Share with us your ideas for additonal train staging and storage... nothing is out of the question!

J Daddy posted:

But what other staging / storage ideas could you share

Double tracked shelving and double tracked ceiling track branched off helix.

Ed and Chris on the 2 rail forum both have some great ideas used on their layouts to introduce trains onto the mains. Hopefully they'll post theirs. I don't want to cross any lines!

 I had the idea of overhead tracks that would leave a basement window to run outside. My girl said no way! So I built an outside shed with shelves of tracks. They leave thru doggie style lift up doors. The hidden feature of that is just to protect from weather and the security of them.

 I like the idea of that double helix Susan!

how about a 4 track wide elevator system, 5-6 levels high, giving you 20-24 staging tracks  in that area.....ladder switches on the other side going under an overpass....coming  into this room

I have a 7 track 0-5-0 yard under the stairs that holds about 30 cars. Along with that there is a single track that passes by to a three track staging yard that has since morphed into a 3 track sub end passenger terminal.  The challenges of jumping from one room to the other became too much but having the pass through hole gives me a means of having three trains ready to go with the 2 that live on the layout.  More than sufficient for one person operation.

Here is the hidden yard I plan to put below grade.

http://www.switchcrafters.com/ElevatorSystem.html

Knowing ahead of time that storage and staging would be a necessity, I planned this 7 track yard, that will eventually be hidden.  As with O gauge in general, there's never enough space for everything, despite the best laid plans.  A second level of track could be installed above this, the lead track coming off that unoccupied curve at the left.  Unfortunately, it would impede access to the lower yard, if an 0-5-0 was needed.

I have a couple of other areas under the layout for more storage tracks.  One plan is to improvise engine storage tracks using a gate type "turntable" that would manually swing in an arc.  less complicated than a proper turntable.

Bruce

I bought a wood tray at Hobby Lobby for when I do op sessions so I could place cars on it when I'm swapping out stuff at the interchange track when the session resets for another train. I put some Atlas Code 100 HO re-railer sections on it, and it'll hold more than enough cars. So at an op session where I run another train, I can have a new set of cars ready on this tray in another room, ready to go. I can also connect alligator clips to wires to the DCC system and use any of these as a program track if I need to. There's also room for boxes for the car cards for each car being swapped out, too...

Good old fashion bookcases hold about 200 cars.

I have drawers for the cars that are being used at the present time. One drawer holds loads as well. Roo.

John,

Do you have enough space in the furnace room to build a vertical file shelf?  This would be similar to the old show cases where you pushed the button and the shelves moved up or down so you could see what was on them.  It would take a little engineering but that would make it easy to load up a considerable amount of trains to run and not be in the way of the layout.

briansilvermustang posted:

How about an inside shot, Brian?

Larry

I took a 4 wheel cart like is used to pull stock from shelves added 3 extra shelves divided them and lined them with fabric shelving clothe and can get a big boy on on row and don't have to worry about bumping together and the cart is on wheels so I can store where ever need be to keep it out of the way. No pictures to over at this time as it is buried under lots of stuff some even train stuff as I am still unpacking after moving into the new house. With 1800 sq ft of space over which half with be layout and trains from every where including the ceiling..

You want "push button" convenience?  As long as money is no object, then I suggest an electric filing system adapted for railroad purposes in which you could store entire consists and retrieve them with the touch of a button:

However, if such is out of your price range, then I concur with the storage drawer concept with tracks aligned perpendicular to the direction of drawer travel in opening and closing - you don't want to be charged extra mileage on those privately owned freight cars every time you open or close a drawer.  Shelving is always precarious and a derailment could ruin your day.

As far as a staging yard, I'd suggest a double ended facility so that you can enjoy the convenience of not have to make extra moves to yard your trains.  You'll want to not only stage and run your trains, you'll also want to re-stage them without fuss or distraction.

However, let me suggest something to increase interest in addition to running more equipment: way freights.  If you can program your "through trains" to operate independently, which it sounds as though you can, you put the through trains on a timetable and then operate way freights, ducking in and out of sidings to serve customers and clear superior trains - just like the real thing.

Shoe cubbies from Home Depot

http://www.southwestsolutions....-button-files-images

This looks like something interesting.

Thanks for sharing.

It won't be good if the shelves tip too much!