Okay, all but one of the windows have now been replaced - manufacturer error, should be taken care of in a week or two - and I've been putting thought to a redesign of the layout room. The room serves a variety of purposes: the layout, of course, also a painting and modeling table for both train related and military miniature work; a writing area; and storage for all of those interests. In order to make all of those activities blend with the least "space conflict", I've been thinking and tinkering. And I've come up with a plan, in the rough at this point, that I think will let me get everything I want, perhaps not at the level I'd like but a layout is always about making compromises. This post will only focus on a new track plan.
Like an earlier post, I will follow the layout around the room. The one element about the plan that may cause additional changes is that it isn't possible to follow a train without 'dashing' around a peninsula so keep that in mind as you follow along with my descriptions.
Walking in the south facing door, the first element encountered is an 18" wide space along the northern wall - to your immediate left. This will be a yard area, freight and passenger, with flats behind the yard for some industrial switching. At the far end of this is a 2' deep area on the east wall that will be the engine service area and, hopefully, Bald Twin's Locomotive Works (appears workable at this stage). Coming out of the yard, the main line follows along the east wall and ducks into a tunnel and makes a ninety degree turn onto the central peninsula, 32" wide. The mainline connects into a peanut shaped oval on this 8' long peninsula, measured from the east wall. Traveling around the oval, just before you reach the turn out from the yard there is another turn out that leads back to the other side of the oval and acts makes the oval double as a reversing loop - east end. On the north side of the oval is a passing siding to allow opposing trains to pass. Inside this oval and east of the return track will be logging and a stamp mill with a mine up above - above the mill and above the track in the tunnel below. On the western end of the oval, but inside it as well, will be the farming area - farm town, farm industries, and farms. On the north side of the peninsula and outside of the oval will be bit of the Klamath River in a "canyon" below track level. On the south side and outside of the oval will be a spur track to a log dump for a mill pond - but I don't plan to build the sawmill itself. Now back on the peanut oval and just pass where the track from the yard connects into it, there is another turnout that runs off towards the east and south and then makes a large 180 degree turn into a seaport and behind the seaport will be an area for staging trains.
If that is all a bit confusing, imagine walking into the room and stopping at the end of the peninsula on your left. Now turn left so you are looking down the length of the peninsula. In front of you will be the farming area and beyond it the logging area and beyond that the mining area. If you lean to the right and the 27" wide aisle you can see the river canyon on that side of the peninsula and across the aisle is the yard with the portion of the layout with the engine facility at the far end of that aisle. If you lean to the right you will see the mill pond and its spur track. Across the 34" aisle on that side is the seaport with the staging yard behind it, partly 2' deep and at the end a small part only 1' deep. At the end of this right side aisle is an 18" deep extension of the seaport.
One thing that comes to mind is that I can add in a wye off of the lead to the staging yard and the place where the main makes its ninety degree turn from the "big" yard onto the peninsula; this requires some adjustment to keep a turnout out of a tunnel. Doing so makes it easier and quicker to turn trains in the staging yard. If I build the wye (probable), I will put a stock resting area inside it.
A couple of good elements to this redesign is all the turnouts will be within very easy reach of the edge of the layout, perhaps all of them less the 12" - that is very good. And it can all be dead level trackage which might not seem very good but it makes for easier building, easier maintenance, and more reliable operation. And careful construction of the scenery can give a very good impression of elevation variation.
Now, let's take a ride on a caboose hop from the yard. We climb on board and our engine pulls out and makes a right hand turn behind the engine servicing area, turn table, and roundhouse. Then we enter a tunnel and make another right hand turn and come out of the tunnel and connect into the oval and travel along the farming area and make a half circle to go back the other direction, if need be we'll take the passing siding before entering another tunnel that completes a half circle and brings us to the turnout to reverse direction - which we take. We cross to the other side of the oval and half to go through the half circle at the end of the peninsula and could go back to the yard. Instead, we take the branch to the right and make the large half circle turn into the seaport.
If I've explained it well, you'll realize this layout can operate as point-to-point, out and back, or continuous running on the peanut shaped oval. Still a fair amount of tinkering to do to make sure it will work. But the reason I decided to post this description is because the layout as conceived as something really important going for it - the elegance of simplicity.
Stay tuned.
By the way, the requested photo of the clock requires digging out the camera from all the piles of stuff still to put away after getting the windows installed. Rather disruptive.
And, hey, the Niners are going to the Super Bowl! The Har-bro Bowl.
