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hello ladies and gents I am looking at starting a layout in ho scale but am having a hard time deciding between continuous running or more ops based. I need the collective brainpower of the masses. I'm either going to go with an 8x8 area or stay to a 4x8 which I know can limit things
Do you want to watch them run, or switch cars all afternoon?
I'm a railfan. I wnt to watch my trains running through the scenery with a cool Paulaner on the shelf. Making up trains and shuffling cars all over the layout in a big track puzzle is too much like work to me. I don't come into the train room to think, I come in the room to relax and watch trains.
I agree with Mike, why not do both. I also can do either continuous running or switching, although I prefer switching by a wide margin. Hint: I have over 70 industries on my layout!
Who else will attend your layout? Will you have any younger kids once in a while? If so, they probably will want to watch the trains running. If some older kids and adults, they may want to watch or participate in switching ops. For those possibilities, I would opt for both capabilities, depending on the amount of room you have to work with. My own layout is a folded dogbone inside a 14' x 14' room, and models a time in the late 1940's thru 1960, when I rode Zephyrs and 400's, so I can enjoy "riding" those trains. But I also have two yards and a bunch of industries that I can do switching if I like. Best of luck!
Boogie: Ready for the wrench-in-the-works? Well, maybe. Operations usually can include the where/what/how of 1:1 railroading. This depends on how deep in the rabbit hole you wish to sink. It can be a really deep hole. Think of what you need to do get some car at an industry where you want it and how that will happen. Might be easier to google 'Model Railroad Operating Session' and read more about it, if you so desire.
Even my grandchildren tire of 100mph+ running of trains.
Some switching and a gentle trip around the layout.
Life outside is fast. Slow down in the train room.
Exactly, it allows for both ops and just watching the trains go roundy-round. I don't why you have to be one or the other like both sides are divided by a line of landmines and concertina wire.
Have a yard that you can switch without impacting the main track.
Have some industries out and about.
With the right design, you can keep at least two engines going at once.
On my small (4x8 with L-shaped yard extension) layout, I do this:
- yard engine makes up outbound train
- industry-based engines gather up INbound train
- yard engine moves out of the way, road engine takes train out for a few loops
- at the same time, a "transfer job" brings the inbound (empties) out to be picked up...
... as the mainline train backs off the "loads" on my "branch line"
- once that's done, the road engine cuts off to find the inbound train...
... as the industry engines spot the cars for the customers
- the inbound train does a loop or two, comes back to the yard
- the road engine runs around and grabs the caboose, moves out of the way
- the yard engine puts the inbound train away.
... all this in about 15-20 minutes of running.
I like to do "a morning job" just before lunch and "an evening job" about 9.15p.
What good is a model railroad if you don't run it?
I built (note I did not say planned) my layout for continuous running but I have several different possible routes. This allows me to switch (pun intended) it up. Makes things more interesting and allow several trains to sit ready on routes currently not being used. I've always ran trains clockwise around the layout but recently started to run some counter clock wise. It's finding problems lurking in the track work to fix and since I do run DCC, I have the ability to run trains facing each other. The challenge is that much of the layout is single tracked. Just have to avoid pulling a Gomez. But don't it look like he's having fun?
My 4x8 has an outside loop for running in circles but there is a switch at both ends and there are two mirror yards so switching and making up yards can be done when wanted
I think most layouts are built for continuous running and switching regardless of size. Even on a 4 x 8 (or smaller) I don't see why you can't have continuous running and still room for switching.
Do you want both? If you want to have one loop and want to fill the rest with scenery that's great. If you want to make a switching layout, that's also great. If you want both it doesn't require a lot of space to achieve that.
I built (note I did not say planned) my layout for continuous running but I have several different possible routes. This allows me to switch (pun intended) it up. Makes things more interesting and allow several trains to sit ready on routes currently not being used. I've always ran trains clockwise around the layout but recently started to run some counter clock wise. It's finding problems lurking in the track work to fix and since I do run DCC, I have the ability to run trains facing each other. The challenge is that much of the layout is single tracked. Just have to avoid pulling a Gomez. But don't it look like he's having fun?
My new layout in design. Will have both options. If I am work I g o locals and switching, the continous run becomes mainline traffic. Same sort of thing that happens on mainlines.
I built (note I did not say planned) my layout for continuous running but I have several different possible routes. This allows me to switch (pun intended) it up. Makes things more interesting and allow several trains to sit ready on routes currently not being used. I've always ran trains clockwise around the layout but recently started to run some counter clock wise. It's finding problems lurking in the track work to fix and since I do run DCC, I have the ability to run trains facing each other. The challenge is that much of the layout is single tracked. Just have to avoid pulling a Gomez. But don't it look like he's having fun?
Right! This is what I was going to point out. To some people operations = switching (at industries or yard drilling), but there is another kind of operations called dispatcher operations. Here the idea is to move as many trains though the layout (or cover the most ground) with the least amount of wait time. Make many routes in the track plan so the dispatcher can decide where to run the trains to meet the session goals. Passengers (greatest penalty for stop time) get shortest or fasted routes, get them around the drag freights (least penalty for stopped time), etc. Run that heavy train up the track with the least grade so it doesn't need additional power added or a helper. Don't send too many helpers up the hill without scheduling a way to get them back down. Need to mix it up more? Have some sort of event cards like "hot box" stop and set out car with bad axle. Or the Princeton Yale football special extra needs to run through. Can even make a schedule and see if you can keep all the trains "on time".
Think of the board game "Dispatch" or "C&O B&O" only in real time model train form.
Don't know if one can do it in 8x8 in HO scale, but it is an operations style that a lot of people overlook.
