Upon reflection...

If there’s one thing that has been playing on my mind all the way through this project, it’s the track plan.

The original track layout scheme

It’s not that I don’t like it. I think it’s pretty darned clever. I think there’s a lot going for it, with the swapping of wagons on the turntable, to enter the small shed, or be exchanged with the “big railway” siding. But it also cuts off the light mineral railway, from the main railway, and ne’er the twain shall meet. The mineral railway locomotive would shuttle up and down barely 18” of track, and as the loco is beginning to look rather nice, even if I do say so myself, I felt like it could take a bigger part on the stage. 

So the wagon turntable has to go. Though the original purpose for it was a grand one, displaying highly detailed O scale wagons. I had been experimenting with scratch building one in other scales with no success. So I’m not going to miss it. There are also issues with the angle that the track crosses the baseboard join.

So, it was back to basics, to find something simple. Something small and interesting to operate that doesn’t loose the spirit of the original concept. But most importantly doesn't break the bank in having to have things shipped from the UK as I’ve mentioned before.

One of my layout maxims is, “it’s not what you’ve got, it’s what you do with it.”  There are only so many track plans you can fit in a small space. So you need to give a lot of thought to what goes on around it. Buildings and other features.

The simplest plan, other than a simple length of track, is the ‘tuning fork”. One turnout giving two sidings, Two tuning forks, back to back, opens up very interesting possibilities. 

The first draft of the new concept.

Here, the orientation is the same as the original concept, with a turnout replacing the wagon turntable. The loco from the mineral railway pushes loaded wagons directly into the “industry” and can leave them there to either be emptied and returned to the mineral line, or hauled off to the main railway. In addition to the collection of wagons outlined above, the main railway could leave wagons in the front siding to be collected by the mineral  railway.  Potential for some intensive operation, I think you’ll agree. If you wanted to incorporate some passenger operation. How about an old 4 or 6 wheeled coach as a workers train?

I’m really liking the direction this is all going. Except... 

I just don’t like the feel. That’s something I can’t put my finger on. “Feel” is personal. So I reversed everything.

Through the looking glass

It may sound odd. But I prefer it in this orientation. Is it because I’m left handed, and if I was operating from the rear, the fiddle yard in whatever form it takes would be on the left?

That’s all very confusing, and I could be over thinking. 

The next stage is to find some suitable buildings to fit the location. That might change the way I feel again.

We’ll see what happens next.