I watched the movie ‘In Bruges’ the other night. Funny, violent, profanity laden, and capped with a graphic presentation of sticking to your principles. Not one for the kiddies, but then again they probably see and hear worse at school anyway.
Writing my acidic postulation on staging the other day crystalised in my head what I wanted it to do on my layout. I didn’t want it to take up additional footprint in the room that could be used for a main line extension later, I did want it to be accessible and I wanted to be able to turn trains around with it. Ideally I’d have liked it to provide a fair bit of storage as well, but that doesn’t seem to have worked out completely yet, although another track could be added in the foreground later on. So here’s what I’ve done under Sawyers Bay…
Although it will be hidden, the tracks will be accessible via a viewport in the front and also from underneath (hence the wood cut away on the inside of the loop. The curve is tight at 12 inches/30cm radius, but things negotiate it even when pushed in reverse and despite being just below the waterline of Sawyers Bay at the back and the road that will go under a bridge in the foreground, there is enough clearance for track cleaning and retrieving stranded items. Towards the right end in the pic, there will be a low hill, so the points and track at that end will be more readily accessible.
The ‘Port Chalmers line’ (dark sleepers) will run around the back and down to staging, as will another connection, probably from near the viaduct. So basically the concept is to have a roundyroundy layout that trains can appear or disappear from regardless of the direction they are travelling, and then they turn themselves in staging and can reappear in any direction. (obviously it’s a bit more complex that the pic below in the flesh) but you get the jist. Now… who’s up for wiring a reverse-loop on a wye?
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