Hi
@kleiner , thanks for sharing the hinge information, and thanks for checking out this thread. I've been following your thread quite closely, and as you might recognize, some aspects of my potential industry areas were inspired by the track plans you have been exploring along with pictures and posts that
@Rico and others gave in your thread!
So in watching lots of model train operations videos as well as real-life rail fanning footage, the short answer to your question is a combination of the two. Let me try to elaborate...
I envision myself on any given day using the yard to assemble trains that need to go out to industries. I've watched some interesting videos on people doing these type of operations, and definitely found the challenge intriguing. I would like to use the yard in a operational sense over a storage use.
Once the train is assembled, it would be cool to use the continuous loop aspect to essentially let the train "rack up some miles". Since I really enjoy the realism and beauty of the models themselves (and the sounds!), I can see myself chilling out while watching the train go around for several laps as my imagination runs with it, and as the layout grows in detail over time, the enjoyment would grow with it. After several laps, depending on how much time of the day I can devote to that particular session, I would transition into a "delivery mode", where I would serve industries as the train arrives. I really enjoy watching the switching operations taking place in some of the videos I've explored so far.
Now, perhaps the session would end there and the next time I have time to run a session, it might start with switching pulling out empties / deliveries to head back into the yard accordingly. Or, maybe all this might take place in one day. I hope this makes sense as I'm still learning how to describe things.
Since any actual moving forward with this project won't happen for at least a couple months, I'm still exploring and learning the various ways that operations can be simulated, along with what I find appealing, and how these things might be modeled in the space I have. I wouldn't be surprised if the plan gets further altered due to input from others and further exploration. The folks here have been a great resource, and for that I am thankful.