Track Plan Design - Part Two

I haven't made any headway on the buildings, but I did manage to redo the turntable and clean up the main level decking a bit by squaring corners, etc. I also fiddled a bit with sample bench work both of which are on separate layers.

Since SCARM doesn't have the 32" turntable in its library, I mimicked it using a 32" circle with a 28" turntable inside. The Red tracks you see around the turntable represent the 2" difference between the 28" and 32" sizes. I needed them so I could position the lead and whisker tracks correctly. If you look closely, you can see how the bump-out is slightly narrower and the roundhouse is further from the edge of the peninsula. The roundhouse had to be moved closer to the turntable or the ends of the whisker tracks would have hit each other. Obviously, if you don't like the squared off benchwork shown here, you can always overhang the bench work framing and use a jigsaw to round it off.

Hers'a basic idea for bench work framing. It can be done with 1x3's, 1x4's, 2x4's or plywood ripped into 3" wide strips. This sample has uses 24" centers in most places, but don't show the extra support that will probably be needed for the turntable.

Here's a very crude sample for L-girder. The biggest disadvantage is the extra layer with the stringers on top of the rails adding 3"-4" beneath the layout. As you can see, I don't really know how to picture L-girder for this type of layout. I oriented the rails left to right and the stringers top to bottom, but I have no idea if that's the correct way and I wasn't sure about the lower right. I also have the rails on the edge of the decking and I believe they should be inset 6" or so. With the top and bottom being 24" wide, it just seems silly to have rails only 12' apart. The place where L-girder is a big advantage is on the peninsula and the decking below the upper reversing loops. You simply extend the length of the stringers to support the extra wide decking, but I've never built L-girder, so I have no practical experience.

Love this track plan but to this point have not followed this tread. I gave it a quick read through and couldn't find what type of bridge your using for the lift out. Sorry to jump on late but will follow and copy a bit as I'm tearing down for a rebuild with similar space.

Dave, the design uses a facsimile of an Atlas Double Truss Bridge someone created in SCARM, but I believe Bob has an MTH Steel 2-Track Bridge he plans to use. That reminds me I need to get the specs to see if the track spacing needs to be adjusted.

DoubleDAZ posted:

Dave, the design uses a facsimile of an Atlas Double Truss Bridge someone created in SCARM, but I believe Bob has an MTH Steel 2-Track Bridge he plans to use. That reminds me I need to get the specs to see if the track spacing needs to be adjusted.

Thanks for that Dave. I was thinking of the Lionel double track which I believe is 32 inches. Is it planed as a liftot or duck under?

Dave, I honestly don’t know, but the MTH bridge is only 30” long and the opening is over. 40”. I don’t know if Bob will want me to make it just wide enough for the bridge or if he’ll lift the entire platform, but it’s something he needs to think about.

BTW, there are a lot of examples for how to do both lift out and lift up bridges.

DoubleDAZ posted:

Dave, I honestly don’t know, but the MTH bridge is only 30” long and the opening is over. 40”. I don’t know if Bob will want me to make it just wide enough for the bridge or if he’ll lift the entire platform, but it’s something he needs to think about.

BTW, there are a lot of examples for how to do both lift out and lift up bridges.

Thanks Dave, I'll be watching.

Bob, here's the latest version with rectangles to mimic the accessories you said you have. They're color-coded Pink and are arranged in no particular order, just wherever I could find an empty spot. The only ones on your list not in Pink are the Bascule Bridge and the new 30" Double-Track Bridge. As you can see, I reconfigured the entry closer to 30", but this is something that will need to be adjusted once you figure out how you're going to use the bridge, lift up on a hinge, lift out or duck under. You're free to tell me where you want specific accessories and how you want them oriented, I'll be happy to move them.

Dave,

I was thinking of a lift-up hinged bridge. Also, is there a way to show me the grid with measurements and how do I print from this thread?

Bob, I'm not sure what measurements you're looking for, but here's what SCARM can display in addition to the rulers on the top and left sides. Bear in mind that decking in the curved section (main and upper levels) would normally overhang the framing and be rounded with a jigsaw.

When it comes to printing, I thought we had that discussion before, but I could be wrong. Here again I'm not sure what you're looking for. If it's a printout of an image I've posted, you have to download them to your computer and print from there. You can also download the SCARM file, open it in SCARM and print from there, but you won;t get as nice a printout. SCARM can also print it 1:1 full-size, but that's a LOT of paper. If you're looking for something else, you need to be more specific.

Also, don't forget that the entry opening depends on how you construct the hinged bridge. Here's how Mike G did his bridge.

Hi Dave,

Yes, we did talk about printing it prior to this message but I can not get it to work. I can not figure out how to save it on my computer or save it in a Word document to print it out. 

I will be building my layout in small modules and that is why I wanted to see the grids.

Thank you,

Bob

I’ll send an email and see if I can help.

DoubleDAZ posted:

Bob, I'm not sure what measurements you're looking for, but here's what SCARM can display in addition to the rulers on the top and left sides. Bear in mind that decking in the curved section (main and upper levels) would normally overhang the framing and be rounded with a jigsaw.

When it comes to printing, I thought we had that discussion before, but I could be wrong. Here again I'm not sure what you're looking for. If it's a printout of an image I've posted, you have to download them to your computer and print from there. You can also download the SCARM file, open it in SCARM and print from there, but you won;t get as nice a printout. SCARM can also print it 1:1 full-size, but that's a LOT of paper. If you're looking for something else, you need to be more specific.

Also, don't forget that the entry opening depends on how you construct the hinged bridge. Here's how Mike G did his bridge.

 

Dave,

I am assuming this is the lower level?? Can you make a top level like this drawing?

Bob

TrainHead posted:

I am assuming this is the lower level?? Can you make a top level like this drawing?

Bob  

Yes, that is the main level. SCARM doesn't allow multiple baseboards, so I had to create a separate file and draw one for the upper level.

I altered the decking a bit too and need to stress how unimportant most of these dimensions are when you start constructing the framing, especially those defining the curves. Most folks would square the framing, overhang the decking and cut the curves with a jigsaw.

The upper level was done when the separation between levels was only going to be 7"-8" and hasn't been changed much. Now that it's going to be greater, you have more options. You might even want to move the run along the left wall a bit to the right so you can add scenery along the wall and have the track run in front of it or even weave in/out (photos 2-3). Those photos also show a 6" elevation change with a 4.1% grade along the top and 3.6% along the bottom,something for the Shay to do besides run straight and level. Anyway, just ideas. 

Okay, just to keep folks up to date, there have been some clarifications regarding the room dimensions that required reverting some of the design back to an earlier configuration.

Photo 1 shows a 3D view with front walls lowered for visibility.
Photo 2 shows the main level.
Photo 3 shows a closeup of the blue section in the upper right. I was told more access was needed to the staircase in the event a new water heater or furnace are needed, so I turned that section of the decking into a mobile module with removable legs so it can be moved out of the way. To make it really easy, it could become a drop-down section hinged to the wall.
Photo 4 shows the upper level. Note the change to the lower run. Somewhere along the line I was asked to expand the lower right portion of the layout over 24" and I was able to move the lower reversing loop. However, that turned out to be a miscommunication. Therefore, the edge needed to be moved back to the left and the reversing loop had to be moved back to the lower left corner. I also changed the spurs in the upper right for better access to the switches and an arguably better view.

Please contact Bob Spaulding at AltoonaModelWorks for the facts.