Inch for inch a switching layout built on a small bookshelf provides more action than perhaps any other form of model railroading.
Inglenook sidings puzzle.
And not surprisingly the grandaddy of all small portable layouts was exactly this kind of layout built in 1926 in england by a r.
The trach at the top of the diagram can hold five trucks while the other two sections can hold three each.
The shunting puzzle this layout is based on the design called inglenook sidings which combines a seemingly simple layout with a clever design in problem solving.
They are written in javascript which means that they will run when the pages are opened no downloads or such are required.
There are three short tracks connevted to the main line.
As with most shunting puzzles the length of the sidings is determined by the operating rules.
The headshunt allows for the engine plus 3.
Possibly the most salient feature of inglenook sidings the classic british shunting puzzle par excellence is its sheer simplicity in terms of track layout.
Another classic shunting puzzle based on the real kilham sidings on the alnwick cornhill branch of the north eastern railway ner.
It consists of a specific track layout a set of initial conditions a defined goal and rules which must be obeyed while performing the shunting operations.
In the case of inglenook sidings the longest siding holds 5 wagons while the two others have a capacity of 3 wagons each.
As a puzzle it had very rigid rules on the lengths of the sidings and switch lead.
Remove the lift arm from one end of each wagon and from the loco and have a tuft of grass that lifts the arm as the trucks are pushed over it.
The hidden siding measures two feet in length so it can accommodate a two carriage multiple unit the longest being the class 15x or 17x traction.
The centre siding will eventually go into a mill across the end of the layout hence no buffers required.
The inglenook south shunting puzzle layout features a hidden siding.
I ve looked at various methods for achieving the uncoupling and am hoping to use a method employed on a couple of exhibition layouts i ve seen.
These pages allow you to operate a version of each of my two layouts the skowhegan athens and riverside yard on screen.
These rules were necessary to increase the challenge.
December 12 2013 by carl arendt.
The argument for the inglenook is that as it is a very simple track plan with only two switches.
It was originally designed by alan wright in the 1970 s and this particular layout has taken this and adapted it for the public to operate rather than the operator behind the layout.
Model railroad switching puzzle.
