Well fellows; here is the latest incarnation of the plan theme I'm working on:[
attachment=6423]
Yes, it's a very simple track plan with a straight spur and all industry tracks parallel to the spur and with road crossings at 90 degrees to the track. Very prototypical for many industrial spurs, so that's not a concern. You can find prototype examples of industrial spurs like this everywhere.
Ideas I've incorporated in to this version are (from left to right):
** Small piece of the railroad's main line modeled with the switch leading to the spur. A street or highway runs next to the main line and there is a highway overpass going over both. I want to clearly show a transition from the well ballasted main line down to the spur which is slightly lower and lightly maintained. The switch will be one of my old Shinohara turnouts with the points soldered in place. The train will be staged as though it is just entering the spur with the engine sitting on the switch and will be shoving a maximum of 5 cars on to the spur.
** Between that point and the first industry track will be some large structures that are not rail served and one that was formarily rail served, but has had the switch and rail removed, leaving the ties in the ground. I think that using structures in this area on both sides of the track is more visually appealing than just open terrain.
** I have swapped the industry track locations around on this plan and numbers by the track/industry name (N) indicate the maximum number of cars that can spot at that location at any one time, based on 55 ft car lengths.
** I put the trans-load (team track) back into the plan. Much more versatile than the previous version and you can spot a greater variety of cars on that one track. There will be a concrete loading dock and ramp at the end of the track, with gravel roadways on either side.
** Next is Trinidad Bernham Corp. that receives covered hopper loads of beans, rice and popcorn to be packaged for distribution. One car is spotted inside the covered shed and as cars are unloaded, they are moved toward the end of the track. There will be a couple of semi-trailers spotted for loading at the left end of that structure. See my thread on this interesting facility for more details.
http://www.the-gauge.net/forum/viewtopic...=24&t=3731
** Temple-Inland Containers, manufacturer of pulpboard boxes/containers; can spot 4 box cars at the building and a covered hopper or tank car by the small tanks at the end of the track. Will also have semi-trailers spotted at the left end of that structure. See Jack Hill's New Castle Industrial Railroad Blog
http://oscalewcor.blogspot.com/2010/10/o...sited.html for some details on how this industry would be switched.
** Finally, we have my Coca-Cola bottling plant spur where tank cars of HFCS are unloaded. An alternative industry for this spot could be a simple rail to truck liquid transfer facility (an idea I'm tossing around) similar to this:[
attachment=6422]
That's about it for now. I am working up a slight variation of this plan that would have a separate 8 in x 6 ft staging track at the left hand side and aligned with the front edge of the benchwork. If I can do that, then the industrial spur would make a slight "S" curve from the main line in order to go between the first buildings. Wish I could put the simulated main line as an "L" on the end of the plan so that the industrial spur would make a 90 degree turn from the main line, but just out of the question. As shown, the plan is quite workable in my opinion. Plenty of operation and detailing possibilities.
Any suggestions and/or other ideas?