# ho grand valley layout



## little fat buddy (Jan 14, 2011)

hey guys just wonderign if the woodland scenics grand valley layout plan coudl be expanded to use 22'' and 24'' radius curves and how could i improve it some i have a 6x10 space to work with and i like the general idea of the layout plan but would like to add some more operations to it and make there curves bigger than the 18'' radius it uses originally also i plan to use katos ho unitrack to do this layout with is this all possible thanks for the help guys


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

You could certainly use Kato Unitrack, yes. Beyond that, you can't really do much with that layout. It is a classic twice around, and the steep grades it uses are going to negate your abilility to run longer equipment, even with the broader curves. And you really don't have much room to add any operations. The over / under design makes it really tricky to add turnouts and sidings.

You may have a 6x10 layout area, but unless you are very tall with exceptionally long arms, you won't be able to reach the middle of it to do any work, uncouple cars,throw switches, etc.


----------



## little fat buddy (Jan 14, 2011)

well what can i do in that given space i suck at track planning and the ones i have found i liked didn't fit my space and i like the twice around style if possible only wanted ot add maybe 2 more spurs somewhere in the layout and steep grades jsut mean a good excuse for mroe locomotives.


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

Actually, the steep grades with the long diesels you appear to like means derailments and trip pins catching on ties.

More to the point, you don't really suck at track planning, you just have no experience. To the best of my knowledge, you've never actually put a layout together or gotten one up and running. You are in a state of what many call "paralysis by analysis": the range of options available to you is so overwhelming that you just don't know where to start. And you're afraid of making a mistake.

The other problem you have is that your ambitions greatly exceed your resources. You clearly want a layout with big, broad curves for long, modern era rolling stock. You want a continuous run, and you want some operations (I don't know at this point whether you REALLY want either -- I think you're just reading posts and trying to decide what you SHOULD have). Yet you've locked yourself into a 6x10 rectangle, which might have been better used in an L or donut configuration.

My advice to you now is to step up to the plate and take a swing. Pick a layout and BUILD IT. Try to run trains on it. Do your trains run well, or do you have constant problems with derailments, stalls, etc? Do you still enjoy continuous running, or do you want more operations in the mix? You will never know what you really want to do with your trains or your layout without some real-world experience under your belt.

If I were you, I would take that Byron Henderson track plan you were talking about last summer, increase the curve radius as much as possible, and BUILD IT. Run it for a while. If you get stuck on something, ask a specific question. Your friends here will help. But don't wait until you find perfection before you get going. Most of us never get there, and those who do get there by way a many missteps and hard knocks along the way.


----------



## little fat buddy (Jan 14, 2011)

i will think on this and yeah i do have a hard time figuring out what i want to do cuz there is so many options n such and what i have is what my space can allot wish i had room for more benchwork but it is what it is thansk again man.


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

I understand space restrictions. My layout shares the basement with my son's layout and the Lego table. Just that the 60 square feet taken up by that table can be used in many ways, not just the 6x10 rectangle.

I'm serious, though. Get out there and build something. That's the only way to know for sure what you really want out of the hobby and your layout.

I'm on my 5th layout. Two as a teenager, and my 3rd after getting back into the hobby 12 years ago. You grow, you redesign, you redo, and you grow some more. Sometimes, you have to rip the whole thing up and start over. But at least you're DOING, which is much more fun -- and rewarding -- than wondering what to do.


----------



## little fat buddy (Jan 14, 2011)

thanks i think for the oment i have mad ea deicsion and am gonna build the model rairloader project layout the viriginian and see hwo that works out and plus with it there is opertunity to expand evne if its just a narrow shelf on the wall connected now to start buying track for this adventure haha thansk again ctvalley you have been alot of help always thansk again


----------



## bluenavigator (Aug 30, 2015)

Buddy, I am in same shoes where you are at. There are lot of materials and options to chose from. 

Myself, I want roundtable/transfer table on my layout and lot of rails, there is no limit for the imagination. I would recommend to get some rails on the table and do something. You will find something that you like to see. Also, it is good idea to get SCARM (railroad CAD software) and see if the plan do work for you and test them on the table. Right now, I am on 4th or 5th layout on the SCARM. I found something that I don't like, I remove them and build from there. I am not there yet. 

Have fun!


----------



## little fat buddy (Jan 14, 2011)

bluenavigator yeah i have a large oval on the table at the mometn to let me run some trians atleast it keeps my intrest in this up i tried scarm and could never figure it out im going to get the full version of anyrail soon have the free version and its very easy to use just sucks the being limited to 50 peices i my problem is i like large modern equpiment and curves to suit said equipment takes alot of space so just trying to fidn a good compimise between what i want and what i can acheive.


----------



## bluenavigator (Aug 30, 2015)

I understand that you are using AnyRail software, which is trial version, which is limited to 50 sections. 

SCARM is actually easy to use. In fact, the software developer is a member of this forum as I believe so. I had asked several questions and I got the answers to my questions. That's how I get up to 4th or 5th layout with lot of changes since the first layout. Also, it is good idea to set up the layers so each one has its own set of materials. If you are familiar with the graphic editor with layers, then it is pretty much same concept.


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

With due respect to Mixy, creator of SCARM, who is indeed a member here, I find AnyRail, without all the 3D embellishments, to be a far easier product to use.


----------



## /6 matt (Jul 7, 2015)

Little fat buddy, if you are interested i can cook you up a track plan just pm me with a list of what you want.


----------



## redman88 (Nov 25, 2015)

/6 matt said:


> Little fat buddy, if you are interested i can cook you up a track plan just pm me with a list of what you want.



Can you cook me up an E shape layout for a 14x12 room. HO scale?


----------



## CTValleyRR (Jul 26, 2014)

redman88 said:


> Can you cook me up an E shape layout for a 14x12 room. HO scale?


Sure, lots of people can. The problem is that it's really hard to anticipate someone else's interests.

I would be willing to tackle this, recognizing that I wouldn't be able to start before next week, and can't guarantee a completion date. PM me if interested.


----------

