Introduction

Enlarging the layout

When designers of track plans make too many plans, they start acting strange. Maybe I’ve reached this stage, because most commonly round layouts are being drawn. These can be build into a coffee table. But before you know you’ll end up with a large piece of furniture, for European standards, in your home. But in America round layouts seem quite common. In the book by Mat Chibbaro [Mat Chibbaro: Model Railroading in Small Spaces] a round track plan for under the Christmas tree is published. Seen in this light, my redesign of the plan on the previous page is quite acceptable. The interchange track and factory have disappeared, but the rest remains the same. I’ve used PECO [ωωω] tracks from the Setrack program. [↑]

If we increase the diameter with 50% we get a better result instantaneously. The radius of the main track goes from a minimal 371 mm to a reasonable >600 mm. The branch to the quarry remains problematic, but not worrisome. And we’ve got room for an extra siding. There’s more space for the scenery so we can give the building more air. The question remains where to put a wagonwheel of 1½ m diameter. But I hope I’ve shown the effect of enlarging. The tracks are from the Lima [ωωω] NEM120 program. [↑]

↓ This demonstration layout at the Pecorama [ωωω] shows a beginners layout. The simple track plan and decoration makes the scene look harmonious and not overloaded. [↑]