Is this physically possible?!

[Elsparrow]

Ok, so I've been adjusting my layout in anyrail and I appear to have a quad line of 00 peco track within about 16cm between the outer edges of the sleepers of the 2 outer pieces in anyrail.

Yet when I lay it out roughly, this looks far too small for anything to physically fit alongside each other.

Is this possible, or do I need to rethink my dimensions here.

Also struggling to find a small enough engine shed to work with those track dimensions anyway, but that means nout if nothing fits.

[mark_brody]

I've just measured my 3 lines at 13cm. I used track spacers when I layed it and these give a slightly bigger than prototypical gaps, so I think 16cm would be possible for 4 lines. But not on bends. You'd need to widen the gaps there for sure.

I suggest just laying a bit and trying it with your longest rolling stock and just see what happens. Narrow gaps do look better, so if you can get away with it. But I think there is always a wider gap between 2 sets of rails normally, so this would mean 16cm is not possible.

Mark

[Elsparrow]

Well the track is laid as this:
_________________________
_____________________/
____________________/
___________________/

where the top 2 / are points and the bottom / is flexi track into the straight.

So only real curves are on the points. I'll order the bits anyway as I can use the bits on another layout at some point.

Think I'm gonna be scratch building the engine shed tho!

[Bigmet]

Peco Streamline points will place the track at 50mm centres, so the width dimension for four tracks over the sleeper ends comes to more like 180mm, and you should allow 200mm width as the door opening into the shed, to allow some space between the vehicle sides and the door posts. I believe that track spaced at these centres will allow OO vehicles to pass without collisions on curves provided the minimum radius used is 24" - although some modern very long coaches may be very close to making contact - my layout has nothing longer than Deltics and 64' mk 1 coaches, and these 'miss by miles'.

You can trim the last sleeper and a matching piece of rail off the curved road of Peco points, and get the spacing down to 44mm centres, which at a scale 11 feet is the standard minimum spacing for double track running lines in the UK. Track in yards is actually spaced more widely to enable men and equipment to move freely between whatever is on the rails, minimum 60mm track centres is usually called for, and it can be much more. But if you need to pack the track in, trimming the points slightly as described is a way to do it. You can get down to 40mm centres for parallel straight track, as UK stock in OO scales at 36mm wide, that's when you discover that items like Hornby's 9F have overwidth cylinders...

[Elsparrow]

The standard point layout width is fine. It's because I use a left hand point, then right hand points and the curves off them lead into the middle 2 sidings meaning the spacing is slightly less than other times.