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Here is a pic of my Overland 2-8-2, which is the longest loco I have. It is in a safety deposit box along with all my other brass far away.
I'm trying to guess how long it is so I can choose either a 90 ft or 105 ft turntable. A 105 will be a pretty tight fit on the module.
Can anyone estimate how long this loco is? I tried counting the ties on the track, but they all are not visible. I'm hoping the loco is about 12.4 inches, which is the length of a 90 ft turntable.
Prepared a new loco. may the design be usefull/ Portals are from life like rains set. puchased for $9 each
Trees, grass are looking good i see....This is a lighted loco shed. Lights turn on when the direction of the loco is inside the loco shed using 12v dc switches emitting white led light
windows are made by own since a new loco shed i very costlyyyyyyy
Most 2-8-2's with 2 axle tender trucks are in the 75-80 ft range. A 90 ft turntable should work. If you go to a 2-10-2 or 4-8-2 or an engine with a much larger tender, you might be too long.
Most 2-8-2's with 2 axle tender trucks are in the 75-80 ft range. A 90 ft turntable should work. If you go to a 2-10-2 or 4-8-2 or an engine with a much larger tender, you might be too long.
After taking into consideration the very limited space I have now to set up a two section module and the future space of about 13’ X 12’, I came up with this revised track plan. I should be able to set this up in my living room and store it in a closet upright.
I can run a four-car to five-car train on this track plan. As for passenger service, a doodlebug, which I might put an extra track off the turntable in order to park or service it. I can also run a baggage car and coach with a loco on it.
The mainline in front of the depot between the turnouts can hold 5 cars plus a caboose minus the loco.
The mainline and branch line on module B, which acts like a staging area, can hold a 4 car train plus steam loco 2-8-2 and caboose.
Team track can hold 4 cars max.
A train will primarily come in from the right onto the mainline/depot. The loco will turnaround via the runaround and turntable then spot the caboose on the lead track at the far upper left via the runaround. This will allow the loco to take some cars from the depot area and spot them on the team track on the lower left.
Now the remaining cars on at the depot can be taken away down to the branch line or mainline on module B.
I have the option of going down the branch line backwards to add interest.
Also the team track in the future can be converted/extended to a (longer) runaround track. And the lead above it, into a continuing mainline, which would enable me to put a new team track off this track in the future.
Module B would become obsolete in the future because curves would be involved on new modules at each side of module A.
Module B could possibly be incorporated into the future layout on the other side of the room and the branch line on it could be converted into a siding. Or I could just keep it as a diorama.
I'm still trying to figure out where to put the water column. Would it be prototypical to have two?
Well I got the doors and started to draw the track plan onto the door (later on the foam) and laid some dummy track and my turnouts to see if my calculations and estimates were correct... not!
Because I forgot to calculate the clearance needed at the turnouts.
I can now only run a four-car train on this track plan. I still can run a baggage car and coach with a loco on it, as long as I don't have to put the loco on the other end of the train. In the future when the team track will turn into a extension of the runaround, I can put the loco on either end of the passenger train. The team track now can only hold 3 cars max.
The mainline in front of the depot between the turnouts can now only hold 4 cars plus a caboose minus the loco.
All in all, I'm still OK with this knowing it is only temporary and I can still have fun with this switching layout with no. 8 turnouts so I can run my longest locos, which was one of my main goals.
Realized today that my layout will not be able to fit a depot because I didn't take into consideration the platform and overhang of its roof. I'm thinking of modelling the depot's platform though and it might work because I will be operating the layout from the side the mainline is closet to. My POV will be of that from the depot area.
I also change the track plan to represent end of branch line locale.
A train can come in from the left and the engine can be turned around to take the train the other direction after spotting or taking cars from the team track.
I repositioned the depot so a train (in either direction) can position a baggage car and coach near the depot; keeping the lead track clear. I also lengthened the runaround.
The temporary siding at the top right can hold 2 cars or 3 shorter cars. In the future this siding will be an extended runaround, but for now I need ideas on what the siding could be used for. Place to fuel a diesel? Service a business? Drop off coal/fuel? Would coal ever be delivered from a hopper without dumping it, i.e., from the top of the hopper?
When you get 3-4 feet of snow in the turntable pit, or a turntable malfunction, the engine can't get out. Make two parallel spurs from the runaround to the turntable, with the enginehouse (with doors on each end) on one.
When you get 3-4 feet of snow in the turntable pit, or a turntable malfunction, the engine can't get out. Make two parallel spurs from the runaround to the turntable, with the enginehouse (with doors on each end) on one.
This is good news! I'm assuming this could have been done in the late fifties also, but with much older and cruder equipment. I got a video somewhere in storage showing a tender being loaded with coal by a crane with square buckets of coal on a branch line in the 1953. I wish I could find it so I can use it as a reference to model it.
I'm not quite understanding the two parallel spurs... can you send me a rough sketch of what you mean?
I like that. I'll have to test it. The free track will probably have to be curved and as long as it doesn't have a radius less than 36" in it, I think I can do it. Can a track near the turntable's edge be curved? If I can fit in an engne shed on the seconnd track with enough clearance at its corners, this will free up some real estate.
Tomorrow nightI "ll be putting the fascias on the module. After that, I start drawing the plan on the foam.
using 12v dc switches emitting white led light
