Seems like it would depend on what you intend to run through it. I run the AristoCraft streamliners in an “S” configuration which are very long and prone to derailment. I do have straights in and out.
I added a 90 degree diamond to my RR a few years back. I installed a bypass track on the RR to keep a train on the lower half and the best way to do that was to cross the main. I put a patio block under the spot and the diamond sits on it.
It is fun to throw the switch to the bypass track that sends the train over the main then in about 8’ it rejoins the main. When multiple trains are running it is a great way to keep them from catching each other but there has been some very close calls at that diamond.
I do not think that you would have any issues with running trains over that diamond from any direction but crashes are a concern. You just have to keep your eye on the trains and be ready to hit the emergency stop.
That’s it exactly. Best to plan for the longest car you will ever want to run.
I got pics of the funky home-made one on the Big Green layout at NELSTS…
Even Larry’s super long train made it over that with no problems. I took video, but it still on my phone. The main is the straight route.
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Thanks all.
Todd B, I got the impression that LGB didn’t like the switch combination either, as I’ll have to make adjustments to either the sleeper or rail to get the switch and the crossing to fit with each other. The fixed position of the sleepers keeps the rail from fully connecting. Herself has said that she is happy to run her long orient express passenger cars inside for the time being, but I might be able to fit a bit of straight rail between the two crossings.
Todd H, you hit upon my biggest fear, the Gomez Addams train crash. I’m thinking that some sort of sensor relay to get one section of track to be dead when the other is occupied. I suspect I have a bit of reading to do to get there. I know virtually nothing about arduino and rasberry Pi and how it fits with running analog or DCC. So I might be very hands on like you until then.
Jon that’s quite impressive amount of gap the wheels jumped certainly has given me confidence that my shorter wheelbase trains will be ok.
I went looking for diamond crossings in Oz and thought I’d share something they is uniquely Australian.
Reportedly when Queensland Railway adopted high speed tilt trains to run on narrow gauge 1067mm track, diamond crossings were going to cause significant speed restrictions, so they installed drawbridges to solve their problem. Brisbane to Rockhampton is now a 7H 45M trip down from 9-10 hour trip.
LINK TO SOURCE
Drawbridge Crossing link to Amusing Planet
VIDEO
if you want always the same track to be waiting, it is easy.
take twoo reed contacts one LGB switchmotor with the doublethrow adapter and a magnet under the locos.
put the reeds on the track with the right of way.
aproaching the first reed cuts off the power of the secondary track, leaving the crossing, the other reed after the crossing connects the power again.
the most complicated part is counting cars in the trains, to put the reeds far enough from each other.
Two observations here if I may.
Korm,
What is the safe guard if the train on the second track is already occupying the controlled space ?
And second,
the concern seemed to also include the train having issue going through a crossing in a curve. Nice video of the train going through on a straight main line but does the train handle the crossing as well when crossing the main line on the curve going into an apparent switch? As Bills main seem to be crossing a straight on a curve.
ooooops… - then you have to have the video camera ready.
you are right. i simply didn’t think about that.
(as i am always setting up automated traffic, my trains get “paced” at the passing sidings. so i never have trains coming out of scedule to any choking/crashing points.
for these effects i use cats)
so he would need at least two more reeds.
may be - stopping any first train untill the second has passed?
In my video example, that would never happen since the track crossing over is a storage track where trains enter and exit quite slowly. And on my railroad. the main through the diamond has very broad curves entering and exiting the crossing and the track crossing is a siding with straight track only.
How broad are the curves entering the diamond?
I developed the Tortoise Bump Accident Sentinal System (Bump ASS) to take care of this eventually. If you run track power and can brandish a soldering iron, you could make your own.
Whichever a train reaches a predesignated spot (the detector) placed just beyond all four sides of the crossing first turns off the power to the other track before that train reaches the crossing. I use 555 timing chips/relays.
To spectators, this is one of the most delightful aspects of the railroad as they wait for the inevitable crash, that just doesn’t happen (typically) unless a railcar gets left (decouples) in the crossing (ca ca occurs).
The detectors are nothing more than two LGB track insulators placed next to each other with a short piece of rail to fill the gap and a wire soldered to this short piece. When a train approaches a detector, the wheels short the track to the detector and that starts the 555 chip which opens a relay that interupts power flow to the opposing track for as long as the chip is set for. It works with any engine or railcar with metal wheels.
Actually, we use the 555 chips for lots of our effects.
