuts of 10-12 cars. Not ideal, but not horrible. An A/D track could be emptied in three cuts.

I kind of like having the left yard ladder isolated from the A/D yard, so a switcher can keep working when trains are "A/D"ing. I would have done the same on the right, but space is too tight. (And, as you noted, it shortens the drill track considerably.)

I'm afraid I'm also stuck on a double-ended yard. If I don't use that sixth class track as a thoroughfare, I'll have capacity of more than 110 cars (recognizing that somewhere around 60 cars would constitute a "full" yard). That should be sufficient. Plus, I really like the idea of switch engines working simultaneously on both ends of the yard.

Make sense, or do you see pitfalls?

Jim

[GaryHinshaw]

Extending it another 10" would make a big difference.  I do see the advantage of having the drill track be separated from the a/d lead.  You could have your cake and eat it too with an arrangement like this:



You might want to separate the right side drill track as well, so it doesn't foul the a/d lead (by swapping L1 and L2).