City Belt Line (N-scale )

[dandopinski]

I would put a crossover either at American Can or Best Foods so you have a runaround track to get cars on both ends of your engine for both facing and trailing point movements.

[Slim Rail Mike]

Thanks @dandopinski, I can see the need for a run around, here is how I think I addressed it.


     I’ll start by saying how I envision operating the layout.  I am ignoring that it is a loop. Cars arrive via carfloat or interchange track to 25th st yard. (Yard is off to the lower left.)   All work out of the yard are turns.  I’m thinking about eight cars and a switcher would be a train.  A train would pass through the scene behind Best Foods, and continue on to the Indiana St sections. (Top of the track plan)  The tailing point work would be done there.  Pick-u ups would be parked on an available track, if possible, to be gathered up on the return.  Then the train would go on to the sections with Best Foods and Am Can. These two industries would be worked as trailing point.   This American Can was a smaller plant.  It was on a stub spur on the prototype.  I’ve extended the spur into a siding. Here the engine would run around all the out bound cars.  Cars at Am Can if not being picked up would have to be moved off spot and then re-spotted to allow a run around move.  The turn now with the engine running in reverse would again work Indiana St as trailing point.  On the way back to the yard the team track would be the last customer serviced.

   It should be noted the WP in the city had no turning facilities. Nor did the State Belt. I don’t know for sure about the Santa Fe. The locos spent half their lives running backwards.

[Slim Rail Mike]

The prep work on the six modules is done. This includes the corner adjustment feet, bus wires, attached foam extensions, temporarily attached road bed to the modules, and a coat of urethane. After the track plan is transfer to the modules, the roadbed will be detached. Areas that aren’t  right of way or streets will be cut away. Then the road bed will be glued down.

[Slim Rail Mike]

Started building track on one of the modules.

    This is an experiment, inspired by “Boomer Diorama”. The surface of the module has been sealed with urethane vanish. I’m attaching the pc ties to the templates with matt medium. Extra ties are being placed in the hopes that the track will be a bit more robust. After the track is made, the area will be soaked with IPA, and the track units lifted off.

   The luan plywood is been demoted to subroad bed. Cutouts of the sub roadbed were made at the ends to allow the unitrack connectors to sit a bit lower. This leaves a gap of about .060” between the bottom of the Atlas code 55 track and the sub roadbed. The gap will be filled after the track is made with 1/16” basswood plywood roadbed.

 Then the track will be put down for good.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

Ok, I hate to say this but... Instead of dealing with real Unitrack at the ends, why not use my "Hacked Unitrack" ones?

https://conrail1285.com/hacked-unitrack/

[wazzou]

Ok, I hate to say this but... Instead of dealing with real Unitrack at the ends, why not use my "Hacked Unitrack" ones?

https://conrail1285.com/hacked-unitrack/

Or, better yet...https://americantieandtimber.com/4.html

[Slim Rail Mike]

@Ed Kapuscinski I followed the threads when you were developing these.  I admire your concept.  For now I’ve a bag of the short Kato sections that have been cut. When these connectors are used up, your Hacked-Unitrack will get due consideration.

@wazzou those connectors are much neater than the strips of pc board I used for the free-mo-n section joints.



 They don’t seem to come in N scale though. There are a couple of joints in this track plan were a free-mo style joints will be used  (e.i. those joints that not perpendicular to the ends )

[wazzou]

They did come in N.
I had to look twice, but saw after digging in that they do still offer them.

[Slim Rail Mike]

@wazzou Sorry missed the N scale ones.

[Ed Kapuscinski]

@Ed Kapuscinski I followed the threads when you were developing these.  I admire your concept.  For now I’ve a bag of the short Kato sections that have been cut. When these connectors are used up, your Hacked-Unitrack will get due consideration.

Sounds good. If you need any reengineering done on them, let me know. I've done a bunch of rather custom implementations for things like recessing them into the top of a module so the track is right on the deck. That's actually how my dad and I have done it on a project that we've got in the works.