Let us see your staging tracks

I'll help keep the thread alive.

I built my staging area a few years ago on the third floor of a split level.  The main platform is in the attic so an access hole was needed in the wall.  It’s only ten feet long and cannot hold too many cars so I made some train drawers to hold them.

Several years ago, when we were developing the upper branch, we added staging yard capacity above the main staging yard (above the stack train on cantilever benchwork). We normally store cars on the upper level where they will naturally weather from what little dust we seem to have in the building. The main level is where members set up trains. The mainlines run through on Tracks #4 and #5 on the main deck.

I just looked at the original post again.  That curved support is impressive.  I would have never thought to do that.  Also impressive is the custom-made switch arrangement.  I was originally going to use some old Gargraves switches for mine, but ended up using a Ross 4-way to save space.  I installed and wired it up out of place since it’s a tight squeeze where it is located.

I've been working on getting more staging tracks into my plan as I'm laying track.  I found a spot where I could tuck a few tracks in behind an elevation.  I'll also have a 8-track yard fed by two Ross 1 x 4 switches from two yard leads.  However, that's in the future after the main layout has track.  The pink tracks are my added staging tracks, red is elevated rail.

Panhandle 1 had a relatively (let's be honest ) useless yard below the western end of the layout.  It was reached by a long, steep, difficult lead.  I don't recommend that approach.

Panhandle 2 has its staging on the same level as the layout.  Staging is reached through a backdrop divider.

Behind the divider lies the Staging Area.  When I am exactly sure of the track placement, I will cut 4 holes in it for trains to pass back and forth.  Here's the track plan.  The green vertical line is the backdrop divider.  The holes at the very top and bottom of the diagram provide access to the staging yard.  The other track is for interchanging steel-related loads and empties (coal, coke, slag, torpedo, finished products).  As some point in time (God willing), it's my plan to operate the Panhandle with a crew of people.  The white spaces are openings where the Staging Area Operator will stand and run the Staging Area.  I haven't worked out the details yet, but the operator will use a CAB-1 remote and/or a set of switch pushbuttons to control switches.  I had not planned on any sort of control panel for the layout, but this is the place I could make an exception.

Another feature of the Staging Area is its storage shelves.  Four 10' rows of Glenn Snyder shelving have been installed on the back wall (to the extreme right of the above diagram); these are reserved (mostly) for steel-related cars.  Another four 10' rows are on the back of the backdrop divider.  I expect these to be used for other types of freight cars and maybe a few passenger cars.  Practice will determine if the theory holds up.

The two north-south loops of track (between the openings) will be used to store whole (probably "run-through") trains.  The double cross-over is capable of storing 4 large locomotives; the spurs at extreme right (top and bottom) will each hold another large locomotive.  I am pretty selective about my fleet of engines and don't expect it to get much larger.

Here are some looks at the shelving.  First, the shelving on the back wall.  Some of the bench work for the double cross-over is also visible below it.

Now the shelving on the back of the backdrop divider.

Hope this gives you some ideas.

George

Tom T,

What are the radii on those Brad Strong curved switches?

Thanks,

Ed

Small, but usually pretty full

This is an interesting topic. There is the large, the larger and.....the small.   The Plywood Empire Route is a small Interchange-to-Town switching Pike with no room for staging tracks. Actually, if there was room, rather than staging several short trains there would be an interchange yard where an incoming cut of some 40 cars (having been delivered to Interchange by the connecting railroad) would be broken down (drilled) over several days and delivered as short daily trains. Over those same several days cars returned from Town would be blocked into an outgoing cut of cars. A short daily train is what would happen in the real world to accommodate old (short) industry sidings. It would be a shortline operation because Class ones and Regionals want rid of [expensive] switching operations. Anyway, what I have room for is a tiny fiddle yard where cars are drilled using the old 0-5-0 switcher (the one with five fingers).

Here is the PER fiddle yard:

I currently cycle through (in sequence) ten switch-lists, seen here in a tablet:

Switching notes would be a more proper term because unless noted otherwise the base of each day's train is a grain hopper, a resin tank car and a box car with other cars added to the train according to the notes. The Conductor devotes very little time to paperwork on the PER.