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Hand bent, but hard to say. Maybe 20’ radius or more? Here’s a pic…
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Love the video Todd.
So many questions…
Where do you suggest I look first to learn more about 555 chips and their use on garden railways?
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So we have taken out the diamond crossing from 2 intersecting curves and added some point to point operations. We are not going to be able to run high speed but wonder if deceleration is needed at stops or if on-off blocks will suffice.
We pulled out some 15000 and 16000 track to see what we can do with our limited space.
…and come up with a couple of new concepts. That is the 16000 in the foreground.
Note: We’ve decided while we love hills and tunnels, we don’t have space for 1-3% grades so we will fake it and simulate the mountainous terrain with cuts for the right of way.
With this we can fit in a small “roundy-round” to run hands off…
…with two spurs that gives some options for future “point-to-point” operations The shaded-in areas will be hills with cuts to allow the track to pass, hopefully inviting spectators to move around the layout.
We then got our Aussie imitation white Kubota trenching tool out to get a better idea.
This is the most complicated concept we can come up with to date. I believe our curve radii will be between 15000 and 16000 LGB equivalents. The smaller bed doesn’t have room for a spur-line as far as we can deduce.
Ok Roundy-Rounders and Point-to- Pointers… Any thoughts? Advice? **
The track looks different when you install it than your drawing …a lot of folk Hmmm 
Do rethink there track plan …
Bill,
Ultimately this will come down to how you and Herself intend to enjoy your railroad. If it is primarily a backdrop against which to enjoy an afternoon, then you may want to simplify this. If you primarily intend to simulate an operating railroad, then you may want to emphasize point-to-point and consider an auto-reverser for beverage-focused events. As you and I have a similar goal of packing lots of railroad into a small space, finding a way to enable both a relaxing backdrop and an operating challenge is even more complicated.
Were we discussing this in person, the first thing I would do is Crack a beverage and sit where you usually entertain. That would allow us to determine where motion would be best appreciated during a just-run -trains event. Then we could get some boxes to simulate landscape. We found having trains disappear even for a few moments makes a real difference in giving the impression of distance, which will enhance your railroad no matter how you run it. Finally, we’d walk it to see how you envision operating it and where you anticipate installing vignettes.
Assuming your primary viewing angle is from the bottom of your sketch and that you plan to have some operational theme, I would suggest considering a large loop that encompasses the lefthand garden, crosses the bridge (visitors love bridges!), and loops back at some point on the right. The righthand garden would have a smaller loop for an extractive industry. The two would join at a small yard. Mountains, plants, buildings, flats etc would serve as view brakes. This would leave space for sidings and interchanges between loops while minimizing collision risk.
I think, having typed all this, you may just need to throw down some track and see how running trains impacts your creative vision.
Eric
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Yep. I’m a firm believer in “Just do it”. Which is exactly how I started 22 years ago in a different part of the yard…
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Bill:
Since this thread has drifted a bit into general track planning and how to make progress on that, I thought you might be interested in how I proceeded on the Durango & Jasper. It is built in a planter much as Eric and you are doing.
Here’s the main track plan and track laying build topic:
So you don’t need to go there to see the track plan, here it is:
It is a roundy-round (though I don’t seem to have been accepted into that guild) with a number of industries: mine, sawmill, log loading area, stamp mill, town. I attempted to place these so that trains are needed to move raw materials and finished product back and forth: mine on the left feeds stamp mill on the right, log loading in the center feeds sawmill on the left with finished wood delivered to the town on the right.
Before actually placing any track, I used cardboard strips of appropriate shapes (straights, diameters of various sizes, mostly 12’ and 8-11’) to validate the plan. I hired a local expert to help me lay track as I thought it was super important to have derail-free operation. It cost me money but was a good decision (so far).
Here’s a picture showing part of the cardboard mockup:
There is some very good advice/approaches being offered here (notably by @JRad and @Eric_Mueller). My approach has to do with designing a variety of scenes, separated by view breaks, to provide visitors and I multiple spots to stop and take in different kinds of views. So, the mine is a scene, the log loading is another, etc. Some of the scene breaks are hardscape (in my case, lots of rocks) and some planting.
So far I’ve been pretty happy with how it all turned out. I can sit and watch the train go around when I want to (or when I have an open railroad), or I can switch/move goods between industries (I don’t do that much largely because I don’t have many cars yet).
Anyway, another perspective to add to the mountains of advice you are getting. Don’t let any of us slow you down, though. Making progress, even if you end up changing it later, seems like good advice.
Cheers!
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