Critique my effort

[LXdaddy]

Like so many locked down individuals, my attention is caught by model railways after a very long time away from the hobby.

So I'm new to AnyRail and this forum, but you seem like a friendly bunch so here goes nothing.

I've let my imagination run wild and drawn up a plan for a model in a theoretical space almost 10m by 8m, so it's certainly not going to be built in real life I have neither the space nor the funds, but exercising the mind is almost as much good as exercising the body.

I'd welcome suggestions on what I could do to improve the plan.  I'm not looking at recreating a specific prototype but I would like to follow "typical" UK practice.

If you want a period then something after 1950s maybe 1980s to early 2000s.  I hope I've got the passenger services covered but it is (very) light on freight operations.

 

[webmartians]

Hi!
Your layout plan is very attractive; it has a good balance (something I have not been able to achieve in my design). Some questions:

• How does Northney Goods Sorting work? Is that a gravity driven system?
  I have a much more elementary (and, with Z-scale, smaller) yard that is gravity "powered." Selecting the heights of each track connection has turned out to be difficult. One issue (for me; maybe not for you) is that I can buy Märklin pillars in sizes ranging from 4mm through 40mm. However, my maximum track height is 60mm. I can achieve that by, for example, a 20mm underlay and a 40mm pillar (or 40mm with 20mm). It is difficult to purchase in the US metrically sized product. The conversion factor of 2.54cm per inch has become well memorized.
• Eastport has a goodly sized loop. What about just making it a reversing loop with a single feed line?
  Depending on your controls, you may have to perform some gymnastics with polarities; such effort is not as daunting as it might seem.
• Have you considered your audience? Is this layout transportable or fixed?
  Are there fittings for acrylic sheets to prevent little fingers from reaching (in my case, I must consider cat's paws)?

Best!
Bruce dG

[LXdaddy]

Thanks for the comments Bruce
1. Northney Goods yard is all on one level.  I did consider making it a "hump" sorting yard but I can't think how you'd control the descent of wagons making sure they didn't over run the points at the Eastern end.  On reflection the headshunt which would be used for sorting (in front of the Tricross viaduct is probably too short, arriving trains would need to be split and half of the train sorted first and then the other half.
2. yes the reversing loop behind Eastport is a long run.  Just making it an in/out reversing track would mean either the locomotive is at the wrong end on the return journey or (if there was a run round track) the locomotive is facing the wrong way.... Which of course now that I write that down is a problem in both "terminus" stations - doh.
3. audience... I imaging this is a layout that a club would build.  The space is already large.  I don't anticipate having an audience around the outside.  The viewing angles are designed from the aisles between the board peninsulas.  The aisles are quite generous so there could probably be enough space for a few visitors.  I don't imagine this could be transported so I'd expect it to be built in the club operating room.