02-25-2010, 12:07 PM
As for the plans, well, without spending too much time doing virtual switching, it's hard to say which is best. Looks like 6 of one half dozen of another to me.
A couple general questions/considerations.
First, the double slip on plan J. I know we modelers use them as a device to compress space & reduce the # of turnouts, but would the prototype have used one in an industrial district like that? I'm not saying that should stop you from using it, but from the modeling perspective it may not be as reliable as the regular turnouts it would replace. And having to reach across the layout to fiddle with a turnout, well, it better be bullet proof when you install it.
Second, how does this area balance the traffic levels from staging (and other yards/storage tracks)? I like to think less is more, but sometimes more is more interesting. How much paperwork do you want to do (car cards/waybills) and will including or removing an industry or two change that? I'd be tempted to replace Robinson Bros. or NY Butter & Egg with the back side of a tenement or an abandoned/condemned warehouse, something with some scenic potential.
Galen
A couple general questions/considerations.
First, the double slip on plan J. I know we modelers use them as a device to compress space & reduce the # of turnouts, but would the prototype have used one in an industrial district like that? I'm not saying that should stop you from using it, but from the modeling perspective it may not be as reliable as the regular turnouts it would replace. And having to reach across the layout to fiddle with a turnout, well, it better be bullet proof when you install it.
Second, how does this area balance the traffic levels from staging (and other yards/storage tracks)? I like to think less is more, but sometimes more is more interesting. How much paperwork do you want to do (car cards/waybills) and will including or removing an industry or two change that? I'd be tempted to replace Robinson Bros. or NY Butter & Egg with the back side of a tenement or an abandoned/condemned warehouse, something with some scenic potential.
Galen
I may not be a rivet counter, but I sure do like rivets!