How about rail car storage as a layout?

https://goo.gl/maps/hdctRV2JhWs

You've got tons of staging, yards, a wye, two loops to turn around (put those tropes to work!). You can also use an area of turnouts sitting in place that you haven't gotten around to setting up yet as a prototypical area of expansion.

They have several SD40s and south of the sand facility you can see the tracks being built to their now-finished maintenance facility and car repair shop.

I am going to use this thread to show the building of a new switching area I am adding to my CNW Peninsula Div. These pics will show the the basic foot print of the new area which is 4' x 11' overall.

More will follow as I get going.

Richard

Hi,

I previously had an ambitious layout and plenty of space for it, but it never really got past bench work and pink foam.  This time around I have the opportunity to start over and want to stick with a smaller layout that I can actually make some real progress on.  Once that's done, I can always add on if time allows.

I really like the idea of doing a 4x8 table design, but with a divider down the middle of the long dimension.  So really two 2x8 opportunities with an outer loop connecting everything.

I plan to install DCC to my almost-completed, 200 sq. ft. HO layout. Layout has long tunnel runs on perimeter. Will infra-red (IR) throttle system (e.g., Digitrax DT-402) function properly to the hidden track under the tunnel scenery (lots of plaster cloth, joint compound, rocks, trees, etc.)? I understand line-of-sight need for such IR system.