Hi all, thanks for the comments.
RE - staging and storage - I learned the value of both from trying to run TPRR1. I kept adding passing tracks, freight yards and ultimately a "below the town" 4 track yard. Taking engines and cars off the tracks, re-boxing and taking replacement trains out was simply not something I wanted to spend my time doing - it took the fun out of running trains. My sweet spot for running trains is 15 to 30 minutes. I suppose if I had a switching activity or a crew together the time could be extended. BTW many on this forum recommend planning new layouts with plenty of staging and yards - of course that is hard to translate to someone building a new layout especially when their only experience is with simple loops and short trains. I read the same recommendations, but did not comprehend the real meaning until experience reared its head.
RE - materials - I built TPRR1 with 1/2 CDX plywood in order to keep the costs down. Turns out not to be a good idea as this stuff moves, twists and warps all by itself. 1x3 and 1x4 pine works fine. If you can get the stuff out of Sweden, the wood grain is a bit tighter so seems to be more stable. For plywood I was recently searching for baltic birch plywood. Really hard to find right now so the options fall to other "cabinet grade" plywood. At $50 to $80 a sheet vs $25 to $35 for CDX, and that a new freight car is running up to $100, not a big financial decision to go with the better ply. So far I invested in 4 sheets - Less than what I paid for my recent "win" from Cabin Fever.
@Dave_C You could always consider modifications to your layout to make room. Many of us are redoing our layouts - for any number of reasons.
Trying different options in corners and the front entry to TPRR2. I've got the inner loop of Atlas track laid to the point I could add power and run a train with a little more work. I forgot about connecting the double mains as I used my Ross crossover for a connection to the inner loop. Space is an issue and now I think the only solution is to get a L&R pair of Ross curved 96/72 turnouts mated with a pair of #4s.
